Mercury Built Muscle Cars That Could Embarrass Anyone: Ford’s Forgotten Performance Division

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ofKCuSu_PU

Ford’s Mercury division built a Cyclone with a 429 Cobra Jet V8 rated at 370 horsepower, and almost nobody talks about it. While Mustang, Torino and Fairlane collected the headlines, Mercury quietly built muscle cars of its own. Here are four of them, counted down from number four to number one. Watch the video above, then read on for the details.

#4: 1969 Mercury Cougar Eliminator

Mercury launched the Cougar in 1967 as a more upscale cousin of the Ford Mustang, built on the same basic platform. For 1969 it added the Eliminator, a performance package aimed squarely at the Camaro and the Firebird. Buyers could choose the Boss 302 small block, a 390, or the mighty 428 Cobra Jet. Bold stripes and spoilers meant nobody mistook it for a regular Cougar. It blended pony car attitude with luxury touches, and it still gets overlooked next to the Mustang it shared parts with.

#3: 1969 Mercury Cyclone CJ

The Cyclone name goes back to 1964, and it became its own model line in 1968. In 1969 Mercury offered the Cyclone CJ with the 428 Cobra Jet V8, which Ford rated at 335 horsepower, a number many enthusiasts believe was conservative. That big block was tuned for strong midrange torque, and in a mid-size body it made the Cyclone seriously quick in a straight line. Mercury sold it to buyers who wanted Ford performance without a Mustang or Torino badge, and it never sold in huge numbers, which is why it is such a hidden gem today.

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#2: 1969 Mercury Cyclone Spoiler II

Here is a Mercury built for the racetrack first. NASCAR rules required manufacturers to sell a minimum number of street versions of any car they raced, so Mercury built the Cyclone Spoiler II with a special aerodynamic nose and a rear spoiler to slice through the air at superspeedway speeds. The car became famous when Cale Yarborough drove a Wood Brothers Mercury Cyclone Spoiler to victory in the 1969 Daytona 500. Only a limited run reached the public, which makes the Spoiler II one of the rarest Mercury muscle cars of the era.

#1: 1970 Mercury Cyclone Spoiler

By 1970 the Cyclone had grown into a refined, powerful machine. The Cyclone Spoiler could be ordered with the 429 Cobra Jet V8, rated at 370 horsepower, backed by front and rear spoilers and a bold performance look. It was a serious street machine from a division that rarely got credit for performance. The Cyclone nameplate ended after the 1971 model year, so this is among the last great Cyclones, and the best proof that Mercury could play with the biggest names in muscle.

That is our countdown of Mercury’s forgotten muscle cars. Which one would you take home? Tell us in the comments, and subscribe to Muscle Car Fan on YouTube for a new countdown every day.

Image credits: 1970 Mercury Cyclone Spoiler II.jpg by JOHN LLOYD from Concrete, Washington, United States (CC BY 2.0) · 1970 Mercury Cyclone Spoiler 429 (16488317702).jpg by Sicnag (CC BY 2.0) · Mercury Cyclone Spoiler II Dan Gurney.jpg by Carl Sharp (CC BY-SA 3.0) · Mercury Cyclone 1969 (6142560102).jpg by nakhon100 (CC BY 2.0) · 1969 Mercury Cougar Eliminator 428 CJ Ram Air.jpg by Mustang Joe (CC0). Facts from Wikipedia.