1970 Mustang Mach 1

The 1970 Mustang Mach 1 like its 1969 cousin, had its roots founded in a 1968 Ford concept car of the same name.

It's distinctive trim and hood scoop, along with a different grille and running lights made the pony car and instant hit.

Although the production car never ran as fast as its name would suggest (Mach l being approximately 761.2 mph) it nonetheless beat a number of land speed records.

Its looks also led many to believe that it was not only better looking in many ways than the 1970 Boss 302 or the Boss 429, it might be even more powerful.















While the power claim may not be accurate, there was a great deal of love for the 1970 Mustang Mach 1 and a huge opportunity to create some incredible horsepower even with it's standard 351 cubic inch V8 engine.


















Visually, it's hard to find an angle on these cars that don't in an instant, tell you that you are looking at a Mach 1 and not another fastback Mustang.

At the rear, the standard light panel is replaced with a black stripe sweeping across the top half of the tail, as well as the Mach l logo separating the two halves of the graphic.

And there is no missing the cast graphic and ribbed casting of the pony car's exclusive rocker trim, which screams "look at me".

Where it Started - The Mach 1 Concept Car

While the 1968 Ford Mach 1 concept car looked more like a strangely modified 1967 hatchback with it's odd shaped rectangular headlights and 4 exhaust pipes exiting the middle of the rear, the production car fared better.

It does make you wonder though, whether some of the ideas that showed up in the Mustang concept were instead transferred into the Mercury Cougar styling.

1970 Mach l Styling Changes

Designed as a step between the Ford Mustang GT Model and the near race car in a box, Boss Mustangs, the 1970 Mustang Mach 1 took on a few of the Boss parts such as the rear window louvers and incorporated additional styling of its own.





















The distinctive Mach 1 logo and lower door/rocker panel blacked out and ribbed trim pieces, combined with the styled matte black plastic insert between the tail lights and the racing stripe theme carried from the car's hood tied everything into a very sharp package.

Like its 1970 Ford Mustang brothers, the 1970 Mustang Mach 1 featured revised front sheet metal, including the new distinctive outer front "gills" and going back to a 2 headlight configuration. Also changed from its profile, were the upper side scoops seen on the 1969 model.

The 1970 version also incorporated a functional hood scoop, designed to force cool air into the engine at speed, producing additional horsepower from the denser oxygen mixture. This feature is also known as "ram air" and is also the basis of the current cold air induction kits. Like they say, everything old is new again!

It's distinctive matte black accents gave it a unique two-tone appearance and a much more aggressive look than the standard sports roof Mustang.

A new black honey comb trim panel was inserted between the restyled triple recessed tail lights and new for '70 Mach l badges were added.

Interior

The 1970 Mach interior featured a more luxurious looking woodgrain applique on the dash and for 1970, featured Mach l specific, high back bucket seats and special carpet treatment. Like it's other 1970 Ford Mustang siblings, the driver's side remote mirror housing changed on the door panels.

If you ordered the optional console with your interior, you would notice that there were no slots for placing the buckles of your seat belts when not in use as the 1970 Mustangs now featured retractable seat belts.

Engine and Power Train

Engine:

For all its marketing hype, the standard engine and transmission combination of a 351 cubic inch Windsor V8 and 2 barrel carburetor was fairly mundane, producing only 40 horsepower more than the standard 302 V8's 210 horsepower.

The optional choices were much more interesting, including the other real performance engine and transmission combos, such as the 351 4 barrel, the 428 Cobra Jet, producing a reportedly understated 375 horsepower.

Power Train: The high performance gear sets included the 3.91:1 traction lock and the wicked 4.30:1 Detroit Locker along with upgraded suspension pieces designed to handle the additional power and weight of these large engines.

Restoring a 1970 Mustang Mach 1

While restoring a surviving pony car is both challenging and rewarding, restoring a Mach takes a little more work. While the basic parts, such as floor pans, hoods, quarter panels and doors are the same as any other sports roof Mustang fastback of the same year, the special trim pieces are harder to come by, so when shopping for a good car to restore, check to see if all these trim pieces are there, as they will be costly to replace.

Here's the other famous member of the 1970 Mustang family, it's limited edition race ready brother, the 1970 Boss 302 Mustang

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