1975 Mercury Montego

351 V8

Automatic

Here is a great looking vintage car that literally was a "Barn Find"! This is a 1975 Mercury Montego MX Villager Station Wagon, recently acquired from a neighbor of the original owner. It was actually driven out of his barn when I picked it up! This is one of the most original, un-touched, un-restored "Survivor" cars I have seen in a good long time! It has 45,000 actual miles, and aside from necessary maintenance over the years, is completely factory original and NOT modified! This is a 2 seat, 6 passenger wagon. This wagon is equipped as follows: 1. 351-M "big block" V8 with 2bbl carb. 2. 3-speed automatic transmission. 3. power steering and power brakes. 4. appearance package consisting of deluxe wheelcovers, body side moldings, extra chrome trim. 5. factory roof rack and rear window deflector. 6. am radio. 7. deluxe heater and defrost (no air conditioning). 8. rear window defroster. 9. security package consisting of locking hood release, gas cap, and spare tire lock. This sharp looking wagon has always been garaged when not being used, and has its original paint, chrome, and interior. Under the hood and in the cargo area are also nice looking un-restored, and un-modified. The paint is a nice rich looking metallic blue with matching vinyl interior. The paint is not tired, cracked, or faded looking, and still holds a nice luster and shine after all these years. Same with the chrome bumpers and stainless trim. Car has not been wrecked, and I don't see any previous body repairs. All original body panels and not dented or rusted out, other than a very few small nicks from doors opening in parking lots over the years. Even these small imperfections are at a minimum! Interior is immaculate! Headliner and original carpets are still really nice, even the carpet mats in the cargo area! No cracks in the dash. No rips or tears in the seats or door panels. Original steering wheel does have some small cracks, but still makes a nice appearance. Underneath the car is also nice and solid. Car has original floorboards, not rusted out, no problems. Clearly it was not winter driven or subject to salt corrossion. Amazingly, the spare tire well is NOT rusted, which is highly unusual on vintage wagons of this era! The whole car is a true time capsule! Engine starts right up when you give the gas a couple pumps to set the automatic choke. I don't see any smoke when you start it, and the underside is nice and dry, not leaking. Car runs on fast idle, then kicks down like it should when you tap the gas after it has run for a short time. Goes into gear smoothly, transmission shifts nice and crisply as it should. Engine accelerates smoothly and with good power. Car goes down the road nicely, and brakes operate nice and smooth. Over the years, maintenance has been done including oil changes, replacement of brakes, muffler, belts, hoses, some gaskets here and there, spark plugs, cap, rotor, battery, etc as needed. I still have the original books that came with the car, factory warranty papers, factory window sticker, and original new car sales contract. Also have some original old bills for some maintenance. Amazingly, this special wagon still has its original Goodyear Custom Radial Tires that came on it when new! This just further speaks to the originality of this car! Radio, heater, defroster, wipers, horn etc. all work. The following will need some attention: 1. Rear tailgate power window works intermittently. It will go down most of the time, but needs help with your hands coming up. I can hear motor and mechanism working, so I believe it may be partially off the track. 2. Tires are original. They still have some tread, and do not appear to be dry-rotted from what I can see. They still seem to track ok, and don't seem to have flat spots. I have driven the car recently to a couple local cruise-ins with no problems, but would not think it prudent to drive on a long trip with these old tires. I left them on to show the low mileage and authenticity of the car, but it depends on what you want to do with the car. If you are going to display or drive once in awhile to local activities, they should be fine. If you plan on using the car a lot, I would recommend 4 new tires and alignment. It is very seldom that you run into these nice original cars! This is especially true of station wagons, since they were usually worked to death by business owners or families with a lot of kids. If someone GAVE you a basket case, you could not restore it for what you can buy this one for! Remember, "Survivor" cars are the up and coming thing in the collector car hobby. Anyone can restore a derelict, but they are only original once! Don't miss this opportunity to get a nice original vintage car at a price that won't break the bank! About Me: I have collected and fooled with old cars for the past 30 years. I like original "Survivor" cars and keep a "rotating collection" of 6 to 8 such vehicles from the late 1950s to early 1980s. I live half the year in the Carolinas, and the other half in the mountains of Upstate New York, half way between Albany and Syracuse. This car is at my summer home. Please call me at 704-661-1326 with any questions. Leave message if not in. Now for the rules: 1. Your bid is a contract! If you are the successful bidder, you are expected to pay! Please have all contingencies handled and your money in place BEFORE you bid! 2. A NON-REFUNDABLE $1200 partial payment is due within 48 hours of auction's conclusion. This can be by bank wire transfer or cashiers check. Pay Pal is NOT acceptable for this. 3. Balance is due within 7 days of auction's close. This can be by bank wire transfer, cashiers check or cash in person. If you are paying balance upon pickup of car, it must be cash in person. 4. Car and title will not leave here until paid in full with cleared funds. No exceptions! 5. Car is sold strictly as-is at my premisies with no guarantee or warranty of any kind. 6. Transportation and its cost is the buyer's responsibility. It is up to you to arrange safe transport and care of the vehicle. 7. It is ok if you can't pick up car right away, I can keep it for you for a reasonable period of time. However, it still must be paid for within the 7 days of auction's close. Also, you should have insurance on the car as I cannot be responsible for damage, fire, theft, acts of God etc. that are beyond my control. 8. An administrative fee of $125.00 will be charged in addition to the bid price. This goes toward my advertising expenses, paperwork, temp tag, etc. It does not cover all of these expenses, but goes toward defraying some of them. 9. Car is advertised locally for sale. If I find a buyer through that venue, I reserve the right to end auction early. Please call me at 704-661-1326 with any further questions about this. Leave message if not in. I am sorry for all the rules, but it seems that 5% of difficult people spoil it for the 95% who are good. Thanks very much for looking! Again, please feel free to call 704-661-1326 with any questions.