Mercury Cyclone CJ : 1969

On Saturday January 3rd, 2009, I went to the Hollywood Wheels Auction and Show in Fort Lauderdale, Florida looking for rare and unususal cars to add to the site.

To my surprise, I found this Mercury Cyclone CJ and fell in love with it. I was not very familiar with this car, and it is not the usual car I tend to favor, but the presence of this vehicle, and the mint condition it was in was overpowering.

Practically impossible to capture in pictures, this is a real one of a kind collectible.

According to the seller, of the 117,421 1969 Montegos and Cyclones...
6,968 were Cyclone Fastbacks,
260 were built with 428-4v CJ engine,
152 came with automatic transmission,
14 of those had 428 Super Cobra Jet engines,
1 of them was painted in white,
and this is that Cyclone. vin number 9H15R607753.

The original vehicle order documents indicate the Cyclone 2-door Fastback (code 15)was built at Lorain (code H) on June 14, 1969 (code 14F) with White paint number Ford #1619-A (code M), Red Vinyl bench seat (code 4D), a 3.91 Traction-Lok axle ratio (code V), a C-6 Cruise-O-Matic transmission (code U), a 428-4V CJ Ram Air engine (code R), at the St. Louis Order District (code 42). The dealer's number was 42D108 in Lincoln NB.

While the car was scheduled to be built on on June 14, 1969, it was actually built on on June 6, 1969, released on on June 19, 1969 and sold on on June 20, 1969.

It was ordered with the following options:
- Body side tape stripe
- C-6 Cruise-O-Matic transmission
- 428SCJ engine Drag Pack after 2/20/69
- Traction-Lok differential
- F70X14 Traction Tires w/ raised white letters
- Ram Air induction
- AM Radio

The Mercury Cyclone CJ.
In 1968, A two-barrel 302 cid V8 rated at 210 bhp was standard in all Cyclones. The GT option was still available and added $168 to the $2,768 base price. The GT option only added bucket seats and trim changes, no performance option.

The engine lineup included a four barrel 302, two 390 cid V8s, and the 427 V8 rated at 390 bhp.

This engine was available only for a few months, when Mercury replaced it with the 428 Cobra Jet V8, under-rated at 335 bhp.

In 1969, only the Fastback body style returned. The GT option was reduced to an appearance group option.

The new hot Cyclone was the CJ which came with the 428 Cobra Jet rated at 335 bhp standard, along with a four-speed manual transmission, Competition Handling Package, and a plain bench seat interior. It sold for $3,224.