Torino is the Italian name of the Piedmont region city that is home to the Shroud of Turin, a holy relic. It is also the name of today's big Ford coupe, which is a retired dragster. Considering its provenance, its performance might be biblical, but will its price elicit from you a holy cow!?

Do you remember that song from when you were a kid - the ants go marching two by two, hurrah, hurrah. . .? Well, yesterday's went marching four by four, and yet with a 74% Crack Pipe loss, it didn't induce any hurrahs for its asking price.

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Sometimes it seems that fans - a word derived from fanatic - of AMC's Eagle line of soft-roaders are willing to overlook almost any transgression when it comes to the late, lamented brand. Sadly, that level of support is not enjoyed by Ford's midsize family of sedans and coupes. The Torino name debuted in 1968 as a range topper for the Fairlane line. Over a short span of years it morphed - Single White Female style - into a mid-size model unto itself, with Fairlane now as a sub-band. In 1971, the long-serving Fairlane name was shelved entirely, with the Torino name following it only five years later.

But while the Torino name was still alive and kicking this escaped the assembly line, looking - strangely enough - like the Toyota Celica's big brother. It has since seen multiple lives. The seller claims to be the second owner, and has been the car's steward for the past 20 years. In its earliest incarnation it was an NHRA strip car, and he includes a shot of it plastered with advertisers' decals and lifting its front wheels off the ground like a pouncing cat. And, while those may have been its glory days, this Torino still looks to have a lot of life left in it.

The ad says that the car has had its wick turned down enough to make it street worthy. Even though it has been toned down, it will still likely pack a punch. After all, a Ford big block, punched out to 502 cubic inches and topped with a thirsty double pumper, will dominate any conversation. Backing up the Crower-cam'd Cobra Jet is a modded TH400 - yes, that's a GM box, but still one of the most robust out there, and one favored by quarter milers. Rounding out the mechanical updates there's also has a ladder bar/coil-over rear suspension, 3.90-gear, 9"pumpkin, and of course the car has been tubbed.

Between those mighty meat lockers sits a trunk-mounted fuel call, with the battery keeping it company. The interior looks both amazingly stock, and clean enough to eat the competition off of, its wide bench backed by a multi-point roll bar in place of the rear seats. The three-point belts have been moved to the bar, and shifting is done with a nondescript looking column lever. One thing I can't tell from the pics is whether or not this Torino has the odd ribbon tach in the lower left of the instrument cluster, it certainly doesn't have any sort of add-on rev counter as you might be expecting. In fact the whole dash and front-half of the passenger compartment looks like something your grandmother may have, for decades, driven to church.

And just like granny, the owner of this Torino has taken good care of his car, keeping it in a shop when not on the road. That means the maroon paint - which is claimed original - still shines, and it's no longer covered in sponsor's stickers. That's just one change that has been made to transition this car from strip to street, and now the seller says it rolls on Hoosier Pro-Streets and will even run on pump gas, although you'd probably want to stay away from that 87 octane hooch. Luckily, the huge double nostril hood riser remains.

The Torino was a handsome car in its day, clothed in fashionable at the time Coke bottle lines - and this one is a particularly well-sorted survivor. That being said its past history in NHRA is sort of like courting a girl (or guy) who used to do porn, there's a perceived taint to the potential relationship.

There's another taint that possibly ain't, and that is the price tag that this second owner has established as the point of entry for being the third. That ownership hurdle is $26,000. That's not stealer-dealer pricing, but then it's neither so low you'd likely use that in reaction. What do you think about that price for this former stripper Ford? Does $26,000 light up your Christmas Tree? Or, does that price cast a shroud over this Torino?

You decide!

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