B Jake Moran Posted March 20 Share Posted March 20 (edited) I finally picked up a project vehicle for Ashton and I to do. Described as a parts car by those on this forum, I had looked all winter for a project car, mostly Camaros and Firebirds from the 1970's to 1981. A few weeks ago I spotted this on facebook and looked into it. It was 5 hours away from me outside of Jefferson City, Missouri. In fact, I had been to this junkyard/salvage yard business in the spring of 1998 when I was attending trade school in Linn, Missouri. While looking at it I made the mistake of going to You Tube and typing in 1970 X-100 while my wife was in the living room. A black on black one, and others, popped up and she said "what is that, that is cool!" I explained what it was and that I had found a car down in Missouri. She said "for God's sake buy something already!" The young man almost gave up on it. So, I drove down 4 Saturdays ago to look at it, discovered I knew the seller and we had a grand old time talking old cars, and we were both graduates of Linn State Tech in automotive. But, as some have pointed out, the old car is a mess. I wanted to think about it and left to drive back 5 hours, what a long day. I then offered $2500 for the car, and he agreed. I drove down again the next Saturday to pay him cash and leave an envelope for the transporter. I've got the title and bill of sale, and with the VIN I ordered a deluxe Marti Report, which shows some rarity but not a holy grail X-100. 1 of 59 with Dark Ivy Green Metallic paint and trimmed out this way. The interior is indeed simply dirty with no tears in the upholstery save a spot in the headliner. My main 1st 2 issues are that the passenger door will not open from inside or outside and the outside door opener has no resistance, nor does the interior. What do you folks suggest I do to get this door open? 2. The left front Kelsey Hayes wheel is seized to the rotor and can't come off, so the tire is junk and only holds air for about an hour. Edited March 20 by B Jake Moran (see edit history) 11 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TexRiv_63 Posted March 20 Share Posted March 20 Looks like a great project, I have always liked these and the Ford versions. Can't wait to see what it looks like after a good pressure wash! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
69merc Posted March 20 Share Posted March 20 What a project! 😙 Are you sure it's rough enough? 😂 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B Jake Moran Posted March 20 Author Share Posted March 20 2 hours ago, 69merc said: What a project! 😙 Are you sure it's rough enough? 😂 It’s actually quite solid. There is a dime section in the trunk. Floors are good. Frame is good. Drivers door needs help. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
69merc Posted March 20 Share Posted March 20 Glad you are rescuing it! 👍 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
58L-Y8 Posted March 20 Share Posted March 20 Congratulations on your Mercury Marauder X-100 acquisition, it's a worthwhile project. To assist the effort, seeking out a '69-'70 Marauder or Marquis two door hardtop parts car would be good idea. We'll follow your progress with interest. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1957Birdman Posted March 20 Share Posted March 20 Good luck with what hopefully will be a fine collector car. As for the door, I think what you will probably have to do is take out the front seat and then remove the door card (hopefully you can do that without messing it up). From there spray the lock parts that may be rusted to get them unstuck. Does the lock button go up and down and sound like it is moving? I guess you could try spraying WD40 down the door lock hole after you unscrew the button and see if that loosens things. Hopefully someone else with direct experience handling this sort of situation will give you an opinion based on what they encountered. Lew Bachman 1957 Thunderbird Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted March 20 Share Posted March 20 Congratulations - it will be good to see one of these regularly on the forum! As far as the door is concerned, I would remove the inner panel on the 'good' side and study the mechanism. Then you may try 'fishing' with a wire coat hanger to see whether it's possible to trip the latch if you feed it into the door through the window opening. Practice on the one you can see and then try the same technique on the side that won't open. It sounds like a rod has fallen off or something is broken... 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NC-car-guy Posted March 21 Share Posted March 21 Congrats! Looking forward to following your progress. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keiser31 Posted March 21 Share Posted March 21 I remember years ago when I was working at Firestone and had to mount tires on those wild wheels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted March 21 Share Posted March 21 How did you do it? They won't fit on most conventional tire machines, and the ones they do fit on will break the aluminum. By the time I had to deal with it, rim clamp tire machines of the type commonly used today existed. There weren't many around. Tire irons on the ground? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keiser31 Posted March 21 Share Posted March 21 14 minutes ago, Bloo said: How did you do it? They won't fit on most conventional tire machines, and the ones they do fit on will break the aluminum. By the time I had to deal with it, rim clamp tire machines of the type commonly used today existed. There weren't many around. Tire irons on the ground? I believe I set them on a Coats 2020 machine and did them with tire irons. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted March 21 Share Posted March 21 Interesting. The Coats 40-40A I had access to at work at the time (~1986) looked exactly like that at the center post. As I recall the hole in the center of the Marauder wheels was too small to fit. The 20-20 must be a little smaller. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted March 21 Share Posted March 21 Ah, the 'good ol' days! I changed lots of tires using a 20-20 in the mid to late '70s! 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted March 21 Share Posted March 21 2 minutes ago, EmTee said: Ah, the 'good ol' days! I changed lots of tires using a 20-20 in the mid to late '70s! Now THERE'S some rose colored glasses... The issue with these wheels is when someone does manage to get them on a tire machine, the pressure from the bead breaker will bust out the aluminum in the center where the cap goes. As i recall they weren't the only aluminum centered wheels with that issue. No problem today. Rim clamp machines are in every tire shop. You hardly ever see a 20-20 anymore. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted March 21 Share Posted March 21 99% of the wheels I dealt with were the standard OE steel wheels. There were a few (I forget which specific applications) where I would have to flip the rim over, probably something to do with the backspacing. Most of the factory chrome wheels were handled just like plain steel wheels once the center cap was removed (e.g., Buick and Pontiac 'mags'). One of my most vivid memories was a pop-up snow storm one day that had most of the regular (older) customers lined-up in the parking lot wanting their snow tires mounted. My buddy & I were working like the pit crew at Daytona. Some people didn't have their snows mounted on separate wheels so we had to dismount the summer tires and mount the snow tires. Lots of the snows with their own wheels still needed to be taken apart, however, because the salt and moisture would eat at the rim all summer and they'd leak like a sieve around the bead. Arrggggg -- time for the wire wheel and some bead sealer! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keiser31 Posted March 21 Share Posted March 21 44 minutes ago, Bloo said: Now THERE'S some rose colored glasses... The issue with these wheels is when someone does manage to get them on a tire machine, the pressure from the bead breaker will bust out the aluminum in the center where the cap goes. As i recall they weren't the only aluminum centered wheels with that issue. No problem today. Rim clamp machines are in every tire shop. You hardly ever see a 20-20 anymore. That is why we did them with hand tools VERY carefully. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted March 21 Share Posted March 21 This is the subject wheel, correct? 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B Jake Moran Posted March 22 Author Share Posted March 22 1 hour ago, EmTee said: This is the subject wheel, correct? Correct. And this X-100 has these wheels but they reman them as 15 x 7 and they are reasonable. Mustangs (Shelby) used them. The ones on the car look like 15 x 6 which I believe is correct for Mercury. That would work, I can stuff 70 series on them. I would prefer a 60 series. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Luddy Posted March 22 Share Posted March 22 I've been looking for a X100 for awhile up here in Canada. If our Canadian dollar ever recovers against the US Dollar I'll travel across the bridge to get a southern one. Best of luck on your restoration journey! I'll be watching. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted March 22 Share Posted March 22 3 hours ago, EmTee said: This is the subject wheel, correct? Yep. 1 hour ago, B Jake Moran said: Mustangs (Shelby) used them. I don't think so. Everyone who has a wheel for sale will tell you that though. These are either Kelsey Hayes Magstar or Magstar II, I forget which. One has much bigger vent holes than the other. There might(?) be other differences, but that is enough to separate types of Magstar at a glance. If I remember correctly, the Shelby wheel is neither but looks similar to both. 1 hour ago, B Jake Moran said: The ones on the car look like 15 x 6 which I believe is correct for Mercury. That would work, I can stuff 70 series on them. 235-70-15 since 1985.... 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Skelly Posted March 22 Share Posted March 22 Could PB Blaster or a similar product applied liberally over the course of several weeks free the wheel from the rotor? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted March 22 Share Posted March 22 Should be able to get some in through the center cap hole. If the center cap is *not a reproduction* it pries right off. These wheels do have a problem with swelling and getting stuck, usually more around the lug nuts than the hub, but I have experienced both. A long soak and some judicious use of a leather or other soft mallet might do it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TAKerry Posted March 22 Share Posted March 22 Congrats on the purchase. I would have to look back through the not mine post but I surely hope I was not one that said this is a parts car! I have brought cars home in drywall buckets that I thought were restorable, LOL. It does look solid and pretty complete. Unless Im missing something I would think you do not need a donor car. Good luck with the door, I would second looking into the one that works. The mechanisms inside these cant be overly complicated (i am used to f bodies though). If the handles are moving freely then it may very well be a small rod that is disconnected. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TexRiv_63 Posted March 22 Share Posted March 22 20 hours ago, EmTee said: This is the subject wheel, correct? I had a pair of Magstars on my first car back in the 60s, they were 14" with chrome rims. I remember paying extra for tire mounting because of the aluminum centers. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
STEVE POLLARD Posted March 22 Share Posted March 22 Very cool !! And that's coming from a GM guy ! Steve 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B Jake Moran Posted March 29 Author Share Posted March 29 Start Date. So much to do, including setting up the Morton building for efficiency and storage. Of course, I need the set of 5 shop manuals, so that is on the purchase list. We got the hood off, and placed it in the back corner. We are starting to remove the fasteners for the fenders and front clip, most are 1/2". I will be back out on Sunday for day 2. This car has "tilt wheel" per the Marti Report. But I don't see a "Tilt" handle on the left side. I did confirm the car has AM 8 track. Windshield is not cracked, I started to clean it to inspect for cracks. I can't pop up the ends of the windshield wipers to get them off. As one would expect, lots of crud. I am bringing my shop vac out on Sunday. This is not the permanent resting place for the Marauder. There is a tractor with a back hoe behind it, we were able to get an old tractor started and moved out. This is a family heirloom hobby farm with horses and riding areas. The tractor that was moved out has a grooming attachment. That corner behind Ashton will be set up with work benchs. Found a Snap On Parts Cleaner, plugged it in and it works! Liquid coming up looked clear, not sure what it was but not gasoline. The old girl has as many vacuum ports and connectors as the 66 Toronado I restored. And 68 Riviera. 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B Jake Moran Posted March 29 Author Share Posted March 29 That's Ashton removing the hood hinges. While I appreciate a nut and bolt restoration as much as the next guy, these hinges are fine and only need cleaned and repainted, saving us $100.00 or so for new hinges and associated parts. Trust me there is enough to replace on this car. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rick60 Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 Try pushing the T/S lever forward. I think that's how Ford tilt wheels worked at that time. Very nice car! 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keiser31 Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 Don't forget to take a zillion photos of each item prior to and during disassembly for future reference. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dalef62 Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 Wiper arms should have just a spring type clip, a small screwdriver to release the clip and then pry the arm up with another screwdriver. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 4 hours ago, B Jake Moran said: That's Ashton removing the hood hinges. While I appreciate a nut and bolt restoration as much as the next guy, these hinges are fine and only need cleaned and repainted, saving us $100.00 or so for new hinges and associated parts. Trust me there is enough to replace on this car. Are there new hood hinges available for these cars somewhere? I could use some... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timsim Posted March 30 Share Posted March 30 The X-100 is an interesting car not many people know about. I saw one for the first time in many years at the recent Detroit Autorama. I like the dark ivy green. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B Jake Moran Posted March 30 Author Share Posted March 30 22 hours ago, Bloo said: Are there new hood hinges available for these cars somewhere? I could use some... eBay at least has them. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B Jake Moran Posted March 30 Author Share Posted March 30 On 3/29/2024 at 3:34 PM, rick60 said: Try pushing the T/S lever forward. I think that's how Ford tilt wheels worked at that time. Very nice car! Thanks Rick! Will do tomorrow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ted "Wildcat65" Nagel Posted March 31 Share Posted March 31 Love that big Mercury! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TAKerry Posted March 31 Share Posted March 31 Im sure this isnt your first resto, but yes by all means keep what is original and try to restore rather than replace. I know in the firebird world the replacement hinges are junk. Used are the only good ones and theyre not that hard to rebuild. Again if you know fine, but when bagging and tagging parts, put a piece of card stock (I use cut up file folders) with the location/name of the part. At one time I would just write on the baggie, but once they bounce around together in a bin the writing comes off! Also a ptouch lable maker is a great investment, especially once you start taking wires and vacuum hoses off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsancle Posted March 31 Share Posted March 31 11 minutes ago, TAKerry said: Im sure this isnt your first resto, but yes by all means keep what is original and try to restore rather than replace. I know in the firebird world the replacement hinges are junk. Used are the only good ones and theyre not that hard to rebuild. Again if you know fine, but when bagging and tagging parts, put a piece of card stock (I use cut up file folders) with the location/name of the part. At one time I would just write on the baggie, but once they bounce around together in a bin the writing comes off! Also a ptouch lable maker is a great investment, especially once you start taking wires and vacuum hoses off. This. My experience in the Mustang world is that NOS is gold, original is better and replacement parts are junk. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m-mman Posted April 10 Share Posted April 10 On 3/29/2024 at 11:29 AM, B Jake Moran said: This car has "tilt wheel" per the Marti Report. But I don't see a "Tilt" handle on the left side. Yes you have a tilt wheel. Behind the turn signal lever is a vertical rod that is displaced when the lever is pushed towards the dash. Easy to see when you know what to look for. BUT beware. FoMoCo tilt wheels use a pot metal casting to hold the locking teeth on the “rack” for adjustment. The pot metal hole can become enlarged and then the lock doesn’t hold the wheel in place. Test the wear by putting the wheel all the way up then attempt to pull it down without the release. With it up you can slam your palm on the bottom of the wheel and see if the lock mechanism holds. You can also have the wheel all the way up and try turning the steering wheel against the power steering. All of these put a huge strain on the tilt locks and test them for failure. I have a 71 LTD convertible with buckets, console and tilt. My tilt column doesn’t lock. When strained it pops and the wheel falls to the low point. I was looking for a good column 30 years ago in the yards and never found one. (Again a wear point) Columns for floor shift are unique and have unobtainum parts. I have yet to disassemble mine but I’m not looking forward to having to machine up some replacement parts. I hope your tilt column is in good shape. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m-mman Posted April 10 Share Posted April 10 On 3/29/2024 at 11:32 AM, B Jake Moran said: While I appreciate a nut and bolt restoration as much as the next guy, these hinges are fine and only need cleaned and repainted, saving us $100.00 or so for new hinges and associated parts. As an FYI the hinges are painted a strange color. The spring is semigloss black but the hinge itself is zinc phosphate. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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