The Montego arrived in 1968 as Mercury’s reworked mid-size offering. Akin to the Ford Torino, the Montego was in production through 1976 (as was the Ford). The automobiles were treated to a redesign in 1972 and – as was typical of Detroit in those days – these intermediates picked up some size and weight. The seller has a ’72 MX, the more upscale version of the Montego. With 65,000 miles on the odometer, the auto has been a barn dweller for several years, and parts of the interior are missing.
Mercury chose to name its 1968-76 mid-size cars after Montego Bay in Jamaica. From 1977 to 2003, the name was in mothballs, to be revived again for a final outing in 2004. The second-generation Montego’s had a variety of engines to choose from, ranging from a 250 cubic inch inline-6 (not popular) to a 460 V8 later in the run. The seller’s car has a 400 V8 which was the eventual replacement to the venerable 390. Unlike the 1968-71 editions, the 1972 used body-on-frame construction rather than unibody.
The seller’s MX was the mid-range offering, sandwiched between the base Montego and the MX Brougham. As a 2-door hardtop, nearly 26,000 copies were produced in 1972, excluding sedans and wagons (no convertibles). This MX is said to have minimal rust, and the paint should clean up nicely with some elbow grease (per the seller). We’re told the engine runs, but no mention is made if it will leave the barn under its own power.
A rework of the interior may have been started as the door panels and instrument gauge cluster are MIA. But no other photos are provided of the passenger compartment or the engine bay. Located in semi-darkness in Monroe Township, New Jersey, this old Merc project is available here on craigslist for a reasonable $1,500.
Back in ’72 when these came out, I was still an innocent (or guilty) teenager and I thought the MX meant it was a moto-crosser. Boy was I wrong.