I've posted pics before of my '72 Gran Torino Sport:
It's an all original unrestored car, ordered originally by my father in 1972. It's nice that these cars are starting to finally get some recognition, especially the 72's with Clint's movie. These Torino's are really well engineered for their time (okay the standard suspensions were way too soft, luckily mine has the heavy-duty suspension). People are surprIsed at how quite, comfortable, and smooth my car is for a 37 year old car. They are even more surprised when I tell them it has 145 K miles on it (and no oil consumption).
Back to the originaly post, a lot of people don't give these old engines enough credit. They'd last long if you looked after them, but there was A LOT more upkeep. The choke had to be kept in constant tune to keep the cylinders from washing out, the oil had to be changed more frequently due to the lower quality oils used, and more contaminants in the oil. Of course tune-ups were a lot more major and required fairly often.
My dad learned his up keep from a GM mechanic he grew up next to. He'd cars always run perfectly, no oil burning right up until he drove them to the scrap yard when the bodies rusted out (thankfully, my dad learned from someone else how to look after the body).
Occupant, I've seen you Torino on the Torino forum. Nice car, good luck with the project. I am glad you're keeping a 335 Series Ford engine in it instead of taking the easy road with a Windsor.
