Who remembers the big M...

[deerejoe]

Some years ago (1957) the marketing people labeled the Mercury Turnpike Cruiser "the big M"...and it was BIG!!

I don't recall the specs. except for it being a hardtop convertible with an extended rear end supporting a Continental kit.
Rolled/pleated naugahyde seats, plush carpeting and a ton of chrome.

I was driving a 1956 Corvette (283cid) with twin Rochester 4 barrels and lakes pipes making the rounds of the local drive-ins in Duncan, Oklahoma.
Feeling invincible and unbeatable; bragging it up with the car hops trying to make a score when a pair (identical) of those big Ms drove in and parked beside me.

Being an "outsider" and unfamiliar with the local hotdogs, I was informed they were the two Haliburton boys with their new toys. Now anyone who knows about oil wells knows about Haliburton!!
Money to burn...
They challenged me to a drag race on a nearby unfinished stretch of Interstate highway...the winner to get a date with the gorgeous car hop of my dreams!!

It would be great to tell you that I stomped those Mercs, but truth is; they both beat me like a yellow dog!!
We ran to the end of the highway (2 miles or so) and I kept right on going...feeling like the end of the world had come.
Needless to say...I never went back to Duncan after that fiasco.
I sold the 'vette soon after and swore to never again run a big fancy car.

[cruzer]

I remember it well, had just bought a Montclair in '55 and couldn't afford a new one--had just taken a job with American Airlines as co-pilot for the grand salary of $ 235.00/month--my, how times have changed---those were the days

[Merc-O-matic]

I remember "the Big M"...I think the 1957
"Turnpike Cruiser" came standard with
a 368 CID V-8 (290HP) had Hydraulic valve
lifters & an extra high-lift camshaft, explains
why they blew your doors off.
And don't forget most had "Merc-O-Matic"
drive to.
Gotta Love it!

[LCpl Retired]

Hardtop Convertable?

Ford Sunliner Rectract in Mercury Trim? I didn't know about those...how many did they make?

The T/Cs were a marvelous piece..I like the 58s.but all in general seem to have had a lower survival rate ...perhaps the majority of the people that bought them were not retired and drove them more than the lincolns and caddys of the day.... in all weather....

of all the cars I have had however, bar none, the biggest crowd pleaser and jaw dropper of all was a gleaming orange and white 1958 2Dr Edsel Pacer bought for 2500.00 in 1992 when I lived in Phx Az.

Everywhere you drove people would look over curiously and you could almost see there mouths move reading the trunk ..."E" ..."D" .."S"... "E" ....then .."OMG.. LOOK AT THAT"....

We took that thing up PCH with 4 Mtn bikes on Yakimas on the roof of it. The valets moved a Ferrari Daytona out of the way at Gladstones to put it in the front row..

we were the bomb....

that car should still be in Denver somewhere...sold for 3500.00 ..all they are worth....

[Logan]

Geeez... Only about 15 years before I was even a single cell organism ;)

[LCpl Retired]

In 1992??

92 plus 25 ...uhh uhhh...Nurse please bring me some more meds...the alzheimers is confusing me again!!!

:D

[Logan]

Make that 57 + 15 = 72

[TAF]

Thanks...now I feel REALLY old...

Remembering 1972...

Hit songs included Let's Stay Together by Al Green, My Ding-A-Ling by Chuck Berry, I Am Woman by Helen Reddy and American Pie by Don McLean.

The Concert For Bangla Desh, featuring George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, Ringo Starr, Billy Preston, Ravi Shankar and Leon Russell, received the Grammy for Album Of The Year.

[LCpl Retired]

I was in second grade....

but I am pretty sure it was about that time I had one of those "smash up derby" 55 Chevys ....the ones with the gyro wheel or whatever in the middle and the "t" handle to get it going..the doors, hood and trunk flew off on impact...they were cool....

[MAD-3R]

Oh man!! I had those...

And the Evil Kanivil Stunt bike!!

[TAF]

Those^^^were COOL!!!

Had one myself.

[jerrym3]

Actually the big M nickname started in 1956 and had nothing to do with the Turnpike Cruiser, which came out in 1957.

The 1956 hood ornament is/was a ""M", so that's when they started the big M theme. The emblem on the trunk also had the M highlighted.

saw it advertised many times on the Ed Sullivan Sunday night "Toast of the Town" or "The Ed Sullivan Show" (can't remember which name they used in 1956-7).

Hardtop convertible was the name given to the two doors back then that not have a "B" pillar.

Mercury, in 1957, sold a 4dr station wagon without a "B" pillar (so did the Olds Fiesta and possibly Buick) and a 2 dr wagon without a "B" pillar.

The 55 had a small Merc god's head emblem on the hood, so they were not called the "big M".

Another little tidbit.

Merc convertbles in the early 50's had both rear power window switches on the passenger side behind the driver. You could close/open both rear windows from the back without moving.

Amazing what dribble the mind retains even after all these years.

[LCpl Retired]

so lets really test your memory...

A friend recently (year a half maybe) bought one of those 57 2 Door Mercury Wagons. Black w/ Red..must be very sharp. I believe he bought it from "Ragtops" in PB, FL. I know because he called me on the way home because it had the same shifting mechanism as the Edsel (push buttons in the wheel and and whole bunch of solenoids) anyhow the thing was hanging up in 2nd (big suprise!!) and I had him go through the drill of working it though till it loosened up.

He was pretty adamant that that car had some very unsual options...including an electric rear gate or something? .do you know what he meant.?..what other wierd options ?..he has a GT500 and others and knows his stuff

he bought it for his wife, shipped it to LI ..she didn't like it ..so it sits forgotten in the garage in E LI...

I WILL get that thing one of these days

[jerrym3]

I thought that the Merc pushbuttons for the trans were on the dash to the left??

Everybody was looking for the right spot.

Chrysler started in the mid 50's with a lever off the dash to the right of the column, and then went to pushbuttons off the left.

Packard had the pushbitton module connected to what normally would have been the column gear shift.

Edsel went for the column/center, but I thought the Merc's was somewhere else.

Two things happen as you get older.

First, your memory starts to go, and I can never remember the second thing.

Like my buddy says, "I'll never forget what's-his-name."

[LCpl Retired]

Very possible they were off to the side, I haven't even seen this car yet. It was just the same system as the Ed, and keeping the car at 2000 RPM and alternately slowly selectiing every gear position at least 3X would get the mechanism working again if the thing had been sitting awhile.

[deerejoe]

jerrym3...

You're sharp, my friend.
Exactly right regarding the big M thing, etc.

The Turnpike Cruiser was another part of the topic I was recalling. Thanks for the back-up on the HT/conv. aspect...thought I might be in trouble there.

As to push button transmissions...several marquees used that system during the past.

Do you recall the Packard (late 50s) Ultra-matic trans.?? It was advertised as being able to shift from a forward gear (at ANY speed) into reverse without damage to the trans. I tried it...and it really worked!! Had the imprint of the steering wheel on my chest from the experience!! Just another bazaar gizmo on the 50s autos. Being a kid then made it all the more fascinating.

[UncleLar]

LcplRetired,check out Edsels for sale on E-Bay.There's a sweet Baby Blue and White 58 Ranger 2dr hardtop for sale there. They want a lot more than $3500 though.
Trivia question,does anyone remember who else made a 383 cu.in. engine besides Mopar?

[SergntMac]

Originally posted by TAF
Thanks...now I feel REALLY old. Remembering 1972, hit songs included Let's Stay Together by Al Green, My Ding-A-Ling by Chuck Berry, I Am Woman by Helen Reddy and American Pie by Don McLean. The Concert For Bangla Desh, featuring George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, Ringo Starr, Billy Preston, Ravi Shankar and Leon Russell, received the Grammy for Album Of The Year.

I remember 1972 slightly different. I mean all that music, I do remember, but my link back to then is different.

I got my last ticket in Julky of 1971...Speeding, donchano.

I wrote my first ticket 18 July 1972...Speeding, donchano.

Bought my first Marauder 18 July 2002...still speeding, donchano.

Whoops...Sorry guys, back to the thread.

I do remember some of those cars, the good Doctor living across the street from me had one, a '57 I think, a 4 door beauty, two toned red and white outside, white and red vinyl interior.

He later replaced it with a '63, and after he passed away, I got to drive the '63 to CA where his widow resumed her life with relatives. That drive was the experience that changed my life, it's no wonder I love Mercurys.

[Merc-O-matic]

I owned a 1955 PACKARD Carribean Convertible
with Ultramatic Transmission (only 500 Blt)
Sold new for $6,000 in 1955.....
Today the car in excellent condition is worth
$50,000 to $80.000. Story of my life!
Gotta Love it!

[Merc-O-matic]

And now for the rest of the trivia:
1955 was the first year PACKARD built
a V8. It was 352 CID with a quad.
The Carribean had 2 Four Barrel
Carburetors (275HP) the most HP
of any American made car in 1955!
Gotta Love It!

[jerrym3]

deerejoe

Not a matter of being sharp; more a matter of being old.

As a kid walking home one night in beautiful downtown Guttenberg, NJ, I saw my first new 1957 Merc (not a TPCruiser) parked in my neighborhood. I could not take my eyes off that car (2 tone green and white), and just walked around it for at least 20 minutes.

Thinking about the mid 50's Packards, my fondest memory is the torsion bar, self leveling suspension.

About six of us kids would sit on the back bumper, the rear end would sag, and after about ten seconds, an electric motor would kick on and the car would rise to regular height. After we jumped off, the motor would start again and bring the car down to regular height.

Of course, we never considered what scratches we were leaving on the chrome bumper.

Packard Carribean also had reversible seat upholstry. You could unsnap the seat upholstry, flip it over, and have a deifferent look.

Great thing about those days was that you would never confuse a Merc with a Ford or a Chevie with a Pontiac. Cars looked different when people designed them instead of computers.

But, cars didn't last 100,000 miles either (without serious rebuilding), so we have come a long way.

[LCpl Retired]

LcplRetired,check out Edsels for sale on E-Bay.There's a sweet Baby Blue and White 58 Ranger 2dr hardtop for sale there. They want a lot more than $3500 though.

That is a beautiful car..and the price is more in line with what they SHOULD sell for IMHO

here is what it looks like for those that would like to see it

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2428207379&category=6216

now if it was a 58 Bermuda Wagon in that condition..I might Bid!!

I think the Ranger had a few more options than the Pacer..same E400 though, I went and recovered the original valve covers and air cleaner from that Desert Valley Auto junkyard between Phx and Tucson. Was interesting to visit a junkyard that had SECTIONS for edsel, nash, hudson, packard, studebaker etc...


here is another that was more representive (condition wise) of the one I had...but NOT with the milage.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2428184407&category=6216

This unfortuantely, or Fortunately (really) seems to be more what they sell for. (And this one looks pretty decent! 21k miles, orig paint)..3 days left though..who knows

The Packard Carribean was one of the all time most beautiful convertables....and they were ALL convertables weren't they?....up there with the Buick Skylark of 53/4...but the value of those is now almost prohibitive....

as far as the 383 question...was that the straight 8 J/SJ duesenberg....seems it was something like that....or am I grasping at straws...

(old..but not that old....I worked in an auto museum in high school)

[jerrym3]

The 58 "big M" had an option of (I think) a 430 cube engine with multi carbs. The motor was an option on all Mercs, even the "lighter" Monterey series with three speed and OD.

Friend of mine, a guy who ate, slept, drank, and....."burped" Chryslers was on duty in san Diego with the Navy in the late 50s.

He claims, and this is coming from a Mopar guy, that the fastest car around was a 58 Merc with the 430 option. Nothing, within reason, could beat it.

I think the 430 also became an option on the square birds for 59-60? (58's were 352/300's only.)

Fish tale? Who knows.

I worked for a guy that owned a 56 Ford, 312 (?), 2 dr wagon, three speed, OD (lower rear end ratio). That sucker would run!

[deerejoe]

jerrym3

I owned the '56 Victoria Hardtop with a "Thunderbird 212" engine. 3 on the tree with mechanical OD. It was equipped with a Holly 4 barrel carb that could be "rigged" manually to open all four barrels at ANY speed.
I won MANY drags at our local (Kansas City) strip with that car!!

The Crown Victoria had a trim band that ran over the top at mid-point...

[jerrym3]

Interestingly, the Crown Vic was actually a two door sedan rather than a two door hardtop convertible, but it looked great and is finally being recognized for the stylish car that it was.

The 55 Ford had a more formal roof in the 2 dr hardtop convertible, with a "racier" roof in the CVic. The 56 had the racier roof in both regular and CVic hardtops. Some models had tinted plastic for the front half of the roof . Pretty cars. I like them better than the 56 Chevy.

I had a 55 Ford convt, dark blue over light blue. Had one serious problem. Couldn't get the passenger door to stay closed, especially on left hand turns. Almost lost some good friends.

Nobody ever wanted "shotgun" in that car.

Bad rear main seal leak, but it sure looked sharp. Not very fast, (Smaller V8.) Traded it for a 54 Olds 88, three speed on the column, a very, very rare car.

Packard Carib also came in a two door, hardtop convert style.

The Carib was the luxury Packard, but the Clipper was the Packard performance sedan (I think).

[Merc-O-matic]

jerrym3 is right. In 1955 and 1956 the
Packard Carribean came in two body
styles: Tudor Hard Top and "Rag Top"
I owned the Rag top, but the Tudor
HT was one beautiful Car. Both had 3
tone Paint with Torsion Bar Suspension.
Kinda like what we have with the Marauder
Gotta Love It!