Back in mid-1968, Ford unleashed the 428 Cobra Jet V8 inside the Mustang, churning out 335 HP and 440 lb-ft of torque. By 1969, the Super Cobra Jet arrived with forged internals and drag-strip rear axles, because subtlety was clearly for the competition. But by 1970, while the Mustang clung to its 428-cubic-inch roots, the Torino Cobra leveled up to the monster 429-cubic-inch V8. Packing 370 HP (or 375 HP in Super Cobra Jet trim) and 450 lb-ft of torque, this mid-size brute stormed down the quarter-mile in under 14 seconds flat.
Ford managed to sell 7,675 Torino Cobras in 1970. A respectable figure, considering it was an expensive option package, and 3,488 of those buyers checked the box for the functional Ram Air hood scoop. The glaring bright orange specimen currently sitting on a showroom floor in Depew, New York, is one of those Ram Air cars. But its true flex isn’t what sits under the hood, it’s the paint job.
In 1970, Ford offered a generous palette of 16 factory colors for the Torino, spanning various shades of red and yellow, but orange was nowhere to be found. If you wanted an orange Torino, you had to annoy the dealership until they agreed to file a special-order request. That’s precisely what the original owner did, likely borrowing Grabber Orange from the Mustang color chart.
The original window sticker, a Ford customer service document, and a Marti Report all confirm its “special paint” lineage. While 150 Torinos received custom paint that year, only 49 shared this specific paint and trim combination, making actual single-digit production numbers for this hue a near certainty.
Adding to the drama, this muscle car remained with its original owner for a staggering 56 years, accumulating just 52,693 miles on the odometer. While the selling dealer cheekily labels it an “unmolested survivor”, it looks suspiciously too clean to have escaped the last half-century untouched; a meticulous recent restoration seems far more probable.
Packed with roughly $791 in options, nearly 20% of its original base price, including an 8,000-rpm tachometer, high-back bucket seats, Traction-Lok differential, power brakes, power steering, and an AM radio for when you get tired of listening to 429 cubic inches of American thunder, it is currently available at Basil Classics for $74,970.
