by "ImmoralMinority" (araimondo)
Published 04/30/2017 at 16:38
by "ImmoralMinority" (araimondo)
Published 04/30/2017 at 16:38
No Tags
STARS: 3
1973 Mercury Montego MX for $3500. Seller has papers on an engine rebuild 13000 miles ago, carb and starter rebuild a year ago. It starts up right away, and the 351 Cleveland sounds great.
As you can see, it is cosmetically rough, but I saw nothing worse than surface rust (California car). The seller lives just a few blocks from me, and the car belonged to his dad, who passed in 2013.
I am serious about this for my 16 year old son as a project we can work on together. What do you think Oppo?
"E90M3" (e90m3)
04/30/2017 at 16:40, STARS: 1
This isn’t an old Toyota, or even Japanese. I’m perplexed.
"Steve in Manhattan" (blogenfreude01)
04/30/2017 at 16:47, STARS: 3
$1500 max, and a thorough inspection - differential especially, and get it up in the air and look undernearth.
"TheD0k_2many toys 2little time" (thed0ck)
04/30/2017 at 17:01, STARS: 0
yes. 351W is a great motor and with some pipes sounds amazing.
Also keep it patina like that makes it look amazing. Id try and get it a little cheaper though. 3k would be my max
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
04/30/2017 at 17:07, STARS: 0
$1500 seems pretty cheap, unless these cars are pretty unloved? Although, personally I prefer older, lighter cars. Getting underneath anything this old is an absolute must, though - - regardless of what the body looks like, for sure—
"MM54" (mm54mk2)
04/30/2017 at 19:01, STARS: 1
Looks like clearcoat peeling, which I’m pretty sure wouldn’t be on there if it’s original paint. Look very carefully for shoddy bodywork (e.g. bondo over rust) and any other common-old-car-issues. Make sure where the vinyl roof meets the body isn’t rotted out and that it still has a trunk floor.
If the body is solid, the interior in decent shape (replacement parts for this would likely be impossible to source), and the drivetrain in good shape, could be a good project for 3 grand. Step one would be to remove all the ‘73 smog junk if you can.
"PS9" (PS9)
04/30/2017 at 19:01, STARS: 1
The Malaise era is strong with this one.
"JEM" (jem)
04/30/2017 at 19:03, STARS: 0
I’d offer $2500 and see if he’d meet in the middle at $3000. It’s not a desirable car, but looks fairly solid so if you want a project, looks like a good place to start.
The one thing I would caution about is since it’s not a popular restoration vehicle, parts might be hard to come by. Not motor/transmission parts but things like trim pieces or suspension bits. Before you buy it, I’d look online and do some research and see if you can still find things like brake drums and ball joints.
"Your boy, BJR" (jerseyshoreben)
04/30/2017 at 19:57, STARS: 0
No
"RacinBob" (racinbob)
04/30/2017 at 20:15, STARS: 0
Heck Yes, I have the paint job for it too.
"jimz" (jimz)
05/01/2017 at 08:04, STARS: 1
‘73 anything is pretty much unloved; the battering ram bumpers put a lot of people off. Especially after the neutering of ‘72. it didn’t help that the Montego was sort of a “wannabe Cougar” on a Torino body-on-frame platform. Plus, there’s grumblings that Ford was using “recycled steel” back then which wasn’t very good, so even a california car is likely to have hidden rust requiring significant surgery.
"jimz" (jimz)
05/01/2017 at 08:10, STARS: 0
that’s a Cleveland.
"jimz" (jimz)
05/01/2017 at 08:17, STARS: 0
are you sure that’s a 351 Cleveland? the air cleaner lid is not factory (it doesn’t even fit,) and the generic stickered “351" is meaningless. Check the emissions label on the valve cover (if it has one) and make sure it’s not a 400. Those are worthless. if it is a Cleveland, if it has a 2 barrel carb it might have the FMX transmission which is, er, special. its design dates back to the early ‘50s and there aren’t many people left who know how to work on them. they date from before integrated valve bodies so when you pull the pan you see this jumble:
honestly mid-70s Fords are best avoided unless it’s something really special.
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
05/01/2017 at 09:32, STARS: 0
Yeah, my taste in old cars almost cuts off completely at 1972. 1973+ styling on virtually everything was loaded with ugly compromises. The GM B-body convertibles and W116 Merc are about my only exceptions to that. Impossible to really price this thing without a thorough exam underneath, and also perhaps what lies underneath that vinyl roof, too...
"jimz" (jimz)
05/01/2017 at 09:37, STARS: 1
the worst offender:
1972 Thunderbird:
1974 Thunderbird:
that’s practically an integrated park bench.
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
05/01/2017 at 09:40, STARS: 0
I think the Mark IV might have been even worse. The ‘72 is gorgeous. My grandfather had a ‘72 T-bird when I was a little kid (which he had traded a ‘68 to get). Beautiful car, but man it was like a dungeon in that back seat... :)
"TheD0k_2many toys 2little time" (thed0ck)
05/01/2017 at 12:59, STARS: 0
your right im an idiot