West Coast Classics are proud to present an absolutely exceptional comprehensive frame off restoration and completely rust free and restored with great attention to detail example of this 1956 Mercury Montclair Convertible with its 312 CI V8 engine in beautiful and striking 'Flo-Tone' two-tone color combination with a gorgeous matching interior. The car had factory options including the 312 V8 engine, a Merc-O-Matic automatic transmission, vinyl upholstery, power top, electric clock, horn ring, chrome window surround moldings, full length body side stainless trim, rear fender skirts, rocker panel moldings, heater & defroster, signal seeking AM radio, power steering, tinted glass, 4-way power front seat, padded instrument panel & seat belts, power windows, road lamps, hubcaps and whitewall tires!
The legendary Mercury Monterey coupe was forever immortalized in 1949 by James Dean in 'Rebel without a Cause' and then the following year was chosen as the official Pace Car for the Indianapolis 500, and with good reason - big, imposing and expensive and a standout amongst 1950's American cars for both exceptional and unique styling and sound engineering and performance, coupled with solid construction and a high quality fit and finish, the Mercury Monterey was a top-of-the-line sub-series in 1952 before becoming a line of its own for 1953-54. Ford's flathead V8 continued until 1954 with the company's introduction of the all new 292 'Y' block overhead valve V8 with a five-main-bearing crankshaft and a standard 4 barrel carburetor, also to be used in the Ford Thunderbird. The Monterey was available as a convertible, sedan, a pillar-less coupe and station wagon.
The Mercury Montclair was to supersede the Monterey as the top-of-the-line Mercury model and was first introduced in 1954 and would continue being a stand out amongst early '50's cars for their exceptional styling and sound engineering. They offered a lot of new features and upgrades which were introduced to distinguish the new '56 models such as a 12 volt electrical system and an array of new options that could now be supported by the the higher voltage. New styling features included Mercury's best trim and a revised bumper and grille with the vertical bars of the lower section appearing to show above the center bar, as well as a newly designed front bumper with a blunt end, as opposed to the bullet style point on the '55 Mercury. The Mercury name in block letters was moved from the hood to the center bumper bar and on the hood a large 'M' emblem was used as part of the 'Big M' marketing theme most notably with the introduction of the larger V8's with more power. Hooded headlights and and a jet style hood ornament continued. Body side trim was changed to a full length lightning bolt style piece on all but the wagons. Introduced by Lincoln some years earlier was the striking image of a visible rear spare wheel resting on the trunk lid and extended bumpers, otherwise known as the optional "Continental kit". This option was welcome since it refined the look of the Mercury without overbearing its classic lines which until 1956 deliberately ignored the fifties fashion for fins, making it a very unique looking car for its era.
This particular example is exceptionally rare and unusual, firstly as an obviously stunningly frame off rotisserie restored example with no expense spared with beautifully razor straight sheet metal with no signs or history of any accidents or rust ever and with the undercarriage looking as new as the body. The car has a beautiful and obviously very professional repaint in a striking two-tone color paint scheme and has a beautiful matching two tone vinyl correctly restored with correct original material interior including piping etc and with all its original factory instrumentation intact including the original 'AM' signal seeking radio, all of which are is in quite exceptional and original specification condition throughout. All the chrome has been re-chromed and the car's original 312 V8 engine and the transmission was reportedly rebuilt at the time of the restoration.
As you would expect from such a comprehensive frame off restored example all the options are working as they should and the 312 V8 engine is extremely strong and powerful and sounds absolutely magnificent with this particular car also driving absolutely magnificently - must be driven to be believed - does not miss a beat and purrs like a kitten - drives straight as an arrow with no strange road wobbles, shakes or rattles - a truly remarkable daily driver that will give any modern day car a run for it's money! The transmission shifts smoothly through the gears and the car is an absolute pleasure to drive!
This is an extraordinarily rare opportunity to own a superb frame off restored with no expense spared example of this true American classic - a top-of-the-line 1956 Mercury Montclair Convertible in a very striking two-tone color combination and beautiful matching interior! A true all American classic car, an essential addition for the Ford/Mercury collector or simply any classic car enthusiast to enjoy today with burly good looks and just the right amount of tasteful period flash matched to a modern powerful V8, long underappreciated, with convertible models in particular being of low production to begin with and now obviously very scarce and thin on the ground, collector values are rising fast, with not too many having been saved over the years, and very few, if any, in this kind of show ready quality condition!
