It seems that everyone is obsessed with the factory markings found on restored cars. A Concours restoration just isn’t complete until every obscure marking is correctly in place with the right color and detail. I certainly appreciate these but also find it quite humorous in a warped sort of way. I bought more than one new car back in the day and the first thing that I did was clean up under the hood!
Note leaf spring markings as well as the vent tube on the differential. This is correct for a 1969 Mercury Cyclone SCJ.
Who wants all those strange scribbles and stickers under the hood of a new car? You want it clean and simple, no stupid distractions put there by the factory. As for the underside of the car, I never had a thought. Living in Iowa with dirt and gravel back roads along with the damages caused by winter snow and road salt there was little need to even think about the undercarriage appearance.
Driveshaft for 1969 Mercury Cyclone SCJ.
Rear U-Joint and driveshaft for 1969 Mercury Cyclone SCJ.
Today I cringe at the thought of taking a restored collector car on any road other than one that is dry and absent of any loose gravel. Our cars may be driven in the rain but never on purpose or when there is an option. After all, cleaning an undercarriage can be very time consuming.
Front U-Joint for 1969 Mercury Cyclone SCJ.
This is the first is a series of articles about the correct restoration markings for some of the cars covered in this Registry. Marty Burke is our technical reference for this series. The photos in this article are from Marty of his own benchmark 1969 Mercury Cyclone Dan Gurney Spoiler 428 SCJ! He is also a long time Team Member in the Registry and Chief Judge for the Fairlane Club of America. All of the images included here are correct for a 1969 Mercury Cyclone SCJ 4-speed 430:1 rear gear car and may differ for other engine and transmission combinations.
Rear U-joint for 1969 Mercury Cyclone SCJ.
In future articles, we will be covering other areas of this particular car as well as similar Talladegas and Spoiler IIs. If you have photos and descriptions of original cars or restored cars you would like to share please send them to rfleener@comcast.net. All submissions will be reviewed by Marty for correctness.
