1971 Mercury Monterey in Oregon

Hello all,

I've been lurking here quite a while, so I figured I should introduce myself and my wagon. She is a 1971 Mercury Monterey, blue on blue with a 4V 429. My grandfather purchased this car new in Wenatchee Washington, and he gave it to me about 10 years ago when he stopped driving. My intention was to restore it, and maybe hotrod it a bit, but mostly I've just been keeping it maintained and drivable. It still gets pulled out of the garage to haul the occasional piece of furniture, but it spends most of it's time taking up space (a LOT of space).

It's all original, runs and drives decent, could use some shocks and a carb rebuild, but has actually been quite reliable. It has a little rust showing near the bottom of the rear quarter, but the body is generally really solid. It spent it's life in high desert in Washington, or a garage in Oregon.

To be honest, my ulterior motive for starting to post is to prep for putting it up for sale. I hate to do it, but I'm just not doing anything with the car, and no one else in my family wants it. I really want it to go to a good home, and get restored, so I'm going to try and sell on the "enthusiast" sites like this first.

Pics below and there are more in my gallery.

 

and cool, but I'm a bit bias when it comes to these tanks I have a Canadian made 72 Meteor/Beteor, basically just like yours but a bit of a different grill and our Canukastan "Meteor" models came with a Ford dash. I also have the smog boat anchor 400 2V...... thirsty for gas, crap for over all "umph" power . I have a couple 460's for it, but then there is the getting around to it

I really like it, yours that is and the fact you have a real engine in it


My dash vs yours.......

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Yours also looks a lot better than mine for some reason



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PS...You didn't mention, do you have the jump seats in the back?
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Nice Dude It's awesome to see Longroofs with family History

 

Gregg. Nice intro and pics too. Sorry you feel that you have to sell the car. But good of you to respect it and try to sell it to someone who may want it for what it is, an awesome time capsule. There are those who would just sell it to the first person that comes along.
Good luck with your sale keep us up to date on where it ends up.

 

Welcome GreggPDX!

 

Welcome Gregg, Love your car! Originally from Richland myself.

mike

 

Welcome to the SWF, Gregg.

We all, sooner or later, will get rid of our vehicles - one way or another. Maybe letting it go frees you up for something you like better. Good luck with whatever comes your way.

Marshall

 

Welcome to the Forums. What a great car! There are a couple things I love about it. There are many things I love about it, but a couple stand out. First, the family history. It is wonderful to see a car like that still owned by the original family. Beware seller's remorse. You will feel that certain pang as it drives away the last time. This could be one of those "What was I thinking" cars. It also has a couple of options that are not common, especially here in Canada. Our cars seldom came with a/c. Does it still work? It also has the cornering lights, and they are not common, even on fairly well loaded Colony Parks. Probably quite rare on the Monterey. I am betting that a day spent with the buffer would make a big difference to the appearance of the old girl. That blue paint was very susceptible to sun damage. the light blue and silver metallics were even worse than red when it came to retaining their ability to shine. I love that she is that gentle remove from pristine. That is the kind of car that begs to be used and enjoyed for many, many years, and many, many miles.

When it comes to the shocks, check with Ford. I am betting you can still get the high pressure Ford shocks, made by Monroe, for her. They are likely to be under $40 each, and they work better on these old Ford cars than anything else. The calibration is different than the Monroe branded shocks. My second choice would be the KYB shocks. They are a little more money than the Ford ones, but are quite close to the Ford for extension, but a little firmer for rebound. In fact all of the after market shocks are a little firmer on rebound, and that is the problem with them. You get more wheel hop with the after market shocks than the modern Ford ones.

 

Welcome! Great looking survivor wagon. Body looks nice and straight.

 

Thanks for the feedback and kind words everyone. To answer some of the questions, she does not have the flip-up seats, but I really wish she did. I've checked around the yards locally, and can't find a set. Once, long ago, I found a country squire in a local yard that had them, but I was looking for parts for a different car, so I made a note and left. When I finally got back to check again, the car was gone I kick myself regularly for that one. I think those flip-up seats are really cool!

As a side note, I recently stumbled across a '71 Country Squire in a local u-pull-it. She's in pretty rough shape, and no flip-up seats, but I got a nice passenger mirror and window crank. I was just amazed to find a car like that in a u-pull-it. Those yards are usually full of '90's Taurus's and Caravans.

Regarding the A/C, I charged it when I got the car, and it worked and held a charge for a few days, but leaked out fairly quickly. With the price of R12, I decided to just leave it until I had the means to reseal the system.

The cornering lights are one of my grandpa's favorite things. He loves to rave about how handy and rare they are. I'm glad to hear that he's not the only one that appreciates them!

Regarding the paint, I've thought about trying to rub out the oxidation, it just seems like a really daunting task. Lots of paint on that car!

Again, I appreciate all the feedback, and it get's me excited about the car just to hear other people's enthusiasm. It's too bad no one else in my family shares it!

Gregg

 

Well, at least you have paint to begin with unlike me

I still find it baffling that you have the same body style wagon. I found mine 4-sale at a high school and don't recall seeing one even a sedan in all the years I've lived here (1982) and never a real one since I've been a member here. Shortly after I got mine another very nice condition one popped up for sale rite in my own town ( I'll find the link), and now yours.... when it rains it pours

 

Welcome to the forum Greg!

 

Gregg
dude its too bad you wanna sell her.....she's got a butt load of potential !!!...and a bitchin driver the way she sits

 

What is the appropriate forum to post a "what is it worth?" question?

I can provide a lot more pictures and info to get the best estimate possible.

 

I was just talking about you ......


post #20.... the last line says it all
http://www.stationwagonforums.com/forums/showthread.php?p=254033#post254033

Whats it worth.... sadly the reality is, what some one is willing to pay for it. Yes it's rare, yours is the only US model I've found for 71, have never found a US 72 that's still around. And as mentioned, I only know of the 2 Canadian models still in existence....that does not make them worth big bucks

The main thing you have is a real engine, compared to the IMO boat anchor 400/2V that mine has.

So your asking whats it worth.... If your wagon was here and was $2000 OBO, I would be kinda interested. If it was $3000OBO I would not.

Just my 2 bits of nothing