Posts Tagged: Mercury Cyclone
Mercury wrapped the 1970 Cyclone’s nose around a gunsight-style grille built to counter Chrysler’s winged NASCAR cars, backed by a 429 Super Cobra Jet rated near 375 horsepower. The designer behind that face was fired within weeks of the car reaching dealers, and the real NASCAR homologation story is messier than the nose lets on.
Ford built only 73 examples of the 1970 Mercury Cyclone GT with the ultra-rare 429 Super Cobra Jet Drag Pak package, and this survivor still carries its original invoice, Marti Report, and numbers-matching drivetrain. Under deceptively quiet Competition Yellow paint sits one of Detroit’s most overlooked muscle car engines, now dyno-tested past 500 horsepower.
Most 1970 Mercury Cyclone Spoilers built with the rare 429 Super Cobra Jet have long since vanished. One owner didn’t just save his — he races it in a class that demands factory-look parts and stock-style tires, and it’s turning 11-second quarter miles. Here’s the story behind Detroit’s most overlooked 429.
Mercury built exactly 503 Cyclone Spoilers to satisfy NASCAR’s homologation rules for the 1969 aero wars — a fraction of what Dodge and Ford produced for their own winged specials. Powered by a 290-horsepower 351 Windsor and shaped specifically to compete against the Charger Daytona and Ford’s own Talladega, one of these rare Mercurys won its very first race. Watch to find out why this homologation special still flies under most muscle car fans’ radar.
This Mercury Cyclone spans the full 1964-1972 run of a car that never got the recognition of its Ford Torino cousin — despite a limited NASCAR homologation special, a dashboard owners still rave about decades later, and a street reputation for embarrassing cars that outclassed it on paper. Owners in the comments share three generations of family memories tied to the badge. Watch to see why a car this capable stayed this overlooked.