Color Code (Pre-Spoiler) Car for Sale
This is a Color Code car and it has Ram Air. Most Color Code cars will not have a hood scoop. All Spoilers will have a hood scoop but only Ram Air cars will have functional scoops.
Our friend, Team Member and fellow 1969 Blue Oval Car nut, Marty Burke, recently acquired this rare 1969 Mercury Cyclone Color Code car (sometimes called the Pre-Spoiler). Like most of us he has too many projects and has decided to pass this very rare piece of history onto another collector.
Since these cars were actually not discovered until just a few years ago. Many don’t even know what they are. We are still learning about these cars almost every day and have only just begun to get VINs on them. I occasionally get calls from fellows who think they have a Cale Yarborough Spoiler but it doesn’t have a hood scoop, wing or decals. We walk through the numbers to determine what it is.
As best we can determine all Color Code Cyclones were built in late 1968 as early production 1969 cars. They are regular Cyclones and DO NOT have the Spoiler option. It is assumed that these cars can be equipped in any way you could build a regular Cyclone plus a special color code would have been ordered that resembled the later Cale Yarborough (red over white) or Dan Gurney (blue over white) Spoilers. Just a note, I have yet to find a validated Dan Gurney Color Code car. I assume they exist but no one has brought one to me yet.
After the factory began to produce the Spoilers on January 1, 1969 there would have been no need for the Color Code option. (We do not believe this was an option as such but merely a special paint code ordered by the dealer or the retail buyer at an extra cost. However, we have no information to prove this.)
Color Code cars will not have a rear spoiler/wing and Spoilers may or may not have them.
The Color Code cars will not have the hood scoop unless they are Ram Air cars and will not have the rear spoiler/wing. They will also not have the Yarborough or Gurney “signature” decals on the front fenders or the “Spoiler” decals on the rear fenders. However, any owner could have added these over the years thinking they had a real Spoiler. If you are looking at a possible Spoiler MAKE SURE YOU CHECK THE DATE CODE ON THE DATA PLATE to make sure the car was built in calendar year 1969. If it has a 1968 build date it is most likely a Color Code car.
All owners are encouraged to obtain a Marti Report to verify weather their car is a Spoiler or Color Code car.
Owning a Color Code car is not a bad thing. It is also very rare just simply not a Spoiler. At the current time we have no information on the total production of Color Code cars.
If you have any additional information on these cars or can help clarify any of our assumptions PLEASE pass it along to us. Send to: Richard@TalladegaSpoilerRegistry.com
As for this car, Marty states that he has the Marti Report and the Owner Card. It is a real 428 CJ Ram Air with C6 transmission. However, the engine has been replaced by a 2bbl 429. Other options on this rare car are vinyl bucket seats, body tape stripe, console, am radio, tinted glass and style steel wheels. It also has a Tach and 3.50 gears. The build date is 12-21-1968.
How much for this piece of Mercury history? SOLD
This car is now sold and was purchased by another one of our Team Members in California!
Give Marty a call at 903-568-4295 or email him at mburke6662@aol.com
Any interior available in a Cyclone could be found in a Color Code car.