I own a 1956 Mercury Montclair 2-door hardtop. My father hauled new Mercurys from the St. Louis plant from 1948 (when the facility was built) until his death in 1974. My Merc. was built at the St. Louis plant which means my car, when new, was delivered to it's first dealer by my dad....or a co-worker. I think that is very cool!
My Father and Mother owned a 56 Montclair identical to that one,same color. And I can vouch for the fact that it would run. He always ran glass packs on it and I can still remember the sound that y-block made at full song. He bought it new in Athens Ohio in April of 1956.
I love this era of autos, and this is one of the best designs of the time imo. The interior, dash and steering wheel, are fantastic! The only other one I'd pick over this one would be the Lincoln Premier.
56 Lincoln is a nice car being in both of them I think I like the driving position of the.. that’s hard because the seats in this car felt better than the seats in the Lincoln (seats in the Lincoln were redone but not same fabric) I like both of them but back in the day you could almost buy a Packard clipper and a mercury Montclair for the price of a Lincoln premiere
I’m so happy I came across this video. I absolutely love how you broke down everything with the 56 Mercury Montclair. My father recently found and restored the actual car that he drove in the late 50s. His is yellow over black and has so much chrome. Thank you!
My dad had one of those, it was the favorite car he ever owned and always talked fondly of it. He blew the engine on it racing to the hospital with my mom when she was in labor with me and my twin sister. I don't think he ever forgave me for it.
Love the historical context intro’s...very innovative Jay!...this 1956 Mercury Montclair is awesome…wow-oh-wow…just look at the fender bulge and the two-tone paint art!!...there must be some interesting history around how these two-tone paint jobs evolved....gone forever!!!
🎶 if I had money I tell you what I'd do. I'd go downtown and buy a Mercury or two. Cause I'm crazy bout a Mercury 🎶 This year is my favorite for Mercury. Love the side treatment of these with that swopping trim. Just makes the car look fast even when it's sitting still. The Y block was a good engine but not without its own set of quirks. You had to do those regular oil changes. If you didn't sludge would build up in the oil returns. Sometimes that would build up even if you did do regular oil changes. But overall it was a nice modern update over the old flathead. That Merc is a really sweet ride and in a great color scheme as well.
the 55 and 56 Montclair has always been my favorite, I had a 55 Montclair for many years, it was my high school car forty years ago, The 55 did have exhaust ports same place as 56 from factory, and in real life driving these cars were very quick and great road cars, real rollers
@@What.its.like. I have had two 54s, one recently, was a red with white top Monterey, nice car, and back forty years ago, had a 54 hot rod Monterey lipstick red, but the 55 Montclair is tops with me, my dad bought one back in the day, was working on drilling rigs in western Kansas and lived here in northeast Texas, would drive back and forth as had time, his was my favorite color on them turq green bottom with white on top
@@What.its.like. when Edsel Ford had the idea for Mercury it was to be a factory hot rod of sorts, bigger and stronger than the ford but not as heavy as the Lincoln and so it was designed with this in mind for many years, but later on Ford execs kept screwing around with it until Mercury lost sight of its own identity. Reading the stats dont tell the story, you must get behind the wheel of one and move out onto the hiway to really feel what I mean.
Agree with your judgement on the mid 50's Merc's. I like them too. Thanks for the great videos, you obviously put a lot into the research/photography/editing.
My grandfather had a 56 Montclair - white over red. Absolutely pristine condition. This was in the '80s so it was an antique and I remember he would never drive it because he was afraid if anything broke he'd never find the parts to repair it.
Hi Jay!; Gotta say that 1956 Merc, is sweet! There was just something really good about most the styling of most 1956 cars! That year probably had some of the most good looking cars of the decade!
What a beautifu car in the best color combination for '56, IMHO. That license plate frame the back is for Paps Lincoln Mercury whch was in Sunnyvale, CA, which is a suburb of San Jose. They sold a lot of cars while in existence.
"A mink coat at a muskrat price!" Yes, that was an advertising slogan. 56 was also the start of 'the Big M' motif. Love the 56 Phaetons with that slinky roof line, probably even more than the 2dr hardtop. Merc issued a seperate brochure just for these - I have a copy. This was start of Mercury's move upmarket (but still a hot car). Dad was something of a greaser in the late 50's and these were very desirable. But then came 57, and 58, and things just kept getting worse despite an actually very good 59 redesign -of the bigger is better idiom. In 1961 came retrenchment and meaningless distinction from Ford, until finally in 64 the Park Lane came back and Merc embarked on its last period of real distinction from Ford, 67-74 (and some of its best cruisers).
Jay... thank you for making this Olde Pharte's heart dance tonight! I'm a Mercury guy thru n thru (have owned several) and loved this segment! Mercury's have always, to me, been baby Lincoln's (except for the 1960's where I think Ford wanted to make sure their Continental was a definite one off, and Mercury became Ford's big brother). For the 50's, my favs are '52, '53, '55 and '58. My dream would be a '58 2 door wagon! Sadly, anything from '59 to '68 they can keep. Ford made some, IMHO, questionable styling choices for those years with the big Merc's. My daily driver is an '09 Grand Marquis LS Ultimate with the Park Lane package (quite the mouthful, eh?). I love him more every day (his name is Luigi) and I enjoy every drive I make in him. Thank you again, for your great episodes! I look forward to them every time!
In 1948 a song called "Mercury Blues" came out and has been covered by many people, including Alan Jackson. The song is also known as Crazy About a Mercury and even Mercury boogie. If I had some money, I know what I would do; I'd go downtown and buy a Mercury or two...
I didn’t use that song because I figured it would’ve been too easy, there’s still time though I shot three cars yesterday all of them were Mercury’s and it took me until now to realize that lol
11:09 "Nice armrest in the center; a bit on the slender side ..." I can see my self as a kid, arguing with my brother to KEEP ON YOUR HALF OF THE ARMREST ;-) Somehow, we were really keen on "property lines."
Love the '55 and '56 Mercurys, especially the side trim on the '56, which allowed for a really stunning two-tone. Looks like a lightning bolt, don't you think? That creamy pumpkin pie color is just beautiful and quintessentially '50s, and I am not normally a fan of orange. That sculpted chrome is so well done and enhances the car's appearance without being overbearing or ostentatious, even though there is a lot of it. Incredibly well done interior, and the color matching with the exterior was spot on, which is nonexistent on any modern car that isn't the price of a house. The bean counters would stroke out if that was proposed today. Nice job on this one, Jay. What a treat!
When I saw it sitting at the car show I was like who owns the Montclair.. i’ve been looking for this car all summer I know where he stores it and he was telling me the owner was telling me where he keeps it same car. It was a bit disappointed I didn’t see the Kaiser there and I haven’t seen that car drive around here in a couple years some doctor owned it but I really want to cover it this year as well as Nash Healy.. hopefully
Absolutley agree, the Mercs from this era are stunning. Thanks for bringing us along ~ Chuck. P.S. My thoughts as I watched, “Good looking car, nice details, backseat looks comfy, HOLY COW A 65 THUNDERBIRD!”. Sorry, I had one, and they always make my neck snap when I see one.
I haven’t been in the Thunderbird that comes after it they made a four-door variant I’ve been looking for one.. I think we covered a 64 Thunderbird but I wouldn’t be opposed to driving the 65 Thunderbird I always wondered what those were like Glad you dig this episode shock I’m going to Lancaster tomorrow the plan is the shoot 25 cars hopefully everything will go great and I’ll be able to keep the Contant unlike last time it’s been an absolute nightmare of a month to have shot all of that stuff and then it just disappear it’s a lot of work on the car shows and looking for specific cars. Most of the car shows around here can we try 5 Chevy shows or Corvette shows a lot of people have the same cars here there are various events that have more outside the box stuff that we’re into but those shows don’t happen until cursor to the end of the year like Hershey I can’t wait to go to Hershey I don’t know if I’m gonna go for one day two days or the whole entire time I’m thinking the whole entire time would probably be the best I wanna cover as many off the beaten path car as possible.
During the transition from 6 to 12 volts many crazy things happened. A friend of mine, an auto mechanic related to me a couple of crazy stories: 1) A friend of his decided to convert his six volt car to a 12 volt one by simply installing a 12 volt generator. Without changing any of the other electrics he quickly overheated and burned out the car's wiring, requiring a complete new wiring harness to be installed. The second story he told me is even crazier. 2) Another guy converting his car to 12 volts decided that his new headlights weren't bright enough so he retrofitted landing lights from an aircraft to his car. After blinding many motorists on the highway, he was pulled over by the state patrol and spent a night in the slammer for his stunt. The truth of the matter, 6 volts in an older vintage automobile isn't really a bad thing. For older cars there are 6 volt alternators that can be retrofitted in place of problematic generators. My 56 Beetle had 6 volt electrics, which in 85 caused me a problem in trying to find a replacement 6 volt battery. But at Western Auto (I wonder if any of those stores are left?) I found a large 6 volt tractor battery that just fit under the rear seat of the car, and it was wonderful for the car started right up even if it sat around for a couple of months. 6 volt electrics require much heavier gauge wire to carry the same amount of amps needed for accessories as newer cars, and maybe this was one of the reasons Detroit switched to 12 volt to decrease the bulk and size of wiring harnesses. However, until 1967 VW stubbornly stuck with 6 volt systems for they were reliable and cheaper.
Awesome story thank you so much for sharing those memories Everything is ass backwards now, I watch a lot of police shows and crime investigation, I can’t believe the way some people act to cops, I was always told cop is Simon... like that game Simon says (not Simon Cowell lol) if the cop says get out of your car get out sorry that was on my mind lol That’s crazy he spent the night in jail for bright lights. But that was a Dick move to use landing lights. (Would be cool to have those as high beams (you know so you can get the guy back that cut you off at night lol The only thing that I have against six Ford cars is sometimes it’s really hard to start them they start up really slow. I was told to come back that a lot of times the old timers would get 8 V batteries and run them on a 6 V system it’s not too overpowering and it gives the car is a little bit more of a kit to get started.
@@What.its.like. Yes Jay…I’ve seen those videos where people are like “F-you” and “go F-yourself” (and even worse!) to Police Officers (LEO)… truly mind-boggling…. I was always told by parents, grandparents, my older brother… to say “Yes sir, No sir”, or “Yes Ma’am, No ma’am”, showing respect for their position and authority. I’ve hardly ever been stopped except maybe for slight speeding, but respectfully was always the way I was with the LEO, and it served me well. I rarely ever got tickets or points. Much of that has gone out the window these days with especially younger citizens… who don’t respect (hardly) anyone, and even ANTAGONIZE rather than show any remorse or even pay attention to what the LEO says. Everyone is so litigious these days. They all want to automatically *sue*. A lot more people should end up in the slammer than do… and many are out in a few hours. I don’t have any LEO’s in my family… but Police Officers don’t get the respect they deserve… it’s NOT an easy job… and I think they should be compensated WELL for putting their lives on the line every day they are on duty.
I owned a 1966 VW, and yes, it was 6 volt. It probably needed to be rewired because I had a very hard time with the electrical system. The horn more often than not didn't work and the headlights were too dim.
@@hcombs0104 My headlights were also too dim too. At the time (1985) I considered replacing my headlights with European-style ones that had a replaceable 6 volt halogen bulb (but I didn't for that was over 200 dollars for each lamp in 1985 dollars and LED headlights hadn't been invented). If you want to keep the 6 volt electrics you may want to investigate availability of 6 volt alternators for your vehicle before jumping over to 12 volt. Being out of the Volkswagen scene for many years, I don't know where the 6 volt alternators can be obtained but Jay Leno frequently refers to them in his videos as he hates non-authentic 12 volt upgrades. If you decide to go 12 volt, every bulb in the car including the warning and high beam indicators in the speedometer will have to be replaced; and the radio will either have to be replaced or a step down voltage converter will have to be installed. Don't forget the turn signal relay will need to be changed too. The horn on the VW is weird for the wire to the horn is always hot and the horn button closes the circuit completing the ground for the horn - which is the complete opposite of American cars . I made the mistake of trying to install an American horn that is designed to be grounded by the chassis... the horn wouldn't shut off! When I had my VW I did a semi rewiring of the back of the dash for I wanted to move the radio, wipers and headlights off the battery... so I would not accidently leave the lights or radio on. Dim headlights can be a symptom of another problem, worn out bulbs, poor grounds (sometimes resolved by cleaning the terminals of the bulbs, and a weakly charged battery. Generators 6 or 12 volt are also notorious for varying voltages unlike alternators and the headlights might be brighter when the engine is at a higher RPM.
I had for many years a Springdale Green over Alaska White 1955 Mercury Monterey 2 door hardtop . It was a good car. I paid only $1,000.00 for it and sold it for $2,250.00 but I also put a few thousand dollars worth of work into it the result of having added on about 40 thousand miles to that car. I myself have always like the '55 Mercury a lot better than the '56 model year, but the '54 I consider to be the best design of the similarly styled '52-'56 Mercuries. Packard and Mercury did the same exact thing on their '52 -'54 designs and then on their '55 and ''56 designs, that is they rebadged them in '55 giving those cars the impression that they were totally new in design when all they really had was a well engineered face lift. So the steel body was in fact exactly the same. Had Packard by itself survived up until '57 their new cars would have looked quite a bit like the new Mercuries as both were very sleek looking in design. One problem that my car had however was that it had a weak battery which began to falter on me after a while and so I found it harder and harder to start it without a jump. I sure wish that Mercury had introduced that 12 volt battery a year earlier! If I ever happen to purchase another 1955 Mercury it will undoubtedly be a Montclair and one that is Gulfstream blue over Alaska White. I just love the way that car looks. See ya.
Unbelievable what a Beautiful car this was when it came out. The 1955 was the original design. My folks' first new car was a 1955 Mercury Montclair. I was 10 years old. In 1956, they just tweaked it. It's more attractive than almost any other car on the road. Then in 1957, they completely redesigned it. It was popular but had NO RESEMBLANCE to its predecessor .
I’ve been looking for a turn pike cruiser.. =) definitely looking for more Mercury’s I love the style of these but given the choice between this and a Plymouth fury that’s a tough one
@@What.its.like. I loved the Turnpike Cruiser. It was so futuristic ! No other car looked like it. When Chrysler came out with fins on their 1957 lineup I was in love. Especially the 1957 Dodge. I loved the fins on that car the best, but as we all know, in about 2 years, the fins were already on their way out. I even loved the fins on a 1960 Dodge. Such a beautiful line. Cadillac had the showiest fins along with Imperial, but that wouldn't last long either. As a kid of 12 in 1957, I was a car fanatic. I have a whole collection of Brochures from 1955 on of pretty much all the major cars of the day. My best friend and I would go around to every dealer when the new cars came out and picked up brochures from everyone. They just don't make cars like that anymore. At least in the DESIGN DEPARTMENT. Today, all the cars look pretty much the same. Even the Mercedes now looks like a Lexus, or a Toyota. Too vanilla !
I agree there’s just something about the functionality of a classic car when everything works the way it supposed to work I drove my 52 Chevy yesterday the furthest that I’ve ever driven it since putting radial tires on it.. i’m not sold if I like it there’s days where I like it and there’s days that I hate it I’m going to do a couple more things to it I found out that you’re supposed to get it aligned after changing the tires these are all things that I never knew.. i’m going to see if that fixes the fit Aquinas it doesn’t act up all the time if I hit a bump going I don’t know 65 miles an hour it gets really fidgety more so than it did on the bias tires. The crazy thing is when it runs great it runs great when it runs terrible it’s terrible it’s literally like being in the hell. I gotta get it sorted I think after I get it aligned and put shocks on it it probably be a better ride hopefully it’s just weird I might do a drive a video of that one day
@@What.its.like. It sounds like you've really spent a lot of time on your Chevy. My Dad had a 1950 chevy when I was 5. He kept it until 1955 when he bought the Mercury.
=) I use my 52 Chevy truck it’s my truck, when I have to use it for truck things it is the truck that I use a whole brush in it I build furniture it’s my delivery vehicle it’s a prop at Wedding’s lol.. I would really like to get a 37 airflow or 37 Packard to be my prop car lol
My grandfather had a 55 or 56 Mercury Monarch a Canadian model. I have an old black and white photo of him standing beside it in suit and tie with his Homburg hat on. An English immigrant he always dressed formally on Sundays church or not.
You could tell the cars apart and sit on them without damage I miss the colors everything is bland now I was a kid in the 90s teen in 20s I remember going to big lots in the 90s with grandpa to get floor mats and they had dark green dark blue maroon tan brown black they were even had white crazy those days are gone
@@What.its.like. I understand completely buddy I miss the good old days nowadays cars all look the same and they look like insects or something lol. And they are all plastic and just cheaply built and they have no design I can't think of a single one I like. I love older cars they had so many different styles and designs I've always loved Cadillacs the old ones my great uncle passed away in ninety six and left me his 78 Cadillac coupe Deville its a seamist green with a dark green vinyl top I love the hood looking over it and the way it rolls over and the fenders and looking out with the hood ornament..it's only got 22 thousand miles on it I never drive it I need to though I start it up and pull it out of the garage occasionally so it can air out I need to add it to my insurance plan and just drive it when the weather is nice anyway to get some benefit from it. I'm not married and I don't have any kids to leave anything too so I need to get some use out of it..when I was very young I collected hood ornaments and emblems from cars. I use to go around junk yards and get every emblem I could pry off. I have a big collection from way back in the 80s when I use to collect them. You are a alright man my friend.
Thank you so much for sharing those memories =) What’s the best hood ornament in your collection, and favorite (best and favorite can be separated lol) There are a few new card designs/cards that I would love to review for the channel like a brand new Corvette I really like those I really like Shelby GT350 mustang I was thinking about maybe doing one new car a month or something like that if I get the opportunity to drive a Corvette or a Shelby GT 350 those are two new cars that I really want to do I’m not gonna miss that opportunity to do those but in my review I’m going to say that these are appliances which they are and explain what the differences between an appliance and a machine is..haha I don’t know if I could come in and say today on what it’s like an appliance.. that would probably be a turn off for a bunch of people.. even tho it’s true
@@What.its.like. my favorite hood ornament or ornaments plural would have to be the Cadillac with the wheat sign around them 🤔 I've got several and lincolns and ford ltds and mercury and even ol Chryslers and plymouths..I betcha if I put them all together I'd have a five gallon bucket of all kinds of emblems..I love old cars one of my favorite big cars is lincoln town car I've had 4 in my time I still have a 91 town car it's probably got close to 3 hundred thousand miles on it and still runs good but I don't drive it anymore it needs several things fixed I drive a 02 dodge ram 1500 truck it's my ol work truck it turned over 4 hundred thousand miles last month and still going strong 💪. It has the 4.7 liter motor I always used mobil 1 fully synthetic oil in it all it's life I actually use the one that can go twenty thousand miles before oil change but I never do that though I change it around 3 or 4 thousand miles never anything major happen to it I put water pump and alternator and starter on it is the only bolts ever turned..
iVe owned two town cars A 88 and 89 both signature series.. to this day I’ve owned about 33 cars somewhere around that area 33 35 cars that was the best riding car by far that I’ve ever owned.. I was thinking about looking for one and doing a nostalgia episode and talking about all the cars that I’ve owned and which ones were good and which ones were total turds The first Lincoln I owned when I was 18 to about 21-22 and put over 120,000 miles on the car with no huge issues the biggest issue that I had to fix on that car was the power steering gearbox went. But that was it I put tires brakes on that car I think maybe one brake line went a gas line at one time but nothing major. I want to get one and I drive it like slide it sideways and stuff I would never do that to somebody else’s car lol
Yeah I don’t know what happened to that it was a really cool segment it would’ve been 1956 Oldsmobile super 88 two-door hardtop at $2881 1956 mercury Montclair $2760 2 Dr HT 1956 De Soto Firedome $2,734 And then the second round was going to be 1956 Lincoln premier $4601 1956 mercury Montclair $2760 1956 Packard clipper $2916 I did all the price breakdowns and everything and for whatever reason it never ended up
Another great video! I love the looks of this hardtop coupe. As you say… a lot of similarities to the Lincoln. Strange/a little slow in Ford’s technology advancements… that Lincoln/Mercury/Ford didn’t come out with 12-volt electrical system … a full 3 years after GM. This must have also been why they didn’t offer factory air conditioning as GM’s Oldsmobile, Buick, and Cadillac (in ‘53), Chrysler (in ‘53,) and even Pontiac had an in-dash system in ‘54. Ford/Mercury Lincoln did offer factory air in ‘55 with a 6-volt system, but changed the next year in ‘56 to 12-volts. Never heard anyone say how that ‘55 factory air system worked on Merc or Lincoln… as they were extremely rare. If you ever happen to see one.. sure hope you’ll do a video on how well the factory air cond system worked in them. Thanks Jay… you do a great, thorough job on your videos and always make them interesting!
Yeah I’m not sure when Lincoln went to 12 V if they want 12 V and 55 Ford didn’t go 12 V until 57. I should’ve went through more options it was kind of hodgepodge together in the center there with the specs because I kept finding conflicting information. Like once or said that there was only one 312 available another source said that there was three versions of the 312 another source said there was only two versions of the 312 another source said the 312 had a variable horsepower rating depending on transmission used. Tons of conflict information. If you haven’t noticed I’m a huge fan of the 30s and 50s I was a huge fan of the 50s when I was a kid the 30s or kind of a new era for me I really love the 30s I don’t have a clue which era I like better the 30s or the 50s lots of automotive innovation came from both of those time periods not saying that innovation hasn’t happened anywhere else. The stuff that came out of the 50s and 30s was absolutely incredible I’m in the 30s they gave you free wheeling, synchromesh transmission straight eights that sound absolutely incredible adventure this say that a good sounding straight eight would rival the best sounding V-8 they sound like nothing else. One of the best sounding straight eights that I’ve ever heard was in the 1935 Hupmoblie, it sounded like a miniature airplane starting that if I could drive a car that sounds like an airplane every day that would be my dream, and the 50s looked like spaceships =) I can’t wait to do some more 50s cars
@@What.its.like. Pretty certain it was across the board with Ford Motor company going from 6-volt to 12-volt in late 1955 for their 1956 models. I believe this only because my dad used to tell the story that he had a new ‘55 Ford Fairlane that was still a 6-volt system…. but dad’s sister… (my aunt, and her husband) bought a ‘56 Ford in January ‘56 and it was a 12-volt. I remember this because apparently (he told) that it was a very cold winter in the upper Midwest that year… and our ‘55 had a dead battery and had to be jump-started from her ‘56 Ford…and Dad said no one yet knew at that time… whether it could safely be done. Obviously… that was a loooong time ago!
I like the '55 model. Sure seen the two models in movies and TV series of that era. As before mentioned by, at least me, it was the torque that got these big cars going. If not mistaken...this make and model (1954 or '55) was used in the famous "Rebel without a Cause" starring James Dean and Natalie Wood. Cool looking car with "Hollywood History". "Mystery Tune"... seems like an early 60's or late '50's number. Don't know...need more record play.
hi jay nice merc i remember my moms girl freind had a black and yellow 56 it was big when i was in the back seat and it was burning oil those where the days of big cars.
5:40 Ah yes, the old 6-volt systems. And some were positive ground, some negative ground. Now, I think everybody is 12v Negative ground. Those old 6-volt headlights weren't very bright, and those 6-volt starters could spin pretty slowly. I remember my dad telling me (dad has passed, so I can't verify), but he told me something like you could buy a starter wound for 8 volts(?) and it'd spin faster than a 6-volt starter-making for easier starts in cold weather.
My mother owned a 1966 Mercury the back window rolled down. I thought was very cool didn't see to many car's that the back window rolled down by a push of a button. It was white with a black vinel top that car felt like you were floating on air when riding in it.
There were a pile of these in Eastern Montana. A nice two door hardtop in Wolf Point. Farther East this old farmer had three 55-56 two door post cars, or coupes maybe? The coupes all had Y block with 4v carbs.
I was VERY surprised that there was no dome light, or lights on either side along the chrome trim above the windows? Fords had one…so what gives? I did just see another video of these cars that showed that emblem between the upper backseat does indeed light up when you open the doors. Nice touch, but not very illuminating to the overall interior.
Couldn't find it! Nonetheless, for WYR if you'd included it, the Clipper would be my choice, or a TATRA 603. Little styling detail, Mercury wagons were basically identical body shells, even to the piunt that I have seen a '56 Thunderbird fitted with '56 Mercury taillights, a simple bolt-in swap of the assembly.
@@What.its.like. Have you seen the promotional film _Happy Journeys_ on RUclips? They put the 603 through its paces, including a rollover down a slope and drive it away. Thanks for the response., and keep up the fine research and content.
@ I have not seen that. I will have to look that up. One of my favorite food in cars through their paces was when Tom McCahill drew a 1958 Edsel I thought that was awesome but I can't find that footage. They used to be the whole thing on RUclips. I haven't seen it in years.
@@What.its.like. The '57 Mercury handled "like a rubber-soled gazelle" and the '60 Valiant "climbs like a homesick angel" and the disc-brake Studebaker Lark, (deliberately tested with the left-side tires on pavement and the right-side wheels on the gravel shoulder) stopped "with the decorum of a church deacon." Few critics could call a car a _bucket_ and make you want to buy it, but "Uncle Tom" McCahill could.
In 1966, the dad of a high school classmate gave him a '56 Monterey as a birthday present. V8, three on the tree, glasspacks and it was hot! The idiot hit a kid passing a parked school buss and that was the end of his Merc! Somebody got a really nice car!
This car has a 1955 6 volt radio with black plastic buttons. !956 radios were 12 volt with chrome buttons. This car is also missing the exhaust extensions, standard on Montclairs. They were beautiful cars.
I agree with you on the looks of that 56 Montclair. Mercury fielded a lot of ugly ducklings over the years but the 56 cars were certainly a noteworthy exception.
The reason why the 1956 Mecury looks so similar to the Lincoln from the same model year is because Mercury and Lincoln are divisions of Ford. Mercury has been closed by Ford since 2011. I wish that Ford could bring back Mercury.
First thing I would with that car if I owned it would be to get rid of the fuzzy dice hanging on the mirror.I actually like the 54 Mercury's better. They have more room in them.
The other would you rather would’ve been 1956 Lincoln 1956 mercury Montclair or 1956 Packard clipper I had the price breakdowns and everything I don’t know why it got taken out and I didn’t catch it The other crazy thing the Lincoln was almost twice the price you could almost buy both of those other cars for the price of the Lincoln
@@What.its.like. Bummer that the WYR didn't make the cut. Sounds like it woulda been a good one, probably getting some interesting responses. Weird that the temp control was on one side of the steering wheel and the blower control was on the other (or did I misunderstand?) Anyway, great vid as always Dude! Always enjoy them!
Going from 6-volt to 12 volt electrical system was a wise move. If you increase the voltage on and electrical system, you reduce its amperage. The only question I have is that many Ford products referenced the + side of the battery to ground, or chassis of the car. Its been so long that I heard that. I dont see the benefit of this methodology. I am a retired electrician and I have always scratched my head on Ford engineers reasoning of grounding the + side of the battery.
Yeah I’m not entirely sure Ford was really well known for doing that and they flipped.. Eventually does anybody know the answer to that wind Ford went negative ground
@@What.its.like. I cannot figure out their reasoning. In electronics, negative electrons are attracted to positive electrons. Maybe it was the mass of the positively charged chassis of the car which made the charging of the battery more efficient? I really dont know.
Looks to me like it was designed by a team of people that were trying to out do each other on extravagance, and they didn't care if it came together as one look or not. Some of it really nice, some of it really clunky. IMHO.
I haven’t done a two door De Soto yet 1955/56 is my favorite Desoto style as well it would be a really hard 156 would’ve been a really hard year to buy a car Plymouth fury is another one Lincoln premiere is another one Packard executive is another one
Yeah buddy it was going to be so many different songs but then I was like I love that part in the song You’re the prettiest loveliest girl I’ve ever seen.. That was the part of the song that was used I just cut and clipped it closer together
That’s what’s great about the old Classic Cars if you look really close at them they’re all flawed especially mustangs early mustangs the panel gaps in those.. there’s a lot of new cars that have panel gaps as well that cost a lot of money like the grand Wagoneer has a tons of panel gap issues more so than Tesla tesla gets a bad rap for panel gap spacing but there’s cars on the market that have far worse panel gaps than Tesla.
Sixteen candles The Crests?
yes he will pin you to the top soon
that was my suggestion too
Yeah buddy congratulations you got it =)
Johnny Mastrangelo on lead.
One of the first songs played in "American Graffiti"
@@jasonrusso9808 Johnny Maestro (RIP) had more talent his pinky finger than any Pop singer of today.
I own a 1956 Mercury Montclair 2-door hardtop. My father hauled new Mercurys from the St. Louis plant from 1948 (when the facility was built) until his death in 1974. My Merc. was built at the St. Louis plant which means my car, when new, was delivered to it's first dealer by my dad....or a co-worker. I think that is very cool!
Awesome
Thank you so much for sharing those memories
My Father and Mother owned a 56 Montclair identical to that one,same color. And I can vouch for the fact that it would run. He always ran glass packs on it and I can still remember the sound that y-block made at full song. He bought it new in Athens Ohio in April of 1956.
Thank you so much for sharing your dad’s mercury what great memories I would love to hear 312 with glass packs
Great to hear!
I love this era of autos, and this is one of the best designs of the time imo. The interior, dash and steering wheel, are fantastic! The only other one I'd pick over this one would be the Lincoln Premier.
My favorite mercury =)
It came out when I was 11 and its been one of my favorites since the 56 Lincoln was also right up there
56 Lincoln is a nice car being in both of them I think I like the driving position of the.. that’s hard because the seats in this car felt better than the seats in the Lincoln (seats in the Lincoln were redone but not same fabric) I like both of them but back in the day you could almost buy a Packard clipper and a mercury Montclair for the price of a Lincoln premiere
I’m so happy I came across this video. I absolutely love how you broke down everything with the 56 Mercury Montclair. My father recently found and restored the actual car that he drove in the late 50s. His is yellow over black and has so much chrome. Thank you!
You bet glad you dig this video.. =)
My dad had one of those, it was the favorite car he ever owned and always talked fondly of it. He blew the engine on it racing to the hospital with my mom when she was in labor with me and my twin sister. I don't think he ever forgave me for it.
Awesome story thank you so much for sharing those memories =)
Love the historical context intro’s...very innovative Jay!...this 1956 Mercury Montclair is awesome…wow-oh-wow…just look at the fender bulge and the two-tone paint art!!...there must be some interesting history around how these two-tone paint jobs evolved....gone forever!!!
I’m going to start doing the intro is more like that I think
Glad you dig this episode =)
Love this car and the fabulous colors and styles of that time when I was a wee lad.
🎶 if I had money I tell you what I'd do. I'd go downtown and buy a Mercury or two. Cause I'm crazy bout a Mercury 🎶
This year is my favorite for Mercury. Love the side treatment of these with that swopping trim. Just makes the car look fast even when it's sitting still.
The Y block was a good engine but not without its own set of quirks. You had to do those regular oil changes. If you didn't sludge would build up in the oil returns. Sometimes that would build up even if you did do regular oil changes. But overall it was a nice modern update over the old flathead.
That Merc is a really sweet ride and in a great color scheme as well.
=) that song would be a give away lol thank you so much for sharing insight with 312 y block
the 55 and 56 Montclair has always been my favorite, I had a 55 Montclair for many years, it was my high school car forty years ago, The 55 did have exhaust ports same place as 56 from factory, and in real life driving these cars were very quick and great road cars, real rollers
This is a car that I really want to drive one day I think this is my top pick for best Mercury ever followed very closely by the 54..
@@What.its.like. I have had two 54s, one recently, was a red with white top Monterey, nice car, and back forty years ago, had a 54 hot rod Monterey lipstick red, but the 55 Montclair is tops with me, my dad bought one back in the day, was working on drilling rigs in western Kansas and lived here in northeast Texas, would drive back and forth as had time, his was my favorite color on them turq green bottom with white on top
Curious did they offer the mileage maker six Overhead valve in-line six as an option on the 54 mercury
@@What.its.like. no Mercury was always V8
@@What.its.like. when Edsel Ford had the idea for Mercury it was to be a factory hot rod of sorts, bigger and stronger than the ford but not as heavy as the Lincoln and so it was designed with this in mind for many years, but later on Ford execs kept screwing around with it until Mercury lost sight of its own identity. Reading the stats dont tell the story, you must get behind the wheel of one and move out onto the hiway to really feel what I mean.
Love the drive-in speaker on the front floor. I drove off with at least two by accident.
Agree with your judgement on the mid 50's Merc's. I like them too. Thanks for the great videos, you obviously put a lot into the research/photography/editing.
Thank you so much for watching theses glad you dig the camera work. Going to work on editing more and trying to get to the next level
My grandfather had a 56 Montclair - white over red. Absolutely pristine condition. This was in the '80s so it was an antique and I remember he would never drive it because he was afraid if anything broke he'd never find the parts to repair it.
Beautiful 56, great vid!!! 👍👍
Hi Jay!; Gotta say that 1956 Merc, is sweet! There was just something really good about most the styling of most 1956 cars! That year probably had some of the most good looking cars of the decade!
I love 55/56 merc =)
These Mercs are stunning.
What a beautifu car in the best color combination for '56, IMHO. That license plate frame the back is for Paps Lincoln Mercury whch was in Sunnyvale, CA, which is a suburb of San Jose. They sold a lot of cars while in existence.
"A mink coat at a muskrat price!" Yes, that was an advertising slogan. 56 was also the start of 'the Big M' motif. Love the 56 Phaetons with that slinky roof line, probably even more than the 2dr hardtop. Merc issued a seperate brochure just for these - I have a copy. This was start of Mercury's move upmarket (but still a hot car). Dad was something of a greaser in the late 50's and these were very desirable. But then came 57, and 58, and things just kept getting worse despite an actually very good 59 redesign -of the bigger is better idiom. In 1961 came retrenchment and meaningless distinction from Ford, until finally in 64 the Park Lane came back and Merc embarked on its last period of real distinction from Ford, 67-74 (and some of its best cruisers).
My favorite car as a kid. I'm 66 now
Jay... thank you for making this Olde Pharte's heart dance tonight! I'm a Mercury guy thru n thru (have owned several) and loved this segment! Mercury's have always, to me, been baby Lincoln's (except for the 1960's where I think Ford wanted to make sure their Continental was a definite one off, and Mercury became Ford's big brother). For the 50's, my favs are '52, '53, '55 and '58. My dream would be a '58 2 door wagon! Sadly, anything from '59 to '68 they can keep. Ford made some, IMHO, questionable styling choices for those years with the big Merc's. My daily driver is an '09 Grand Marquis LS Ultimate with the Park Lane package (quite the mouthful, eh?). I love him more every day (his name is Luigi) and I enjoy every drive I make in him. Thank you again, for your great episodes! I look forward to them every time!
My first car was a mercury love fords this is my favorite mercury design followed by the 54. Thank you so much for sharing those memories
I took my drivers test in a Car like this. It was the coolest car i never owned.
How sweet =)
What happened to yours
In 1948 a song called "Mercury Blues" came out and has been covered by many people, including Alan Jackson. The song is also known as Crazy About a Mercury and even Mercury boogie. If I had some money, I know what I would do; I'd go downtown and buy a Mercury or two...
I didn’t use that song because I figured it would’ve been too easy, there’s still time though I shot three cars yesterday all of them were Mercury’s and it took me until now to realize that lol
11:09 "Nice armrest in the center; a bit on the slender side ..."
I can see my self as a kid, arguing with my brother to KEEP ON YOUR HALF OF THE ARMREST ;-)
Somehow, we were really keen on "property lines."
This car is cool AF. It's a big car without being bulky. Personally, i preder this era a Mercury cars as opposed to the late 50s early 60s versions.
Totally agree I really dig mid 50s mercury
Love the '55 and '56 Mercurys, especially the side trim on the '56, which allowed for a really stunning two-tone. Looks like a lightning bolt, don't you think? That creamy pumpkin pie color is just beautiful and quintessentially '50s, and I am not normally a fan of orange. That sculpted chrome is so well done and enhances the car's appearance without being overbearing or ostentatious, even though there is a lot of it. Incredibly well done interior, and the color matching with the exterior was spot on, which is nonexistent on any modern car that isn't the price of a house. The bean counters would stroke out if that was proposed today. Nice job on this one, Jay. What a treat!
When I saw it sitting at the car show I was like who owns the Montclair.. i’ve been looking for this car all summer I know where he stores it and he was telling me the owner was telling me where he keeps it same car. It was a bit disappointed I didn’t see the Kaiser there and I haven’t seen that car drive around here in a couple years some doctor owned it but I really want to cover it this year as well as Nash Healy.. hopefully
Another nice car, I really like the upholstery! I would agree the mid-fifties Mercs were the easiest on the eye.
=)
Great design, color scheme, interior and love the three tier dash. As always, good job Jay.
Absolutley agree, the Mercs from this era are stunning. Thanks for bringing us along ~ Chuck. P.S. My thoughts as I watched, “Good looking car, nice details, backseat looks comfy, HOLY COW A 65 THUNDERBIRD!”. Sorry, I had one, and they always make my neck snap when I see one.
I haven’t been in the Thunderbird that comes after it they made a four-door variant I’ve been looking for one.. I think we covered a 64 Thunderbird but I wouldn’t be opposed to driving the 65 Thunderbird I always wondered what those were like
Glad you dig this episode shock I’m going to Lancaster tomorrow the plan is the shoot 25 cars hopefully everything will go great and I’ll be able to keep the Contant unlike last time it’s been an absolute nightmare of a month to have shot all of that stuff and then it just disappear it’s a lot of work on the car shows and looking for specific cars.
Most of the car shows around here can we try 5 Chevy shows or Corvette shows a lot of people have the same cars here there are various events that have more outside the box stuff that we’re into but those shows don’t happen until cursor to the end of the year like Hershey I can’t wait to go to Hershey I don’t know if I’m gonna go for one day two days or the whole entire time I’m thinking the whole entire time would probably be the best I wanna cover as many off the beaten path car as possible.
@@What.its.like. All the hard work you put into this is why I thank you each and every time. Greatly appreciated!
=)
During the transition from 6 to 12 volts many crazy things happened. A friend of mine, an auto mechanic related to me a couple of crazy stories: 1) A friend of his decided to convert his six volt car to a 12 volt one by simply installing a 12 volt generator. Without changing any of the other electrics he quickly overheated and burned out the car's wiring, requiring a complete new wiring harness to be installed. The second story he told me is even crazier. 2) Another guy converting his car to 12 volts decided that his new headlights weren't bright enough so he retrofitted landing lights from an aircraft to his car. After blinding many motorists on the highway, he was pulled over by the state patrol and spent a night in the slammer for his stunt.
The truth of the matter, 6 volts in an older vintage automobile isn't really a bad thing. For older cars there are 6 volt alternators that can be retrofitted in place of problematic generators. My 56 Beetle had 6 volt electrics, which in 85 caused me a problem in trying to find a replacement 6 volt battery. But at Western Auto (I wonder if any of those stores are left?) I found a large 6 volt tractor battery that just fit under the rear seat of the car, and it was wonderful for the car started right up even if it sat around for a couple of months. 6 volt electrics require much heavier gauge wire to carry the same amount of amps needed for accessories as newer cars, and maybe this was one of the reasons Detroit switched to 12 volt to decrease the bulk and size of wiring harnesses. However, until 1967 VW stubbornly stuck with 6 volt systems for they were reliable and cheaper.
Awesome story thank you so much for sharing those memories
Everything is ass backwards now, I watch a lot of police shows and crime investigation, I can’t believe the way some people act to cops, I was always told cop is Simon... like that game Simon says (not Simon Cowell lol) if the cop says get out of your car get out sorry that was on my mind lol
That’s crazy he spent the night in jail for bright lights. But that was a Dick move to use landing lights. (Would be cool to have those as high beams (you know so you can get the guy back that cut you off at night lol
The only thing that I have against six Ford cars is sometimes it’s really hard to start them they start up really slow. I was told to come back that a lot of times the old timers would get 8 V batteries and run them on a 6 V system it’s not too overpowering and it gives the car is a little bit more of a kit to get started.
@@What.its.like. Yes Jay…I’ve seen those videos where people are like “F-you” and “go F-yourself” (and even worse!) to Police Officers (LEO)… truly mind-boggling…. I was always told by parents, grandparents, my older brother… to say “Yes sir, No sir”, or “Yes Ma’am, No ma’am”, showing respect for their position and authority. I’ve hardly ever been stopped except maybe for slight speeding, but respectfully was always the way I was with the LEO, and it served me well. I rarely ever got tickets or points.
Much of that has gone out the window these days with especially younger citizens… who don’t respect (hardly) anyone, and even ANTAGONIZE rather than show any remorse or even pay attention to what the LEO says. Everyone is so litigious these days. They all want to automatically *sue*. A lot more people should end up in the slammer than do… and many are out in a few hours. I don’t have any LEO’s in my family… but Police Officers don’t get the respect they deserve… it’s NOT an easy job… and I think they should be compensated WELL for putting their lives on the line every day they are on duty.
I owned a 1966 VW, and yes, it was 6 volt. It probably needed to be rewired because I had a very hard time with the electrical system. The horn more often than not didn't work and the headlights were too dim.
@@hcombs0104 My headlights were also too dim too. At the time (1985) I considered replacing my headlights with European-style ones that had a replaceable 6 volt halogen bulb (but I didn't for that was over 200 dollars for each lamp in 1985 dollars and LED headlights hadn't been invented). If you want to keep the 6 volt electrics you may want to investigate availability of 6 volt alternators for your vehicle before jumping over to 12 volt. Being out of the Volkswagen scene for many years, I don't know where the 6 volt alternators can be obtained but Jay Leno frequently refers to them in his videos as he hates non-authentic 12 volt upgrades. If you decide to go 12 volt, every bulb in the car including the warning and high beam indicators in the speedometer will have to be replaced; and the radio will either have to be replaced or a step down voltage converter will have to be installed. Don't forget the turn signal relay will need to be changed too. The horn on the VW is weird for the wire to the horn is always hot and the horn button closes the circuit completing the ground for the horn - which is the complete opposite of American cars . I made the mistake of trying to install an American horn that is designed to be grounded by the chassis... the horn wouldn't shut off! When I had my VW I did a semi rewiring of the back of the dash for I wanted to move the radio, wipers and headlights off the battery... so I would not accidently leave the lights or radio on. Dim headlights can be a symptom of another problem, worn out bulbs, poor grounds (sometimes resolved by cleaning the terminals of the bulbs, and a weakly charged battery. Generators 6 or 12 volt are also notorious for varying voltages unlike alternators and the headlights might be brighter when the engine is at a higher RPM.
Excellent video! Love the '56 Mercs.
Glad you dig this episode =)
I used to own a '56 Medalist 2dr I loved that car what a cruiser!
Sweet =) what did you like the most about it what did you like you like the least
Add just a few inches of rake to a '56 and WOW, a mean looking car
Looks like it's going 100 mph sitting still 👍👍
I know right =) love this design
I love it Justin. its just beautiful all around.
I concur =)
Thanks, love your enthusiasm.
Glad you dig this channel =)
It's a roundel for the coat of arms, crest.
I had for many years a Springdale Green over Alaska White 1955 Mercury Monterey 2 door hardtop . It was a good car. I paid only $1,000.00 for it and sold it for $2,250.00 but I also put a few thousand dollars worth of work into it the result of having added on about 40 thousand miles to that car. I myself have always like the '55 Mercury a lot better than the '56 model year, but the '54 I consider to be the best design of the similarly styled '52-'56 Mercuries. Packard and Mercury did the same exact thing on their '52 -'54 designs and then on their '55 and ''56 designs, that is they rebadged them in '55 giving those cars the impression that they were totally new in design when all they really had was a well engineered face lift. So the steel body was in fact exactly the same. Had Packard by itself survived up until '57 their new cars would have looked quite a bit like the new Mercuries as both were very sleek looking in design.
One problem that my car had however was that it had a weak battery which began to falter on me after a while and so I found it harder and harder to start it without a jump. I sure wish that Mercury had introduced that 12 volt battery a year earlier! If I ever happen to purchase another 1955 Mercury it will undoubtedly be a Montclair and one that is Gulfstream blue over Alaska White. I just love the way that car looks. See ya.
Unbelievable what a Beautiful car this was when it came out. The 1955 was the original design. My folks' first new car was a 1955 Mercury Montclair. I was 10 years old. In 1956, they just tweaked it. It's more attractive than almost any other car on the road. Then in 1957, they completely redesigned it. It was popular but had NO RESEMBLANCE to its predecessor .
I’ve been looking for a turn pike cruiser.. =) definitely looking for more Mercury’s I love the style of these but given the choice between this and a Plymouth fury that’s a tough one
@@What.its.like. I loved the Turnpike Cruiser. It was so futuristic ! No other car looked like it. When Chrysler came out with fins on their 1957 lineup I was in love. Especially the 1957 Dodge. I loved the fins on that car the best, but as we all know, in about 2 years, the fins were already on their way out. I even loved the fins on a 1960 Dodge. Such a beautiful line. Cadillac had the showiest fins along with Imperial, but that wouldn't last long either. As a kid of 12 in 1957, I was a car fanatic. I have a whole collection of Brochures from 1955 on of pretty much all the major cars of the day. My best friend and I would go around to every dealer when the new cars came out and picked up brochures from everyone. They just don't make cars like that anymore. At least in the DESIGN DEPARTMENT. Today, all the cars look pretty much the same. Even the Mercedes now looks like a Lexus, or a Toyota. Too vanilla !
I agree there’s just something about the functionality of a classic car when everything works the way it supposed to work
I drove my 52 Chevy yesterday the furthest that I’ve ever driven it since putting radial tires on it.. i’m not sold if I like it there’s days where I like it and there’s days that I hate it I’m going to do a couple more things to it I found out that you’re supposed to get it aligned after changing the tires these are all things that I never knew.. i’m going to see if that fixes the fit Aquinas it doesn’t act up all the time if I hit a bump going I don’t know 65 miles an hour it gets really fidgety more so than it did on the bias tires. The crazy thing is when it runs great it runs great when it runs terrible it’s terrible it’s literally like being in the hell. I gotta get it sorted I think after I get it aligned and put shocks on it it probably be a better ride hopefully it’s just weird
I might do a drive a video of that one day
@@What.its.like. It sounds like you've really spent a lot of time on your Chevy. My Dad had a 1950 chevy when I was 5. He kept it until 1955 when he bought the Mercury.
=) I use my 52 Chevy truck it’s my truck, when I have to use it for truck things it is the truck that I use a whole brush in it I build furniture it’s my delivery vehicle it’s a prop at Wedding’s lol.. I would really like to get a 37 airflow or 37 Packard to be my prop car lol
Thank you for sharing 😊👋🐿
My grandfather had a 55 or 56 Mercury Monarch a Canadian model. I have an old black and white photo of him standing beside it in suit and tie with his Homburg hat on. An English immigrant he always dressed formally on Sundays church or not.
Awesome =)
This is a beautiful car I love older cars they had class back then nowadays they all look like..I wear 36 size too my friend take care Jay.
You could tell the cars apart and sit on them without damage I miss the colors everything is bland now
I was a kid in the 90s teen in 20s I remember going to big lots in the 90s with grandpa to get floor mats and they had dark green dark blue maroon tan brown black they were even had white crazy those days are gone
@@What.its.like. I understand completely buddy I miss the good old days nowadays cars all look the same and they look like insects or something lol. And they are all plastic and just cheaply built and they have no design I can't think of a single one I like. I love older cars they had so many different styles and designs I've always loved Cadillacs the old ones my great uncle passed away in ninety six and left me his 78 Cadillac coupe Deville its a seamist green with a dark green vinyl top I love the hood looking over it and the way it rolls over and the fenders and looking out with the hood ornament..it's only got 22 thousand miles on it I never drive it I need to though I start it up and pull it out of the garage occasionally so it can air out I need to add it to my insurance plan and just drive it when the weather is nice anyway to get some benefit from it. I'm not married and I don't have any kids to leave anything too so I need to get some use out of it..when I was very young I collected hood ornaments and emblems from cars. I use to go around junk yards and get every emblem I could pry off. I have a big collection from way back in the 80s when I use to collect them. You are a alright man my friend.
Thank you so much for sharing those memories =)
What’s the best hood ornament in your collection, and favorite (best and favorite can be separated lol)
There are a few new card designs/cards that I would love to review for the channel like a brand new Corvette I really like those I really like Shelby GT350 mustang I was thinking about maybe doing one new car a month or something like that if I get the opportunity to drive a Corvette or a Shelby GT 350 those are two new cars that I really want to do I’m not gonna miss that opportunity to do those but in my review I’m going to say that these are appliances which they are and explain what the differences between an appliance and a machine is..haha I don’t know if I could come in and say today on what it’s like an appliance.. that would probably be a turn off for a bunch of people.. even tho it’s true
@@What.its.like. my favorite hood ornament or ornaments plural would have to be the Cadillac with the wheat sign around them 🤔 I've got several and lincolns and ford ltds and mercury and even ol Chryslers and plymouths..I betcha if I put them all together I'd have a five gallon bucket of all kinds of emblems..I love old cars one of my favorite big cars is lincoln town car I've had 4 in my time I still have a 91 town car it's probably got close to 3 hundred thousand miles on it and still runs good but I don't drive it anymore it needs several things fixed I drive a 02 dodge ram 1500 truck it's my ol work truck it turned over 4 hundred thousand miles last month and still going strong 💪. It has the 4.7 liter motor I always used mobil 1 fully synthetic oil in it all it's life I actually use the one that can go twenty thousand miles before oil change but I never do that though I change it around 3 or 4 thousand miles never anything major happen to it I put water pump and alternator and starter on it is the only bolts ever turned..
iVe owned two town cars A 88 and 89 both signature series.. to this day I’ve owned about 33 cars somewhere around that area 33 35 cars that was the best riding car by far that I’ve ever owned.. I was thinking about looking for one and doing a nostalgia episode and talking about all the cars that I’ve owned and which ones were good and which ones were total turds
The first Lincoln I owned when I was 18 to about 21-22 and put over 120,000 miles on the car with no huge issues the biggest issue that I had to fix on that car was the power steering gearbox went. But that was it I put tires brakes on that car I think maybe one brake line went a gas line at one time but nothing major. I want to get one and I drive it like slide it sideways and stuff I would never do that to somebody else’s car lol
Neatest thing about the interior door panels, is that they mimic the side paint & fake air vents.
I'm still going with a 1954 mercury convertible as my favorite body but later 50s color's are fantastic 😍👍👏👏. Another great episode 🤠✌️
Glad you dig this episode =)
Can you do 1956 Chrysler New Yorker DeLuxe V-8, 2 door Newport hardtop with 3 tone paint job?
You bet I just need to find one =)
Hi Jay
You didn’t do “Would you rather “ but I pick the 1955 Canadian Monarch
Yeah I don’t know what happened to that it was a really cool segment it would’ve been
1956 Oldsmobile super 88 two-door hardtop at $2881
1956 mercury Montclair $2760
2 Dr HT
1956 De Soto Firedome $2,734
And then the second round was going to be 1956 Lincoln premier $4601
1956 mercury Montclair $2760
1956 Packard clipper $2916
I did all the price breakdowns and everything and for whatever reason it never ended up
Back then the Canadian Mercurys were Monarch and Meteor.
True works of art!
Totally agree =)
Another great video! I love the looks of this hardtop coupe. As you say… a lot of similarities to the Lincoln. Strange/a little slow in Ford’s technology advancements… that Lincoln/Mercury/Ford didn’t come out with 12-volt electrical system … a full 3 years after GM. This must have also been why they didn’t offer factory air conditioning as GM’s Oldsmobile, Buick, and Cadillac (in ‘53), Chrysler (in ‘53,) and even Pontiac had an in-dash system in ‘54. Ford/Mercury Lincoln did offer factory air in ‘55 with a 6-volt system, but changed the next year in ‘56 to 12-volts. Never heard anyone say how that ‘55 factory air system worked on Merc or Lincoln… as they were extremely rare. If you ever happen to see one.. sure hope you’ll do a video on how well the factory air cond system worked in them. Thanks Jay… you do a great, thorough job on your videos and always make them interesting!
Yeah I’m not sure when Lincoln went to 12 V if they want 12 V and 55 Ford didn’t go 12 V until 57.
I should’ve went through more options it was kind of hodgepodge together in the center there with the specs because I kept finding conflicting information. Like once or said that there was only one 312 available another source said that there was three versions of the 312 another source said there was only two versions of the 312 another source said the 312 had a variable horsepower rating depending on transmission used. Tons of conflict information.
If you haven’t noticed I’m a huge fan of the 30s and 50s I was a huge fan of the 50s when I was a kid the 30s or kind of a new era for me I really love the 30s I don’t have a clue which era I like better the 30s or the 50s lots of automotive innovation came from both of those time periods not saying that innovation hasn’t happened anywhere else. The stuff that came out of the 50s and 30s was absolutely incredible I’m in the 30s they gave you free wheeling, synchromesh transmission straight eights that sound absolutely incredible adventure this say that a good sounding straight eight would rival the best sounding V-8 they sound like nothing else. One of the best sounding straight eights that I’ve ever heard was in the 1935 Hupmoblie, it sounded like a miniature airplane starting that if I could drive a car that sounds like an airplane every day that would be my dream, and the 50s looked like spaceships =) I can’t wait to do some more 50s cars
@@What.its.like. Pretty certain it was across the board with Ford Motor company going from 6-volt to 12-volt in late 1955 for their 1956 models. I believe this only because my dad used to tell the story that he had a new ‘55 Ford Fairlane that was still a 6-volt system…. but dad’s sister… (my aunt, and her husband) bought a ‘56 Ford in January ‘56 and it was a 12-volt. I remember this because apparently (he told) that it was a very cold winter in the upper Midwest that year… and our ‘55 had a dead battery and had to be jump-started from her ‘56 Ford…and Dad said no one yet knew at that time… whether it could safely be done. Obviously… that was a loooong time ago!
Just a beautiful car
Totally agree =)
I like the '55 model. Sure seen the two models in movies and TV series of that era.
As before mentioned by, at least me, it was the torque that got these big cars going.
If not mistaken...this make and model (1954 or '55) was used in the famous "Rebel without a Cause" starring James Dean and Natalie Wood.
Cool looking car with "Hollywood History".
"Mystery Tune"... seems like an early 60's or late '50's number. Don't know...need more record play.
hi jay nice merc i remember my moms girl freind had a black and yellow 56 it was big when i was in the back seat and it was burning oil those where the days of big cars.
Awesome memory =)
5:40 Ah yes, the old 6-volt systems. And some were positive ground, some negative ground.
Now, I think everybody is 12v Negative ground.
Those old 6-volt headlights weren't very bright, and those 6-volt starters could spin pretty slowly.
I remember my dad telling me (dad has passed, so I can't verify), but he told me something like you could buy a starter wound for 8 volts(?) and it'd spin faster than a 6-volt starter-making for easier starts in cold weather.
My mother owned a 1966 Mercury the back window rolled down. I thought was very cool didn't see to many car's that the back window rolled down by a push of a button. It was white with a black vinel top that car felt like you were floating on air when riding in it.
I think 1966 was the last year for the opening rear window.
Breezeway I’m looking to review one of those
I believe the designers had one feature in mine, A Kitty cat face. Meow!
Mercury was the most attractive.
There were a pile of these in Eastern Montana. A nice two door hardtop in Wolf Point. Farther East this old farmer had three 55-56 two door post cars, or coupes maybe? The coupes all had Y block with 4v carbs.
I came home from being born 1956 Medalist 2 Door post sedan.
I was VERY surprised that there was no dome light, or lights on either side along the chrome trim above the windows? Fords had one…so what gives?
I did just see another video of these cars that showed that emblem between the upper backseat does indeed light up when you open the doors. Nice touch, but not very illuminating to the overall interior.
I loved all the stainless on the inside tho.. such a nice car =)
13:54 Going to look up the TATRA "What It's Like" post!
Couldn't find it!
Nonetheless, for WYR if you'd included it, the Clipper would be my choice, or a TATRA 603.
Little styling detail, Mercury wagons were basically identical body shells, even to the piunt that I have seen a '56 Thunderbird fitted with '56 Mercury taillights, a simple bolt-in swap of the assembly.
I wish I did the Tatra but haven't yet
@@What.its.like. Have you seen the promotional film _Happy Journeys_ on RUclips? They put the 603 through its paces, including a rollover down a slope and drive it away.
Thanks for the response., and keep up the fine research and content.
@ I have not seen that. I will have to look that up.
One of my favorite food in cars through their paces was when Tom McCahill drew a 1958 Edsel I thought that was awesome but I can't find that footage. They used to be the whole thing on RUclips. I haven't seen it in years.
@@What.its.like. The '57 Mercury handled "like a rubber-soled gazelle" and the '60 Valiant "climbs like a homesick angel" and the disc-brake Studebaker Lark, (deliberately tested with the left-side tires on pavement and the right-side wheels on the gravel shoulder) stopped "with the decorum of a church deacon."
Few critics could call a car a _bucket_ and make you want to buy it, but "Uncle Tom" McCahill could.
In 1966, the dad of a high school classmate gave him a '56 Monterey as a birthday present. V8, three on the tree, glasspacks and it was hot! The idiot hit a kid passing a parked school buss and that was the end of his Merc! Somebody got a really nice car!
Wow crazy story
Very unfortunate what happened. Did the kid survive? Was the Monterey destroyed?
@@ernielaw The kid survived, but I never heard about the extent of his injuries. I hope that the Merc is still out there and running strong.
This car has a 1955 6 volt radio with black plastic buttons. !956 radios were 12 volt with chrome buttons. This car is also missing the exhaust extensions, standard on Montclairs. They were beautiful cars.
Great information =)
I agree with you on the looks of that 56 Montclair. Mercury fielded a lot of ugly ducklings over the years but the 56 cars were certainly a noteworthy exception.
See if you can find some Canadian Mercs...
I would love to do some Canadian cars in general =)
Meteor and Monarch, then there was the Frontenac which existed for one year on the Canadian market.
The reason why the 1956 Mecury looks so similar to the Lincoln from the same model year is because Mercury and Lincoln are divisions of Ford. Mercury has been closed by Ford since 2011. I wish that Ford could bring back Mercury.
First thing I would with that car if I owned it would be to get rid of the fuzzy dice hanging on the mirror.I actually like the 54 Mercury's better. They have more room in them.
54 definitely has more space
I agree. The fuzzy dice are pretty tacky for such a nice car.
well, My WYR: 55 or 56 Merc? I kinda like the sidespear of the 56 but overall stylewise, I gotta go with the 55.
The other would you rather would’ve been 1956 Lincoln 1956 mercury Montclair or 1956 Packard clipper I had the price breakdowns and everything I don’t know why it got taken out and I didn’t catch it
The other crazy thing the Lincoln was almost twice the price you could almost buy both of those other cars for the price of the Lincoln
@@What.its.like. Bummer that the WYR didn't make the cut. Sounds like it woulda been a good one, probably getting some interesting responses. Weird that the temp control was on one side of the steering wheel and the blower control was on the other (or did I misunderstand?) Anyway, great vid as always Dude! Always enjoy them!
Yeah that was weird glad you dig this video =)
I might include the would you rather in an episode or something who knows it was a good one
56 More aggressive design,though similar
Jay, what song is playing at 8:10?
Same old song four tops
Ford probably was first in having a thin roofline in 55. Am I wrong?
Very well could be
Going from 6-volt to 12 volt electrical system was a wise move. If you increase the voltage on and electrical system, you reduce its amperage. The only question I have is that many Ford products referenced the + side of the battery to ground, or chassis of the car. Its been so long that I heard that. I dont see the benefit of this methodology. I am a retired electrician and I have always scratched my head on Ford engineers reasoning of grounding the + side of the battery.
Yeah I’m not entirely sure Ford was really well known for doing that and they flipped.. Eventually does anybody know the answer to that wind Ford went negative ground
@@What.its.like. I cannot figure out their reasoning. In electronics, negative electrons are attracted to positive electrons. Maybe it was the mass of the positively charged chassis of the car which made the charging of the battery more efficient? I really dont know.
Back in the day the Ed Sullivan show was pincered by the big M line!
Sweet =)
Tune: I'm not sure of the title, but that sounds like Elvis Presley.
16 candles by the Crests
It's the crests:- 16 candles from 1959 with the late & truly great Johnny Maestro singing lead vocals!!!👍
Looks to me like it was designed by a team of people that were trying to out do each other on extravagance, and they didn't care if it came together as one look or not. Some of it really nice, some of it really clunky. IMHO.
Eh I like it tho.. to each their own =)
@@What.its.like. yup, definitely intersting
Was this a nicer car than a DeSoto or Oldsmobile
I haven’t done a two door De Soto yet
1955/56 is my favorite Desoto style as well it would be a really hard 156 would’ve been a really hard year to buy a car Plymouth fury is another one Lincoln premiere is another one Packard executive is another one
16 Candles… The Crests
Yeah buddy it was going to be so many different songs but then I was like I love that part in the song
You’re the prettiest loveliest girl I’ve ever seen.. That was the part of the song that was used I just cut and clipped it closer together
It bothers my OCD that the driver's side trim does not match.
That’s what’s great about the old Classic Cars if you look really close at them they’re all flawed especially mustangs early mustangs the panel gaps in those.. there’s a lot of new cars that have panel gaps as well that cost a lot of money like the grand Wagoneer has a tons of panel gap issues more so than Tesla tesla gets a bad rap for panel gap spacing but there’s cars on the market that have far worse panel gaps than Tesla.
@@What.its.like. On this car, seems like an easy fix!