Fans of classic American muscle – and especially enthusiasts of rare Fords – may view this barn find video through bittersweet eyes. This is a 1970 Ford Torino Cobra, of which less than 8,000 were built back in the day. Under the hood is Ford’s 429 cubic-inch Cobra Jet V8, which made 370 horsepower when new. Sadly, this engine currently generates zero power, as the bare block is on the ground next to the passenger front wheel.
Yes, that’s the bitter portion of this Ford find, shared on YouTube by DezzysSpeedShop. According to the clip, the current owner bought the car back in 1990 and drove it home. The engine was pulled as it sat in the driveway, and then it was shuffled into a garage where more pieces were removed. License plate tags show 1991 as the last year it was registered, and the owner confirms it hasn’t been on the road since then. He says he started working on it, and then “life took over.” It’s something almost every enthusiast with a project car understands.
As a result, the trunk is filled with engine parts. The interior also has various bits and pieces lying about, and the fenders are off the car completely. In such a state of disassembly, it’s pretty easy to see the car looks relatively solid overall, though some notable rust is visible in a few spots. The front fenders are said to be in storage, and the owner also has a pair of Torino parts cars available when extra components are needed. It just needs some reconditioning and reassembly… a lot of reassembly.
Now for the sweet portion of this barn find. The current owner says the car is, in fact, complete (albeit in pieces), including everything for its original 429 Cobra Jet V8. And while spiders have clearly taken up residence in the engine bay, the car and its components were at least stored inside. Considering some of the sketchy automotive rescues we’ve seen – including cars literally sinking into the ground, this one doesn’t look too bad.
At this point, we don’t know the fate of this Torino Cobra. The video fades to black with the tour ongoing, though perusing the comments we see the videographer is thinking about buying it. For someone seeking a piece of classic Ford muscle that’s not a Mustang, one could do worse than rebuilding a Torino Cobra Jet.
