The black car has sold at least once since the Quay’s restored it - maybe the Cobra Jet Registrar knows for how much?
- Phillip
There are a lot of posts to read which are very exciting to see all of the 428 Cobra Jet history and photos.
Your car at the 1987 CCOA National Show looked amazing.
Lots of potential to bring it back to its former glory
www.CougarClub.org
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This is one of the reasons I thought that Nemesis may have been my car. Clearly this car came from the factory in red according to the Marti-report. The 1988 CCOA newsletter had Debra Sudlow, the owner from 1984 through at least 1988 reporting that the car was raced early on and also by the second owner when the car was painted Black. She stated that when she bought it it was painted Silver. She returned it to the original factory red. These photos show chipping paint from black to silver and back to red. Unless my car was shipped to Sandy Elliot Mercury before being sold to Bruce Fitzgibbons, this is not the same car. But it sure was looking like it was with now just a very slight chance it is. The Nemesis has not been found or identified.
But if this was the case, how many other black 428CJ 1968 Cougars were racing in the late 60’s and early 70’s?
WOW!!! That is frikin amazing!! Thank you so much!!
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Interesting the CCOA article written by Debra Sudlow mentions Canada Kentucky and the car being black by a street racer.
Trying to look up Debra who was last known to have retired in South Carolina would be a great start to more of the story. She restored the car I believe from Silver.
www.CougarClub.org
Attached is the article for your review.
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Clean up commences…
Wow. It’s hard to believe things can look that good under all that crud.
Nice work! Amazing what a little elbow grease can accomplish. Those seats actually look great.
I have been asked by Bill Quay to relay the information he has on the 68 R code registry that might help. For those who do not know Bill he has been the CCOA 68 R code registar for quite a few years and he and his family are the ones who restored the car shown in post #97, the John Elliot car.
From Bill,
Both the Nemesis and Elliot cars have GT emblems. The Sudlow car does not.
Neither the Nemesis and Elliot car had a vinyl top. The Sudlow car does.
Both the Nemesis and Elliot car ran in an automatic trans class. The Sudlow car is a 4 speed.
Neither the Nemesis or Elliot car have an antenna. The Sudlow car has an AM radio and an antenna.
Both the Nemesis and Elliot car ran at St Thomas Dragway in Canada.
It is possible that the Nemesis car was an S code GT.
Only one black onyx 68 R code car was shipped to a Canadian DSO, that would be the Elliot car. There was also one black cherry 68 R code shipped to Canada. This car is also known and on the registry.
Bill has heard that the Nemesis car was not the Elliot car, they are 2 different cars. This has not been confirmed.
I do not know if any of this helps you, I am just passing along the information.
Randy Goodling
CCOA #95
The information we got from Bob Rozniak the other day about the car being bought at Sandy Elliot Mercury pretty much nixed it being the Nemesis since I know my car was shipped to Spitzer Ford. The fact that it was painted black so early in it’s life and drag raced for the first at least five years of its life as a black car from the same region was what was making think it was a possibility. So where it raced, when it raced and who was racing it before Danny Stanley raced it is the big mystery now.
Bob Rozniak DID confirm that the Elliot car and Nemesis were TWO different cars.
Does Bill Quay have any information about THIS car??? There is no page on the CCOA website for a 1968 428CJ Register. Only 69-70.
I only know that the Sudlow car is listed in the registry. I do not know how much detailed information is there. It might start with Ms Sudlow’s ownership. You would need to contact Bill Quay directly to get any other information. On the CCOA website there is a contact page, his name should be listed there and you can send him an email directly from there.
Here are a few thoughts on the first owner’s racing history of your car. 50 years ago people generally did not travel very far to purchase a car. Since we the original selling dealer I would start by looking into what drag strips were within a 100 miles of them. I would bet that the car was raced at one of those strips. You also know that the second owner was Danny Stanley and where he was from. So I would look closely at strips that would be close to both of them. There is a chance that they raced at the same track.
Once you have the track names you can see if any of them are still in operation. If they are they might have old records on hand. You could also look to see if there is a local historical society for the area where a track is located, they may also have some old records. They may even know someone who raced at the track back then and put you in contact with them. Some of the tracks put out their own newsletter so there may be written history somewhere out there.
Randy Goodling
CCOA #95
Thanks for the good advice. I’m on it!
Someone just told me that this may have been Bud Moore’s personal car. No proof, they say they remember seeing him drive it around town back in the day. Anyone else remember any such thing? Which makes me wonder, what WOULD someone like that drive for their daily transportation? I would have guessed a pick up truck.
It was documented that they gave some of their race car drivers a free Cougar so that they would be seen in the cars. It would also make sense that it would be a FAST one!
Hmmm, that is fascinating. Bud Moore’s shop built and campaigned the Trans-Am Cougars in 1967 and then took them into the NASCAR Grand American division in 1968.
Those were all road racers (and ovals) with small blocks. No reason why Bud wouldn’t have liked a Cobra Jet for the street but it makes more since with Don Nicholson.
But - interesting to speculate that Mercury gave very similar Cougars to “Dyno” Don and Bud Moore in 1968.
Bud’s son Greg is still around, you could reach out to him and ask. If you can’t make contact easily I may have a channel to Greg.
It is well established that Gurney was offered a triple black sunroof 390 4v XR7-G that he famously turned down (he was not particularly happy with Mercury at the time).
I think he was given other Cougars to drive at various times - there are these vintage photos of him showing up to a race in one.
- Phillip
I could actually see how Dan Gurney might not want to drive around in a car with his own name plastered all over it. 
Here is the story about the Dyno Don’s 428CJ gift car.
https://www.hotrod.com/articles/rare-finds-1968-mercury-cougar-xr7-428-cobra-jet-dyno-don-nicholsons/
Yes - that is the other red with black top '68 Cobra Jet that Royce is so graciously posting about on a separate thread on this forum with lots of great photos documenting the details. Not a GT-E tho.
- Phillip
I would think a car given to Bud Moore from L-M would not be specified as “STOCK” on the Marti report. See Royce’s car Marti report.
I agree. I am just putting out there what people are telling me to see if there is any knowledge out there in this very experienced crowd. Is there any definitive proof that the car from that article actually was Don’s personal car?
I learned a long time ago to never say never however in the case of this being Bud Moore’s car originally I would highly doubt it. I say this because if Mercury did give him a car I would think that the car would have been shipped either to the closest L-M dealer to him or perhaps it might even have been sent directly to his shop. It’s not like Ford was not already shipping other vehicles to his shop. So why would they make him travel to Ohio to pick the car up? Bud Moore may very well have had a Cougar as a driver, I just doubt that it was (for ID purposes) what we will now call the Sudlow car.
Randy Goodling
CCOA #95