VIN & Data Plates
Many of our readers have asked if there is a way to verify that an Aero Car they are looking at is real. It a time when clones and rebodies are becoming common this can be very important. You can send away and get a Marti Report but you can also identify the car immediately if you know what to look for.
There are two important parts to identifying a 1969 Ford or Mercury Aero Car. The most obvious is the VIN. In 1969 the Government required that the VIN be visible from the outside. It is located on the driver side dash on both the Talladega and Cyclones. The second piece of information is the Data Plate which is located on the driver’s door rear inside edge under the door latch mechanism. Whereas the VIN is used to identify the car and legally register it, the Data Plate is used to decode the options and standard equipment as to how the car was built at the factory. BEWARE, if your car has been damaged and the driver’s door has been replaced you will likely have a Data Plate belonging to another car which was junked for parts long ago.
This photo is taken from the interior with the dash pad removed. The windshield trim is the chrome at the top of the image. If you look closely, you can see the VIN stamped into the tag.One of the mysteries of car collecting is what do all the numbers and letters in the VIN and Data Plates mean? There is no one answer, it changes from year to year and manufacturer to manufacture. It can even be different for different models under the same brand.
On these pages we will tell you what we know about the 1969 Ford Talladega and the 1969 Mercury Cyclone, Spoiler and Spoiler II.
We welcome corrections and additional information from anyone and everyone. We have attempted to give you the best information available to us but if you have better data, please share it with everyone.
You should also consult with Marti Autoworks to obtain a Marti Report for your car. This Report can provide valuable information on how your car was built. However, since our cars are so rare there have been instances where a Marti Report may not be 100% correct. One common fault is listing hood pins for a Talladega. NO HOOD PINS were ever installed at the factory on a regular production Talladega.
Please click on the links below for detailed information on the cars listed.
1969 Ford Talladega
1969 Mercury Cyclone, Spoiler
1969 Mercury Cyclone Spoiler II
9A46Q192104. A couple of years ago I sent a short known history on this car and a response to posts commenting on production
of these cars. You didn’t respond. Possibly because I didn’t obtain a membership or there wasn’t any proof I actually owned or could
substantiate the car existed. I have taken pictures of the title and data plate to corroborate Q192104 was manufactured as stated in my
original post. Intent is to verify authenticity for the registry record.
Your comments have been posted since you provided it to me. Thank you for doing so. The information posted on the car details for the site is only visible to our Members. That is why you can’t see it even though it is there and visible to Members.