Those are worse. They pop on easy enough but if you think you can just grab onto them and pop them back off often they fall apart in your hands.
“I went ahead and did this to all 4 caps. I think it’s good insurance. When you look at those tabs, you can see why they can fail. Pretty flimsy design. The only downside to permanently epoxying them together is that I won’t be able to touch up the black paint if I have another gouging issue. Hopefully that won’t happen again.”
The JB Weld can be removed easily with a Dremmel if you need to later.
Well, I think my fix with the caps worked. Let’s hope they stay on. But the big news is, the wheels are on the car! Here’s a last look before the black paint gets annihilated by the trim rings.
This is my sweet shop setup now: a crappy Duralast jack and a slanted driveway. The WCCC shop was pretty good, but I’m moving up in the world now.
Anyway, here they are all dressed up with the brushed trim rings correct for '68. They complete the look!
Proper glamor shots will have to wait - I have to prep for the car show this weekend! But I’m very happy with the end result. It looks like it should! This setup fits the personality of the car much better.
Don’t get me wrong, the Legendary GT5’s are great looking wheels. If my car was a bit sportier, or a dark color, or didn’t have a vinyl top, I think they’d be perfect. But this car is quite literally a Granny car. A classy cruiser. Maybe I need to get another Cougar so I can use the GT5’s.
Perfect. Just perfect. Andrew, granny car or no, this sure is one classy ride and those tires/wheels really set it off. Well done, sir!
I like the originals best. I install them with a couple dabs of silicone RTV so they are secure. When the tires wear out you want to remove the caps with the wheels off the car using a piece of wooden clothes rod before delivering the wheels to the tire shop.
Anything made by Scott Drake I expect lots of trouble and usually get it.
Looks so darn nice Andrew!
And I agree about each Cougar having it’s own “personality” and I think you have honored your car’s beautifully with your restoration and the mods that you have chosen to make.
Hope the show goes well!!
- Phillip
Great looking ride! Turned out really nice, that wheel and tire combo looks perfect.
These fit your car perfect. Great choice and I think its the final detail you have been looking for to put a “done” stamp on the whole thing!
For anyone who would like to save a few dollars and create your own brushed finish all one has to do is mount a wheel on your car with np valve stem, jack up the rear-end and and apply pressure on the ring with 100 grit sandpaper while the car is running in gear. Not how we do it in house but same effect.
Thanks guys! I agree that these wheels & tires seem to be the finishing touch this car needed. They really suit it perfectly.
So yesterday was quite a day. As I alluded to earlier, I entered in a prestigious car show. It seemed like the perfect place to officially show the car for the first time. The show was the Montecito Motor Classic. (Here is their website and here is an article with a nice recap).
Lots of rare, interesting, high value cars in attendance in all categories. Awesome variety - everything from hypercars, one-off race cars like the Lola GT (valued at $25 million and owned by Allen Grant, former mechanic for Carroll Shelby), even the George Barris “Koach” from the Munsters. So this was no podunk local show, it was kind of a big deal So really my goal was just to show up, have a respectable entry, show my car to people and tell the story, and enjoy wandering around looking at everything else. I was in the “American Classics” class and had no expectations to win anything. There were probably about 20 cars in that class, all very nice. I snapped a few pics in the morning while everyone was still arriving & staging.
I had fun throughout the day looking at everything, and hanging around talking about my car with anyone who had questions or comments. Lots of people who used to have, or knew someone who used to have a Cougar, all with fond memories. Plenty of compliments on the restoration, which was nice. I didn’t mind repeating the story several times to people who were genuinely interested & excited to see a nice Cougar there. I also had fun flipping open the electric headlight doors and surprising passersby.
The voting was done within each class, so each person had to vote for another car in the same class (other than themselves of course). I voted for a gorgeous 1955 Corvette. Imagine my surprise when I got a little phone call and found this on my car.
I won my class! Can’t believe it. I’m usually not someone who gets hung up on trophies or accolades, but it really did feel pretty special and validating to have all that hard work recognized in a venue like this. Here I am driving up to get my trophy.
Unreal.
Sitting in the “winners circle” with some of the other class winners:
Anyway, what a day. Feeling proud and a bit humbled. And now I don’t feel like I need to compete in any more shows, this pretty much takes the cake, right off the bat.
1 Like
As promised, I made a quick detour on my way home to snap a couple new glamor shots with the new wheels & tires. I think the car is truly complete now, at least in terms of major items and overall appearance.
Very happy. I’m thinking about all the things that had to line up for this all to work out the way it did, and all the people whose help made it possible. I can think of about 10+ people pretty easily whose help was instrumental. And yes, I put in so much work myself that I don’t feel at all bad soaking up some glory, but they all deserve some glory too. Thanks all for coming along for the ride.
That’s awesome Andrew congrats! Definitely a nice feeling when others recognize and appreciate the work you put into the car. She looks absolutely stunning, well deserved!
Wow Andrew, how sweet is this???!!! All your hard work has really paid off. Congratulations, the ol’ gal looks stunning!
What a stellar example of the beauty of the '67/'68 Mercury Cougar in all of her original as-from-the-factory glory!
- Phillip
Congrats Andrew.
Great job! Everything just works perfectly together. Nice photos too.
It looks spectacular! Beautiful car, beach, and city! Congrats on the car show win - you deserve it.
Those were the perfect choice of wheels/tires for an original car - imho. Really love the black and white contrast both inside and out on your car. If we make it to SB next summer as planned, maybe I could stop by for a quick visit.
Your project is a true inspiration to the rest of us working on ours! That’s a hell of a story and a very deserving conclusion, even though I know the journey never ends. Well done!!
How fabulous! What a fitting end to your restoration chapter. I think there will be many more accolades in the future. I’m going to go out on a limb and say that coughing up the bucks for the right tires pushed it over the edge.
I think the wheels and tires are the typical first place anyone would look. You made it that way! Nice choices and great work.