The year 1974 ushered in a completely new Mustang known as the Mustang II. It was designed in response to the baby boomers' desire for imported cars that were not only smaller but better on gas. This in addition to a gas crisis and higher insurance rates for high powered cars resulted in the Mustang II design.
The original Ford Mustang was high powered, a true pony car, and had an amazing following. However, times were changing and Mustang sales had been going down. There were new emissions regulations in place that considerably affected the original Mustang's power. So, Mustang needed to make a change to not only re-create the love of the Mustang in consumer's hearts but to also sell some units. What was needed was a fresh design that was small and sporty, handled well, with outstanding engineering.
The result for this tall order was a Mustang II that did not meet any of the necessary requirements. It was not proportioned or designed well, was too small, had poor handling, not enough power, and was at the bottom of the performance ladder. Despite being what seemed the worst Mustang ever produced it sold amazingly well. Almost 386,000 units were sold in 1974 alone. Amazingly enough, the first Mustang II won the 1974 Motor Trend Car of the Year.
Most true Ford Mustang fans hate the Mustang II and feel as if it is a poor excuse for a Mustang. The fact that this vehicle won the Motor Trend Car of the Year award is like rubbing salt in the wound for these diehard fans. However, there are some Mustang II fans out there who believe there is nothing better than this design.
The biggest problem with trying to create a new Mustang from the old one is that the basic recipe had changed. The same ingredients were no longer being used so creating the same type of car would be difficult. The original Mustang was inspired by the Falcon while the Mustang II was inspired by the Pinto econo-box. Regardless, Ford forged ahead and the Mustang II was introduced considerably weaker and hardly recognizable as a pony car, but a Mustang nonetheless.
1974 Mustang Lineup
Powertrain and Performance
The 1974 Mustang was smaller than ever and many believed the smaller size would increase its power. However, the Mustang II was not only reduced in size but in power as well. The year 1974 was a first ever without a Mustang with a V8 engine and another first was the Mustang with a four cylinder engine. It was a year of changes and a year that was successful for the Mustang.
The base engine for the 1974 Mustang rated at a truly unbelievable 88 horsepower from a single overhead cam four engine with 2.3 liters. Another engine was offered in 1974 that was a little more powerful, but not by much. It was the "Cologne" engine that sported 2.8 liter OHV V6 and revved out 105 horsepower. Pony car fans were shocked at the lack of power, but many Mustang fans enjoyed the better gas mileage.
The two available transmissions in 1974 were the three speed automatic and the standard manual four speed. The Mustang II, so noted so consumers would know a big change had occurred, was designed on the Pinto base. The uni-body design was maintained as well as the double wishbone front suspension. The rear suspension had its rear axle bolted to leaf springs. The changes to the chassis simply included a rack and pinion steering gear. This made driving considerably easier and drivers were more comfortable. In fact, many first generation Mustang owners switched to this type of steering after purchasing the original Mustang. Standard on the 1974 Mustang II were front disc brakes.
Of course, the Mustang II was not the Pinto even though they shared the same base. This needed to be stronger for the heavy duty parts required by the Mustang II. More insulation was also required for the Mustang II due to the increased vibrations by the four cylinder engine. Performance didn't really seem to be the number one concern for the Mustang II, although it had been a priority with the first generation. This was obvious with the lack of a V8 engine even as an option. The powerful Mach 1 performance Mustang remained available, but it was a completely different vehicle from years past and only boasted 101 horsepower.
In general, the Mustang II was considerably different from the original 'Stangs. The former mechanics were not even recognizable on this new generation. The second Mustang generation had a newly designed front suspension and a sub frame was developed to separate the constantly vibrating engine separate from the rest of the chassis. All in all the first and second generations of Mustangs were completely different mechanically.
Exterior
Although the Mustang II was considerably smaller and mechanically different, it did have some resemblance to the original Mustang in its exterior design. The grille sported a running pony, the sides were scalloped, and the taillights were also reminiscent of the original pony car days.
There were not too many exterior differences among the available 1974 models simply because there were not too many to pick from. The two door hardtop and three door hatchback were available as was the luxury Ghia and the Mach 1. The typical Mustang body style of a short deck and long hood was still used and was one of the few things that made the second generation even resemble its predecessors.
The wheelbase for the Mustang II was really tiny considering what Mustangs were accustomed to. The 96.2 inch wheelbase was only 175 inches long. Almost 13 inches were shaved off the base and length from the previous year's design. Another interesting fact is the 1974 Mustang II lost about 400 pounds from the previous year's version.
The available exterior colors for the 1974 Mustang II included bright red, medium metallic bright blue, dark red, medium lime yellow, light blue, metallic bright green gold, metallic silver, pearl white, medium yellow gold, medium metallic copper, tan glow, green glow, medium saddle bronze, and ginger glow.
Interior
The 1974 Mustang II had a considerably different dash than years past. Plenty of information giving devices were stashed in the dash. These devices included gauges for fuel levels, the alternator, temperature, as well as a tachometer. Standard in the Mustang II were bucket seats that did not recline.
Some of the interior factory options for the 1974 Mustang II included an anti theft alarm system, deluxe seatbelts, tinted glass, deluxe seatbelts, rear window defroster, remote control mirrors, luxury interior group, leather wrapped steering wheel, vinyl roof, AM/FM radio, tape player with AM/FM radio, and more.
The interior trim colors included black, blue, tan, red, blue/white, avocado, silver, tan/white, and red/white.
Final Thoughts
The first year of the Mustang II was 1974 and it was created to revitalize sliding Mustang sales and reach a market that was becoming more concerned with gas mileage than burning rubber. It seems Ford was well aware of who they were targeting since the only two engines offered were anything but powerful. Of course, there are Mustang fans that think the Mustang II was a great design and other Mustang pony car enthusiasts who believe it was a waste of a Mustang and maybe not even a Mustang at all.
One thing is for sure and that is the Mustang II was right on target with what consumers wanted at that time. The increased efficiency and small size was really attractive to almost 386,000 consumers in 1974 alone. That was more than sales for the previous two years combined. However, future Mustang II sales never reached such heights so everyone who was a fan of the Mustang II probably made their purchase in the first year it was available. Or else its popularity just began dropping for the rest of its existence.
