1971 Ford Mustang

The Ford Mustang was restyled for 1971 and grew in length by over two inches. They were wider, lower, heavier, and had a new hood with concealed windshield wipers. In the center of the grille was the Mustang insignia, and the door handles fit flush with the body. New options included the Special Instrumentation Group package, an electric rear window defogger, and a Body Protection Group package which included front bumper guards and side moldings.

The base Mustangs came equipped with color-keyed nylon carpeting, floor-shift, high-backed bucket seats, concealed windshield wipers with cowl air inlets, courtesy lights, cigar lighter, heater and defroster, mini console with an ashtray, armrests, DirectAire ventilation system, steel guardrail door construction, glove box, and all-vinyl interior. They rode on E78-14 belted black sidewall tires and were equipped with either the 250 CID six or the 302 CID V8. Convertible models had a power convertible top.

The Boss 302 and the B429 powerplants were no longer found in the lineup. There was a new Boss 351 Mustang that had better weight distribution than the prior Boss 429.

The Mustang Grande coupe was fitted with all the features found on the base model, plus bright pedal pads, Deluxe high-back bucket seats in cloth trim, Deluxe two-spoke steering wheel, electric clock, molded trim panels with integral pull handles and armrests, Deluxe instrument panel, dual color-keyed racing mirrors, rocker panel moldings, vinyl roof, wheel covers, right rear quarter panel trim with an ashtray, and wheel lip moldings. In total, Ford produced 17,406 examples of the Mustang Grande. The base price of the Grande was $3,115.

The Mustang Mach 1 was powered by a two-barrel 302 CID V8 engine and rode on E70-14 whitewalls. They had a color-keyed spoiler, hood moldings, fender moldings, and racing mirrors. In the front was a unique grille with Sportlamps. They were given a competition suspension, trim rings and hubcaps, pop-open gas cap, deck lid paint stripe, black or Argent Silver finish on lower bodysides, high-back bucket seats, and honey-comb texture back panel applique. The Mustang Mach 1 sold for $3,270 and there were 36,449 examples produced in 1971.

The Mustang Boss 351 had a high-output 351 cubic-inch motor rated at 330 horsepower. It had a four-barrel carburetor, a special cooling package, and a wide ratio four-speed manual gearbox with a Hurst shifter. They came with a 3.91:1 rear axle gear ratio with Traction Lok differential, Ram-Air engine call-outs, competition suspension with staggered rear shocks, electronic RPM limiter, functional front spoiler, 80-ampere batter, F60-15 raised white letter tires, and special Instrumentation Group. They had Boss 351 insignia, dual exhaust, power disc brakes, Space Saver spare tire, and a functional NASA hood scoop. The hood was painted either Argent Silver or black. They had hood lock pins, color-keyed racing mirrors (the left was remote-controlled), and a unique grille with Sports lamps. The hubcaps had trim rings and there were body-side tape stripes in black or Argent Silver. The base price of the Boss 351 was $4,125 and just 1,800 examples were produced in 1971.

Bodystyles, Pricing and Production
The 1971 Ford Mustang was introduced on September 19, 1970. A total of 149,678 examples were produced, and 127,062 were sold.

The hardtop coupe body style had a base price of $2,910, the fastback listed at $2,975, the convertible at $3,230, and the Grande at 3,115. These came standard with a 250 CID six-cylinder engine, with the 302 CID V8 adding approximately $100 to the base price. The Boss 351 and Mach 1 did not come with six-cylinder power. The Boss 351 had a base price of $4,125, and the Mach 1 listed at $3,270.

The most popular body style was the hardtop coupe with 65,696 examples built. A total of 23,956 were fastbacks and 6,121 were convertibles. An additional 36,449 were Mach 1s, 17,406 were Grandes, and 1,800 were Boss 351s.

Engines
The 250 cubic-inch six-cylinder engine had overhead valves, a cast-iron block, seven main bearings, a Motorcraft one-barrel carburetor, and 9.0:1 compression, developed 145 horsepower at 4,000 RPM. This engine had an 'L' in the serial number code.

The 302 cubic-inch eight-cylinder engine had overhead valves, a cast-iron block, five main bearings, 9.0:1 compression, and developed 21 bhp at 4,600 RPM. This engine had an 'F' in the serial number code.

The 351 cubic-inch V8 engine had overhead valves, a cast iron block, five main bearings, a Motorcraft two-barrel carburetor, and 9.0:1 compression, and produced 240 bhp at 4,00 RPM. In this configuration, this engine had an 'H' in the serial number and was a $45 option. With a Holley four-barrel carburetor and 10.7:1 compression, it produced 285 bhp at 5,400 RPM. In this configuration, this 351 'Cleveland' engine had an 'M' in the serial number and was a $93 option. With a Holley four-barrel carburetor and 11.1:1 compression, it produced 370 bhp at 5,400 RPM. In this configuration, this Boss 351 engine had a 'Q' in the serial number.

The 429 cubic-inch 'Cobra Jet' V8 engine (serial number 'C') had overhead valves, a cast iron block, five main bearings, and 11.3:1 compression and produced 370 bhp at 5,400 RPM. With a Holley four-barrel carburetor with Ram-Air induction and 11.5:1 compression, this 429 CID Super Cobra Jet V8 engine (serial number 'J') produced 375 bhp at 5,600 RPM.

Dimensions
The 1971 Ford Mustang rested on a 109-inch wheelbase, an overall length of 189.5 inches, and a width of 75 inches.

by Daniel Vaughan | Apr 2019