Mustang II Convertible
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1978 Ford Mustang King Cobra Convertible - Never Say Never
Ford never built a '78 Mustang convertible, right? Wrong! Jeff Ford
July 1, 2000
Contributers: Jeff Ford
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Always and never are two words that should never be used in the Mustang hobby--well--except when you're writing a story about something that most folks deny the existence of. But the evidence is here on paper and in the slides that we took of this '78 King Cobra.Rumors of this car have been floating around Houston, Texas, for some time. On a couple occasions I personally heard whispered stories about a Mustang II convertible that was sold through a dealership. As do most hobbyists, I dismissed the comments as being bench racing gone amuck. After all, every stitch of literature on the IIs said that the convertible was dead as of 1974. The best most sun-worshippers could hope for was a T-top, right?
Well, kinda. Two or three years after the last of these comments were made, I saw the car pictured here--at a Fun Ford Weekend. At first I looked at the car with some skepticism, thinking that it must be a fake--a King Cobra that had been hacked. But stunningly, the work was just too nice--too complete. I shrugged my shoulders, scratched my fuzzy head, and walked away.For five years the drop-top II was nowhere near the top of my cranial activities. Then, a couple years ago, I got a call from Mark Provenzano of Lake Jackson, Texas, and he stated that he indeed owned said convertible II, and would we be interested in snapping some shots of the car. At first, I was kinda hedging. We aren't into radical mods of that type, and I began to build my excuses from there--right up until Mark told me that the car had been sold new at Charley Thomas Ford as a convertible. Hmmm. Now it was getting interesting. He had some documentation via the Department of Public Safety that stated the car had been sold new at Charley Thomas as a convertible. After further digging, Mark learned that the convertible was not directly delivered to the dealership but to Emmess Coachbuilders in Florida, where the conversion was performed.In 1981 Mark went to the dealership looking for answers. "Arriving at the dealership, I found that the car got a lot of attention from the salesman. The only person that knew about the car's history was the sales manager. When I talked to him, he was quite informative, and even offered to trade a new '81 Mustang title for the convertible's title. I declined the offer."Recommended videosPowered by AnyClip
Before you get any illusions that the King was a pristine example, think again. Apparently the car was treated more like a rental car than anything else. At two years of age--when Mark found it--the Cobra was definitely worse for wear. The interior was shot, one of the top latches was broken, and the C4 automatic tranny slipped between Second and Third gears.
Still, the car was a neat find by anyone's estimation. Being a King Cobra, it came with the tape stripes, hoodscoop, ground effects, dual Sports mirrors, and the now-metric 5.0 engine insignia--a first for the Mustang, if not Ford. The convertible King also came equipped for maximum eye appeal with the Bright Red interior and exterior. From the time Mark bought the car as a college student, he has slowly been working on it. We caught up with him and his stepson, Bryan, at the Houston Grand National, and finally snapped some photos of this 1-of-44 convertible. One of 44? That's right. There are others that are probably never to be found, right? Of course you know how we feel about that.
Featured Vehicles 1978 Ford Mustang King Cobra Convertible - Never Say Never
Ford never built a '78 Mustang convertible, right? Wrong! Jeff Ford
July 1, 2000
Contributers: Jeff Ford
Step By Step
View Photo Gallery
Always and never are two words that should never be used in the Mustang hobby--well--except when you're writing a story about something that most folks deny the existence of. But the evidence is here on paper and in the slides that we took of this '78 King Cobra.Rumors of this car have been floating around Houston, Texas, for some time. On a couple occasions I personally heard whispered stories about a Mustang II convertible that was sold through a dealership. As do most hobbyists, I dismissed the comments as being bench racing gone amuck. After all, every stitch of literature on the IIs said that the convertible was dead as of 1974. The best most sun-worshippers could hope for was a T-top, right?
Well, kinda. Two or three years after the last of these comments were made, I saw the car pictured here--at a Fun Ford Weekend. At first I looked at the car with some skepticism, thinking that it must be a fake--a King Cobra that had been hacked. But stunningly, the work was just too nice--too complete. I shrugged my shoulders, scratched my fuzzy head, and walked away.For five years the drop-top II was nowhere near the top of my cranial activities. Then, a couple years ago, I got a call from Mark Provenzano of Lake Jackson, Texas, and he stated that he indeed owned said convertible II, and would we be interested in snapping some shots of the car. At first, I was kinda hedging. We aren't into radical mods of that type, and I began to build my excuses from there--right up until Mark told me that the car had been sold new at Charley Thomas Ford as a convertible. Hmmm. Now it was getting interesting. He had some documentation via the Department of Public Safety that stated the car had been sold new at Charley Thomas as a convertible. After further digging, Mark learned that the convertible was not directly delivered to the dealership but to Emmess Coachbuilders in Florida, where the conversion was performed.In 1981 Mark went to the dealership looking for answers. "Arriving at the dealership, I found that the car got a lot of attention from the salesman. The only person that knew about the car's history was the sales manager. When I talked to him, he was quite informative, and even offered to trade a new '81 Mustang title for the convertible's title. I declined the offer."Recommended videosPowered by AnyClip
Before you get any illusions that the King was a pristine example, think again. Apparently the car was treated more like a rental car than anything else. At two years of age--when Mark found it--the Cobra was definitely worse for wear. The interior was shot, one of the top latches was broken, and the C4 automatic tranny slipped between Second and Third gears.
Still, the car was a neat find by anyone's estimation. Being a King Cobra, it came with the tape stripes, hoodscoop, ground effects, dual Sports mirrors, and the now-metric 5.0 engine insignia--a first for the Mustang, if not Ford. The convertible King also came equipped for maximum eye appeal with the Bright Red interior and exterior. From the time Mark bought the car as a college student, he has slowly been working on it. We caught up with him and his stepson, Bryan, at the Houston Grand National, and finally snapped some photos of this 1-of-44 convertible. One of 44? That's right. There are others that are probably never to be found, right? Of course you know how we feel about that.
SnakesAlive
Dirt-Old 20+Year Member
Wow SnakesAlive thats really neat! What a great choice for rims too!
We need some more pics please
how about some shots of the top mechanism / conversion and such
Mine rattles too, but I think I finally found the problem. Every other II I've ever owned didn't though. My sister had an 85 GT and my brother an 84 GT, they rattled too. I guess it's the nature of the beast when it comes to a hatch....
429MII
Mustang Master
Odd the convertible has none of the cowl bracing of the t-top.....
I thought I saw the cowl brace on the red one.
Were all converted at an outside shop too though.
429MII
Mustang Master
JUL 15, 2021 | BY ROBERT KENNEDY
THE MUSTANG II CONVERTIBLE THAT YOU NEVER KNEW EXISTED
Since April 1964, Ford’s original pony car has sold more than 10 million units, making Mustang the world’s best-selling sports car. Part of Mustang’s unparalleled success has been an ongoing series of sub-models, providing owners and fans a wide variety of rare and interesting variants over the years. No, we’re not just talking about Boss 429s or Shelby Super Snakes. There are Mustang models of such extreme rarity that most enthusiasts know little, or nothing, about them. These types of steeds have names such as Mustang E, Monroe Handler, and M81 – mounts of such extreme scarcity that these three nameplates account for just 67 production units combined! Another perfect example of this kind of recherché stallion is the Classic II convertible.
As new-car buyers of the late 1960s began to favor sunroofs and air conditioning, convertible sales inevitably declined. By the early ’70s, industry insiders began to fear that safety concerns and pressure from the insurance industry might actually prompt the federal government to ban the sale of traditional convertibles altogether. Subsequently, Ford Motor Company stopped producing factory-built convertible Mustangs and Cougars in 1973. Chevrolet produced its last ragtop Corvette in 1975. And when Cadillac’s final Eldorado convertible rolled off the assembly line at GM’s Clark Street Assembly plant on April 22, 1976, most open-air-aficionados mourned the death of the American-made convertible.
All was not lost, however. Even as “T-roof convertibles” began gaining popularity among Chevrolet Corvette, Pontiac Trans-Am and Ford Mustang II buyers, new federal regulations allowed that anyone could build up to 500 traditional convertibles without subjecting them to crash testing by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Seemingly overnight, dozens of independent shops emerged across the country offering to convert hardtops to droptops, giving rise to the “coach-built convertible.” Among these was Florida-based Emess Coach Builders, a company previously known for building stretch limousines. Owner Mark Doyne converted one 1976 Mustang II Ghia to use as his company’s official prototype. By 1977, Ford Motor Company began shipping Mustang II notchbacks and Ghias down to Doyne’s newly expanded facility in Clearwater, Florida, for conversions.
Converting the soon-to-be topless Mustang IIs required significant reinforcement of their unibody chassis. Emess accomplished this by welding large subframe connectors on each side of the transmission tunnel. The additional bracing, convertible top frame and hydraulic components added enough weight above the rear axle that Emess also replaced the Mustang II’s original shock absorbers with upgraded components. Fiberglass tubs were installed to separate the convertible top storage trays from the trunk, and new carpeting was buttoned neatly into place, providing a polished appearance to the remaining luggage space. Finally, seatbelts were re-routed, top anchors were installed above the visors, up/down switches were placed on the cars’ attractive pecan dash bezels, and multiple chrome trim pieces were fabricated for installation along where the original roofs had been removed.
Of course, all this customization didn’t come cheap. Doyne was keenly aware of the supply-demand imbalance, and priced his conversions accordingly. Buyers who opted for a T-roof equipped Mustang II (originally designed and engineered by American Sunroof Corporation) paid less than $700 for the extra sunshine on their heads. Emess’s “Classic II” convertible conversion, on the other hand, slapped an additional $4,500-worth of sticker shock on top of the base Mustang II’s $3,702 MSRP! Suddenly, buyers were faced with the uncomfortable reality that their new Mustang II convertible would not only exceed the asking price of a new Corvette, it would actually approach the retail values of a variety of European offerings.
Undeterred, dealers such as Kayser Ford in Madison, Wisconsin, began enthusiastically promoting the hot new Mustang droptops. Initially, sales looked promising as the first cars sold quickly – and for even higher than asking prices. Unfortunately, Kayser’s sales manager, Gary Grumer, recalls that soon after the first units galloped off their dealer lot, owners began reporting issues regarding NVH, water leaks and wind noise. These concerns weren’t exclusive to Kayser’s service techs, and across the country demand evaporated as potential buyers realized that perhaps these sleek, new convertibles were better-suited to car shows and collections than for use as daily drivers.
Ultimately, the combination of its extravagant price tag and Emess’s inconsistent workmanship dealt a fatal blow to the Classic II. Production fizzled out with just 44 units completed, most of which have since been lost or tucked away in private collections. Emess Coach Builders would eventually close its doors, and Ford wouldn’t revisit the idea of a convertible Mustang again until 1983, when Ford tapped Cars and Concepts of Brighton, Michigan, to complete the conversion process. Today, most Mustangers have never seen a Mustang II Classic II convertible in person, and even their passionate owners aren’t likely to have encountered another, except at the annual Mustang II reunions founded and sponsored by Ford Performance.
Cleverly designed during an uncertain era dominated by government-mandated safety and emissions regulations, Classic II Mustang II convertibles provided affluent enthusiasts with an attractive alternative to increasingly popular Japanese imports, whose fuel efficiency did little to stir the soul. With only 44 Classic II units produced, and a mere half-dozen known to still exist, these little droptop Mustang II’s are an even rarer sight than 1948 Tuckers, and truly represent the proverbial needle in a haystack.
If you’d like to see one (possibly even a few) in person, mark your calendar to attend the MCA National Show, “Follow the Yellow Brick Road / Mustang II Reunion VI,” at the Overland Park Convention Center in Overland Park, Kansas, on July 23-25, 2021.
FORD PERFORMANCE PHOTOS / COURTESY ROBERT KENNEDY
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