[Extrasherman]

Hey gang,

This is my first post, so I want to say hi and thanks for having such a great community!

In about 2 weeks I'm picking up a '72 Mercury Montego MX with a 351 Cleveland 2V under the hood. Everything about this car is pristine. It's just south of 82k original miles and I'm getting it for a stupidly low price.

It was literally some older fella's Sunday church-and-supermarket car. My buddy bought it and put about 1,000 miles on it taking it to car shows and whatnot.

Where do I start? The only problem with the car is some minor rust pitting on the body. It starts up and drives fine as far as I can tell.

The motor is my main concern. What can I expect? What should I do/have done right off the bat? Cheap/affordable ways to beef it up?

I'm literally getting this car for a steal, so I have some cash to play with. Thoughts?

Thanks!

 

[DanH]

Hey gang,

This is my first post, so I want to say hi and thanks for having such a great community!

In about 2 weeks I'm picking up a '72 Mercury Montego MX with a 351 Cleveland 2V under the hood. Everything about this car is pristine. It's just south of 82k original miles and I'm getting it for a stupidly low price.

It was literally some older fella's Sunday church-and-supermarket car. My buddy bought it and put about 1,000 miles on it taking it to car shows and whatnot.

Where do I start? The only problem with the car is some minor rust pitting on the body. It starts up and drives fine as far as I can tell.

The motor is my main concern. What can I expect? What should I do/have done right off the bat? Cheap/affordable ways to beef it up?

I'm literally getting this car for a steal, so I have some cash to play with. Thoughts?

Thanks!

buy some crome valve covers and air filter . leave the rest as is
thats cheap . nothing else will be

 

[thekingofazle]

Welcome! Always glad to have a new member. Like Dan says, it's never cheap Don't mind him too much, he's always grumpy I think.

As for mods, intake, exhaust, the usual upgrades apply here, then heads, cam, etc when you get a bit more cash.

And pictures if you have them!

 

[torkair]

You've got a lot of reading ahead of you, there's loads you can do to get some appreciable power out of the 351c without breaking the bank but you will have to be very careful about which parts you go with. Virtually nothing from a 351w will interchange with the 351c but to make parts shopping slightly easier(and I can't stress that enough) tell the parts counter people that it is a 72 Torino (they're pretty much the same car under the sheet metal). Good luck and let us know how it goes!

 

[DanH]

Welcome! Always glad to have a new member. Like Dan says, it's never cheap Don't mind him too much, he's always grumpy I think.

As for mods, intake, exhaust, the usual upgrades apply here, then heads, cam, etc when you get a bit more cash.

And pictures if you have them!

I,m never grumpy

parts I suggested add zero hp .maybe a little or could lose with the air filter

when basic mods are done , I would like to know how much one thinks the hp increase is

 

[torkair]

I,m never grumpy

parts I suggested add zero hp .maybe a little or could lose with the air filter

when basic mods are done , I would like to know how much one thinks the hp increase is

Actually I think you just have an extraordinarily low tolerance for dumb people doing dumb things .

 

[DanH]

Actually I think you just have an extraordinarily low tolerance for dumb people doing dumb things .

I would say its high .

only dumb once . when one does the same thing twice and expect different results .. then they are stupid

 

[Ford/IHman]

I would say its high .

only dumb once . when one does the same thing twice and expect different results .. then they are stupid

Actually Dan I believe that is the definition of insanity....if I'm wrong I don't mind being corrected!

 

[dodgestang]

I,m never grumpy

parts I suggested add zero hp .maybe a little or could lose with the air filter

when basic mods are done , I would like to know how much one thinks the hp increase is

My Ford Racing Tall Aluminum covers added 200+ to my cleveland.*



* Results not typical and not intended to cure or treat any disease. Also it might have more to do with the whole "I need a reason to run these valve covers" and then working down from there

 

[DanH]

Actually Dan I believe that is the definition of insanity....if I'm wrong I don't mind being corrected!

you are correct

there are smart insane people ,there are no smart stupid people

 

[dodgestang]

there are no smart stupid people

There is a lot of funny ones though

 

[Ford/IHman]

u are correct sir!

 

[Extrasherman]

Cool. Thanks for the starter info. I haven't picked up The Merc yet, but I do have a few pics. Let me know what you think. (More to follow when I pick it up)

 

[GumbootsFalcon]

Ah you're gonna love it. The Cleveland's are one of my favorite engines to run around and play with. Good bottom end grunt and good mid/top end. As for cheap/easy mods, I'd probably start with headers and good flowing exhaust. Then get a 4brl intake manifold for the 2v and get a 4brl carb to match. Maybe get some MSD ignition later too. Take the fan off and put a good electric one on and free up some more HP. After that, hell a beefier cam and some aftermarket heads.......I can go on and on and on. It all costs money, some are just simpler to execute. Just start somewhere, do one or two things at a time if appropriate and try and notice the difference each mod makes. It's an addiction I tell ya but it's an addiction I love.

 

[redtail]

that cougar in the background is pretty sweet...

How far do you want to go on your build?

A two bbl can be pretty good for street mild performance, surprisingly. Unless you plan to wrap that old C up high, getting a good holley 2bbl (jegs has a couple of performance oriented ones) or just rebuilding or running your current setup, headers as mentioned, a pertonix i,ii or iii coil and points kit, plus your usual tune up will be pretty decent for a stock car.

You can go cam, 4bbl, and heads, but save your cash for when you do the whole thing, as soon as you start pumping up your power another part of your engine will start to fail...

If you want a little more poop, go ahead with what I mentioned above, but if you really want to pump it up, don't compromise.

 

[Extrasherman]

He has a couple of Cougars. The one in the background is really just a home for his Windsor. His daughter has a really nice one in the garage getting some body work done. I think that one has a Cleveland too.

Ok, thankyou for all the advice.

How much HP do I get if I leave the 8-Track player in?

 

[GumbootsFalcon]

8 track players are good for an extra 210hp to the wheels and about another 300lb/ft of torque. But seriously, you gotta keep the 8 track in ther strictly for the cool factor.

 

[Extrasherman]

So I finally picked up The Merc. Unfortunately due to circumstances, it's pretty much going right into storage. (I live in an apartment complex that frowns upon multiple vehicles per tenant) At any rate, she's a beaut! Starts up and runs fine. I found a couple of mouse nests in the trunk and glove box, so there may be some hidden "surprises".

For now I'm just going to do some minor upgrades, i.e. replace all the old rubber (bushings, boots, tires blah blah blah) and do the brakes. I have a guy lined up to do paint and body work as there are a few rust spots here and there.

I'm thinking of removing the vinyl roof and having the whole car painted solid white. What do you guys think?

 

[redtail]

So I finally picked up The Merc. Unfortunately due to circumstances, it's pretty much going right into storage. (I live in an apartment complex that frowns upon multiple vehicles per tenant) At any rate, she's a beaut! Starts up and runs fine. I found a couple of mouse nests in the trunk and glove box, so there may be some hidden "surprises".

For now I'm just going to do some minor upgrades, i.e. replace all the old rubber (bushings, boots, tires blah blah blah) and do the brakes. I have a guy lined up to do paint and body work as there are a few rust spots here and there.

I'm thinking of removing the vinyl roof and having the whole car painted solid white. What do you guys think?

If it's original paint I would suggest you buff it out and do NOT repaint.