NY ALLEY CAT

By ROB MAY and FRANK KUENNEKE

Returning to the Cat theme, this 1972 Mercury Cougar GT makes its den in Rock Tavern, NY with its owner Frank Kuenneke and his wife Jean. Frank started tinkering with engines by the time he was 12 (lawn mowers and minibikes), and it just went from there onto cars and motorcycles. “My older cousins really got me into the muscle car scene before I was 16. They had several great cars, ‘68 Torino 428 Cobra Jet, ‘70 Boss 302 Mustang, and a ‘71 Mach 1 just to name a few, and I was hooked ever since.” The Cougar came along shortly thereafter upon getting out of high school when he found out his first employers’ best friend (Walter Cooper) was selling it. “I really admired the Cat the first time I saw her.” The Cougar was originally ordered by Walter from Daniels and West Lincoln-Mercury in Middletown, NY. That was in 1972. “In ’78, I paid $1,600, and she is still mine to this day.” The original owner was an older gentleman and ordered it with drum brakes all around and no AC. When Frank bought the Mercury, the mileage was around 40,000. The Cougar was already starting to rust out the quarter panels and the aprons under the hood. The trans was slipping, the radiator was full of muddy antifreeze, and the motor had a bad miss in it. All the original owner really did to her was oil changes, since he got that for free where he worked. “After a major tune up, trans rebuild, and a radiator re-core, she ran great. Eventually a B&M shift kit was installed and that really helped the trans perform.” Frank and his brother replaced the quarter panels in 1980, and they decided to two-tone paint it after seeing a new Caddy with that color scheme. “We drove her with one side done for about a month and after a lot of compliments on the two-tone scheme we decided we may as well do the other side.” There is no plastic anywhere in this car. “The hood is still original paint (and it shows), but my brother painted the rest in my dad’s garage. She still wears that same paint to this day. I want to repaint her, since the paint is starting to crack and craze but that would erase the memories of my brother’s hard work. I put the hood scoop on her along with the GT badging around 1980 as well.”

After all the improvements over the years, the Cougar now has GT suspension and ‘67 Shelby disc brakes (Kelsey Hays reproduction). The Cat still has the original 351C 2V and FMX trans

with Hooker headers, 2.5” dual exhaust, Edelbrock intake, Holly 600 carb, and Pertronix ignition. The interior is mostly original except the carpet and headliner and interior door panels. The Mercury retains all original chrome and vinyl top. “(Thanks to Dad for letting me keep her in your garage all those years ago).” At 89,000 miles, this Cat she still runs beautifully and with the new suspension, heavier sway bars, KYB shocks, 15” wheels, and tires. “She drives and handles great (Stops real good too).” The charging system is updated with a Powermaster alternator and new wiring. The regulator is Motorcraft solid state with the original cover from 1972 riveted on. Special thanks to my brother Karl and my buddy Pat for doing the sheet metal under the hood years ago.” The entire suspension has been replaced with upgraded heavy duty leaf springs, coil springs, control arms, idler and pitman arms etc. Every bushing, nut and bolt is new, a major improvement to say the least. “Special thanks to my friends at JBZ Auto in Campbell Hall for doing all the front-end work. Swapping out coil springs in my garage was not something I was going to attempt even with a Mercedes Benz coil compression tool which is a very safe tool to use by the way compared to other spring compressors. (Thank you, Rick, for loaning that to me).” Karl, Frank’s brother, worked at Chester Auto Body at the time which was owned by Tony D’Agostino’s dad (Tony’s Parts at Tony Mopar.com). “We replaced the NOS quarter panels in my dad’s garage at home in 1980 where my brother also painted it. What a mess we made, but dad let us get away with it if we cleaned up the place. It also needed a new passenger door since that was rusted out underneath which I handpicked at the local scrapyard. Surprisingly the floors and frame are original and rust free.” When Frank got married, the Cat sat for many years in the garage and thankfully his wife, Jean, refused to let me sell it. Over the last ten years, the Cougar has gotten allot of attention. “In my brother’s garage, we took off the nose and replaced the aprons and radiator support. Special thank you to my buddy, Pat, for his hard work doing the welding.” Frank tries to drive her whenever weather permits usually once a week if possible. “I participated in the local Mustang Clubs cruise last year not realizing how far these guys like to go, lol. I was the only Cougar there, but they are a great group of people and were very welcoming. After three plus hours, I have to admit although she ran and handled great I was happy to get out and stretch my legs. With the new wheels and tires, it handles and rides better than ever, no rattles or swaying like the old days. The car loves to cruise along nice and steady.” Most people are surprised when he tells them the hood still has original paint, and the other paint was completed forty years ago. “The two-tone paint really does a good job of showing her body lines making it unique in that regard. I attend several shows a year, usually four or more.” Several firstplace trophies have been earned and most recently, first place at the Spring Roundup show sponsored by the Mustang Club of Orange County, NY in the Lincoln-Mercury Division. “After all the years of owning the car and the memories, I’m glad I kept her. It runs and drives better than ever, and I truly enjoy driving it along the country back roads in the beautiful Hudson Valley. So many people know this car, especially my old friends from high school which is kinda cool in itself.”