Was surfing craigslist about 6 weeks ago and stumbled over an ad for a survivor Mach 1.
R-Code, 4 speed and my favorite color--Calypso Coral. And -- 17k miles.
Talked to the gent briefly and decided to meet after the holidays. After some fanfare I got into the trailer where the car was being stored. It was one of the brutal low teen Fahrenheit evenings, and was thoroughly chilled after the visit. The situation where the car was wasn't conducive to viewing the vehicle.
Arranged for a thorough inspection that Saturday. Got in, under and on top of the Mach. A once shining star was relinquished to storage in a garage in central NJ because the owner had started a family. He never got back to the car, which was stored after some enthusiastic driving left the car with some motor issues. It remained there from 1976 until late2014.
Roll forward nearly 40 years and the car is made available for sale through Craigslist. I negotiated a fair deal for seller and I and came to take delivery that next Wednesday. I got the car home, and then to a friend who polished out the paint. Not quite what I would call survivor, but one damn cool car.
Will have the drivetrain out this weekend and will determine what I need to do to get this proud pony back up and running. I believe the block to be original to the car, and trans too, but with CJ's it is tougher to tell. She is very original, and very nice considering the original owners penchant for having fun and going fast. Will post some pics on a share that all can view shortly.
I have collected distributor, exhaust manifolds and just need to gather a shaker and the power steering stuff. I will get this beast back together shortly and look forward to getting it to Carlisle, or SAAC end of summer. Thanks to my friends Bob Henning and Kerry Wortman for helping with information and parts. She did have the original carb, valve covers, and some other hard find items. Like the battery heat shield. Go figure-no dizzie but has the heat shield.
Going to run some 70 style Magnums and Radial T/A's ('cause I have them like the look) and will get this bad boy out for all to see. How many original looking, original paint cars are making it to cruise nights these days? Not sure, but add one more.
Great car the original owner really cared for (as evidenced by the super straight body and perfect interior) but also used a CJ for what they were intended, having fun and going fast.
As point of interest; about 15 months ago I saw a note for a CC Boss 302 posted by Tom Gilliam on the Boss site. Long story short Tom graciously helped an original Boss owner car up for sale that happened to exactly what I was looking for at the time; a flat hood Boss 302 in need of some attention. The car was even better than I expected and the Boss is close to being back on its four tires and on its way to a concourse restoration. More to it than that, but that is for another day.
The CJ will be fast on the Boss's heels and will be rolling very soon.
Look for pics as I post and get closer.
