The Mercury Monterey received facelift after facelift in the second half of the ’60s, and almost every new model year introduced notable changes.
The 1966 release witnessed the debut of a 428 V8 engine with 345 horsepower and a 410 V8 with 330 horsepower, with the 427 waving goodbye to the Monterey. 1967 brought another restyle and changes in the engine department, with the base 390ci unit not rated at 270 horsepower.
The 1968 model year was the most boring release.
It didn’t bring any substantial upgrades, and probably the main change that everybody can think of when talking about a 1968 Monterey is the demise of the Breezeway.
The 1968 Monterey in these photos is a great opportunity to admire this model year in all its glory, mainly because it’s almost a survivor in nearly completely original shape.
I won’t talk much about its condition because everybody can see that the Monterey passed the test of time with flying colors, but it’s worth knowing that the car still “retains most of its original paint.” It already wears filler and primer, but the paint in these photos is the original coat sprayed by Mercury before the Monterey rolled off the assembly lines.
The owner says they already conducted regular maintenance, replacing the wires, the plugs, the air filter, and other parts, so now the Monterey starts and runs correctly. The fuel in the tank is old, so you’ll probably have to clean the tank before taking this Mercury back to the road.
The one thing you must know about this Monterey is that it’s been sitting for a while in the same spot, likely in someone’s garage. eBay seller 1964freewwweb doesn’t share many specifics on this front, but they say they took the car home on a trailer because the car wasn’t in running shape. It still wears tires dated 1971, and this suggests that the vehicle might have spent less than a decade on the road.
The engine under the hood is a 390 paired with an automatic transmission, with the odometer indicating a little over 70K miles.
The rust isn’t a major concern on this Monterey, and the seller guarantees that no patchwork has been done, so you’ll get the original steel without any repairs.
A Mercury Monterey in this condition is rare, and it’ll certainly be interesting to see how high the bidding goes this time, especially considering that the seller did not enable a reserve. The highest bidder will take the car home, and the top offer at the time of press is $500. You can find this gem in Marlborough, Connecticut, and despite its working condition, you should consider taking it home on a trailer because the vehicle isn’t yet ready for the road.