So the Grand Marquis PI package DOES exist...

[neums]

I offered him 60 bucks on it, we'll see what he says

He's probably on the ground laughing at your offer. I know this seller and I've seen this car at shows 16 years ago when it was still in good condition. He knows his police cars and he knows the rarity of what he has.

[1987cp]

Are you sure it's the same guy? That's a lot of deterioration for a dedicated collector-type to allow his car to undergo, especially one he feels is worth money.

Also, isn't the one in your picture a 1980 model?

[neums]

I'm sure. Same guy, same car. Why he ran this car into the ground, I have no idea. Looks like he put a new front bumper on it, crooked though.

[pantera77]

He's probably on the ground laughing at your offer. I know this seller and I've seen this car at shows 16 years ago when it was still in good condition. He knows his police cars and he knows the rarity of what he has.

What he do? Drive it all winter then park kit in the woods? Kind of a shame.

[86VickyLX]

Nice thing about Mercury versus Ford speedos is that the speedo-cable quick release is lots easier to reach (IMO).

Which is trumped by the need to remove the headlight switch knob to get to the speedometer cluster. And you can get quite a decent amount of cable with the ford cables. I can pull mine far enough forward to reach it. And I gots fat hands.

[87gtVIC]

Rare or not...a POS is a POS. Plain and simple. Still a cool speedometer......the car...well not at all.

[marquisman]

the clusters interchange. i used my 4 idiot light cluster in GMGT which had a 6 light one. it works great and everything that should light up does.

[1987cp]

Which is trumped by the need to remove the headlight switch knob to get to the speedometer cluster. And you can get quite a decent amount of cable with the ford cables. I can pull mine far enough forward to reach it. And I gots fat hands.

Funny, removing the headlight knob was about the first interior task I learned to perform! Though to be fair, I'd forgotten that the Mercury trim uses the same piece over the speedo and the headlight plunger. Inconvenient design, that.

[Leafsrule16]

Rare or not...a POS is a POS. Plain and simple. Still a cool speedometer......the car...well not at all.

Amen. Unless that car is close to decent condition, $1500 is completly absurd. It might be worth $400..

What people need to understand is just because there wasnt a lot of something doesnt mean anyone wants it. Its still a junk car with a 140 hp 351 (one of which that doesnt even run) which is rusted beyond beleif and would have to be body off restored to be even worth $5000 .. If he wanted to sell it for dirt cheap or partially part it out and then derby it it might make sense, but the seller is clearly hoping for too much.

[neums]

What I meant was, he knows the SPEEDOMETER is a very rare part and worth quite a bit more than $60. Try to find any certified police speedometer from the 1970's for less than $200! I've seen '74 Dodge Monaco speedos go for really big bucks. That Merc cluster is even more rare; probably less than 1,000 ever made.

[1987cp]

Now, now, I wouldn't go so far as to recommend it for a derby car ... if I were crazier, and had anything like the time or money to spend patching up the rust (already got a couple of those projects on my hands ...), AND wanted yet another box Panther project, I might even consider the car myself if I could get it at a price I could justify (and in my current state, free would be too expensive :p).


Are '70s speedos already going for that much? I thought expensive old parts were still mostly the domain of the really popular stuff from the '60s.

[91grandmarquis]

I would pay 1k dollars for it... it is rare. Resto would be a major pain in my ass though.

[P72Ford]

Something is worth whatever someone will pay for it. If you were a police car guru, you might think $1500 was a steal.

As far as I can tell, on this site of Panther enthusiasts, only one member (Neums), had ever seen evidence of a car like this prior to this thread.

So... I'd say its a rare piece. And I don't think $1500 is out of line. There'd be alot of work to be done, but $1500 isn't that much money.

[HemiHunter]

Are '70s speedos already going for that much? I thought expensive old parts were still mostly the domain of the really popular stuff from the '60s.

Maybe amongst the police interceptor restoring clubs and sites but, checkout a Mopar forum for whatever respective 70's police car gauge setup you're looking for, and $50 is more like what you'll pay if someone has it. Like already mentioned in this thread and said time and time again, it's worth what some people will pay for it, and I'm sure there's some people with more money than brains spending $200+ for a speedometer.

[hemihotrod402]

It must be the guy neums is talking about, he told me its not worth ruining the car's potential for 60 bucks, so he obviously knows what he has.