For 1974, the four-cylinder made 88 horsepower and 116 lb-ft torque, a rather pathetic output compared to the final versions of the first-generation Mustang. Rated at an underwhelming 105 horsepower, the V6 wasn’t exactly impressive either, but what bothered most purists was that the four-banger was significantly less powerful than the inline-six the Mustang had in 1964 (105 ponies and 156 lb-ft torque).
The unit was available with either a four-speed manual or a three-speed automatic. The manual version, which was a bit lighter, was the quickest, needing 13.6 seconds to hit 60 mph toward a top speed of 99 mph. Hardly decent, but fuel economy was pretty solid at up to 19.2 mpg city and 26.3 mpg highway.
When equipped with the automatic, the ‘Stang was more than a second slower from 0 to 60 mph at 15.1 seconds and top speed decreased to 98. Fuel economy was also lower, rated at 16.4 mpg city and 24 mpg highway. The latter was only marginally better than the V6 model, but the manual model offered an extra three mpg across the board.
For 1975, when Ford reintroduced the V8 (with no more than 133 horsepower and 233 lb-ft torque), the four-cylinder’s output decreased to 87 horsepower and 114 lb-ft torque. Both manual and automatic models were slightly slower, while mpg figures went down too.