1955 Mercury Facts: Resources

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• Mercury Custom
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1955 Mercury Facts – Body Paint Color Mix Codes

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1955 Mercury

1955 Mercury Facts and Specifications

General Year Information – 1955 Mercury Cars

Mercurys were restyled this year. They were longer, lower and wider, with an increase in wheelbase to 119 inches, yet they still resembled the 1954 models to continue brand identity. The bumper integrated grille had three heavy vertical bars between the upper and lower bumper. All Mercurys for 1955 offered a canted hood over the headlights that had previously been introduced on the Mercury XM-800 concept car in 1954. The windshield was now “wraparound”.  The tall vertical taillights had what has been called a “chubby cheeks” bulge. A 3-speed manual transmission was standard along with an overdrive option, and a 3-speed automatic was offered as an upgrade. Brake size was increased and a padded dash was standard.

Montclair
Mercury redesigned its model line, and added adding the Montclair as a premium line above the Monterey. The line included a four-door sedan a convertible and a 2-door hardtop with the Sun Valley acrylic roof, the line had a 2 inch lower roofline from the Monterey. As a styling feature, the Montclair received a color-contrast panel below the window line typically color-coordinated with the roof. The 292 CID V-8 was adopted from the new Ford Thunderbird and developed 198 in the Montclair due to an 8.5:1 compression ratio and 188 HP in the other lines. Standard equipment included cloth and vinyl upholstery, full interior carpeting, and chrome window surround moldings; among the options were a heater and windshield defroster, radio, power adjustable front seat, power windows, power steering, power brakes and auxiliary road lamps. The listed retail price for the 1955 2-door Hardtop Coupe was $2,631 and 71,588 we sold.

The Montclair model line again offered the Sun Valley. As in 1954, the front half of the roof was a tinted Acrylic panel. The design was not widely accepted by consumers, who found interior heat buildup in the vehicle during the summer unacceptable, as air conditioning was not offered as an option until 1956. In total, only 1,787 Sun Valleys were produced.

Monterey
This year, the car lost its status as Mercury’s top model, as it was replaced by the Montclair. It was still positioned above the base model Custom series. It did, however, gain the 292 CID Y-block from the Thunderbird, but only produced 188 HP due to a lower 7.6:1 compression ratio. The base price of the 1955 four-door sedan was $2,400 and sold 70,392 units.

Custom
Production totals recorded that the Custom was losing ground to the more upscale Monterey, even though being moderately less expensive. With the introduction of the Montclair above the Monterey, this continued to encourage sales away from the Custom, and sales declined.

Historical
Mercury shared honors with Chevrolet as Motor Trend magazine’s “Car of the Year”. Both Mercury and Lincoln became separate divisions in the spring of 1955.

1955 Mercury Facts – Powertrains

• Transmissions
  • 3-Speed manual transmission:  1st- 2.49:1, 2nd – 1.59:1, 3rd – 1.00:1, Reverse – 3.15:1.
  • 3-Speed manual overdrive transmission:  1st- 2.49:1, 2nd – 1.59:1, 3rd – 1.00:1, Overdrive 0.72:1, Reverse – 3.15:1.
  • 3-Speed automatic transmission: 1st- 2.40:1, 2nd – 1.47:1, 3rd – 1.00:1, Reverse – 2.00:1. NOTE: 1st gear only engaged at WOT.
• Engines
  • 292 CID V-8 188 HP in Monterey and Custom.
  • 292 CID V-8 198 HP in Montclair.
• Rear Gear Ratios
  • 3-Speed manual transmission – 3.73:1 standard, 4.09:1 optional.
  • 3-Speed manual overdrive transmission – 4.09:1 standard, 3.73:1 optional.
  • 3-Speed automatic transmission – 3.15:1 standard, 3.54:1 optional.

1955 Mercury Facts – Significant Options

• • Arctic windshield blades.
  • Back-up lamps.
  • Chrome rocker panels Custom & Monterey models, standard on Montclair.
  • Curb signals.
  • Door edge guards.
  • Door handle fingernail shields.
  • Emergency-utility light and case.
  • Engine compartment light.
  • Fender shields on Custom.
  • Fender skirts, Custom model, standard on Monterey and Montclair.
  • Floor mats.
  • Hand brake signal light.
  • Heater.
  • Inside control rear view mirror.
  • Locking gas tank cap.
  • Outside rear view mirror.
  • Power brakes.
  • Power seat.
  • Power steering.
  • Radio.
  • Rear window defroster.
  • Seat covers.
  • Solex glass.
  • Spotlight.
  • Spotlight and Mirror.
  • Tissue dispenser.
  • Undercoating.
  • Utility spotlight.
  • Vanity mirror.
  • Whitewall tires.
  • Windshield washers.