Hi Scott,I wrote Phil back and advised that it was okay to reprint my story. That was a nice gesture on his part. Later I found someone on Craigslist selling another 1968 Cougar in Marissa, IL. I wonder if the same person used to own the one that is now sitting in the yard. Hmmm...
Great write-up. Would you consider allowing us to print this in the CCOA newsletter "At The Sign Of The Cat" I bet people would enjoy re-living their own junkyard adventures by reading this.
This VIN was reported in 6/88 and was still on the road at the time in Marissa, IL. It was red, white interior and had a 4-speed at the time.
Phil
Showing posts with label salvage. Show all posts
Showing posts with label salvage. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Update on Junkyard Crawl II
Today, I posted my story from yesterday to the Classic Cougars group on yahoo.com for the VIN registrar to see. Here is his reply:
Monday, October 19, 2009
Junkyard Crawl II
In the mid 1980's I went to a salvage yard in Mascoutah, IL with my friend Rob and his older brother Bill. With a freshly issued Illinois driver's license, Bill had started driving a 1964 Chevrolet 4 door sedan with a 283 cubic inch V-8 that his parents had received as a wedding present about 15 years prior. The car, white with a blue interior, had seen better days, but had been parked in the garage for the last few years. We used to play in the car for fun and actually used it as the Batmobile in a Batman movie we made around 1989. Bill had started to "fix up" the car with no real prior knowledge about cars. Somehow, he found out about this salvage yard and thought he could find some parts. The salvage yard was overgrown with trees, but had many cars from the 1950's, 1960's, and 1970's. I remember that the guys working there were all rough and tumble with attitudes to match. There were hubcaps hanging all over the office. We asked about parts for a 1964 Chevrolet and they directed us to where they were. We bought a replacement rear door and maybe some other parts and headed home.
A while back, after some research, I finally tracked down this salvage yard again and decided to stop in for a look. I came across the owner, Dan. He told me that he had been here since the early 1950's. He said that they had a fire a few years ago and lost a building and some of the cars. He had parts stored to restore some older cars and lost much of those parts in the fire. Finally, he asked if he could help me and I asked if he had any late 1960's Mercury Cougars around the yard. He said that he did have one left, but that most everyone had gone for the day and I would have to come back another time if I wanted to see the car.
Today, I went back to the salvage yard in search of that Cougar. I walked in and found one of Dan's sons behind the desk. I told him that I had been here before and asked if I could see the Cougar. He talked to his dad and they started asking what I wanted. I told them nothing specific, but just wanted to see if there was anything on or around the car that I could use. Finally, they relented and had one of the old guys that worked there take me back to the car. This guy was dressed in a dark blue automotive type work outfit with a scraggly beard and hair and horned rimmed glasses. He unlocked the gate to the back part of the yard and he got in the car and we drove back down a slightly rocked road. On either side of the road still buried in the trees were cars from the past. I saw a 1967 Thunderbird, some old Chevy and Ford trucks, a 1964 Chevrolet wagon, a late 1950's Ford, a whole row of Corvairs, and many more classics. I always find these trips fun and sad at the same time. All of these cars have stories and reasons why they are there. These hulks just rotting out there could either be put back on the road or save other cars that need to be saved. They just need the right person to come along.
All the way in the back of the yard next to a mid 1950's Cadillac sat a 1968 Mercury Cougar (VIN# 8F91F507828). This car is red in color and is basically a shell. There is no engine or transmission, no interior, no dash, no driver side front fender, no front end in front of the radiator support, and no trunk lid. I could not get the data off the door tag since that was long gone. The windshield was still intact, but the back glass had been broken out. There were many miscellaneous parts lying around inside the car. I found blue parts, yellow parts but the car I was looking at was red. There was a white passenger side front fender on the car as well as a blue hood sitting over the empty engine compartment. Later, Dan told me that at one time had several early Cougars, but most were sent to the crusher or bought. He said that they have always piled miscellaneous pieces of the cars inside the same make and model car.
I did find some salvageable parts to buy lying around inside the car and the trunk. I found a bumper guard, headlight trim ring, driver side quarter glass assembly, headlight panel (2), and passenger side dash panel. I asked the old guy if they would sell me these parts and he said yes. We loaded up what I had found and headed back to the front of the yard. I asked the old guy how long he had been working there and he replied, "Since 1971." He's been working there longer than I've been alive!
We got back to the front and I talked to Dan. I showed him the parts that I found and asked him how much he would charge. He told me that I could have everything for $50 + tax. I could have had a rear bumper for $35 too, but figured that I didn't really need it at this point. I asked if they would sell the entire shell as well. He said that it depended on if I needed a title. He said that they had lost many titles in the fire and it was a hassle to apply for a burned title. They would sell it if I didn't need a title. He also mentioned that another guy would come by periodically to look at the car and scavenge some parts. He had asked them not to crush it just in case. I noted this and I paid, we said our goodbyes and I went on my way.
Maybe you can find some hard to find parts for your classic vehicle at:
Dan's Auto Body & Towing
10201 State Route 177
Mascoutah, IL 62258
618-566-2161
A while back, after some research, I finally tracked down this salvage yard again and decided to stop in for a look. I came across the owner, Dan. He told me that he had been here since the early 1950's. He said that they had a fire a few years ago and lost a building and some of the cars. He had parts stored to restore some older cars and lost much of those parts in the fire. Finally, he asked if he could help me and I asked if he had any late 1960's Mercury Cougars around the yard. He said that he did have one left, but that most everyone had gone for the day and I would have to come back another time if I wanted to see the car.
Today, I went back to the salvage yard in search of that Cougar. I walked in and found one of Dan's sons behind the desk. I told him that I had been here before and asked if I could see the Cougar. He talked to his dad and they started asking what I wanted. I told them nothing specific, but just wanted to see if there was anything on or around the car that I could use. Finally, they relented and had one of the old guys that worked there take me back to the car. This guy was dressed in a dark blue automotive type work outfit with a scraggly beard and hair and horned rimmed glasses. He unlocked the gate to the back part of the yard and he got in the car and we drove back down a slightly rocked road. On either side of the road still buried in the trees were cars from the past. I saw a 1967 Thunderbird, some old Chevy and Ford trucks, a 1964 Chevrolet wagon, a late 1950's Ford, a whole row of Corvairs, and many more classics. I always find these trips fun and sad at the same time. All of these cars have stories and reasons why they are there. These hulks just rotting out there could either be put back on the road or save other cars that need to be saved. They just need the right person to come along.
All the way in the back of the yard next to a mid 1950's Cadillac sat a 1968 Mercury Cougar (VIN# 8F91F507828). This car is red in color and is basically a shell. There is no engine or transmission, no interior, no dash, no driver side front fender, no front end in front of the radiator support, and no trunk lid. I could not get the data off the door tag since that was long gone. The windshield was still intact, but the back glass had been broken out. There were many miscellaneous parts lying around inside the car. I found blue parts, yellow parts but the car I was looking at was red. There was a white passenger side front fender on the car as well as a blue hood sitting over the empty engine compartment. Later, Dan told me that at one time had several early Cougars, but most were sent to the crusher or bought. He said that they have always piled miscellaneous pieces of the cars inside the same make and model car.
I did find some salvageable parts to buy lying around inside the car and the trunk. I found a bumper guard, headlight trim ring, driver side quarter glass assembly, headlight panel (2), and passenger side dash panel. I asked the old guy if they would sell me these parts and he said yes. We loaded up what I had found and headed back to the front of the yard. I asked the old guy how long he had been working there and he replied, "Since 1971." He's been working there longer than I've been alive!
We got back to the front and I talked to Dan. I showed him the parts that I found and asked him how much he would charge. He told me that I could have everything for $50 + tax. I could have had a rear bumper for $35 too, but figured that I didn't really need it at this point. I asked if they would sell the entire shell as well. He said that it depended on if I needed a title. He said that they had lost many titles in the fire and it was a hassle to apply for a burned title. They would sell it if I didn't need a title. He also mentioned that another guy would come by periodically to look at the car and scavenge some parts. He had asked them not to crush it just in case. I noted this and I paid, we said our goodbyes and I went on my way.
Maybe you can find some hard to find parts for your classic vehicle at:
Dan's Auto Body & Towing
10201 State Route 177
Mascoutah, IL 62258
618-566-2161
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Junkyard Crawl
Back on September 4th, I went to lunch with my friend Tim. I was driving my Cougar and along the way I thought I spotted a Cougar at an auto sales place between my work and the restaurant. I didn't have enough time that day to stop and so I told myself that I should stop and check it out when I had time. I belong to a Classic Cougars group on yahoo.com
Today, over lunch, I went down to see if the car was still sitting there. As I pulled up to Wilson Towing 2605 South Old Highway 141, Fenton, MO - (636) 349-3228 corner of Route 21 (Tesson Ferry Rd) and Hwy 141 in St. Louis County I didn't see the car, but as I pulled into the lot I finally saw it. A 1969 Cougar convertible.
This is an auto sales/salvage yard place and I talked to the owner. I asked him how he was and he told me terrible. He said he had been robbed. I thought he was joking, but then he went into a story about how his lot had been broken into and thieves had stolen some parts from some cars. Then, he mistook me for someone that had called earlier and was coming to look at a car. I advised that was not me and I proceeded to explain my intentions of looking at this 1969 Mercury Cougar and just getting the VIN, but he said that he got the car from a school and should have been scrapped years ago. He didn't want to get into any trouble.
The Cougar was in pretty sad shape, but still had some salvagable parts. This auto sales place was really "down by the river" and the owner told me the lot had been flooded in the spring. The convertible top was almost gone, but I did notice that it had a University of Kansas sticker on the back window. The guy told me he had sold the console & the rear axle. He said that thieves had stolen some XR7 emblems off the car. We raised the hood and the engine and transmission (automatic) was still in the car and looked like a 2 bbl. Door on passenger side was crumpled in. I think this was originally a St. Louis car because there was a sticker from Sunset Ford (Since 1912) on the rear decklid and that dealer is still in business and only a few miles away. Car was painted medium lime metallic and looked like it had a black interior. This one will likely end up as scrap one of these days.
After talking about the Cougar I thought that I would stall after I spotted some late 1960's and early 1970's Chevrolet trucks across the lot. I have a soft spot for these because my first vehicle was a 1971 Chevrolet Cheyenne pick up truck. I went to look at these trucks and he followed me over. He said that one of the trucks was bought by his father new, but all three trucks were now in pretty bad shape. I was hoping he would leave me alone so I could get the VIN off the Cougar, but he kept talking to me.
After looking at an old late 1960's Chrysler I told him I had to get back to work. We parted ways and he went back to work on something behind some large trucks he had parked there. I quickly went over to the Cougar and I was able to see the VIN number plate on the partially cracked driver door. I was able to get this VIN off the door, but I could not get the door open to get the data plate info. I also could not see a VIN on the passenger side dash. The VIN on the door was 9F91H585255. I came back to the office and after I looked up what I had on the Classic Cougar Network site, I posted the information that I had to the group.
I received a post in reply from Jim Pinkerton who said, "Something rotten in Denmark here. In May, 2003, from Kansas City, MO someone has reported 9F91H585255 / 65A-S-1A-25F-42-6-X Somehow or other I suspect you may have made a mistake somewhere in the vin number."
I replied that I did write down 9F91H585255 on my piece of paper without thinking about what the 91 meant (Standard Hardtop) until I looked it up back at the office. When I got back I questioned myself and thought I had made a mistake and it was 9F94H585255. The code was hard to see through the crack in the door, I checked it a couple of times, but didn't want the guy to see me and left. However, the car was with out a doubt a convertible. Now it has me thinking that the door has been changed sometime over the years. The data plate should read 76A or 76B if the car was a convertible instead of 65A.
Damn!
Today, over lunch, I went down to see if the car was still sitting there. As I pulled up to Wilson Towing 2605 South Old Highway 141, Fenton, MO - (636) 349-3228 corner of Route 21 (Tesson Ferry Rd) and Hwy 141 in St. Louis County I didn't see the car, but as I pulled into the lot I finally saw it. A 1969 Cougar convertible.
This is an auto sales/salvage yard place and I talked to the owner. I asked him how he was and he told me terrible. He said he had been robbed. I thought he was joking, but then he went into a story about how his lot had been broken into and thieves had stolen some parts from some cars. Then, he mistook me for someone that had called earlier and was coming to look at a car. I advised that was not me and I proceeded to explain my intentions of looking at this 1969 Mercury Cougar and just getting the VIN, but he said that he got the car from a school and should have been scrapped years ago. He didn't want to get into any trouble.
The Cougar was in pretty sad shape, but still had some salvagable parts. This auto sales place was really "down by the river" and the owner told me the lot had been flooded in the spring. The convertible top was almost gone, but I did notice that it had a University of Kansas sticker on the back window. The guy told me he had sold the console & the rear axle. He said that thieves had stolen some XR7 emblems off the car. We raised the hood and the engine and transmission (automatic) was still in the car and looked like a 2 bbl. Door on passenger side was crumpled in. I think this was originally a St. Louis car because there was a sticker from Sunset Ford (Since 1912) on the rear decklid and that dealer is still in business and only a few miles away. Car was painted medium lime metallic and looked like it had a black interior. This one will likely end up as scrap one of these days.
After talking about the Cougar I thought that I would stall after I spotted some late 1960's and early 1970's Chevrolet trucks across the lot. I have a soft spot for these because my first vehicle was a 1971 Chevrolet Cheyenne pick up truck. I went to look at these trucks and he followed me over. He said that one of the trucks was bought by his father new, but all three trucks were now in pretty bad shape. I was hoping he would leave me alone so I could get the VIN off the Cougar, but he kept talking to me.
After looking at an old late 1960's Chrysler I told him I had to get back to work. We parted ways and he went back to work on something behind some large trucks he had parked there. I quickly went over to the Cougar and I was able to see the VIN number plate on the partially cracked driver door. I was able to get this VIN off the door, but I could not get the door open to get the data plate info. I also could not see a VIN on the passenger side dash. The VIN on the door was 9F91H585255. I came back to the office and after I looked up what I had on the Classic Cougar Network site, I posted the information that I had to the group.
I received a post in reply from Jim Pinkerton who said, "Something rotten in Denmark here. In May, 2003, from Kansas City, MO someone has reported 9F91H585255 / 65A-S-1A-25F-42-6-X Somehow or other I suspect you may have made a mistake somewhere in the vin number."
I replied that I did write down 9F91H585255 on my piece of paper without thinking about what the 91 meant (Standard Hardtop) until I looked it up back at the office. When I got back I questioned myself and thought I had made a mistake and it was 9F94H585255. The code was hard to see through the crack in the door, I checked it a couple of times, but didn't want the guy to see me and left. However, the car was with out a doubt a convertible. Now it has me thinking that the door has been changed sometime over the years. The data plate should read 76A or 76B if the car was a convertible instead of 65A.
Damn!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)