The Mustang II notchbacks are cute and not bad looking (Ghia landau roofs notably excluded), perhaps because they share a very similar window profile to the '71-73 Coupes (and probably the main reason our cars often get dismissed as II's - that, and the general proximity of year).
That said, if Ford had put more effort in revising the Pinto platform to suit the II - and thrown that silly, Japanese rear quarter and window profile out the window, they could have had a little compact without losing one bit of Mustang muscle:
Not many modifications here, but major ones:
- Front wheel moved forward - improved the looks more than anything else
- The sagging quarter panel feature line and taillight panels have been moved up to create proper hips to the fastback
- Wheel arches enlarged, tires and rims enlarged 1" each in diameter to fill the larger areas
- Rear quarter window reshaped (of course)
- Side scoops vertically enlarged
- Front windscreen top edge lowered 1/2"
I'm particularly fond of how the rear quarter window blends the top curve of the '69-70 quarter window with the lower kickup of the '71-73's.
The original, by comparison:
-Kurt