1967 Mercury Comet - '67 Comet Stock Replica Engine Reguild

If you've been drooling over the '67 Mercury we've been transforming into a Stock Car replica over the last few issues and want to see the completed car that will be given away, here it is. In this final installment of the Timber Wolf Comet project car story, we yanked the FE 390 for a look-see at what made it spew oil, while we hung out with Russ Stevenson at Gold Coast Customs for the addition of subtle Stock Car cues to go along with the retro graphics applied last month. It makes us weep a little to know this neat stick-shifted big-block cruiser won't be in our garage for much longer, but who knows, it might soon be in yours.

Originally built at the Lorain, Ohio, plant and shipped to the New York sales district as a white-with-blue-interior stripper with the base 200-cube six-popper (T-code) and C4 slush box (W-code), it is one of 14,251 Comet 202 two-door sedans built in 1967.

Surprisingly for the luxury-oriented Mercury brand, production records show that the 202's stubby, pillared body with angular lines was the highest-selling Comet model of 1967, outpacing all other two- and four-door and wagon Comet body styles. By contrast, the next closest two-door, the pillarless Comet Capri, shifted 11,671 units in 1967 while the sexpot Comet Cyclone hardtop accounted for only 6,101 sales. This is one instance where the cheapo body outpaced all others in the model line.

But thanks to the owner before us, a guy in New Mexico with Ford Blue blood coursing through his veins, the granny-spec drivetrain was axed in favor of a Cyclone-inspired 390, four-speed, 9-inch setup that elevates the car into the fun zone quite nicely. On the other side of the coin, while the 390 ran strong enough during Car Craft's post-purchase jaunt from New Mexico to L.A., it had some issues we needed to take care of before we could send it along to a lucky winner. Let's dig in and give it the treatment.

Back in the early '80s Lincoln Mercury ran radio, television, and print ads exclaiming, "The cat's full of surprises." When it came to the Comet's 390, we were in for some big ones. Here, Gold Coast's crew preps the engine for a trip to JMS Racing in El Monte, California.
Back in the early '80s Lincoln Mercury ran radio, television, and print ads exclaiming, "T
The driver-side exhaust manifold is a nice 390 GT item, much more efficient than the log-style castings used on garden-variety 390 mills. These eight-bolt castings are virtually identical to 428 Cobra Jet parts.
The driver-side exhaust manifold is a nice 390 GT item, much more efficient than the log-s
Likewise, the passenger-side manifold is also a high-flow 390 GT/428 CJ casting--nice. Note that the heads are of the common 14-bolt variety with four bolts on the outermost ports, three bolts on the inner pair. The upper row of exhaust manifold bolt holes are not used with the GT castings, but there's plenty of clamping force to prevent leaks.
Likewise, the passenger-side manifold is also a high-flow 390 GT/428 CJ casting--nice. Not

With their 2.02/1.55 valves, the Comet's 390 GT head castings (74cc chambers) share valve and port dimensions with early 427 high-performance heads. Sure, later 427 Medium- and High-Riser heads are better for all-out performance, but for our mild street/strip cruiser, these castings are just fine.
With their 2.02/1.55 valves, the Comet's 390 GT head castings (74cc chambers) share valve
Continuing the theme of reusing most of the parts we had, we retained the Edelbrock Streetmaster cast-aluminum intake manifold and Edelbrock 1406 600-cfm carburetor. The pen points to the internal plenum dams that maintain flow velocity for maximum fuel atomization and low-end torque output.
Continuing the theme of reusing most of the parts we had, we retained the Edelbrock Street
OK, now here come the nasty surprises! This is what we found lurking at the No. 3 intake valve. The protruding lock was only semi-installed before the builder moved on to the next valvespring installation. This thing was getting ready to drop a valve. And to think Glad and McGann drove this car all the way from New Mexico to L.A. without any trouble.
OK, now here come the nasty surprises! This is what we found lurking at the No. 3 intake v

But wait, there's more. This is what's left of the No. 8 piston's ring land. Yes, that large chunk of loose material (and others) was riding up and down along with the piston. Amazingly, the bore wasn't shredded despite the fact that the damaged piston land was polished smooth from all the loose bits moving around. This is the result of major detonation and is the root cause of the severe oily blow-by that coated the entire underside of the Comet.
But wait, there's more. This is what's left of the No. 8 piston's ring land. Yes, that lar
With all the bad news behind us, Sal Alcaraz manned the JMS Rottler boring bar to enlarge the 390's bores from 0.040 to 0.060 inch oversize. The final bore diameter is 4.11 inches. Couple that with the stock 3.78-inch stroke and you've got a 401-cube FE motor.
With all the bad news behind us, Sal Alcaraz manned the JMS Rottler boring bar to enlarge
In keeping with our street-friendly cruising theme, cast-aluminum pistons fill the bores and deliver 9.5:1 compression for easy pump-gas compatibility. The hydraulic flat-tappet cam specs are 0.484/0.510 lift, 270/280 advertised duration, and 204/214 duration at 0.050.
In keeping with our street-friendly cruising theme, cast-aluminum pistons fill the bores a

On the JMS dyno, the Comet's freshened FE cranked out 309 hp at 4,600 rpm and 385 lb-ft of torque all the way down at 3,000 rpm. This may not be a high-revving screamer, but it's still making 336 lb-ft at 4,800 rpm and that means lots of burning rubber. Dig the groovy cast-aluminum finned Holman Moody pentroof valve covers. Unfortunately they didn't clear the Comet's master cylinder, so we had to go back to steel stampings. We also chucked the points and stabbed in an MSD distributor so the thing would run for more than five minutes.
On the JMS dyno, the Comet's freshened FE cranked out 309 hp at 4,600 rpm and 385 lb-ft of
Moving on to the Comet's exterior, Russ Stevenson and the Gold Coast Customs crew whipped up a driver-side rearview mirror-delete plate from 18-inch aluminum. It was finessed with 320-grit sandpaper to give a cool brushed appearance.
Moving on to the Comet's exterior, Russ Stevenson and the Gold Coast Customs crew whipped
Hood pins are a Stock Car mainstay, so the fiberglass Cyclone hood was carefully drilled for pins and circular lanyard shields. A layer of masking tape prevented damage to the surrounding paint finish and kept the fiberglass from chunking during drilling. Stevenson says to use a UniBit (left) and work up to the final hole diameter in small steps for best results.
Hood pins are a Stock Car mainstay, so the fiberglass Cyclone hood was carefully drilled f

Hood pin anchors were fabricated from 2x2-inch square tubing with flat plates welded on the back. These are screwed to the leading edge of the radiator support and poke through the hood skin.
Hood pin anchors were fabricated from 2x2-inch square tubing with flat plates welded on th
More roundy-round-inspired, less-is-more flavor was added by replacing the high-beam headlamp bulbs with block-off plates trimmed from 16-gauge sheet steel. Ordinarily the top row of the Comet's stacked headlamps are the low-beam running lights. By swapping bulbs and running the upper electrical feed wires to the lower holes, the bottom lamps became the running lamps. Who needs high-beams anyway?
More roundy-round-inspired, less-is-more flavor was added by replacing the high-beam headl
The Comet's fendertop antenna mast and base are no-go in circle-track land. To fill the void, more 18-inch aluminum sheet was used to create a block-off plate that fits atop a stock plastic antenna base coated with tough silver urethane paint. The works clamps to the fender with a screw-on bracket.
The Comet's fendertop antenna mast and base are no-go in circle-track land. To fill the vo

Here's the installed radio antenna-delete button. Dig the subtle 320-grit sandpaper brush job.
Here's the installed radio antenna-delete button. Dig the subtle 320-grit sandpaper brush
Because race cars don't have side glass, there's a tremendous pressure buildup inside the cockpit at race speed. To keep the backlight from blowing out and smashing all over the track, racers apply retainer straps. Stevenson fabricated a set from 18-inch aluminum strips that are secured to the body by trick threadserts.
Because race cars don't have side glass, there's a tremendous pressure buildup inside the
The initial pilot holes were made with a 18-inch drill bit, then the final holes were made using a 2564-inch bit to accept the Marson 14-20 aluminum threadserts (PN 47950).
The initial pilot holes were made with a 18-inch drill bit, then the final holes were made

Much cleaner and faster than installing a welded nut, the threadserts are tightly locked in place and resist twisting to well over 20 lb-ft. How many uses can you think of just by looking at this picture?
Much cleaner and faster than installing a welded nut, the threadserts are tightly locked i
The backlight retainer straps were fastened in place using stainless 14-20 Phillips head screws for extra NASCAR vibes in about an hour.
The backlight retainer straps were fastened in place using stainless 14-20 Phillips head s
A similar strategy was applied to the windshield except that the retainers were small brushed-aluminum tabs instead of vision-obscuring full-length straps. The threadsert retention method is the same. Darlington, here we come.
A similar strategy was applied to the windshield except that the retainers were small brus

Stockton Wheel 15x7 steelies with 378-inch backspacing accept repop Firestone F60-15 Wide Oval skins all the way around. The tasteful burgundy wheels harmonize with the similar hues of the interior and number graphics to pull the visual package together with class.
Stockton Wheel 15x7 steelies with 378-inch backspacing accept repop Firestone F60-15 Wide
Kenz Muffler in Oxnard, California, whipped up this NASCAR-inspired side-exit exhaust setup with a pair of glasspack mufflers. The H-pipe milks even more torque from the burly 390.
Kenz Muffler in Oxnard, California, whipped up this NASCAR-inspired side-exit exhaust setu
Gold Coast fabricated and installed the bolt-in four-point rollbar so that it can be removed temporarily if rear-seat passengers are along for the ride.
Gold Coast fabricated and installed the bolt-in four-point rollbar so that it can be remov

Cross-bracing was added inside the trunk to stiffen the chassis and accept the rollbar downstruts. Trick interlocking collars allow the rollbar tubes to be removed.
Cross-bracing was added inside the trunk to stiffen the chassis and accept the rollbar dow
A five-point driver-safety harness adds secure vibes to the clean bench-seat interior. The original AM radio has been eliminated and a delete plate added to hide the holes.
A five-point driver-safety harness adds secure vibes to the clean bench-seat interior. The
You could win this car or one of five other classics at the Timber Wolf Speed Shop. Go to twspeedshop.com for details
You could win this car or one of five other classics at the Timber Wolf Speed Shop. Go to

PARTS LIST
DESCRIPTION	PN	SOURCE	PRICE
Pro-Billet MSD Distributor	8595	msd Ignition	$400.29
Holman Moody valve covers	C2HM-6582HC	Holman Moody	Call for price

SOURCES
Autotronic (MSD) Controls Corp El Paso TX	JN Designs Oxnard CA
Gold Coast Customs Inc. Ventura CA	Kenz Muffler Oxnard CA 93035
Holman Moody Charlotte NC	Stockton Wheel Stockton CA 8-00/-395-9433 stocktonwheel.com
JMS Racing Engines 6-26/-357-2718	Timber Wolf Speed Shop www.twspeedshop.com