It’s no secret that Lee Iaccoca worked the Ford Falcon into the Mustang. He also used that same formula to create the 1975 Granada. Sound like some malaise malarkey? Perhaps, but as they say, truth is stranger than fiction. In addition, our Pick of the Day is one of the few examples of this model produced with a four-speed manual. This 1977 Ford Granada Ghia two-door sedan is listed on ClassicCars.com by a dealership in Kentwood, Michigan.
The Granada may be a microcosm of the Malaise Era. It seems that all one had to do is add a landau roof and automakers would make money hand over fist. In the case of the 1975 Ford Granada, it was a vehicle based on existing components reformulated to exploit another market — sounds like the Mustang, right?
Ford set out to create an upscale compact inspired by the “W114” Mercedes-Benz 280. It already had a Granada in Europe, an E-segment vehicle introduced in 1972 that could be considered the next step up from the Taunus and Cortina. This car was considered for importation to the United States to fulfill its duty as a Euro-style compact, but Ford decided against this due to cost considerations.
The Granada developed for the North American market can trace its origins to the Ford Maverick, but we know the Maverick traces its origins to the Falcon, so could the Granada be considered a Mercedes-fighting Mustang? A stretch, but history has shown that it never hurts to make anything fancier — witness the Mercury Cougar compared to the Mustang. Plenty of other cars followed the same formula in the 1970s, so Ford’s move to luxe up a compact into a mini Gran Torino or Elite was dy-no-mite with the American car-buying public.
Introduced for 1975, the Granada was available as a two- and four-door sedan in both standard and Ghia trim levels. Its wheelbase was shared with the Maverick four-door sedan. A 200ci inline-six or 250ci inline-six (depending on trim level) was standard, while a 302 two-barrel was optional. Unlike the Maverick, the Granada was available with a two-barrel 351 Windsor. Mid-year 1976, a two-door Sport Sedan was introduced. “Our Sportiest Granada. With racy new ideas, as well as exciting new looks,” Ford said. Of course, a 200ci six with a column-shifted three-speed did not inspire spirited driving, but you could opt for the shifter on the floor (if not one of the other engines) to fulfill its duty better.
For 1977, Ford claimed that the Granada was “designed to give you efficient use of space, fuel, and money.” This is somewhat interesting because if we look back at Consumer Guide’s “Complete Guide to Used Cars,” it claimed that “Ford Motor Company has a lot of gall in comparing its Granada to the Mercedes-Benz 280. The Mercedes 280 is one of the best compact-size cars in the world; Granada is one of the worst.” Nonetheless, a four-speed manual was added to the feature list — newly standard, and replacing the three-speed, though admittedly it was more of a three-speed with an extra overdrive gear. This transmission was available with both sixes and the 302 V-8.
This Jade Green Metallic 1977 Ford Granada Ghia two-door sedan is one of the rare ones with the four-speed manual. According to the Marti Report on the seller’s website, just over 500 were built in this combination of two-door Ghia with the 302 and four-speed. Other features include Jade leather interior with buckets and console, power steering, power disc brakes, air conditioning, AM/FM stereo, driver-side remote mirror, and heavy-duty suspension, among other items.
There are eight million stories in the Malaise Era. The Granada is one of them, yet there’s enough interesting things going on for this example to rise above the fray of malaise. Do you really think you can go wrong for $13,900?
Click here to view this Pick of the Day on ClassicCars.com
