Mercury Comet & Cyclone Limited Edition Extra 1960-1975

Book excerpt: The Lincoln-Mercury division of Ford needed to have its own mid-sized compact to go head-to-head with GM's emerging fleet of cars, the so-called Buick-Oldsmobile-Pontiac (BOP) trio. However, where the BOP cars were substantially new, the Lincoln-Mercury Comet was little more than a mildly modified Falcon. Does this begin to sound familiar? However, it was not long before the Comet gained a 260-cubic inch V8 engine and took on a somewhat more sporting persona that went down very well with buyers. The inexorable growth in engine capacity saw the Comet available with an enormous 390-cubic inch V8 by 1964. However, it was not only the engines that were increased in size. The Comet range quickly outgrew its mid-compact roots and was soon a mid-sized saloon that was projected against Pontiac and its sporting range of saloons. By 1968 there was the Comet Cyclone GT which was a real performance machine that has become something of a collectible today. Sadly, Lincoln-Mercury lost focus and the Comet range was allowed to wither and die which was a rather dire end to a brand for which Edsel Ford had greater dreams.