Wowie Kazowie! Get a load of this 1966 Mercury S-55 convertible! It’s just about perfect and has a powertrain to boot – more on that later. The listing refers to this convertible as a Marauder S-55, and that’s not really the case, it’s an S-55 – Mercury discontinued the Marauder package at the conclusion of the ’65 model year. Pat L. discovered the listing for this magnificent speciman. It’s located in Whippany, New Jersey, and is available, here on craigslist for $36,000.
Full-size performance cars peaked in the mid-sixties, and then trended downwards, there were too many smaller, more nimble models like the Fairlane GT, Cyclone GT, Mustang and a whole host of intermediates from GM and Mopar. While the S-55 wasn’t exactly the last hurrah for big muscle, it was closing in on the logical end. The S-55 wasn’t overly popular, only about 3,500 copies saw the the light of day and just 669 made the scene in drop top form – and that makes this example that much more special, it’s rare!
So, what’s special about the S-55? For starts they were powered by a 345 gross HP, 428 CI Super Marauder V8 engine equipped with dual exhausts. Bucket seats with center console were the order of the day and a four-speed manual transmission, such as this example possesses, was standard – automatic shift was on the option sheet however. Other features included a deluxe steering wheel, body side-striping, deluxe wheel covers and S-55 badging. The seller states, “This car runs and drives great!” with what is believed to be only 13K original miles – no documentation provided, however.
The Russett Emberglo finish is specatular and it is believed to be original (lots of believing goin’ on here). This is a long car (220.4″) with a lot of straight, flat lines and the entire deal looks well aligned. There’s no sign of anything out of place, no dents, creases, contusions or rust. The chrome is strong as are the minimal trim and badging. The wire wheel covers do not appear to be correct for a S-55 but they were a full-size Mercury option in ’66. I’m generally not a fan of such pieces but this big convertible wears them well. Unfortunately, there are no listing images provided of this car in top up mode – I’ll assume that the folding top is as nice as the rest of the exterior.
It’s safe to say that the black vinyl upholstery hasn’t seen a lot of top-down exposure, it’s in too nice a condition – same with the carpet, no sign of fade. The chrome bits, scattered about, provide nice contrasting highlights to the overall dark environment. It looks like A/C (at least there’s a compressor under the hood) and power windows are in place.
This Mercury has it all going on, 428 CI engine, four-speed manual transmission, a convertible, low production numbers and believed low mileage, what more could you ask for, right?
Beautiful… don’t recall ever seeing one like it!
Heck yeah. It ticks all the boxes for me.
Can a car make you start a new life?
Getting a new job and a house in a warmer state, just to rationalize the car?
This one might.
Very, very nice. A seldom-seen model, convertible, big block, 4 speed, attractive color. Loads of presence. I’m a fan of the straight line styling. Lots to like here.
I agree with the guys above, this is fantastic. What a looker.
I’ve not seen one like this in real life.
I kinda’ wish they had still used the Marauder moniker, it’s a cool name for a car.
Although I grew up with big cars I’m not their biggest fan, this is second time this week I saw a big car with a 4 spd and thought I would love to drive that.
What more could you ask for? Has the torque and HP the 4 speed and air with the top up or down. What a beauty!
Nice, it will pass everything except a gas station
You know, I’m personally offended by the oil companies raping of us , especially out here in Corruptafornia. Gas is back up to 6.50 a gallon! Up from 4,87 in a month! I’m not even getting a kiss!
My screed aside, I’m at the point in my life where I dont give a damn and I’d fill this monster up just to hit the road down through Big Sur. I should have thought ahead when it came to squirreling away the bucks!
What a car!
Don’t blame the oil companies.. blame Brandon instead. He’s the one that has stopped the pipelines and caused us to buy oil from other countries. Be pissed.. but aim it in the correct direction. Move out of Commiefornia if you don’t like the leadership.
Never visualized a McGarrett Mobile with a 428 4 speed.
My Dad had a ’66 Monterey fastback. 390, 4bbl. That car would light the tires at will. I drove it every time I could, at 14 years old. Never told Dad, til I was bigger than him! He laughed and said, “I know you did. I always checked the mileage.” Oops…
There never was a “Marauder package.”
This is from V8Vintage.com:
“The Mercury Marauder nameplate made its debut as a trim package of each of the four Mercury full-size sedans, including the Monterey, Montclair, S-55 (1963 only), and Park Lane. In what would later become characterized by the Ford Mustang, the Mercury Marauder was introduced as a mid-year model, denoted as a “1963½” model year”.
What would you call it?
JO
It’s a sub-model.
The Marauder was just the “fastback” roofline introduced in the middle of 1963. I know they used that designation through 1965, maybe longer.
That’s not what research is telling me. Note the attached image, it’s a ’65 four-door Montclair with Marauder badging – it’s not a fastback roofline.
The Marauder package or designation was dropped at the end of the ’65 model year.
JO
None of them were ever fastbacks, but that seems to be the term we use today to distinguish them from the boxier T-bird rooflines that were available at the beginning of the 1963 model year. That’s why I used quotes.
Yet it doesn’t take much effort to find references to the roofline as “Marauder”:
http://www.lov2xlr8.no/brochures/mercury/63mc1/63mc1.html
http://www.lov2xlr8.no/brochures/mercury/myc64/bilder/6.jpg
http://www.lov2xlr8.no/brochures/mercury/65mc1/bilder/4.jpg
In the above 1965 brochure, the copy doesn’t show this car as “Marauder” but the racing flag and text can be seen in the C-pillar.
So, once again, Marauder was used to specify the midyear roofline, so any hardtop that’s not a Breezeway is a Marauder, but a submodel because there’s a Monterey Marauder, Montclair Marauder, and Park Lane Marauder, though depending on the year.
Jim, I made a detailed post and for some reason it is not here.
All you have to do is see the brochures of 1963.5-1964 to note the Marauders had the swoopy roofline and not the Breezeway. The 1965 brochure doesn’t show the Marauder sub-series but does show the C-pillar with the racing flag and Marauder script.
It’s not a package but a designation for several models including the Monterey, Montclair, and Park Lane (depending on the year).
Your post is now live, the spam filter caught it and I released it. I guess I get it though it sounds more like a c-pillar badge than anything else.
JO
Beautiful car, I thought it was a Chrysler at first glance
FoMoCo didn’t give nameplates and badges to cars unless it was a model. The Mercury Marauder was just that, it’s own model. It was offered in 1963-64 and 1969-70. During that time, Mercury did offer many engines named “Marauder” and “Super Marauder” across all it’s models, but there was no “Marauder package”. If any doubt, check the 1961-70 Mercury sales brochures, they’ll confirm.
Don’t forget the 2003-2004 version.
https://www.carthrottle.com/post/3lxkgvk/
I guess a Mustang GT is a model and not a Mustang with the GT package?
What about a Cougar GT? It’s a model or a Cougar (standard of XR-7) with the GT package?
These are two examples that were not models yet they had “nameplates and badges.”
Like I said to the other guy, the Marauder was not a model in 1963-65. It reflected the new roofline that was added mid-1963, so any Mercury hardtop that wasn’t a Breezeway was a Marauder, though based on the real, honest-to-goodness models like Monterey, Montclair, and Park Lane. That’s why I called it a submodel of sorts.
The Marauder WAS indeed a model in 1963-64 and again in 1969-70 (we’re talking 1960s here). Here is a link to the 1964 Mercury brochure showing the Marauder model, you can find the same for 1963.
http://oldcarbrochures.com/static/NA/Mercury/1964%20Mercury/1964_Mercury_Full_Size_Brochure/1964%20Mercury%20Full%20Size-14.html
Furthermore, if you look at those brochures you’ll see see each model was called out as its own. That tells you a Breezeway was not a Marauder. Sure, Montereys, Montclairs and Park Lanes shared the same body features, but they were separate MODELS each with their own standard equipment.
As for models vs packages, the context here was full-size cars, so that’s what I was talking about. As stated, typically when FoMoCo badged a car with a certain nameplate, it was a model not a “package”. For instance, the 1966 Ford Galaxie 500 7-Litre was it’s own model, not a package. In 1967, Ford did not offer that model. Instead, if you wanted the 7-Litre, you bought the XL model and added the “7-Litre Sports Package”.
In 1969, you could buy a Mercury Marauder or Marauder X100, the latter which came standard with a 429-4V and special finish among other things. The X100 was not a “package” you ordered on the Marauder, instead it was its own model.
The best examples I can think of for 1960s full-size Ford & Mercury “package” cars are R-codes and Police Packages. As I’m sure you know, R-codes (and previous 406 & 390/352 HiPos) included other mandatory extra-cost equipment. For instance, in 1966 you also had to pay extra for the mandatory big-input toploader 4-speed as well as larger wheels and tires. Nonetheless, the 427 could be ordered in any car other than wagons and it amounted to something of a “package”. In all cases, there was no dedicated model involved.
Similarly, Police Package cars had standard equipment such as HD suspension, extra cooling, larger alternators/generators, bigger wheels, rubber floormats, HD seats and so on. For 1966 full-size Fords, you could only get the police package on Customs, Custom-500s and Ranch Wagons. Again, it shows there were package cars that did not have have their own name plates.
That said, these cars were a very small piece of total production. For instance, in 1967 Ford built nearly 1M full-size cars yet only 89 were equipped with 427s and 15K or so had Police Packages.
I posted another reply that appears to have been deleted. The fact is, Mercury DID offer the Marauder as its own standalone model in 1963-64 (and `69-70). As I said, the factory brochures will confirm.
It’s also false to assert “any Mercury hardtop that wasn’t a Breezeway was a Marauder”. The Monterey, Montclair, and Park Lane may have shared similar features, but they were their own “models” – as was the Marauder.
It didn’t get deleted it ended up in the spam filter because of your hyperlinks. I fished it out.
JO
Roger, this page nicely lays out how the Marauder was not its own model.
http://www.mercurystuff.com/1964-models/index.html
It just describes the roof, no different than Breezeway. The actual models were Monterey, Montclair, and Park Lane.
Trey – I understand the disconnect now. That table is confusing yet it also provides the answer. First, on one hand, Mercury described it’s new styling as “Marauder” and “Breezeway” with the Marauder being all about the sporty fastback style introduced in mid 1963. Yet Mercury also had “Marauder models”, such as the “Montclair Marauder”. Adding to the confusion is the fact the table on the MercuryStuff page doesn’t specifically call out these models.
For instance, rather than reading “1964 Monterey 4 door hardtop fastback (marauder)”, it should read 1964 Monterey Marauder 4 door hardtop fastback. Nonetheless, the point is that even though Mercury described their models as having “Marauder styling” (thus somewhat insinuating it’s a package), they did in fact offer the “Monterey Marauder”, “Montclair Marauder” and “Park Lane Marauder” as their own separate models. Hope that clarifies.
Roger, even the body codes suggest that’s not the case.
http://www.mercurystuff.com/1964-mercury-vehicle-identification.html
And the ad as well:
http://www.lov2xlr8.no/brochures/mercury/64my2.html
Trey – the magazine ad states “Montclair Marauder”. As for the MercuryStuff site, the simplest way to explain it is that every where you see “Fastback”, it’s a Marauder model.
For instance, the 57A, 57D and 57C body codes are the Monterey Marauder 4-Door Hardtop Fastback, Montclair Marauder 4-Door Hardtop Fastback and Park Lane Marauder 4-Door Hardtop Fastback. It’s just the owner of that website did not list it that way.
Those models without the fastback style were not Marauder models. If you want to believe they are packages, that’s fine. No further discussion required.
Care to show me where I said the Marauder was a package?
I didn’t. All I said is they were not models. Even your own post shows this. For example:
Monterey
-breezeway
-marauder
-Monterey convertible
You can’t have a Marauder without a Monterey, Montclair, or Park Lane.
A seldom seen car and it could have been a success if
it not had a design like a brick.
Beautiful! Don’t stop believing….
Trey, give your fingers a rest. We’ll all appreciate it.
You’re welcome to ignore my friendly discussion with Roger, the same way I will ignore you.
Boys, boys, stop arguing and I’ll buy you an ice cream cone. (You’ll have to split it.)
Sure would like to park this beauty in my garage but she won’t fit. Someone is going to get a real good ride. Big car, big engine, convertible with A/C and a four speed great color combination. Nice!
I contacted the party who has the car listed on Craigslist. Apparently, the ad misprinted and the sale price is actually $56,000.
I was going to say they should change the price, well they did. So it ran for 4 days at $36k and nobody jumped on it. GLWS.
Many have commented on what a great car it is… but nobody has addressed the price. In your opinion, is the rarity and shape worth the asking price here?
Well, I saw a picture of the Data plate in the door jamb and it had overspray on it, so not original paint.
@Buddy
Yeah I often wonder why they paint inside the doors or jambs unless there is a color change. AND when they do, I don’t understand why they don’t tape up the data plate any better. I see this all the time!
Wow this 428 is rare, i did also hear later chatter about the 429, so if its 1966, the 427-425 is still being made. The 427 has to be more rare than this, ive seen the 427 single 4bbl in t birds. Someone out there had to part these for the motor and crunch the rest, not knowing what the future would bring
Only 327 R-code 427 full-size Fords and Mercurys were built in 1965. Of those, only 7 were Mercurys. In 1966, only 237 full-size 427 cars were built, all Fords. Even less in 1967, only 89 including 70 R-code 427-8V and 19 Q-code 427-4V. Much more were made in 1963-64, they were less expensive then and that was before the GTO and Mustang opened the market up to big-block intermediates and Pony cars. As you can see, the 1965-67 427 cars were very rare. Most in 1966 and it’s believed all 89 in 1967 were Medium Risers which today are the most sought-after factory-installed 427s. As for the 429, full-size Fords and Mercurys didn’t get it until 1969. Along with the 460, it was a different engine family (385=series) from the 427-428 (FE),
Super Cool!!!
BBBBBBBAD Bad to the Bone !!!
Some one said they wished they still used the name Maurder , I wish they just still made cars. I’m ok with electric CARS but make a few CARS. Please
Beautiful car this car isn’t claimed to even be a marauder so who gives a flip if marauder was a package or model has no relevance to this car and was only mentioned in passing concentrate on what’s important the actual car LOL
Of those 669 convertibles, I wonder how many were 4-speeds!
What a sweetheart! And a 428 with a 4 speed too! I have a 1965 Mercury Montclair that is a Marauder. 390 with an automatic. She’s a pleasure to drive, and was fun to bring back.
Heres another pic showing more of the side on my 65 Mercury Montclair Marauder. It does have the Marauder racing badges. It came with a 390 and an automatic and AC. I upgraded the heads and added front disc brakes and an Edelbrock 4bbl. Had to ditch the original smaller wheels and go with some age appropriate Cragers.
That cast iron, AC compressor and 60 lb AC clutch look very familiar and bring back memories. I updated to an alluminum York Compressor and a Four seasons clutch. Much lighter. Also upgrading the intake manifold and heads to alluminum reduced tons of weight in my Mercury.
Front end lookd very Chryslerish?
Bolivar McNasty
Seems your comments have zero to do with the car reviewed are therefore irrelevant to this site and should be posted elsewhere