63 Readers Rides

Hello ... my name is Ken. I Stumbled on your web site. I am also a fan of the Meteors -- among the very first "muscle cars." Attached are some photos of the 1963 Meteor hard top that I "modified." Virginia car --no rust 89,000 miles. Repainted red vs. white Original black/white interior. 260 with 289 heads, 600 cfm carb, Holley B&M Supercharger, C-4 tranny with B&M floor mounted ratchet shifter. Stock 8" rear end with 3.00 gears, soon to be changed to 3.53 gears. Crager mag wheels, Pertronix ignition system. Electric fan to accommodate blower drive pulley. " Hidden " Alpine stereo system with original dash/radio intact. New trunk mat and other cosmetic changes. The drag strip is next.

This is my 1963 Mercury Meteor custom 2 door hardtop that I just got three days ago for $500. All of the trim and chrome are on my car the dash is all complete, and it has no dents or body damage. basically, it just needs an engine and transmission. It originally had the 260 v8 and 3 speed auto, but they were taken out. It has a 3.87 rear end but I have the original for it and its 3.00 gears that I am putting back in it. I will find a 302 somewhere to put in it and a 3 speed auto like it had originally. It needs a complete restoration badly. I am working on it starting to get it ready for paint and a engine. There's no rush because I am only 15 and cant drive yet, but I want to have it ready for when I can. I have started the process of tearing it down and sanding it. I've never had to look for one so I don't know where it is. I got a lot of information from your site, there aren't many good ones around about meteors. So I guess that's about it, thanks for your help and here's a before picture and hopefully I will have a after picture in a few months. thanks. Sept 2002, Here is an updated picture of Mike's 1963 Mercury Meteor Custom as it sits with a 302, ported and polished heads, hooker headers, Carter AFB 625cfm 4 bbl carb, Ford AOD 4 speed auto transmission, 3.00 to 1 rear end, Magnum 500 wheels, B&M floor shifter and a coat of red primer.

This is my 1963 Mercury meteor, it's almost complete, just need a rear bumper. It has the original 221 with 2 speed auto that been freshened up, it has 62,000 original miles.

Danny recently acquired this car and plans to restore it. He also got a 62 Meteor parts car with it.

Stephen has owned this car for over 18 years and has decided to bring it back to it to its former glory while doing a few performance modifications along the way. He recently installed a mild cam and a 4bbl carb.

Ajax recently bought this car and is beginning to learn about Meteor's and the restoration process.

The car is powered by a 260 V-8 and factory 4 speed. One front fender has been repainted but the rest is original paint.

1963 Meteor 2 door custom hardtop

HOOKEDONCHEROKEES@msn.com

Owned by: Randy Jelinek

South Dakota, USA

Randy's Mom bought this car brand new in 63, her brother drag raced it, blew up the engine and it sat out in pasture until 1991. Randy got it when he graduated from high school. He worked it over a bit and used it as a daily driver for a while until was pretty much destroyed by a South Dakota hail storm in 1998. Since then it has been sitting in a barn waiting to be restored.

Besides the original T10 4-speed transmission it has a fairly stout 302, 10.6:1 compression, Crower solid cam, ported DOOE 351 heads, Manley rods, Ford aluminum hi-rise, Carter carb, balanced & blueprinted, etc. Rick also put in a Crites restoration shock tower kit for header clearance - slightly modified. The rear-end is a 9 inch out of a 59 Ford with 4.11 gears. The body is still being worked on but will be 90% stock. Rick has owned this car for over 30 yrs and bought it from the original owner.

The car is in pretty bad repair as it sits, it rolls, brakes and that's all. The current color is Sultana white with a blue interior red and black dash, yes blue console seats etc. Plans are for either Red or Black exterior and opposite interior. Depending on the engines shape it will either be rebuilt as is or will be re-powered with a 5.0 roller engine. Either way John will be going with a late model 5 speed transmission.

The car is in OK mechanical shape. Dave is working on a few problems. The 260 V8 engine runs. He will be replacing all the brake cylinders this spring. There is very little rust, need to replace the right rear floor panel. It needs a lot of little things but it also needs paint and a new interior. It hasn't been outside for a couple of years as its a work in progress.

This is Glen's red/white 63 Meteor Custom. It has a 260 V-8 w/three speed manual and factory A/C. Glen also owns a black 1963 S-33.

It has the 260 which is bored .040 over and has a 1965 comet 4 barrel intake on it. The car came with power steering. Arie adapted a power brake unit from a Geo Storm for use on the Meteor, the proportioning valve was used and a extra brake line was run to the rear wheels so that it has a dual braking system. Front has disc brake set up from a 68 Torino, the spindles bolted right on and braking ability is excellent. The car came from Arkansas 4 years ago, and was just finished last year. The interior had to be done completely as all upholstery was just dust. The car is not a show car just a cruiser for the family.

The engine is a 289 with a Holley four barrel carb and a Edelbrock performer intake. It has a 2 speed auto transmission. The car is now white.

Because of the low oil pressure, I pulled the pan, and found a few problems. There was about 1/2" of "flaked" sludge in the pan, and the oil pickup screen was about 80% clogged. A new, high volume oil pump was installed, along with the new pickup unit. Noise in the bottom end prompted me to check rod & main bearings, and they showed scoring, but no significant wear. They were replaced with Std. bore bearings. The smoking engine prompted me to pull the valve covers and check the valve stem seals. Only two of the sixteen were completely intact, and both of those, along with the "remains" of the rest of the disintegrated seals resembled ebonite. I replace the seals, but believe I was given the wrong exhaust seals, as I'm still experiencing smoke on startup, and acceleration. It seems to be using some oil, also. One suspicion is that oil rings may be stuck. Several treatments with Marvel Mystery haven't resolved the problem, and I'm not getting any "piston slap", so if the 260 doesn't have significant wear, I'm leaning toward wrong seals. When I bought the set from O'Reilley, there were two different stock numbers, and packaging identified intake and exhaust. I've also converted from generator to alternator. I recently installed Thrush Turbo duals, new outer tie rod ends, and had the front end aligned. During the alignment, I was prepared to have a Control Valve kit installed, but the shop informed me that the reason I had slop in the control valve was that I was looking at that problem with the engine not running. He explained that the PS had to have pressure to do away with the slop (DUH,OH!!), and the parts didn't need to be installed at this point.

My recently updated pictures show the new Magnum 500 wheels, with "Mercury Man" centers. I have also replaced the stock steering wheel with a Grant, 3 stainless spoke, black rubber grip wheel, and adapted a Mercury Man wheel center to the Grant horn button. Also, in the interior, I've installed new carpet, and Mercury Tracer bucket seats. The buckets and the rear seat have been reupholstered to match in cloth/vinyl. The exterior paint has been buffed (unfortunately through in a couple of spots) and now has a nice shine. I've acquired a NOS rt. headlamp bezel to replace the original one which had major damage, and backup lights, all of which are yet to be installed. I also found a supplier who made some hood insulation pieces for me from measurements which I supplied. Those, and a cruise control will be installed (hopefully in June), after I finish a major interior update of my 65 Ranchero. June 7/8, I'll drive the Meteor on a Nebraska Rod & Custom 600 mile tour. To date, I've put about 1800 miles on the Meteor locally, since I acquired it.

I'm seriously considering replacing the 260/2 spd with a 5.0/EFI - AOD from a 90's Lincoln. The whole car will be available to me, and is supposedly low mileage, but I've since been advised that info may be incorrect. If the valve seal issue doesn't solve the smoking engine problem, something will be overhauled.

Marcia has owned the car for 3 years after buying it at an auction from a bankrupt car museum. The car has 122,000 original miles and she drives it to events all over Manitoba and the northern US. It is currently stock other than a trick custom dual exhaust system and a set of true wire 100 spoke wheels held on with 3 bar knock offs. This past month they have built up a very strong .030 over 302 with cam, pistons, Holley 600 and Hooker Super Comp Headers that the boys in her car club are going to help her swap in December of this year while it’s at a members shop getting prepped for new paint and ghost flames.

Jeff has what he believes to be the only ' 63 Mercury Meteor S-33 Hardtop in Australia. He's had the car for about 5 years. It's in good condition but needs a bit of work done. He enjoys driving it too much to take it off the road. The car was imported from Fresno, California and was in the same family from new. He find's my website very helpful as very few people in Australia know these cars exist.

This is Rick's 1963 Mercury Meteor Custom 6 passenger Station-wagon. He first saw it in his old Apt. parking lot for $700. A few months later the sign said $400. His friend bought it for that amount. After a while, It grew on him and he bugged his friend for a year to sell it to him. After $1000 it was his. (he really wanted it) Its mostly original except for the exhaust and the front bench seat. It has the 260ci V8 engine with the 2 speed merc-o-matic transmission. It was ordered with power steering, brakes and rear window. It has the two bench seats & a folding rear storage compartment that should have a seat but the cushions aren't there. This is one of 2,589 wagons made of this type. A one year only wagon. The 'custom' model has the roof rack, chrome molding on the panels and lower doors, the better hubcaps, interior chrome handles & more.

They've had their 1963 meteor for over a year now and have been doing a lot of work to it. It's a daily driver in original condition but all the rubber parts and such are needing to be replaced. It has a bit of a dent in the rear fender. It's got the original 260 with 120,000 miles and the 2 speed auto transmission.

The car need's some chrome work but Charlie is in Germany and the car is in Florida so I guess it will have to wait until he gets back. He bought it Barstow , CA from a lady whose husband had bought it for her and then left her in the 60’s. He bought it as a driver while stationed at Fort Irwin , CA . It has a 260 V-8 and a 3 on a tree shift. The clutch plate was pushing too hard on the rod bearings so he put a 88 mustang pressure plate with a welded spacer in it to get it to work better. The interior needs work but it drives like a dream, only 48,000 miles on it. He plans to redo interior within next 6 months.

The car is currently red with matching interior. Has had the 221 removed and a 302 put in. Still running the drum brakes on a single cylinder, that's my next upgrade. Runs and drives like a dream. Bought the car in NY, live in NH. Don't know too much more about the car, the old guy I bought it from just used it as a driver. Didn't know too much about it either.

My dad found this 63 Meteor wagon up in Tacoma, Washington about 7 years ago, he kept it for 6 months or so and started to lose interest, so I snatched it off him. Work done: Swapped out the 260 for 289 and 4 bbl Edelbrock carb, mid 80's AOD-4 speed auto trans, cut springs to lower front, 15" smoothies with 205/60 tires, replaced front end with PST suspension kit. Could use: paint (it was repainted in the 80's?), interior work-headliner, carpet, front seat covers. I love the car and drive it to work every day. (fortunately it's only 2 miles!!- gas is spendy!!)

I have owned the my Meteor for about 18 years it is still has the original paint with almost no rust. It has 145,000 miles on the original engine and still runs and drives great. the car was originally bought new in Las Vegas and then made it to California and then to Wisconsin in about 1977. After driving it every summer all these years I still find it a joy to drive and it turns more heads than any of my Mustangs ever did. I hope to redo the body this summer.

A friend got the car in St Louis but could not get to run, then sold it to me. It was sitting in a garage for 37 years with a 1/4 inch of dust on it, plastic on the seats, I took 3 of the original tires off of it, and one Sears, With a wash, some new parts and lot's of work it's runs & drives. It still needs some TLC.

The Car was sitting for over 20 years in a barn/warehouse. The owner was 72 years old and was selling some of his old Fords. It's a clean car, everything is there. It has power steering and a heater. Interior is clean and original. All the chrome/moulding's are on the car. Some of it has dings, but all there. Moulding's do need to be polished. It could use a re-spray from the moulding's down. It also needs the front floor boards fixed. Will probably leave alone with the 260 and keep it looking stock for car shows. Has Ford hubcaps on it. Will put some beauty rings on the rims and some fat rubber out back. Still original 14" rims. Can't believe how HUGE the trunk is.

I've had the car for a few years now. I drive it every day. I paid $500 for it, she had surface rust all over and some serious rust mostly on trunk lid. I started repairing the rust. I purchased a 302 with a C4 and a posi rear end. It should be fun when I'm done.