1976 Ford Ranchero “Blue Boat”

The 1972 Ford Ranchero moved onto Ford's redesigned intermediate platform, the larger and heavier Gran Torino, making this the biggest Ranchero generation since the full-size era and placing it on a 118-inch wheelbase. The 1972 redesign also coincided with the auto industry's switch from SAE gross to SAE net horsepower, so engine ratings from this generation are net figures and are lower-numbered than the gross ratings of the 1966-1971 Rancheros even for similar engines. The Gran Torino Ranchero offered the 250 inline-six as the base engine and a V8 lineup that included the 302, the 351 in Windsor and Cleveland forms, and the 400, with the big-block 429 and 460 also available during the run, the 460 reaching the public lineup by 1974. Federal crash standards drove a redesigned front end for 1973. Trim levels carried over the Ranchero 500, the woodgrain Ranchero Squire, and the appearance-oriented Ranchero GT. Ranchero sales peaked at 45,741 units in 1973, the nameplate's best year. For 1977 the Ford Ranchero moved onto the LTD II platform that replaced the Gran Torino, ending this generation.