These were great cars for hot rodding. Cheap and easy to work on. Better gears and some basic changes to the 302 made my 1974 2dr fly. I used to hunt Camaros and Mustangs to embarrass. Later put big money into a rollerized 351 windsor, balanced & blue printed, 11:1 compression with 4:10 gears on a spool, and changed the 3 spd manual for a top loader 4 speed. Scary car, undefeated in shady street drags.
I love your channel . I had a '73 Maverick grabber with a 302 and it was a cool car in grabber blue with blue interior. In 2022 we ordered and bought my wife a 22 XL Maverick in area 51 blue, it turned out to be a really nice little pick up. So this past April we traded her 22 in and bought my wife a 24 Maverick XLT with lots of options including AWD and 4k tow package in cactus grey. On 9/11/24 I won a 24 Bronco sport Badlands and traded it in for a 24 XLT azure blue with AWD and 4k tow package and luxury package. And walked away with a check. Love the Maverick pick up. We have 2.0 Ecoboost engines and both trucks are getting 30mpg here in North Idaho.
Growing up in the 70's, Maverick's were common beater's found in high school parking lots, usually due to rust up here in the rust belt. They were really great cars other than the ease at which they created rusticles. My brother's best friend had one they took out to California for a bit over a year. Came back, there wasn't a straight piece of metal on it anywhere, the frame was broken in 3 places, he still drove it for another couple of years. I had one as a winter car in the late 80's, I think I paid $200 for it. Only issue was the heat shield that sent warm air up to the automatic choke was rusted away preventing the choke from working correct. I just put a manual choke on it, the kits were common in auto parts stores back then for under $10. The front marker/turns didn't work either, being mounted below the bumper on early models, the salt would get inside and destroy them. I got a grille out of a newer model after they moved them up inside the grille. Ran great all winter, planned on keeping it but a co-worker offered me $500 for it so I couldn't turn it down.
My parents had a Chevy Corvair when I was born in early 71, but purchased a brand new 72 Maverick in that mint green color with black interior (solid black seats, no plaid) shortly after. My mom hated the color, so my father had it painted to white a few years later. I grew up in that car, never wore a seatbelt, and never knew what air conditioning in a car was until they purchased a Toyota Corolla in 1981. This video brought back some great memories, thank you.
Thanks for this video. I have a soft spot for these cars because they were a big part of my childhood. My father owned a '72 4-door with the bigger six engine and the automatic. I remember well the lack of a glove box and the metal dash. Neighbours across the street had a white two-door, though I don't recall the year. A friend's mother had a '76 (I think) green Comet four-door and my favourite of all was an uncle had a '77 Maverick with the luxury decor group. It was silver with a blue vinyl roof. Beautiful car. This video brought back some good childhood memories. Thanks!!
Growing up in the north east, I recall mavericks being full of holes and peeling paint. A friend put so much Bondo in the doors that they closed with a sound like they were made of lead.
Parents had a 74 sedan, green with a straight six handed down in 79, I was 3. When my dad got a job with the post office they wanted a NEW car and decided to go with a 87 Hyundai Excel, that car was sold for scrap in 1991, my dad still regrets buying it and swears they should have kept the Maverick, I agree...
A friend of mine had a '70. After a run in by his father with a self deleting fence post that took out a third of the radiator, it ran rough. It was a good car. There was the loose, removable steering wheel, the cruise control (which was actually a series of cinder block chunks) , and the loose hubcaps. He later upgraded to a Chevette.
my mom and dad owned a green with a white painted top 2 door with a 3 on the tree and the 200 inline 6 and am radio. it got 22mpg all the time and lasted 300000 miles. My dad a mechanic put a underdash airconditioner on it
My mom was a no frills, thrifty kind of gal. In '67 she bought a gold Chevy II station wagon. The cheapest one on the lot. Straight 6, three on the tree, dog dish hubcaps with blackwall tires, no power options what so ever, radio delete, rubber floors and no rear armrests. We loved that car and it was one of the first I learned to drive. After my aunt wrecked it my mom walked across the street to Dunton Ford in Santa Ana and purchased a 1976 Maverick 4 door. Compared to the Chevy II it was fancy. It was light blue, blackwalls with dog dish caps but it had the bigger 6 cylinder engine with an auto transmission and power steering. Inside it had an AM radio! Us kids were excited about that as this was still the era of top 40 and soul music stations. It had the standard vinyl interior with the horse blanket inserts on the seats. It was such a plain jane car that it rarely drew attention from friends or the cops. I was always ditching school so I didn't want to get pulled over and when I went to concerts with friends there was nothing worth stealing unlike my friends who had who had mini trucks, Chevelles and Novas that always seemed to be getting their car stereos stolen. My brother installed a FM/8 Track player under the dash that slid out to put in the trunk. I would loved to find a mid-seventies 4 door Maverick with the luxury decor package. I worked with a gal in the late '70's that had a Maverick Grabber. Can't remember the year but it was her HS graduation present. Her dad was a Ford executive so it was pretty well optioned (as Mavericks go) with the V8, Auto, buckets, ps, pb, a/c, and an AM/FM radio.
My mom had one when she was younger. Her family painted it grabber blue for her which wasn't a color option when she got it if I remember right. Perks of having a body shop in the family lol
My grandfather had a 1977 Comet in canary yellow. I ended up with car after my sister crashed it. But I painted after skipping school and parking it in the woods. My dad happen to drive by and saw yellow in the woods. He removed my coil wire.
I’m 60. My first car, in 1980, was a 1974 2-door Maverick in “baby shit brown” with a black hood power dome. Cost me $200 and I sold it for $200 a few years later when I went off to college. Never did much but never let me down. I keep hearing how much better we had it back then. “You could buy a decent used car for less than two grand!” Yes, but we made $1.50/hour, the car couldn’t get out of its own way, had no radio, no electronics, no safety anything (hell, you were safer on a bicycle!), no A/C, barely any heat, you could see the road through the holes in the floor, and it took 10 minutes to get it started each morning. NONE of these are exaggerations and no one today would accept any of this from a used car today…but they still want to pay what we paid. Sheesh!
Another great video that brought back memories. Some recycled car names that should have stayed buried: the 1988-93 Pontiac LeMans, the 78-83 Dodge Challenger, the 82-87 Dodge Charger, the last generation Jeep Renegade and Chevy Nova, and the current Chevy Blazer. Back to the original Maverick, I always thought it had the most minuscule taillights I’d ever seen.
Thanks for this! As a kid in the 70’s, the Maverick was definitely a noticeable fixture in the automotive landscape! My favorites were the later Stallion and fancier LDO trims as well as the Grabber I always felt the Comet/Maverick was Mercury/Fords most direct competitor to the Dodge Dart/Plymouth Valiant of the period with the same 2 & 4 door variants and using existing platforms and running gear from the early 60’s.
I love watching your videos as they bring back memories of my childhood in the 70's and 80's. My parents were masterful at picking bad cars. We had both the Maverick and then the Fairmont. I learned to drive on a 10 year old Maverick (2 door, 3 on the tree). It was a horrible car. The clutch was so heavy and the distance you had to push it in was LONG. It kept getting stuck in first gear, wouldn't start (my dad would somehow go out with a screwdriver and start it), had no heat or defrost (we lived in Southern Ontario) and was terrible to drive. Eventually it rusted out and my dad put a piece of plywood on the drivers side floor so his feet wouldn't fall through to the ground. Why my parents continued with Ford buying a Fairmont is beyond me. That car was just as bad. Thankfully I convinced my mom to next buy a Nissan Sentra and they finally let go of their fear of buying foreign cars. My mom still talks about that 1990 Sentra. My parents continued to buy dubious used cars (Olds Firenza, Pontiac 6000, Chevrolet Chevette, Plymouth Aclaim (inherited), etc). My dad eventually bought a 2009 Hyundai Elantra and it was a good car for my mom. Last year she bought a Nissan Qashqai (Rogue Sport in the US) and she loves it. I drove it for a couple days and was a nice vehicle to drive. And with getting another Nissan, it reminded her of her old Sentra.
The Escape that was named Maverick here in Europe also had another twin over here in the 2000:s It was also sold as the Mazda Tribute, and it was in large just a rebadge, but still wanted to mention it 👍 Also the 90:s Nissan Terrano.II and it's Ford Maverick sibling was not very common and popular here in Sweden, seemed like they were forgotten pretty quickly, unlike the first gen Terrano which was alot more popular here in the early 90:s.
My dad had the Maverick coupe. My mom had a pinto hatchback. I am so happy that when my mom get rear ended while I was in elementary school, that her card didn’t blow up.
I used to work for a place in Canada called “showcars auto parts” and we made fiberglass replica parts like bumpers spoilers hoods etc. and I can tell ya the first gen maverick bumpers and spoilers especially on the grabber were horribly flimsy it’s amazing how they managed to work as metal structures on the vehicles in the first place. Thank god in later years they at least upgraded the bumpers but yeah we hated getting orders for that grabber back middle straight spoiler bar. Most bought them for replica drag and funny cars but they broke so easily one guy ordered 4 just so they had quick replacements lol. Btw any chance we will get an odd review on the Bricklin SV-1 someday?
A good friend had a 1970 Maverick with the Grabber option and a 302 with a 4 speed. He quickly blew up the 302, and we put in a junkyard 351 windsor in it. With that 351, the car was crazy fast but was really hard to control, so much so that after almost wrecking it several times, he sold it and bought a pickup. I'm not really a Ford guy, but I wouldn't mind having an early V8 2 door Maverick.
I own a 23 maverick XL hybrid. I absolutely love it, and plan on keeping it for a long time. Cheap to insure too. That 16 month wait for it to arrive at the dealer was BRUTAL though.
Top marks for showing off the Australian Ford Maverick (rebadged Nissan Patrol) from the late 80's to the early 90's! They were sold in SWB 3dr wagons, LWB 5dr wagons, as well as a 2dr Cab Chassis/Single Cab tray back Ute and a 2dr Single Cab tubstyle Ute, so at least the Maverick we received in Australia was still sold in Ute/Pickup form! It gave Ford Australia some much needed sales in the SUV market. Before the Ford Maverick (rebadged Nissan Patrol), Ford Australia sold the Ford Raider SUV, which was a rebadged Mazda Proceed Marvie SUV, which was an SUV version of the Fourth Generation Mazda B Series Ute/Pickup. In Australia, the Mazda B Series Ute was sold as the Mazda Bravo and as the Ford Courier, yes Ford Australia was still using the 'Courier' name on these Mazda based Utes for our market. Ford Australia didn't change over to the 'Ranger' name until 2006!
The Buick Apollo and the Pontiac Ventura, and Olds. Omega (I think) of the early 70's were so freaking under-estimated and un-appreciated that I ask you to consider. I owned a 2 owner 73 Apollo with a Buick 350-2, and it was a great automobile with fairly low production numbers on all the models I listed above!!~
This was quite good. I liked the information and how it was put together. That was the good part. I liked the footage. I liked how you covered the global versions as well. Thank you for the interesting and informative video.
They were common when I grew up in the 80s and 90s. Everyone I knew called them the poor man’s mustang. I’m in socal so these would be ideal pre 78 for modding. I already have a 69 fastback but if I wanted pure driving enjoyment on a budget these hit a sweet spot. I actually like the three on the tree setup as I had a 69 3/4 ton Chevy truck that had a similar setup. I loved that truck with its Quadrajet powered 307 I rebuilt. Real wheel burner despite driving like a tank.
Ford family. My mother had an early 60s two-door Falcon. Traded it for an early 70s four-door Maverick with white vinyl top. And I today have the Maverick truck. Mother wanted the Granada, but got swayed by the brand new ((DOWNSIDED)) 1977 Impala.
I had a 1975 Maverick sedan. Boring and definitely not my style, but great for a younger me who loved to drive fast. It was slow, which was exactly what I needed at the time.
A recycled name that's always been weird to me is the Ford/Mercury Capri. In the 70s it was a captive import from Ford of Europe, in the 80s it was a rebadged Mustang, and then In the 90s it was a FWD roadster. Oh and of course now it's getting reused AGAIN as an electric crossover.
Even though I have been told that Jean Stapleton drove a Plymouth Duster to the set of All In the Family, I have always had this picture in my mind of Edith Bunker driving either a Ford Maverick or its sister, the Mercury Comet with the Luxury Decor Group/Option. Basic & frugal, but still dressy enough for her take to church, shopping, or a night on the town with Archie.
With MMMMMMMMMMMMMMM in heavy syrup, @@smittykins!!!!! No, I don't think so. I DO know that Mike & Gloria bought a yellow Toyota Corolla Liftback when they moved to California, but that's it.
Interesting note. I also read that Carroll O'Connor was a luxury and super car aficionado and owned Bentleys, Rolls Royces, Ferraris, and Maseratis as well as a Dodge Challenger. Can you imagine seeing Archie pulling up driving a Rolls Royce?
Had several of them. 1970 in Hullablue with a dealer installed Grabber stripe kit, 200/3spd. Bought a 73 Comet, transferred all suspension components and brakes, and the 302/C4 auto. Had a couple more, used them for winter beaters. Still wish I had at least, one of them. 4:20
Someone I attended high school with drove a blue Comet. While he didn’t win “best car” for his graduating class, he did win “worst driver.” I don’t know all of the details, but I think he said he totaled it. I remember him saying the headlights didn’t work, so he avoided driving it at night. Also, the very first car my mom learned to drive in was a Comet, and all I can remember her saying about it was that it didn’t have power steering.
Definitely not forgotten. My mom had a yellow 74 Grabber when I was a kid. It had the 250 6cyl which from what I hear was rare in a Grabber. I'm pretty sure I came home from the hospital in it.
I think the Maverick is forgotten because it simply did what it was supposed to do. If it was unreliable like the Vega, odd like the Gremlin, or a game changer like the mustang, or had a scandal like the Pinto, it would still be remembered. The falcon is remembered because it was the first small car from Ford. But the maverick simply worked. The Fairmount is the same, a solid car that simply works. It is largely forgotten too. The Fairlane is even more forgotten. No one even speaks of them
I learned to drive on a 1970 cinnamon Maverick. It was my mom's car. The interior was an orange plaid that had degraded, so she stitched plaid wool panels over them that she got from the Pendleton Woolen mills near us. Those seats sure were itchy when I drove that car in shorts.
My first car was a 1972 Maverick, with the big 6 , with three on the tree! … I loved that car, but it rusted to death in a few years ... 🙁... and burned oil like a Vega ... all that aside, it was a fun little car!
When I was in highschool I knew 2 people who had Mavricks that they put a 302 in, and one who put in a 351. I haven't seen a Maverick in the wild in years.
My first car that I learned to drive on was a 73 Ford Maverick and I bought a 24 Ford Maverick in Nov, 24. I have come full circle. The car in "Oh God" you showed was a AMC Pacer, not a Maverick.
10:18 here in brazil was offered a 4 door wagon version of maverick made by souza ramos, a ford dealership, in base models was offered a 3.0 inline 6 from willys (bf184) from ford itamaraty (basically a 2nd gen willys aero lark), later a 2.3 ohc georgia engine, the windsor 302 had a ethanol powered variant, offered in galaxie lineup
My parents purchased a brand new mint green (I used to call it Kermit) 1973 Maverick, and it owned it for several years when I was very young before selling it to my fathers boss. He drove it through the remainder of the 70s when it became a rust bucket after so many Wisconsin winters. Interesting point on whether anyone younger than the age of 45 knows anything about the original Maverick. I know many of us in our 50s & plus still do though. Can you imagine in 2050, Chevy introduces a smaller Blazer like SUV and calls it the Cavalier? Every time I see the new Maverick, I keep imagining a compact econobox!
Here's a completely obscure car from the 70's and was my first car. 1972 Toyota Carina. I believe they were only sold in the US for the 71 & 72 model years.
I'd love to see that episode on recycled names! The easiest example I can think of is Ford Fusion. And the Ford Sierra in Europe vs. GMC Sierra in North America
If you're including concept cars in your list of recycled names, then at least two come to my mind -- the Ford Probe (used in a series of concepts before reaching production as a sporty coupe) and the Ford Falcon. The Falcon name first appeared on a Chrysler concept; Ford liked it so much, they bought the rights to it so they could use it on their compact. Come to think of it, after a brief interruption, the Falcon name was brought back as a decontented Torino, making this a name that was recycled twice, between two different corporations.
The beauty of these is simplicity and proven mechanicals. Basically a Falcon chassis and engines. The negatives were limited visibility in sloped rear windows , no glove box, and vulnerable gas tank in rear.
My brother still has one he inherited from somebody. Apparently this carburetor is almost impossible to find rebuild kits for so we're going to do a conversion over to something else. Last time we drove it, it was almost dripping out gas and we were concerned we'd have to use the fire extinguisher :(
You even got started with the Falcon; the CORRECT way to tell this story, congratulations on another very well done video! My brother wanted a Plymouth Fury (B-Body) when we were in high school. Reality, however, slapped him upside his biscuit head and he settled for a 1974 Mercury Comet in "Price Is Right," "Petrich Farm" tan (ewww!) With a "matching" red plaid interior (God, it was ugly!) that only a 70's Ivory-Soap girl could appreciate. Without question, the vomit of the Ford Motor Company! BUT, it did ride nice over Chicago's pre-historic potholes and it had good heat, and that's REALLY important here, believe me! So, I guess it was cool for his first car, but that does nothing to ease the pain of such "Brady Bunch-"like, avocado-ness so prone to that time period! 🐰
The parents had a 4 door maverick when I was small. The main thing I remember about it was one day we were at the grandparents leaving, and I had my fingers wrapped around the door post, and Mom slammed the door! OUCH! Later on, we also had a Granada.
My mom’s first new car, and within a month someone ran a red light and totaled it. I always liked the styling, even though I know they are a cheap economy car.
the interesting thing is that in Brazil the Maverick have a huge following, pepole over there love this car and cars in good condition are sold for quite a considerable price.... and they have a 4cyl version alongside the V8, is a Lima 2.3 engine, the same of the Foxbody Mustang (btw the engine of this car was built in Brazil aswell) maybe if this version was offered in USA this could've made the Maverick a good rival to imports like Ford intended
The lead designer for the Maverick was Tom Jahaarda, an American who also worked Ghia and Ford's offshore divisions. He was also the lead designer for the DeTomasso Pantera, quite the polar opposite vehicle. B.T.W. The Maverick made for great drag racing cars back in the day and are still seen as modified street cars.
I remember the Maverick for sale at the Ford Dealership at Chery Point, NC. I just came home from Vietnam with some rank and still couldn't afford one. We had free health care though.
Remember when the Maverick first came out, was in high school then. The early models looked the best. Later years looked clunky due to the mandated bumpers. But would have bought one in 79 when buying the first new car, instead bought a Fairmont. Loved it, owned three total.
The Maverick was a huge sales success but it had an identity crisis. At first it was like a cheap mini Mustang but it didn't have a V8. And it was marketed against imports. Then the Pinto was released, and the Maverick repositioned more like a mini Mustang with a V8 option - but they also released a 4 door. Then the Mustang II was released in 1974 which was the same size so the Maverick was just an older looking version. I have a 1970 Maverick and it came with AC, and a 250 CID six cylinder, both of which the video either saud didn't exist in 1970 or didn't mention. Great video though!
I remember my mom have a yellow 4-door like the one in that commercial. I always thought it was weird that the shoulder belt was stored on the headliner and you could use it when you wanted.
I've never considered the new Maverick a truck since the cab is not separated from the cargo bed and is unibody. It looks a lot like the Flex, so I still call it a car like the original Maverick. As soon as it came out, I knew it was just an Escape with the roof cut off. Just like Hyundai did with the Santa Fe and called it a Santa Cruz, and Honda did with the Pilot and called it a Ridgeline.
My dad had a Maverick with a v8 in his college days. He always talked about how much he loved that car. I probably would have bought the new Maverick truck just because of the name
You know what would be hilarious that I didn't think of until now because I forgot the Maverick was also a classic car? If the new Maverick was named the Maverick because Top Gear USA used an old Maverick as a pickup truck in one of the season one challenges.
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These were great cars for hot rodding. Cheap and easy to work on. Better gears and some basic changes to the 302 made my 1974 2dr fly. I used to hunt Camaros and Mustangs to embarrass. Later put big money into a rollerized 351 windsor, balanced & blue printed, 11:1 compression with 4:10 gears on a spool, and changed the 3 spd manual for a top loader 4 speed. Scary car, undefeated in shady street drags.
I thought the Maverick body looked like 💩 years ago. But now the sporty version looks like a great donor body for a restomod.
I love your channel . I had a '73 Maverick grabber with a 302 and it was a cool car in grabber blue with blue interior. In 2022 we ordered and bought my wife a 22 XL Maverick in area 51 blue, it turned out to be a really nice little pick up. So this past April we traded her 22 in and bought my wife a 24 Maverick XLT with lots of options including AWD and 4k tow package in cactus grey. On 9/11/24 I won a 24 Bronco sport Badlands and traded it in for a 24 XLT azure blue with AWD and 4k tow package and luxury package. And walked away with a check. Love the Maverick pick up. We have 2.0 Ecoboost engines and both trucks are getting 30mpg here in North Idaho.
Casino prize?
I remember when some guys back in the day called the Ford Maverick Grabber the "Mach - None".
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
Growing up in the 70's, Maverick's were common beater's found in high school parking lots, usually due to rust up here in the rust belt. They were really great cars other than the ease at which they created rusticles. My brother's best friend had one they took out to California for a bit over a year. Came back, there wasn't a straight piece of metal on it anywhere, the frame was broken in 3 places, he still drove it for another couple of years. I had one as a winter car in the late 80's, I think I paid $200 for it. Only issue was the heat shield that sent warm air up to the automatic choke was rusted away preventing the choke from working correct. I just put a manual choke on it, the kits were common in auto parts stores back then for under $10. The front marker/turns didn't work either, being mounted below the bumper on early models, the salt would get inside and destroy them. I got a grille out of a newer model after they moved them up inside the grille. Ran great all winter, planned on keeping it but a co-worker offered me $500 for it so I couldn't turn it down.
My parents had a Chevy Corvair when I was born in early 71, but purchased a brand new 72 Maverick in that mint green color with black interior (solid black seats, no plaid) shortly after. My mom hated the color, so my father had it painted to white a few years later. I grew up in that car, never wore a seatbelt, and never knew what air conditioning in a car was until they purchased a Toyota Corolla in 1981. This video brought back some great memories, thank you.
you mean...Antiestablish-Mint? =)
Thanks for this video. I have a soft spot for these cars because they were a big part of my childhood. My father owned a '72 4-door with the bigger six engine and the automatic. I remember well the lack of a glove box and the metal dash. Neighbours across the street had a white two-door, though I don't recall the year. A friend's mother had a '76 (I think) green Comet four-door and my favourite of all was an uncle had a '77 Maverick with the luxury decor group. It was silver with a blue vinyl roof. Beautiful car. This video brought back some good childhood memories. Thanks!!
My mom had the 4-door sedan. Green with green interior. Not sure what year it was. Good car to learn to drive in.
Growing up in the north east, I recall mavericks being full of holes and peeling paint. A friend put so much Bondo in the doors that they closed with a sound like they were made of lead.
Parents had a 74 sedan, green with a straight six handed down in 79, I was 3. When my dad got a job with the post office they wanted a NEW car and decided to go with a 87 Hyundai Excel, that car was sold for scrap in 1991, my dad still regrets buying it and swears they should have kept the Maverick, I agree...
@My Old Car: Yes please do the video about recycling names
I just remembered that Edsel spawned two names that were reused later: Ranger and Pacer.
Hudson had the "Hornet" so did AMC.
@@BELCAN57 And, later on, Dodge.
Ford needs a add with this tagline from compact car to compact truck we've done it all the Maverick
A friend of mine had a '70. After a run in by his father with a self deleting fence post that took out a third of the radiator, it ran rough. It was a good car. There was the loose, removable steering wheel, the cruise control (which was actually a series of cinder block chunks) , and the loose hubcaps. He later upgraded to a Chevette.
my mom and dad owned a green with a white painted top 2 door with a 3 on the tree and the 200 inline 6 and am radio. it got 22mpg all the time and lasted 300000 miles. My dad a mechanic put a underdash airconditioner on it
An old inline 6 could do 300k if well maintained but I bet he went through or rebuilt the transmission 2 or 3 times.
My mom was a no frills, thrifty kind of gal. In '67 she bought a gold Chevy II station wagon. The cheapest one on the lot. Straight 6, three on the tree, dog dish hubcaps with blackwall tires, no power options what so ever, radio delete, rubber floors and no rear armrests. We loved that car and it was one of the first I learned to drive.
After my aunt wrecked it my mom walked across the street to Dunton Ford in Santa Ana and purchased a 1976 Maverick 4 door. Compared to the Chevy II it was fancy. It was light blue, blackwalls with dog dish caps but it had the bigger 6 cylinder engine with an auto transmission and power steering. Inside it had an AM radio! Us kids were excited about that as this was still the era of top 40 and soul music stations. It had the standard vinyl interior with the horse blanket inserts on the seats.
It was such a plain jane car that it rarely drew attention from friends or the cops. I was always ditching school so I didn't want to get pulled over and when I went to concerts with friends there was nothing worth stealing unlike my friends who had who had mini trucks, Chevelles and Novas that always seemed to be getting their car stereos stolen. My brother installed a FM/8 Track player under the dash that slid out to put in the trunk. I would loved to find a mid-seventies 4 door Maverick with the luxury decor package.
I worked with a gal in the late '70's that had a Maverick Grabber. Can't remember the year but it was her HS graduation present. Her dad was a Ford executive so it was pretty well optioned (as Mavericks go) with the V8, Auto, buckets, ps, pb, a/c, and an AM/FM radio.
Id love a video on recycled names. Let us never forget what they did to the eclipse
Enjoyed this one a lot. Lots of memories. Yes. A vid on recycled names sounds interesting and fun.
My mom had one when she was younger.
Her family painted it grabber blue for her which wasn't a color option when she got it if I remember right. Perks of having a body shop in the family lol
My grandfather had a yellow maverick, I have so many fond memories in that car.
My grandfather had a 1977 Comet in canary yellow. I ended up with car after my sister crashed it. But I painted after skipping school and parking it in the woods. My dad happen to drive by and saw yellow in the woods. He removed my coil wire.
I’m 60. My first car, in 1980, was a 1974 2-door Maverick in “baby shit brown” with a black hood power dome. Cost me $200 and I sold it for $200 a few years later when I went off to college.
Never did much but never let me down.
I keep hearing how much better we had it back then. “You could buy a decent used car for less than two grand!” Yes, but we made $1.50/hour, the car couldn’t get out of its own way, had no radio, no electronics, no safety anything (hell, you were safer on a bicycle!), no A/C, barely any heat, you could see the road through the holes in the floor, and it took 10 minutes to get it started each morning. NONE of these are exaggerations and no one today would accept any of this from a used car today…but they still want to pay what we paid. Sheesh!
Had a 72 Maverick in HS! Inline 6 and 3 on the tree, no power steering!
My dad had a 74 Grabber, I like this video! I only once saw another one that looked like it. I saw plenty of the regular ones.
Another great video that brought back memories. Some recycled car names that should have stayed buried: the 1988-93 Pontiac LeMans, the 78-83 Dodge Challenger, the 82-87 Dodge Charger, the last generation Jeep Renegade and Chevy Nova, and the current Chevy Blazer.
Back to the original Maverick, I always thought it had the most minuscule taillights I’d ever seen.
Thanks for this! As a kid in the 70’s, the Maverick was definitely a noticeable fixture in the automotive landscape! My favorites were the later Stallion and fancier LDO trims as well as the Grabber I always felt the Comet/Maverick was Mercury/Fords most direct competitor to the Dodge Dart/Plymouth Valiant of the period with the same 2 & 4 door variants and using existing platforms and running gear from the early 60’s.
I love watching your videos as they bring back memories of my childhood in the 70's and 80's. My parents were masterful at picking bad cars. We had both the Maverick and then the Fairmont. I learned to drive on a 10 year old Maverick (2 door, 3 on the tree). It was a horrible car. The clutch was so heavy and the distance you had to push it in was LONG. It kept getting stuck in first gear, wouldn't start (my dad would somehow go out with a screwdriver and start it), had no heat or defrost (we lived in Southern Ontario) and was terrible to drive. Eventually it rusted out and my dad put a piece of plywood on the drivers side floor so his feet wouldn't fall through to the ground. Why my parents continued with Ford buying a Fairmont is beyond me. That car was just as bad.
Thankfully I convinced my mom to next buy a Nissan Sentra and they finally let go of their fear of buying foreign cars. My mom still talks about that 1990 Sentra.
My parents continued to buy dubious used cars (Olds Firenza, Pontiac 6000, Chevrolet Chevette, Plymouth Aclaim (inherited), etc). My dad eventually bought a 2009 Hyundai Elantra and it was a good car for my mom. Last year she bought a Nissan Qashqai (Rogue Sport in the US) and she loves it. I drove it for a couple days and was a nice vehicle to drive. And with getting another Nissan, it reminded her of her old Sentra.
The Escape that was named Maverick here in Europe also had another twin over here in the 2000:s It was also sold as the Mazda Tribute, and it was in large just a rebadge, but still wanted to mention it 👍
Also the 90:s Nissan Terrano.II and it's Ford Maverick sibling was not very common and popular here in Sweden, seemed like they were forgotten pretty quickly, unlike the first gen Terrano which was alot more popular here in the early 90:s.
Yeah. Here in the US, we had the Mazda Tribute as well. Ford Escape? Nope, it's a Mazda Tribute. Most the ones I see here are gray.
I took my driver's test in a 72 four door Maverick and a friend had a two door after highschool. I liked these cars, even though they were Ferds.
I loved my light green gold metallic 75 Maverick with the three on the tree. I bought a cheap shifter from JC Whitney and we moved it to the floor.
My dad had the Maverick coupe. My mom had a pinto hatchback. I am so happy that when my mom get rear ended while I was in elementary school, that her card didn’t blow up.
I like the Top Gear clips sprinkled in 😂
I used to work for a place in Canada called “showcars auto parts” and we made fiberglass replica parts like bumpers spoilers hoods etc. and I can tell ya the first gen maverick bumpers and spoilers especially on the grabber were horribly flimsy it’s amazing how they managed to work as metal structures on the vehicles in the first place. Thank god in later years they at least upgraded the bumpers but yeah we hated getting orders for that grabber back middle straight spoiler bar. Most bought them for replica drag and funny cars but they broke so easily one guy ordered 4 just so they had quick replacements lol.
Btw any chance we will get an odd review on the Bricklin SV-1 someday?
A good friend had a 1970 Maverick with the Grabber option and a 302 with a 4 speed. He quickly blew up the 302, and we put in a junkyard 351 windsor in it. With that 351, the car was crazy fast but was really hard to control, so much so that after almost wrecking it several times, he sold it and bought a pickup. I'm not really a Ford guy, but I wouldn't mind having an early V8 2 door Maverick.
I own a 23 maverick XL hybrid. I absolutely love it, and plan on keeping it for a long time. Cheap to insure too. That 16 month wait for it to arrive at the dealer was BRUTAL though.
MERRY CHRYSLER AND HAPPY NEW YEAR
We had a "74 Maverick with a manuel shift on the floor and it came from the factory that way. It had the Luxury Decor Option/bucket seats.
Top marks for showing off the Australian Ford Maverick (rebadged Nissan Patrol) from the late 80's to the early 90's! They were sold in SWB 3dr wagons, LWB 5dr wagons, as well as a 2dr Cab Chassis/Single Cab tray back Ute and a 2dr Single Cab tubstyle Ute, so at least the Maverick we received in Australia was still sold in Ute/Pickup form! It gave Ford Australia some much needed sales in the SUV market.
Before the Ford Maverick (rebadged Nissan Patrol), Ford Australia sold the Ford Raider SUV, which was a rebadged Mazda Proceed Marvie SUV, which was an SUV version of the Fourth Generation Mazda B Series Ute/Pickup. In Australia, the Mazda B Series Ute was sold as the Mazda Bravo and as the Ford Courier, yes Ford Australia was still using the 'Courier' name on these Mazda based Utes for our market. Ford Australia didn't change over to the 'Ranger' name until 2006!
The Buick Apollo and the Pontiac Ventura, and Olds. Omega (I think) of the early 70's were so freaking under-estimated and un-appreciated that I ask you to consider. I owned a 2 owner 73 Apollo with a Buick 350-2, and it was a great automobile with fairly low production numbers on all the models I listed above!!~
This was quite good. I liked the information and how it was put together. That was the good part. I liked the footage. I liked how you covered the global versions as well. Thank you for the interesting and informative video.
Outstanding content my brother!!!~ Happy new year!!!~
They were common when I grew up in the 80s and 90s. Everyone I knew called them the poor man’s mustang. I’m in socal so these would be ideal pre 78 for modding. I already have a 69 fastback but if I wanted pure driving enjoyment on a budget these hit a sweet spot. I actually like the three on the tree setup as I had a 69 3/4 ton Chevy truck that had a similar setup. I loved that truck with its Quadrajet powered 307 I rebuilt. Real wheel burner despite driving like a tank.
Ford family. My mother had an early 60s two-door Falcon. Traded it for an early 70s four-door Maverick with white vinyl top. And I today have the Maverick truck. Mother wanted the Granada, but got swayed by the brand new ((DOWNSIDED)) 1977 Impala.
I had a 1975 Maverick sedan. Boring and definitely not my style, but great for a younger me who loved to drive fast. It was slow, which was exactly what I needed at the time.
A recycled name that's always been weird to me is the Ford/Mercury Capri. In the 70s it was a captive import from Ford of Europe, in the 80s it was a rebadged Mustang, and then In the 90s it was a FWD roadster. Oh and of course now it's getting reused AGAIN as an electric crossover.
Even though I have been told that Jean Stapleton drove a Plymouth Duster to the set of All In the Family, I have always had this picture in my mind of Edith Bunker driving either a Ford Maverick or its sister, the Mercury Comet with the Luxury Decor Group/Option. Basic & frugal, but still dressy enough for her take to church, shopping, or a night on the town with Archie.
Did the Bunkers even have a car(besides “our old LaSalle”?)ISTR Edith walking to the grocery store with one of those two-wheeled carts.
With MMMMMMMMMMMMMMM in heavy syrup, @@smittykins!!!!! No, I don't think so. I DO know that Mike & Gloria bought a yellow Toyota Corolla Liftback when they moved to California, but that's it.
@@landyachtfan79
🍑l😅
Interesting note. I also read that Carroll O'Connor was a luxury and super car aficionado and owned Bentleys, Rolls Royces, Ferraris, and Maseratis as well as a Dodge Challenger. Can you imagine seeing Archie pulling up driving a Rolls Royce?
Had several of them. 1970 in Hullablue with a dealer installed Grabber stripe kit, 200/3spd. Bought a 73 Comet, transferred all suspension components and brakes, and the 302/C4 auto. Had a couple more, used them for winter beaters. Still wish I had at least, one of them. 4:20
Maverick has good bones and very good styling. I had/assembled a Revell model.
Someone I attended high school with drove a blue Comet. While he didn’t win “best car” for his graduating class, he did win “worst driver.” I don’t know all of the details, but I think he said he totaled it. I remember him saying the headlights didn’t work, so he avoided driving it at night. Also, the very first car my mom learned to drive in was a Comet, and all I can remember her saying about it was that it didn’t have power steering.
Definitely not forgotten. My mom had a yellow 74 Grabber when I was a kid. It had the 250 6cyl which from what I hear was rare in a Grabber. I'm pretty sure I came home from the hospital in it.
Man, you've really put some work into this one. 👌🌟
I think the Maverick is forgotten because it simply did what it was supposed to do. If it was unreliable like the Vega, odd like the Gremlin, or a game changer like the mustang, or had a scandal like the Pinto, it would still be remembered. The falcon is remembered because it was the first small car from Ford. But the maverick simply worked. The Fairmount is the same, a solid car that simply works. It is largely forgotten too. The Fairlane is even more forgotten. No one even speaks of them
I learned to drive on a 1970 cinnamon Maverick. It was my mom's car. The interior was an orange plaid that had degraded, so she stitched plaid wool panels over them that she got from the Pendleton Woolen mills near us. Those seats sure were itchy when I drove that car in shorts.
My first car was a 1972 Maverick, with the big 6 , with three on the tree! … I loved that car, but it rusted to death in a few years ... 🙁... and burned oil like a Vega ... all that aside, it was a fun little car!
When I was in highschool I knew 2 people who had Mavricks that they put a 302 in, and one who put in a 351. I haven't seen a Maverick in the wild in years.
Once again great work! Not seeing any other comment about it, but the “Oh God “ clip at 10:13 shows an AMC Pacer not an Escort.
My first car that I learned to drive on was a 73 Ford Maverick and I bought a 24 Ford Maverick in Nov, 24. I have come full circle. The car in "Oh God" you showed was a AMC Pacer, not a Maverick.
Yeah, I was meaning to show a picture of the Pinto! Oops
10:18 here in brazil was offered a 4 door wagon version of maverick made by souza ramos, a ford dealership, in base models was offered a 3.0 inline 6 from willys (bf184) from ford itamaraty (basically a 2nd gen willys aero lark), later a 2.3 ohc georgia engine, the windsor 302 had a ethanol powered variant, offered in galaxie lineup
I knew some people growing up who had this car and they liked that it got them from A to B.
My parents purchased a brand new mint green (I used to call it Kermit) 1973 Maverick, and it owned it for several years when I was very young before selling it to my fathers boss. He drove it through the remainder of the 70s when it became a rust bucket after so many Wisconsin winters. Interesting point on whether anyone younger than the age of 45 knows anything about the original Maverick. I know many of us in our 50s & plus still do though. Can you imagine in 2050, Chevy introduces a smaller Blazer like SUV and calls it the Cavalier? Every time I see the new Maverick, I keep imagining a compact econobox!
Here's a completely obscure car from the 70's and was my first car. 1972 Toyota Carina. I believe they were only sold in the US for the 71 & 72 model years.
I'd love to see that episode on recycled names! The easiest example I can think of is Ford Fusion. And the Ford Sierra in Europe vs. GMC Sierra in North America
If you're including concept cars in your list of recycled names, then at least two come to my mind -- the Ford Probe (used in a series of concepts before reaching production as a sporty coupe) and the Ford Falcon. The Falcon name first appeared on a Chrysler concept; Ford liked it so much, they bought the rights to it so they could use it on their compact. Come to think of it, after a brief interruption, the Falcon name was brought back as a decontented Torino, making this a name that was recycled twice, between two different corporations.
I had a Ford Granada, ued in the mid 80s and it worked well BUT the gas milage sucked. I had to get rid of it as a trade in later on.
The beauty of these is simplicity and proven mechanicals. Basically a Falcon chassis and engines. The negatives were limited visibility in sloped rear windows , no glove box, and vulnerable gas tank in rear.
Awesome!!! I love it
Good video.
My brother still has one he inherited from somebody. Apparently this carburetor is almost impossible to find rebuild kits for so we're going to do a conversion over to something else. Last time we drove it, it was almost dripping out gas and we were concerned we'd have to use the fire extinguisher :(
You even got started with the Falcon; the CORRECT way to tell this story, congratulations on another very well done video!
My brother wanted a Plymouth Fury (B-Body) when we were in high school. Reality, however, slapped him upside his biscuit head and he settled for a 1974 Mercury Comet in "Price Is Right," "Petrich Farm" tan (ewww!) With a "matching" red plaid interior (God, it was ugly!) that only a 70's Ivory-Soap girl could appreciate. Without question, the vomit of the Ford Motor Company!
BUT, it did ride nice over Chicago's pre-historic potholes and it had good heat, and that's REALLY important here, believe me! So, I guess it was cool for his first car, but that does nothing to ease the pain of such "Brady Bunch-"like, avocado-ness so prone to that time period! 🐰
I didn’t know there were a semi automatic transmissions for Ford or GM I’ve never seen one they must have been very unpopular 😅Great video
The parents had a 4 door maverick when I was small. The main thing I remember about it was one day we were at the grandparents leaving, and I had my fingers wrapped around the door post, and Mom slammed the door! OUCH! Later on, we also had a Granada.
I had a 69 Falcon which was unexciting but more practical than Maverick but same mechanicals. Reliable and simple.
Great video!
My mom’s first new car, and within a month someone ran a red light and totaled it.
I always liked the styling, even though I know they are a cheap economy car.
My first car (1993) was a 1971 4-door Mavrick. 3 on the tree. Faded yellow. Wish I still had it. Lol
the interesting thing is that in Brazil the Maverick have a huge following, pepole over there love this car and cars in good condition are sold for quite a considerable price.... and they have a 4cyl version alongside the V8, is a Lima 2.3 engine, the same of the Foxbody Mustang (btw the engine of this car was built in Brazil aswell) maybe if this version was offered in USA this could've made the Maverick a good rival to imports like Ford intended
30MPG 1976 hunter green Maverick my first ride.
The lead designer for the Maverick was Tom Jahaarda, an American who also worked Ghia and Ford's offshore divisions. He was also the lead designer for the DeTomasso Pantera, quite the polar opposite vehicle. B.T.W. The Maverick made for great drag racing cars back in the day and are still seen as modified street cars.
I remember the Maverick for sale at the Ford Dealership at Chery Point, NC. I just came home from Vietnam with some rank and still couldn't afford one. We had free health care though.
I remember that in the 1980s there were plenty of Mavericks and Comets on the road. They were nice cars but weren't barn burners.
Nice Blues Brothers tie-in.
The maverick in Brazil is basically a legend to the light of the mustang and camaro.
You need make a video on the Mitsubishi mighty max, Plymouth arrow pick-up 🛻 & Dodge D50 ram & the Dodge raider & Mitsubishi Montero.
Remember when the Maverick first came out, was in high school then. The early models looked the best. Later years looked clunky due to the mandated bumpers. But would have bought one in 79 when buying the first new car, instead bought a Fairmont. Loved it, owned three total.
The Maverick was a huge sales success but it had an identity crisis. At first it was like a cheap mini Mustang but it didn't have a V8. And it was marketed against imports. Then the Pinto was released, and the Maverick repositioned more like a mini Mustang with a V8 option - but they also released a 4 door. Then the Mustang II was released in 1974 which was the same size so the Maverick was just an older looking version.
I have a 1970 Maverick and it came with AC, and a 250 CID six cylinder, both of which the video either saud didn't exist in 1970 or didn't mention. Great video though!
Gremlin, Nova, Maverick, Comet, Aspen, Volare etc.
I'd love to have any of these early to mid-'70s compacts with an in-line 6 as a daily driver.
I really wish I still had my Granada with the 302......but unfortunately an accident sent that one to the great beyond.
Why? You want an ugly, unreliable car?
@@GeeEm1313 Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and as for reliability, that can be fixed in many ways.
In the mid 70s, my family had 72, 73 mavericks as well as 2 74 comets. One 74 comet was traded in on a new 75 maverick. Yeah our drive way was full.
1976 Ford Maverick was my first car.
I remember my mom have a yellow 4-door like the one in that commercial. I always thought it was weird that the shoulder belt was stored on the headliner and you could use it when you wanted.
My folks bought a 1971 Maverick as a used car. As a teenager I thought it looked pretty cool!
I've never considered the new Maverick a truck since the cab is not separated from the cargo bed and is unibody. It looks a lot like the Flex, so I still call it a car like the original Maverick.
As soon as it came out, I knew it was just an Escape with the roof cut off. Just like Hyundai did with the Santa Fe and called it a Santa Cruz, and Honda did with the Pilot and called it a Ridgeline.
My uncle had one of these back then and Jamie Kennedy raps about one in 'Malibu's Most Wanted.'
Nice looking cars
Say what you will, Lee Iacocca was a man way ahead of his time!!~ So many cars came out of his head!!!!~~
I remember that Runaway Car TV movie. It was loosely based on a rescue 911 segment. Oddly in that segment, the lone woman in the car drove a VW Jetta.
The inline 170/200/250 6 was a bulletproof simple engine and easy to work on.
Ford Maverick: The story of the car that came before the movie starring Tom CRUISE (VANILLA SKY)
I had a dodge coronet 4 door I paid 2 burgers from burger King for and loved that car it was a late 70s model
My Mom had a Gold Maverick with the fake wood on the side sad when she sold it it was a fantastic looking car
I work at DIA United Airlines had a 4 door I think it was a !978 Maverick they used till 2020
I hate being the guy to point out inaccuracies, but when the pinto was being discussed an AMC pacer from the movie, oh God was shown.
Would trailblazer work? It was a trim package on the s10 blazers. But got their own model s in 02-03 can't remember what year exactly
My dad had a Maverick with a v8 in his college days. He always talked about how much he loved that car.
I probably would have bought the new Maverick truck just because of the name
You know what would be hilarious that I didn't think of until now because I forgot the Maverick was also a classic car? If the new Maverick was named the Maverick because Top Gear USA used an old Maverick as a pickup truck in one of the season one challenges.
I was planning on using that Top Gear USA clip in this episode but got blocked by the copyright.
10:06 Leave it to you to never miss a Star Trek plug 👌👏