1970 Ford LTD - Jalopnik Comments

1970 Ford LTD

t65neon — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 10:49:20 EDT

first of all...the base motor was a 351 windsor ,not a cleveland,this was the first year for a small block 351....1969 was the last year for a manual transmission in a full size ford(except possibly for a six cylinder equipped custom)..as the proud owner of a 70 ltd xl(actually just an xl..they dropped the ltd/ galaxie name for the xl in 69)these cars are fantastic,mine is a convertable...with a 2bbl 429,c6 trans,and a 9inch rear...this car is a good performer(especially considering the weight)....and with a lil work can be made to perform and handle much better than stock...the headlamp switch for the hidden headlamps is still available..but the rest of the system(except vaccumm hoses)would have to be sourced form a parts car

t65neon

1970 Ford LTD

Galaxie500 — Sat, 16 Feb 2008 02:37:21 EST

My first car was a 70 Galaxie 2dr hardtop like this except without the flip headlights. It had the 390 2bbl. I drove it back in the early 80's when gas was cheap and you could fit 6-8 people on those vinyl bench seats. Carried anything and everything that would fit in the huge trunk. I loved getting it sideways and coasting down 80 from Tahoe as far as I could just like Jack Kerouac in his Hudson from "On the Road".

Galaxie500

1970 Ford LTD

Zarba — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 08:58:27 EST

We had a 1973 LTD 4-Door. 400/2 bbl. engine making probably 200 HP and gobs and gobs of torque.

Wonderful car. A boat, in the finest sense of the word. The A/C would put frost on the vents.

That car gave its life for me when a yahoo in a van ran a stop sign in front of me. I had my license for 29 days at the time. I walked away, and the LTD was totalled, but it practically cut that van in half.

And the back seat was verrrry roomy.

Zarba

1970 Ford LTD

bdon — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 08:52:18 EST

HoUuUuUuuuuuuuuGe car!

bdon

1970 Ford LTD

ranwhenparked — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 01:29:05 EST

My mom's parents have always been Ford people, a Falcon followed by a V8 Maverick (sort of the working man's LTD), then on to a Mustang II and a succession of Tempos.

My dad's parents, on the other had were a bit more interesting. Their garage had, at various points, a Coronet 440, a GTX, and a Hurst/Olds. Grandpa became more sedate in later years though, his last car purchase was a n Acura Legend.

ranwhenparked

1970 Ford LTD

IronEagle — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 00:43:14 EST

Cool. My family used to have a 78 Country Squire wagon with the woodpaneling. Great car gave years of service to the family back in the day. Nice find.

IronEagle

1970 Ford LTD

Kelly — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 20:34:01 EST

When I was a teenager, my father had a good friend who had one of these. Green, I think it was. The passenger's side of the dash was so large and flat, this guy, a painter, took a ballpoint pen to it and created a really nice work of art on this canvas.

The yellow one got my vote, but I wonder how much the 60-series rubber actually helps cornering 'ability'. The drill is, while at walking speed, turn the wheel 90*, wait for overwhelming understeer, hit the brakes.

Kelly

1970 Ford LTD

bzr — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 18:53:33 EST

Hell, my grandparents probably had an LTD at some point. And they were busy fending off the Japanese in Manchuria.

Also, black steelies/hubs = WIN.

bzr

1970 Ford LTD

squablow — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 17:07:18 EST

@lemondriver: Weren't Esprit's Firebirds? The slow Camaro's were Type LT's and Berlinettas.

squablow

1970 Ford LTD

Charles_Barrett - Now with Variable-Valve Timing — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 15:47:44 EST

Both of my Grandmothers drove Chrysler New Yorkers during the sixties and seventies, but I was given the keys to the family's 1970 Custom 500 wagon (down-market LTD; no woody, 351W, 2 bbl.) when I got my license at 16. Without the vinyl roof or woody siding, that car aged very gracefully until we decommishioned it in '82.

Charles_Barrett - Now with Variable-Valve Timing

1970 Ford LTD

NovaloadMissesPolar — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 13:26:43 EST

I'm with Beercheck on this one, there is a lot of detailed work on that LTD and it's looking pretty classy these days. Except for the vinyl top, of course.

Both my Grandpas were Chevy--at one point one had a '57 and one had a '55 and they couldn't understand why these kids were always pestering them to sell them. I can remember every single detail of the '57, as a kid I spent a lot of visiting time just admiring it, climbing on it, begging to go for a ride.

NovaloadMissesPolar

1970 Ford LTD

Mad_Science — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 13:19:18 EST

Oh, and my grandparents had a '70 Pontiac LeMans, 2 door.

Mad_Science

1970 Ford LTD

NotACoolGuy — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 13:15:28 EST

My granddad had an '89 Eldorado. I loved that car so much, but the brakes went up right before he died. I had kind of wanted to turn it into a rolling memorial but it would have cost more than the funeral. It was very sad.

NotACoolGuy

1970 Ford LTD

Mad_Science — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 13:06:32 EST

There's a flat-black one parked on one of the streets I commute on. Without the vinyl top, it looks super-mean.

I'd love to take pictures, but I'm pretty sure the owner would kill me. That, or a passerby would kill me. That, or a loose pit bull would kill me.

It's on a rough street.

Mad_Science

1970 Ford LTD

Mysterious Utility Bento — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 12:45:37 EST

This is VERY Dirty Harry! LOVE IT!

Mysterious Utility Bento

1970 Ford LTD

mobilene — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 12:38:14 EST

My grandparents drove four-wheel-drive trucks. Grandpa had a '72 Dodge pickup and Grandma had an orange '72 K/5 Blazer followed by a '78 Bronco.

My great-grandma had a '68 LTD coupe, though.

mobilene

1970 Ford LTD

Benson2175 — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 12:29:00 EST

When I was like 8 I went on a road trip with friends of the family in their late seventies early eighties (can't be sure) LTD. I remember comparing it to my parent's Accord and thinking 'why is this car so big on the outside and so cramped on the inside, there's no where for my feet'. It's the first instance where I started to realize that there was a big difference between domestic and import.

Benson2175

1970 Ford LTD

texan01 — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 12:10:32 EST

Most of my grandparents passed before I came along, but I remember my great-uncle having a turd brown '74 LTD sedan. He kept that thing for years and years and it survived Houston weather and several encounters with the house before he passed in 91. I remember that car always smelling of cinnamon rolls. He did let me get it out of the garage a few times for him as well.

texan01

1970 Ford LTD

discontinuuity — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 11:59:18 EST

Yes, my grandparents had an LTD. And my friend's great-grandparents. I would wager that most if not all of the middle-class members of the Greatest Generation have owned one of these at some point.

discontinuuity

1970 Ford LTD

Maymar is convinced M.C. Escher engineered his car — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 11:36:47 EST

I wonder what're the odds you'd be able to follow the aging of that Malibu parked across the road for the next 30-40 years. Also, that's a solid name for the dealership. Modest, but solid.

And I like the yellow LTD better. I can see a P.I. driving one. I mean, the only P.I. I've ever met drove an Intrepid with a body kit, but I like the fictionalized ideal better.

Maymar is convinced M.C. Escher engineered his car

1970 Ford LTD

OctaneBoaster — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 11:36:01 EST

@creigs9: I'm thinking of trading it in on a Toyota Priapus.

OctaneBoaster

1970 Ford LTD

Murilee Martin — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 11:32:48 EST

Actually, only one set of grandparents had an LTD. My grandfather on the other side was a hardcore rallyer, ice racer, and all-around Minnesota Hoon (still would be, only his vision isn't so good at 91) and drove some seriously cool machinery. 356-engined Beetles, V4 Saabs, Corvettes, etc. I'll have to post some stuff about his adventures.

Murilee Martin

1970 Ford LTD

SCROGGZILLA RAIDS AGAIN!! — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 11:23:46 EST

Seeing this LTD reminds me of every cop show and movie of the early 70's. I half expect Karl Malden slap a siren on the dash, and start chasin hippies when I see one.

SCROGGZILLA RAIDS AGAIN!!

1970 Ford LTD

jllevy123 — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 11:21:05 EST

@LTDScott: If I were you, I'd ask lemondriver if you can borrow his LHS this weekend.

jllevy123

1970 Ford LTD

creigs9 — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 11:16:04 EST

@lemondriver: Chrsyler Long Huge Shlong.

creigs9

1970 Ford LTD

creigs9 — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 11:12:14 EST

@LTDScott: The fullsize 70' fords had a lot of room in the front seat. Especially the passenger front seat. The dashboard on these cars had the coolest wraparound style. As far as the backseat room I don't, know I never sat back there. It also had copius amounts of two tone vinyl.

creigs9

1970 Ford LTD

gp5548 — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 11:08:45 EST

Back in the day (70's) we used to call the LTD "Long Tall Daddy", had one when I used to do construction work after high school, had the back seat removed and trunk filled with tools and nails, and a ladder strapped to the roof, I ditched it on a country road one night after some heavy drinking and never looked back. Those were the days.........

gp5548

1970 Ford LTD

LTDScott, Porcubimmer pilot — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:58:12 EST

@jllevy123: Well good thing I'm not gay then, although I will be in San Francisco this weekend. I'll have to tell my g/f to keep her mouth shut in the Castro!

LTDScott, Porcubimmer pilot

1970 Ford LTD

OctaneBoaster — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:56:14 EST

@jllevy123: Glad I drive a Chrysler LHS...

OctaneBoaster

1970 Ford LTD

jllevy123 — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:50:42 EST

LTDSCOTT (and those who asked what LTD stands for) - I had to laugh at your screen name because us gay men use the term LTD to signify someone has a Little Tiny Dick (as in..."You don't want to go out with him - he drives an LTD")

jllevy123

1970 Ford LTD

DoctorNine makes tires squeal in terror — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:40:55 EST

I fear yellow cars. I voted for the white one.

DoctorNine makes tires squeal in terror

1970 Ford LTD

LTDScott, Porcubimmer pilot — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:36:14 EST

@brandegee: I'm 6'3" (with a freakishly long torso) and not a small guy and I fit fine....

LTDScott, Porcubimmer pilot

1970 Ford LTD

instrumentofaction — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:36:01 EST

Yellow got my vote. Like others here, the dog dish/flat blackwall combo clinched it.

My paternal grandmother drove a succession of mustangs starting with a '66. My father recalls being frightened at how fast she took the hills and turns in Southeast Ohio. When i bought my first car her first question to me was "how fast does it go?". She was a rally driver at heart for sure.

My maternal grandparents...a succession of pontiac grand-ams. The plastic ones. Grandpa fixed all that trim with tape when it would peel off. At the time it was embarassing. Now it seems appropriate. After his fourth grand-am died from his intolerance for a regular oil change schedule he moved onto Buicks. Beige. All of them. The 3800 V6 could take biannual oil changes though, I'll give 'em that.

instrumentofaction

1970 Ford LTD

brandegee — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:26:43 EST

@LTDScott: My aunt had one of these. Aside from being a passenger in an '84 Skylark with bench seats and a short driver I can't remember ever being so claustrophobic.

brandegee

1970 Ford LTD

TBlueMax — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:25:43 EST

My grandmother had a dark green, 4-door LTD back in the day. Spotless considering she never washed it. My old 2-door Monterey sported this same light yellow paint with chocolate vinyl top, beautiful if you don't mind small children pointing at your ride and saying "banana!" all the time.

TBlueMax

1970 Ford LTD

SundaySunday — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:23:46 EST

Hey, I didn't know Gator McCluskey was in town.

Definitely the yellow one.

If I recall, Gator's was maroon, but it was 10 kinds of badass.

SundaySunday

1970 Ford LTD

VonPinto — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:22:08 EST

My grandparents had a Caprice coupe of the same vintage that was Skittles green with a white vinyl top. and big silver trash-can-lid hubcaps...

This car was so green that the astroturf on the porch looked grey by comparison. If you stared at that car for too long, the top would look bright pink...

VonPinto

1970 Ford LTD

beercheck — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:21:34 EST

Yup. Dog dishes. All of these in the midwest were green, by the way.

I always thought LTDs were among the ugliest cars on the road (still do), but now at least I can see an abundance of character. I like that DOTS gives me a chance to re-evaluate my childhood....and sometimes even recent.....prejudices.

beercheck

1970 Ford LTD

OctaneBoaster — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:20:23 EST

LTD="Loves Them DogDishes"

OctaneBoaster

1970 Ford LTD

LTDScott, Porcubimmer pilot — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:19:27 EST

Huh... looks like Chevy Rallye wheel caps on it.

This in flat black would be TITS.

Then again I'm partial to LTDs on black steelies.

LTDScott, Porcubimmer pilot

1970 Ford LTD

VonPinto — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:18:36 EST

Yellow. Based singularly on the bad-assitudery of the wheels/caps.

VonPinto

1970 Ford LTD

Paul Y. can't think of a better, shorter handle — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:18:09 EST

@racerx: Both?

Either way, it's a mean-looking car considering that it's the color of butter.

Paul Y. can't think of a better, shorter handle

1970 Ford LTD

amblito — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:16:22 EST

The white one looks cooler.

How big is this thing is comparison to a double decker bus?

amblito

1970 Ford LTD

cgarison — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:06:50 EST

White because it is a convertible like the one in Magnum Force.

Although, the yellow one is cool too. Just not Dirty Harry cool.

cgarison

1970 Ford LTD

OctaneBoaster — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:06:29 EST

Either that or a "Clever" way to call it "limited", since Chrysler already had "Limited" copyrighted.

/Cause the best way to make something "Limited" is to produce a brazillion of them.

OctaneBoaster

1970 Ford LTD

OctaneBoaster — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:04:25 EST

Luxury Trim Decor

/really

OctaneBoaster

1970 Ford LTD

danio3834 — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:00:34 EST

Both sets of grandparents had LTDs at some point. My moms father had a succession of them.

Ill always like them.

danio3834

1970 Ford LTD

georgejetson — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:58:02 EST

My grandfather the retired electrical engineer had an LTD -- a '71, IIRC. My other grandfather, a retired cop, had a 340 Duster. One of these things is not like the other.

georgejetson

1970 Ford LTD

Dave7 — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:56:13 EST

The dog-dish hub caps are perfect for this car. I voted yellow. Great find.

Dave7

1970 Ford LTD

creigs9 — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:54:17 EST

I had a 70 Custom, it was indestuctable. It was totaled in a T- bone accident in 1988. Towed it to storage where it sat for six months (waste of money). Decided to part it out. The car started right up, despite the front end being crushed. The motor and tranny is running to this day in a 50's Murcury.

creigs9

1970 Ford LTD

jbarrow — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:52:46 EST

Long term disability

jbarrow

1970 Ford LTD

Amscram — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:52:17 EST

I'm no one's grandparent, but in the late seventies I drove a green '70 LTD 4-door hardtop to college. My parents bought this for me rather than the banana-yellow '71 Challenger convertible that I was lusting after. The reason? In the convertible I'd be crushed if it flipped. Guess they didn't think about how it would be if that two-ton LTD with its skinny roof pillars flipped over...

Amscram

1970 Ford LTD

Stoatmaster — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:49:07 EST

So, what does LTD really stand for?

Stoatmaster

1970 Ford LTD

Slab — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:37:46 EST

A friend of mine in had a green beat-up LTD back in high school. It was ugly as hell but had style to spare!

Slab

1970 Ford LTD

franzouse — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:35:31 EST

One of my all-time favorite cars here and chosing was hard; The dog-dish bowls were the clincher. Go yellow! (oh wait that has different meaning now...)

franzouse

1970 Ford LTD

TurboBrick — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:31:34 EST

I look at these pictures and two questions come to my mind: How much water is in the trunk / passenger floor board, and how hopelessly rusted is the metal surrounding that rear window.

That's what I used to wonder when it would rain and my Swinger would sit out there.

TurboBrick

1970 Ford LTD

Ben Simons — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:30:32 EST

i chose the yellow one. the wheels and caps lend a look of subdued strength and resolute confidence to qualify for a ride worthy of Sarah Connor and Kyle Reese.

Ben Simons

1970 Ford LTD

racerx — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:21:10 EST

Looks mean. Is that thing lowered, or has the suspension just become a victim of gravity?

racerx

1970 Ford LTD

DannyBN — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:19:31 EST

My parents had a 1970 Country Squire in this same shade of yellow, with a pine green interior. And sadly, that was probably the most tasteful car they ever owned.

DannyBN

1970 Ford LTD

badco/LoJ — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:18:41 EST

My grandparents had an Imperial.

But my great-grandparents drove an LTD.

badco/LoJ

1970 Ford LTD

OctaneBoaster — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:17:51 EST

My Dad bought his company car and gave it to me. It was a 72 Galaxie with a 351 Cleveland cop motor. I used to enjoy dusting off all my friends in their Camaro "espirit"'s (read- 6-cyl).

Grandma had an 80's Merc. Caught on fire in the middle of the night and burned down half her house. I still don't know how she didn't get rich off of that.

OctaneBoaster

1970 Ford LTD

grzydj — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:16:48 EST

I had one of these, except that it was a light (faded) blue color and it had different wheel covers. The 302 was a decent engine, but wouldn't start if it was below 25 degrees or so.

You could probalby fit a Smart Car in it's trunk and still have room for a set of golf clubs.

grzydj

1970 Ford LTD

3wheeler — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:13:18 EST

My grandparents had an E-type Jaguar. So there. What do you mean the Frois Grois has run out, Mummy?

3wheeler

1970 Ford LTD

BSAKat — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:09:12 EST

@paul_y:
My mother's parents had an LTD, blue, eventually rusted to powder.
My dad's parents had a...wait for it...Cordoba! Burgundy with fine brown corinthian leather interior. I still remember the round, wood grain shift knob with the chrome button in it.

BSAKat

1970 Ford LTD

AustinMiniMan — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:08:09 EST

My grandmother had a Monaco... But this is still pretty darn mean looking.

AustinMiniMan

1970 Ford LTD

BSAKat — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:07:10 EST

I voted yellow. The rain and wheel/tire/hubcap combo did it for me.

BSAKat

1970 Ford LTD

Paul Y. can't think of a better, shorter handle — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:06:58 EST

My grandparents never had an LTD. My mom's folks always drove a combination of Buicks and GMCs, and my dad's mostly had VWs.

HA.

Paul Y. can't think of a better, shorter handle