I just brought this 56 Merc that I plan on making just a mild custom. It is very complete and has been sitting in a garage since 1989. Its running and drivable, but not really road worthy. I haven't decided yet what Im going to do for drive train and suspension. Probably swap out the rear for an Explorer 8.8 posi and convert the front suspension to disc brakes also. Any tips or ideas any one would like to share with me about this model year would be greatly appreciated.
Ditch the hubcaps, shave the hood and trunk, paint it black and lower it 4 infront 6 in back, and add a set of wide whitewalls. It' ll be a looker.
I doubt there is any real reason to change the rear. It will stop just fine with the stock brakes redone. I would change the wheel covers and drive it. I doubt I would even put fancy wheels on it. Duals and glass packs might be nice. I wouldn't even paint it.
This is one direction to go, maybe a different color: David Koontz, Photographer Another: Mickey Ellis, Photographer
I love the last black one. In 1958, my buddy and I took his cousins '56 Merc (like the one above) on a double-date to the homecoming dance. That car stood out like a gem among the "shoebox" Fords, old Chevy's, and a few assorted "Daddy's cars" ( new, but non-descript 4 doors and station wagons). We had scored a couple of "hotties", but every one was more interested in the Mercury. I can still hear Rick Nelson's "Poor Little Fool" in my head when I see one of these. The girls liked it too. I like it just the way it is, except I'd want real Dodge 4-bar "Lancers".
I would get it driveable and drive it. My Fairlane is basically the same car and I have put 30k miles or so on it with the 292, Fordomatic, stock rearend, drum brakes, etc. They are good driving cars.
Unless the body has more ripples than the average lake, that car needs to be solid black. Don't ruin my memories! I never liked the extra trim on the tops of the doors (Montclair?), either. Too "busy".
You're making me jealous! In 1963 a white '56 Mercury convertible showed up on the local Ford dealers lot. I was instantly attracted, but realized that I was too young to even think about it. It disappeared off the lot a few months later and I figured I'd never see it again... About 3 months later, one of the "old" guys who was probably 21 or 22 drove it into town; he'd had it painted red, installed a new white top and lowered the front end. Made it into a beautiful car. And I lusted after it badly, but he soon sold it out of the county, never to be seen again by this farm kid...
The front crossmember has a rust problem on those cars, so look it over carefully. Total agreement with leaving the Bendix brakes unless you're on the freeway with it every day. Dropped spindles, flatten the rear springs about 3'', 30'' Brockman steelpacks with 1 7/8'' tailpipes, whitewalls & '56 Olds Starfires ...
I like the idea of leaving the drive train stock. At least for now. It does run well and no smoke at all. I only drove it far enough to get it on and off the trailer so I really have no idea how it drives. With no power steering, it steers like a truck though! Body is very straight and pretty rust free. Both front fenders have some exposed "bondo" as you can see in the pics but dont know if because of rust or dents. I took the rubber mat out of the trunk and it is very solid underneath with only surface rust. Only got it home yesterday so I have not really had any time to play with it.
Pretty nice car, and more of the Merc’s were 312’s. If you don’t have y block experience and it’s still original, the yblocksforever site and the Ford Barn will be good sources to get it running well. Sounds like it’s pretty good as is. Search “Aerostar” springs here and on the other sites. Cheapest way to drop the front, and with the progressive winding improve the ride. Disc on the front help, but the rear drums should be fine. Somewhere here is the parts list to put self adjusters on it, I think 56 was before they did that. Drive it some, align the front, steering shouldn’t be that bad.
Baby steps. Make it run drive and stop before doing anything to it. Brake shoes, a tune up and a good look at the suspension then put on a couple hundred miles. You may find things you like and dislike about the car. Very small outlay for a test fit before a large outlay for custom drive train stuff.
Here are some pics of one of my best friends 56 sedan that I had in my phone. He recently rebuilt the 312 and it is otherwise basically stock other than being lowered.
I like the idea of driving it for a few hundred miles to get the feel for what I want to do to it. This is my first Mercury and Im not sure what engine it has. It is a v8 with automatic. Here are some pics. Maybe one of you can ID the engine for me. The guy I bought this from was not sure. Said it may be a 292.
My 56 has the stock rear and added disk brakes on the front. I added a new Borgeson power steering setup. running a 350 with a turbo 350
I started driving tractor trailers in a cabover International without power steering. At low speed and in tight quarters, any vehicle without power steering will require more effort to turn, especially if you are attempting to change direction before the vehicle is actually moving. Once it is moving, it should require little effort at all. I cringe every time I see someone turning a steering wheel before they start moving.
Here you go, start checking casting numbers... http://www.ford-y-block.com/Block identification.htm and... http://yblockguy.com/identify_y-block.htm Timmy is also a HAMB member.
I guess this pretty much answers my question. Looks like from this quote from the above sites, it would be a 312. "In 1956, a 312 cu. in. version was introduced and installed in all Mercury models....."
Ask over at the Ford Barn, someone will have the data plate info. I think all Merc’s were available with 312’s. I don’t know they were all built with them. And as mentioned above, “If” it’s the original engine. No way tell from the casting numbers, you need to see the end of the crank or the main caps. Ford thunderbirds, wagons, police cars, and pick ups used Dana 44 and variants. They are pretty stout and most of them you can still get parts for. I’ve still got the Dana 44 out of a pickup ( big axles) with a posi unit in the bird. Got swapped in out of a truck before I bought the car. Enjoy.
I have no reason not to assume it's the original engine. Even if the original owner swapped it out he more than likely would have put back the same. This car is totally stock and purchased from the original owner. I guess it doesnt really matter. I will know better once I drive it a little whether Im going to keep it stock or change out the drive line.
Looks like you have real nice car to work with. Inspect and repair what's there, and run it for a while. you'll know what you want to tweak, after some trial runs.
Eh ...you'd be surprised what people did back in the day. I have a 57 283 that came from a 55 bel air that was parked in a barn from 1960 till 2015 when I was swapped to a fad engine. Everyone including the kids of the owner that parked it in 1960 thought it was the original engine. Was only when I got the engine that it was discovered to be a 283.
Hello, Ever since our old neighbor in the Westside of Long Beach had a 55-56 Mercury sedan, it always brings back memories of those days, when the “kids” would pile into the car and pretend to drive to who knows where. It was always me behind the wheel as I could touch the pedals and not have to move the seat all the way forward. Plus the seat in the normal position gave us plenty of room in the front and back seat. Of course, the windows were always rolled down to create a wide open arena for air and “coolness.” We saw neighbors driving around with their windows down and that looked like a cool way to sit and drive. No one told us about A/C or that cars could have them. Our dad once had an outside tubular water cooler that was almost useless as a cooling device, without dripping water all over the side of the car or blasting the nearest person, our mom, with bits of water in the air. She made our dad return the outside car cooler and she always turned the wind wing toward her for Air cooling. For us kids, as soon as we got an actual ride in the hardtop Mercury Sedan, we rolled down the windows. I can imagine those days with kids in the seats and no seat belts. We always leaned way out of the windows like we currently see dogs of all kinds sniffing the air and leaning out as far as they can. It was not stupid at the time, but just not knowing things… YRMV Jnaki Your Mercury has nice lines and reminds me of one my wife loved when we saw it parked in a large parking lot. It was the first time we saw such a cool looking ride. Plus, it stood out from across the huge lot as a pinpoint bright red beacon, in a field of greys, blacks, whites and blue cars as noted in more modern choice of colors. The bright red color made it easy for my wife to spot it across several rows of cars. Normally she sees old cars ahead of me, since I am driving and watching out for other cars. The first thing I noticed is the way the Mercury sedan was parked and left open. It was a hot day, but the closest building was a bank and perhaps, the owner needed some money. Luckily, the lot had plenty of parking spaces as this bank is away from most other buildings and stores, so there is always plenty of parking spaces all around the location. If it were in the Westside of Long Beach many years ago, it would have two things done. One would be a scratch on the door and the other, the Mercury left open is an invitation to “come and get it.” The fit and finish was superb. For those older larger cars, the look would have been a little better sitting lower to the ground or at least a rake of some kind. Having grown up driving a wide body Impala all over So Cal, when it got lower in the front, stance, the vision improved tremendously. Note: It was very nice, but in taking several photos, it was difficult to get a good shot due to the ride height and the bright color. But, the car would have looked nice in our small garage, if it would fit in length overall.
@jnaki...Very cool story! I can relate. When I was in high school, while everyone else was driving tri-fives and the like, one bud had a 56 Merc like mine. He pulled the huge front bumper and grille off and replace it with a metal fence post among other cheap mods. Something about that car just stuck in my head and I have always wanted one!
This is your best move by far. C.I. really doesn't matter when it comes to a good driver toy car. You say it steered kinda hard after sitting since 1989, no kidding? All the chassis grease is hard as a rock! Give it a good lube job and put some air in the tires. She'll come around, you be surprised. In 1982 I found and bought a twin of yours for my current wife. It had the stock motor in it but in pieces for no known reason. That made the price outstanding. I had a nice running 302 with C-4 behind it. In 2 days it was back on the road and she drove it for 5 years. It still had the stock drum brakes on it when we sold it. We still see it around and Car events. K.I.S.S. is always your best move until you know exactly what direction you "need" to go. I can tell you more about the Motor swap if you're interested.
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