1964 Comet Cyclone

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Heaven's Gate
Posts: 3
Joined: Sat Sep 23, 2017 7:19 am
Location: Wyoming

1964 Comet Cyclone

Post by Heaven's Gate »

Howdy from Wyoming,

I go by Sancho and I live in Wyoming. I just got a 1964 Mercury Comet Cyclone on 9/20/2017. I have known about this car for over 15 years. The man who owned it was the great uncle of my of my ex-wife, ;). He passed away in 2012. It is a 2 owner, 1 family car since it was purchased back in 1964 for $1,879.00, ha! The sister of man who owned it purchased it in Oregon in 64' and when she passed away in 1998 he (my ex's great uncle) took ownership. He brought it to Wyoming from Oregon and began work on the car. To my knowledge he had it reupholstered and painted to the original (unverified) factory colors in 2002. It is blue with white interior, body is straight, never been in an accident, it has the original 289 and a the transmission has been replaced with a 60's 3 speed transmission (codes unverified). I am sure the transmission has been replaced as there is still a column shifter. Since 2012, the car has sat outside and, poorly covered. However, Wyoming is a high desert climate and a very dry climate. The paint from 2002 is holding up well. It is a beautiful car and I have wanted it for sooooo long! I offered to buy the car from the old man many times but, he did not want to part with it. I found out it was for sale and reached out to his wife and daughter and they were as excited to sell it to me as I was to buy it. Needless to say, my ex-father in law was a bit pissed that I purchased the car. F@*K HIM, IT"S MINE!!! I got the car for $6350.00 and had it appraised by a classic car appraiser. Once he saw the 5th letter of the VIN was a "K" the value came in at $9500.00. The car is 99% rust-free except for one small line of rust on the driver's side C-pillar, where water has been settling in for a few years. The car ran and drove until 2012 when it was parked at his daughter's house and now it is MINE!!! I am happy and excited to start working on this car and I joined this forum to learn, get some tips, pointers, info on parts, do work to the car myself, and not do something dumb that would cost me more money in the long run. I am an IT guy by trade but I have had an interest in old cars all my life. I've had a 64 Caddy Coupe Deville, 61 Falcon, 66 Mustang convertible and, a year one 59 El Camino. Those cars are long gone and now all I have is this Comet. I learned a long time ago that having too many project cars just keeps ALL THE CARS in a project state. I want to put all my focus, energy, time, and money into this car and get it done right! This is my first Merc and, I look forward to learning from all of you about this car and brand.

Thanks
Sancho
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Groover
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Re: 1964 Comet Cyclone

Post by Groover »

Welcome aboard. I love it when persistence pays off. You'll find just about everything you need here, and a few things you didn't :roll:
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1964 Comet Caliente Convertible
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Heaven's Gate
Posts: 3
Joined: Sat Sep 23, 2017 7:19 am
Location: Wyoming

Re: 1964 Comet Cyclone

Post by Heaven's Gate »

Thanks Groover. Frankly, if I had purchased the car back then, I would have probably lost it in the divorce, HA! I'm glad I got it when I did or it too might have been sold with my other cars. Thanks and I will keep posting updates on the progress.
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SASSY
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Re: 1964 Comet Cyclone

Post by SASSY »

WELCOME!
Great story,,, now to work. First job for the IT guy,,, find a T for the 1/4 :mrgreen:
Fred
I'd rather do it myself if it's done right or not,,,isn't that what hotrodding is all about

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lavron
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Re: 1964 Comet Cyclone

Post by lavron »

Welcome on, nice Comet, I think the "K" code might not hold the mystique of things like Mustangs, someone here will tell you what your K means.

It still is a nice Comet and a rare car as all of them are.

See Ya,
Mike
Mike's build thread
viewtopic.php?f=9&t=13058
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poboyjo65
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Re: 1964 Comet Cyclone

Post by poboyjo65 »

Welcome on! :D Cool story! I expect if your X sees you driving the car she will see a big smile on your face :mrgreen: !! :lol: :lol: As Mike said the K doesn't mean anything special in a comet. just means 4V from what I gather. But you have a beautiful car that seems to be in great shape! :D
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Johno

popscomet
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Location: Jacksonville, Arkansas

Re: 1964 Comet Cyclone

Post by popscomet »

GREAT story,,good looking clean looking comet...yea,the K in a comet doesn't mean what it means in a mustang,,,,and that trips a lot of guys up,,,you have a 4bbl and from the factory it had single exhaust...but that's still a cool car,,,good luck and enjoy it,,and in your big D I sure would've hated to give it up to a woman that the car really didn't mean that much to her,,,she would've just not wanted you to have it......so it sounds like everything is going in your favor good luck and take care,,,,your at the best place for help and good ol BS !!.....pop
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Jims65cyclone
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Re: 1964 Comet Cyclone

Post by Jims65cyclone »

Welcome aboard! Cool story and good timing. Car looks great. What do you plan to do to it (besides find a T)? :lol:
Jim
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Heaven's Gate
Posts: 3
Joined: Sat Sep 23, 2017 7:19 am
Location: Wyoming

Re: 1964 Comet Cyclone

Post by Heaven's Gate »

Thanks guys. Great info on the K designator. I just wanted to make sure it was a true cyclone. You never know who did what to the care before you and if it was a true 289 motor from the factory. As far as the "T" I have a ton of parts in the trunk that I have yet to rummage through. I'm hoping there is some letters in there because on the passenger side all I have is a C and an M.

As far as plans on the car, right now I want to get it running and driving on its own. My initial thoughts were to replace the transmission with a 90-93 T5 out of a mustang, change it from points to electronic, put a 9 inch in the rear, betters rims and tires, get the headliner installed, new carpet, and if the generator is not good, replace it with a new alternator that looks like the old generator. I am open to suggestions on how best to go forward. That's why I thought I would get in here and ask around and get some input from you.

I will let you know what goodies I find in the trunk.

Thanks
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poboyjo65
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Re: 1964 Comet Cyclone

Post by poboyjo65 »

Heaven's Gate wrote:Thanks guys. Great info on the K designator. I just wanted to make sure it was a true cyclone. You never know who did what to the care before you and if it was a true 289 motor from the factory
check the 3rd & 4th digit in the vin number. A cyclone will be 27.

If it is a 5 bolt 289 chances are real good that it the original motor. they went to 6 bolt in 65. there are no records for our cars, so if the date code on the engine is within a month so before the date code on the door tag or close to body panel date codes is a good clue. a build sheet is the only proof you can hope to find.
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Johno

lavron
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Re: 1964 Comet Cyclone

Post by lavron »

poboyjo65 wrote:a build sheet is the only proof you can hope to find.
On my '64 the build sheet was under the drivers seat tucked in the springs, wish I had not lost it but really not much to prove on my Comet, it is a stripped down, no option base model, they didn't get any more basic for a '64 Comet, but that is fine with me :D

See Ya,
Mike
Mike's build thread
viewtopic.php?f=9&t=13058
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