What's it worth? 1966 Comet

KULTULZ said:
You really need that PATENT PLATE INFO as the ID STAMPINGS may vary as to DISTRICT and ASSEMBLY PLANT.

All begins with that and a clear title.
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I tried to take a couple pictures of the patent plate and none of them came out even a little bit legible. I texted the owner this morning and he gave me some of the info.
first 5 are "6J26S"
Body code "63H"
Color "A"
Trim "86"


Actually, that is one of the reasons I started questioning if the plate had been replaced/altered. Because, if I am not mistaken, "A" is black. While the car is black now, I'm pretty sure there was some silvery-blue paint under the trunk mat. Maybe my eyes are just really terrible, but that is sure how it appeared to me.


BTW, the title matches the plate.
 
1EarlyA said:
I tried to take a couple pictures of the patent plate and none of them came out even a little bit legible.

I texted the owner this morning and he gave me some of the info - first 5 are "6J26S"
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6 = MODEL YEAR - 1966
J = ASSY PLANT - Los Angeles
26 = SERIES CODE = 63H - CYCLONE GT 2DR HDTP
S = ENGINE CODE - 66/69 390 4V GT

Body code "63H" (Given In SERIES CODE)

Color "A" - BLACK

Trim "86" - SOFT TRIM SECTION Missing in my MERC MPC

Actually, that is one of the reasons I started questioning if the plate had been replaced/altered. Because, if I am not mistaken, "A" is black. While the car is black now, I'm pretty sure there was some silvery-blue paint under the trunk mat. Maybe my eyes are just really terrible, but that is sure how it appeared to me.

BTW, the title matches the plate.
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You are missing vital info from 2nd line-
 

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Got some more feedback on another Ford board last night.

Basically the big question now is: What is up with the series code 26? Apparently the Ford issued manual doesn't show a 26. It says this should be 27.
 
Looked at the car again this weekend and really don't have any idea how I'm going to proceed.


The good: Found the stamp on the radiator support and it matches the door tag and the title.


The inconvenient: Found a bunch more patch panels in the floor and trunk. They are all similar gauge to the original metal and the welds are good. But, the person who installed them pretty much just wire brushed the welds and smeared silicone over the bottom side of the joints(cleaned and primed/painted the top side). So I figure I could spend several days under the car stripping/grinding/refinishing for it to look the way I think it should.


I don't want to insult the guy, but the little stuff it needs is starting to accumulate.
 
"[T]he little stuff it needs is starting to accumulate," is the rule, rather than the exception, for any old car that has not recently gone through a total restoration by a professional.

I'm doing a body-on restoration of my 55 Tbird. I'm no professional, so anything I'm not capable of doing will be left to reputable professionals. Once the car is ready for the road, I have no doubt that there will still be issues that need to be sorted out.

Some cars are better candidates for restoration than others. Unless you have the skills, time, and tools, and enjoy working on cars, you'll be better off paying more for someone else's blood, sweat, tears, time, and money; his loss will be your gain. In my case, I inherited my Tbird, but now I can't help but wonder if I would have been better off selling it while it was running and still in one piece. Priorities change as we age.
 
KDAWG97M3 said:
Looks like it needs some items. I wouldn’t feel bad telling him.
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I have very politely pointed out the things I have seen so far.

It needs the underside welds cleaned up and refinished, it has a dent up from the bottom in the trunk(behind the gas tank), the driveline is not numbers matching, the console is broken, and the radiator should be pulled and checked out(it didn't leak when I looked at it, but it has greenish marks that show it has leaked at some point). Also, without getting into it too deeply, I think it had some major repair(significant number of panels not original to car) prior to being restored.

With all of these things, the number I'm thinking is a lot less than the asking price. I really don't know if my number is fair, but it's where I'm comfortable. Another thing that makes it kind of tough is that the people who appear to be driving the market don't seem to notice a lot of the things I have and consequently are much more willing to "pay up" than I can bring myself to be.
 
Also, I don't know if it makes much difference in value since I already know the engine is not the original. But, I don't think it is a 390 as I was originally told(and the current owner was told by the previous).

The block says "C6ME". The chart I looked at says this is either a 428 or a 410. Is there any way to distinguish between these 2 on an engine in the car?
I'd like to believe it's a 428 since the heads, intake, and distributor are 428. But, I really don't know.
FYI the block date code near the oil filter is late '65.
 
Measure the bore. C6ME can show up on everything from a 352 to a 428 including a 361 and 391 truck block
 
1EarlyA said:
Also, I don't know if it makes much difference in value since I already know the engine is not the original. But, I don't think it is a 390 as I was originally told(and the current owner was told by the previous).
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craig said:
Measure the bore. ...
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At the risk of being accused of having a poor attitude...

How do you measure the bore of an assembled engine in a car belonging to someone else, who you've likely already offended by telling him the car isn't worth nearly what he thinks it is. :confused:
 
Something else I've been thinking about. Most of the cars I have had in the past have been hot rods so numbers/originality hasn't generally been something I have worried about.


On a car like this where originality and the resto work that has been done are a factor, does the amount or replaced metal factor in to the value? Or not as long as the repairs where done well?


I have looked at the car twice now and I think probably only 30% of the metal is original to the car. I'm just trying to make sure I don't overpay. I plan to keep the car for several years. But, I am the type of person that, if I find out I overpaid, I will be bitter about it for at least the next ten years.
 
"I think only about 30% of the metal is original to the car"

IEarlyA, If it's that easy that you can tell all that metal work has been done,
you will be wanting to buy that car at a price that you car live with, "CHEAP";)




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