Time may have forgotten the Mercury Comet, but not Richard. He never forgot his first car from back in the late 1980s. Though he wasn’t able to track down his actual car he did find a similar ‘74 Comet he challenged the Monkeys to restore and update in just three weeks.
Designed and built by Mercury from 1960 to 1969 production was suspended for two years of additional development until the Comet name was resurrected on another Mercury model. It was then produced for an additional six years until 1977.
In 1971 the fifth generation was launched and regarded by many as the gen which brought the comet name back. Based on the Ford Maverick compact the two were basically identical underneath sharing almost all of the body panels with just a few distinctions between them such as: the grille, the hood and the taillights.
The standard engine offered was a 170 cid straight-six with a single-barrel carburetor. It made 100 hp at 4200 rpm. Optional engine units were a 200 cid straight-six with a single-barrel carburetor and 115 hp and a bigger 302 cid V8 using a 2-barrel carburetor with 210 hp. Power was sent to the rear wheels via a 3-speed auto or a 3-speed manual, but most people opted for the auto with column-mounted shifters.
Available in 2-door and 4-door sedan iterations it later received a Comet GT trim which was essentially a 2-door sedan, produced from 1971 to 1975. The GT had a black grille, dual tape stripes, wheel trim rings, brighter window frames, better bucket seats, two racing mirrors, a black instrument panel and a simulated (read fake) hood scoop. Still, aesthetically, it was the best of the bunch.
In 1973 Mercury dropped the base 170 cid straight-six, effectively making the 200 cid the base unit. Power and torque figures fluctuated throughout the years as Mercury added features and tweaked the engines, but they never underwent a massive overhaul. That same year also saw the addition of a bigger front bumper to meet the then deferral standards. In 1974, an even bigger front bumper was installed, with matching rear bumpers.
The Comet GT officially was discontinued in 1975 though it was technically alive if you went for the Sports Accent package which offered everything the Comet GT did. Following two more production years, it finally met its maker in 1977 to free the market for the new Mercury Zephyr.
THE BUILD
The Monkeys replaced the existing bumpers with ones from a 1972 Comet that featured the closer to the body look they were trying to achieve. Enhancements to the handling were provided by a front suspension from Chassisworks and Total Control Products, a Chassisworks company, providing the upper and lower control arms with strut rods over the front suspension as well as rear coil over shocks. Richard didn’t want to replace the straight 6 engine with a V8, but they upgraded the camshaft and then added a Weber carburetor on top to give if you know roughly double the horsepower from 95 hp to 180 hp. US Mag provided the Dark Charcoal wheels to compliment the dark green paintjob.
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