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Waiting 35 Years: 1956 Mercury Monterey

This Mercury is said to be a real one family-owned car that’s been stored since 1981. We see so many cars like this with nice 20 or 30-foot paint but we have to wonder how much Bondo and rust might be hiding under the paint and on the underside of the car. This listing on eBay actually has several pictures of the underneath and things under there look pretty good. There’s lots of surface rust but no apparent damage. It’s nice to see that the underside is not coated in gooey, rust hiding, black. There are some rust bubbles showing along the bottoms of the fenders. It starts and runs, but there’s a scary rattle when you put it into gear. It was a Florida car that is now in Taunton, Massachusetts. Bidding is almost $4,000 at this time.

The interior looks pretty nice. It looks as though the seats were redone recently. Could they really be original? There’s no evidence of a rodent population.

This old Mercury could use a lot of cleaning under the hood, but it looks like it is all there. This is likely a Ford Y-block 312 CID engine with about 200 horsepower.

The underside does look rather nice. There’s no sign of holes or patches in the floor. If this Mercury was really stored for 35 years it was stored well.

Many might think this Monterey has too many doors, but there are also many who love them. This car is no show car, but it will hopefully make someone a nice driver if it is as nice as it appears. If it’s been parked for 35 years it will need lots of mechanical attention. There is a reason someone bought this, had it hauled toMassachusetts and then decided to sell it. Could there be more serious problems with the car than just the transmission? It does look mostly rust free, the interior is nice, the chrome and paint are OK for a driver. How much do you think this Mercury will be worth if it’s repaired, cleaned and a driver? It’s not rare or collectable, but it could be a nice driver. It will be interesting to see how much this sells for.

Comments

  1. Avatar Fred W.

    Sellers who want to be perceived as honest should use punctuation. Wish this one were a bit closer to me, looks like a good project.

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  2. Avatar Joe Nose

    Used to have houses in Montclair and Monterey. Always thought that it would have been nice to have matching cars, but then the ex would have prob wound up with them, too.

    Like 0
  3. Avatar Don

    Kool car, but good grief! another flipper!

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  4. Avatar Bob C.

    Fix transmission problem and make sure the y blocks oil flow is good. Otherwise, it looks like a winner.

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  5. Avatar Ed P

    I remember people said the Y Blocks had a restriction in an oil passage that would clog on older engines. Some said an external bypass could be rigged. Does anybody know anything about this?

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    • Avatar Bob C.

      Hi Ed. Yes, a copper tube was ran from the oil pump to the rockers. The oils of the era were low in detergents, therefore prone to sludging if not changed frequently. A rebuilt y block shouldn’t have any problem with the oils of today.

      Like 0
  6. Avatar Jim

    My second car in 1960 was 55 Montclair CP. looked good but lots of issues. Oil leaker. door strikers worn out just to name a few. Traded it in in 1961 on a new Falcon.

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  7. Avatar Graywolf

    Put some Kendig flush mounted door handles and fix her up! We are slowly running out of affordable 2-door vehicles! Get them while they are affordable!

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  8. Avatar Rustytech Member

    It looks like a decent car, if the body is indeed as good as it appears. With all the mechanical repairs that will be needed I think at $5k plus, it’s already past what I would be willing to invest.

    Like 0
  9. Avatar PoPPaPork

    This one might go somewhere to eastern Europe to serve as a wedding car…

    Like 0
  10. Avatar Old Car Guy

    The rattle when putting it in gear could be a broken flex plate. A somewhat common thing of any makers cars in the 50’s-60’s.

    Like 0

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