Montego GT Registry Member's Cars

The
1972/73
Mercury
Montego GT
Registry

This car, owned by Joe Helbling, has a unique history. The car was originally purchased by Eddie Wood of the famed Wood Brothers racing team. Eddie bought the car through Danville Lincoln-Mercury of which, Glen Wood (Eddie’s Dad), was part owner. Eddie and his brother Len both purchased a ‘73 Mercury Montego GT at the same time. Eddie bought the yellow car pictured here and Len bought a red GT. Eddie only kept the car about three months, when he decided to sell the car because he did not like the factory paint job.

His plan was to sell the car and then purchase a black ‘73 Montego GT, but by this time the ‘74 model year was already out and he was unable to order a black ‘73. He and his brother purchased a pair of Datsun 240 ZX’s next. According to Eddie, they were nothing like the Mercurys. Eddie also owned an orange ‘71 Mercury Cyclone Spoiler at the time. The ‘71 Spoiler is currently owned by Robert Hahn.

Eddie sold the car to a friend,Tommy Gardner, who then sold the car to his brother Harless.

Current photo of the dealership where the car was purchased

The car remained with the Gardner family in Martinsville, VA until the early 90’s. Up to this time the car only turned 19,000 miles. Somewhere around 1992 the Gardners sold the car and it went through six different owners.

It spent time in Charlotte, NC where it was repainted a different shade of yellow and ended up in a small town in South Carolina where it was repainted the original yellow. I purchased the car from David Whitaker of Lugoff, SC in February of 1997 with 41,000 miles on the odometer. Mr. Whitaker had painstakenly detailed the whole car and it is beautiful. Today it has slightly over 43,000 miles on it.

The car is medium bright yellow with a black bench seat interior. It is powered by a 351 CJ 4V engine backed by a C6 automatic transmission and 3.25:1 open gears out back. The manufacture date is July 7, 1973 and it was shipped to the Washington DC sales district.

I had a chance to visit Eddie and his family this past fourth of July at their shop in Stuart, VA. I was there with my wife and two kids and friends David and Heather Compton. We had a great time. Eddie was very excited to see his old car and reminisced about old times. He even took time out of his busy schedule to pose for a few pictures and autogragh the inside of the trunk lid. Eddie’s Mom showed us around the museum and race shop which was very interesting. I would like to thank Eddie’s sister Kim for helping to arrange the visit. It was one of the highlights of my summer. I would strongly suggest that if you’re ever in western Virginia, a stop at the Wood Brothers museum is a must.

Joe & Heidi with their two kids
and Eddie Wood

Joe got Eddie to sign the trunk

We were lucky enough to get
a tour of the race shop

The museum has an amazing collection
of photos and memorabilia

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The 1972/73 Mercury Montego GT Registry

		This car, owned by Joe Helbling, has a unique history. The car was originally purchased by Eddie Wood of the famed Wood Brothers racing team. Eddie bought the car through Danville Lincoln-Mercury of which, Glen Wood (Eddie’s Dad), was part owner. Eddie and his brother Len both purchased a ‘73 Mercury Montego GT at the same time. Eddie bought the yellow car pictured here and Len bought a red GT. Eddie only kept the car about three months, when he decided to sell the car because he did not like the factory paint job.
	His plan was to sell the car and then purchase a black ‘73 Montego GT, but by this time the ‘74 model year was already out and he was unable to order a black ‘73. He and his brother purchased a pair of Datsun 240 ZX’s next. According to Eddie, they were nothing like the Mercurys. Eddie also owned an orange ‘71 Mercury Cyclone Spoiler at the time. The ‘71 Spoiler is currently owned by Robert Hahn. Eddie sold the car to a friend,Tommy Gardner, who then sold the car to his brother Harless.	Current photo of the dealership where the car was purchased
	The car remained with the Gardner family in Martinsville, VA until the early 90’s. Up to this time the car only turned 19,000 miles. Somewhere around 1992 the Gardners sold the car and it went through six different owners.
		It spent time in Charlotte, NC where it was repainted a different shade of yellow and ended up in a small town in South Carolina where it was repainted the original yellow. I purchased the car from David Whitaker of Lugoff, SC in February of 1997 with 41,000 miles on the odometer. Mr. Whitaker had painstakenly detailed the whole car and it is beautiful. Today it has slightly over 43,000 miles on it.
	The car is medium bright yellow with a black bench seat interior. It is powered by a 351 CJ 4V engine backed by a C6 automatic transmission and 3.25:1 open gears out back. The manufacture date is July 7, 1973 and it was shipped to the Washington DC sales district.
	I had a chance to visit Eddie and his family this past fourth of July at their shop in Stuart, VA. I was there with my wife and two kids and friends David and Heather Compton. We had a great time. Eddie was very excited to see his old car and reminisced about old times. He even took time out of his busy schedule to pose for a few pictures and autogragh the inside of the trunk lid. Eddie’s Mom showed us around the museum and race shop which was very interesting. I would like to thank Eddie’s sister Kim for helping to arrange the visit. It was one of the highlights of my summer. I would strongly suggest that if you’re ever in western Virginia, a stop at the Wood Brothers museum is a must.
	Joe & Heidi with their two kids and Eddie Wood Joe got Eddie to sign the trunk	We were lucky enough to get a tour of the race shop The museum has an amazing collection of photos and memorabilia