![]() The LDO package was noted to be on more than 20% of Mavericks being built – a serious take-rate on an option that was so pricey. “This $390 option does more for the Maverick than anything else Ford has tried.” The LDO-equipped Mav was a clear step above the others in quietness and luxury, and also led the field in the magazine’s handling and maneuverability tests. “Don’t think the LDO is like all Mavericks.” PS’s auto editors said. Popular Science chose a Maverick LDO for its June, 1973 four-way test of V8 compact sedans. In the 1973 brochure Ford bragged that the LDO option (is LDO option like a VIN number or a hot water heater?) even got you an extra coat of paint. And the LDO was not just about appearance, as it included the handling package and steel belted radial tires. Outside you received a vinyl roof, vinyl-filled side mouldings and and color keyed wheel covers. Inside you got extra thick carpet, super-soft vinyl seats and more sound insulation. The LDO turned the Maverick into a mini LTD. Yes, an unwieldy name, but an intriguing car. One, however, that completely changed the character of the car: The Ford Maverick with the Luxury Decor Option. And, in perfect Maverick-fashion, it was not a separate model but an option package. Well into the 1972 model run a new kind of Maverick appeared. ![]() Then, with his second act that was the Ford LTD, he tapped into the next wave – luxury for the masses. In that decade “sport” was what sold cars, and everything in Ford’s lineup got bucket seats, consoles and lots of chrome. Lido (Lee) Iacocca had been displaying an almost supernatural ability to find new niches since taking over as head of the Ford Division at the beginning of the 1960s. There was one place the Maverick had not gone though, and that was in the direction of luxury. With the sedan the Maverick seemed to cover the spectrum a compact was expected to cover in 1971 – cheap, thrifty, small, maybe sporty, and cheap. Especially once the 302 V8 became available to augment the wide range of sixes (170, 200 and 250 – in order of descending wheeze). Oh well, don’t looks sell cars?Ī sedan on a 109.9 inch wheelbase joined the lineup in 1971 and was a more direct replacement for the Falcon which had been discontinued a year earlier. ![]() Except for the racy shape which looked great but made the space within the car’s 103 inch wheelbase as inefficient as possible. It was as if the ghost of Robert McNamara reappeared during the era of Peak Iacocca at Ford. Introduced only as a 2-door on the small end of the compact class, it made the outgoing Falcon feel like a Cutlass Supreme by comparison. ![]() At an advertised price of $1,995 it was called “The Simple Machine”. At least that was what Ford folks said at the time. The 1970 Maverick was a back-to-basics compact that was aimed more at the Volkswagen than at the Nova and Valiant. ![]() If ever there was a car that seemed less suited to a luxury role than the 1970 Ford Maverick, it would be hard to think of one. We went from a 500 being after everything through the XL, LTD and several flavors of GT. Yes, the Luxury Maverick – Identified by the letters LDO.įord really liked its letters in the 1960s and 70s. One sub-role of Maverickdom which we have not really looked at is the Luxury Maverick. We have turned our spotlight on the Ford Maverick several times, but always in the context of cheap econoboxes or sporty Grabbers. What’s this? Another Maverick? Haven’t we covered these to death here at CC? Let us answer your questions, rude though they may be: Huh, Yes, and Kind Of. ![]()
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