Big M ‘Safety-Surge’ V-8 Trivia Question of the Week: 1. What role did Mercury play in Roman Mythology? 2. On January 16, 1957, Arturo Toscanini died. Who and what was he? 3. On February 4, 1957, the United States launched its first nuclear-powered submarine. What was the name of this ship? 4. On January 5, 1957, this National League baseball player retired from the sport rather than move across town from the Dodgers to the Giants to whom he had been traded in December. 5. The hit single ‘Teddy Bear’ reached the number one slot on the Billboard Top 50 on June 15, 1957. Who performed this hit song which remained in the number one position for seven weeks? 6. Born September 30, 1957, this American film, television actress and comedienne, would, among many other accomplishments, become star of ‘The Nanny’ which aired on CBS Television from 1993-1999. Name this famous star. 7. Although Labor Day has become the celebration of the last long summer weekends before Autumn sets in, it was originally created to celebrate the labor movement and its achievements. Congress declared the first Monday in September as an official holiday in what year? Was it, A. 1894; B. 1929; C. 1936 or D. 1942? 8. On July 6, 1957, two English teenagers met for the first time at St. Peter’s garden fete in Woolton, a prestigious middle class suburb of Liverpool. Who were they and what musical group did they form three years later?
Find the answers to this week’s trivia questions on the FIN MAN’s web site at http://www.thefinman.com.

Nineteen fifty-seven was an exciting year in American automotive design. Many manufacturers introduced totally new models and others, like Chevrolet for example, while keeping the same basic body parts from the previous two years, refreshed and made over the trim pieces, and for all intents and purposes, most people didn’t even notice that the cars were simply make-overs.
Such was not the case for Mercury, however. FoMoCo’s mid-priced leader had been borrowing sheet metal from both Ford and Lincoln for years, but in 1957, it took on a fresh, new look of its own, with little family resemblance to either of its cousins. The fifty-sevens were pretty ostentatious by today’s standards, (particularly the top-of-the-line Turnpike Cruiser)– and when compared to modern day Mercs, they look almost like one of Bill Bierman’s radical custom creations. But remember, these were the days of excessive chrome embellishments, sky-high tail fins and a vast array of trim materials in countless patterns of gold and silver. Mercury ad men proclaimed the ‘57 as "America’s First Production Dream Car– with new ‘Dream Car Design... The Shape of the Future in Every Line and Feature."

The front end of the fifty-seven Mercury was a complex design which included hefty-looking, dual, oblong bumpers– a theme echoed at the aft end of these land yachts. Early models had dual headlamps, but quads were standard on the Turnpike Cruiser and introduced as an option in mid year on lesser models like our feature car the Montclair and the entry level Monterey. Roughly one third of 1957 Mercurys were equipped with quad headlamps. Although Mercury was right up there with the best of them in the frills department, ‘The Big M’ as it was called, was rather reserved when it came to fins. Designers chose a clean, straight concave panel of sorts which terminated in pie slice shaped taillights. This intriguing style, borrowed from Ford’s early fifties XM Turnpike Cruiser ‘dream car’, was unique to the marque, and became a Mercury styling cue which would be enhanced and tweaked over the following two model years. The news from Mercury’s sales department, however, wasn’t as exciting as the new styling. Sales fell slightly from the prior year and Mercury’s sales ranking slipped from seventh to eighth. Maybe my aunt Dorothy thought the flashy Mercs were a bit too gaudy for her tastes, but anyone who enjoyed turning heads at the hop, drive-in or the country club, would find the ‘57 Mercurys a capable vehicle.

The 1957 Mercury was a car with much to boast about besides the new styling. When it came to creature comforts and features, few marques matched the ingenuity of the Big M. One look at the ‘57 sales brochure tells the story. The Mercury V-8 engines, (Mercury was V-8 powered from the beginning) offered "The most spectacular performance in Mercury history", or so claimed the brochure. These engines, available in two sizes, a 312 cubic inch (5.1 liter) version producing 255 horsepower, and a 368 cubic inch (6.0 liter) model which cranked out 290 ponies. A quietly-publicized dual four-barrel set up known as the ‘M-335’ power package, was offered on the larger engine and was available in the base model Montereys. The ‘335’ designation stood for the resulting horsepower rating. Finned, aluminum valve covers with the ‘335’ embossed in the center, were part of the deal. These were the most powerful engines in Mercury history and were undoubtedly a key factor in Mercury being selected as the Indy Pace Car for 1957– a coveted ‘plum’ in the auto industry.

One of the secrets of Mercury’s power plant success was the ‘Safety-Surge’ design which featured two distinct mechanical details. The first was the "new and exclusive" ‘Thermo-Matic’ carburetor. This designation was somewhat of a misnomer, however, as the process was more of an air intake function than that of the carburetor. According to Ford engineers, the carburetor "hand picks" incoming air that the engine breathes. In the summer, cooler air is drawn in from outside the hood, increasing fuel economy and helping to prevent vapor lock. In cold weather, warmer air from under the hood was collected, resulting in faster warm-ups, better performance and less chance of carburetor icing. The second feature of the system was the new ‘Power Booster Fan’, a special set up which claimed to "save up to 17 horsepower that other cars waste!" According to the Ford folks, the engine fan was needed in only about 20% of normal driving, as during stop and go traffic and/or on hot days. During cooler weather or when the car was traveling at highway speeds, and a substantial amount of air was being forced through the radiator, the fan disengaged automatically... hence the power savings. A dash-mounted ‘Power Booster’ indicator let the driver know when the fan was operating and when it was idle.

Like most Ford cars of the period, access to the big V-8 engines was less than service friendly. The ‘Big M’ hoods were hinged at the front edge rather than at the rear as with conventional bonnets of the day. Opening the hood from the rear edge was awkward to say the least and replacing a radiator or water pump was a challenge for mechanics, both professional and ‘shade tree,’ to say the least. The interesting but frustrating feature was the cause of more than a few strings of profanity uttered at my father’s Mobilgas service station at the corner of Delmar and Hanley roads in University City, Missouri.

The ‘bells and whistles’ didn’t end under that backward opening hood, however. Were you impressed when you got behind the wheel of your late model Lincoln, Lexus or other luxury car and found that the power seat automatically found your personally preferred position when starting the car and that it backed away from the steering wheel when the key was turned off... facilitating effortless egress? Well, you might be surprised to find out that Mercury offered the same convenience more than fifty years ago! ‘Seatomatic,’ the "New Power Seat That Remembers," included a dash-mounted control dial which selected your favorite position– up, down, fore and aft, of the 4-way power front seat.

The dashboard also housed the ‘Keyboard Control,’ a push-button automatic transmission gear selector, ala Chrysler Corp and American Motors vehicles of the day. Unlike the Mopar machines, Mercury’s push-button selector included a ‘PARK’ setting which engaged a pin, holding the parked vehicle in place in case the driver forgot to engage the parking brake. As automatic transmissions gained in popularity, many drivers became complacent about using the parking brake... a less than desirable habit that persists to this day. (That habit cost me a right front fender on my ‘02 Monte Carlo recently, as my DeSoto slowly rolled into the Monte while my back was turned!)

Another proud promise from the marketing department at Mercury was "a unique new floating ride," claimed to be "the most sensational advance in riding comfort to be offered the American motoring public by any car in modern automotive history." The ‘Dream-Smooth Driving’ was accomplished through three innovative features including, ‘exclusive’ Full-Cushion Shock Absorbers (a first in the industry according to the M men); a new and improved ‘springing action’; and Swept-Back Front Ball Joint suspension. Combined with a "scientific distribution of weight" it offered "Remarkable, cloud-soft Floating Ride you enjoy on all Big M models... and in no other car." The sales brochure also said that "The very first time you take to the road in a new Big M, you’ll discover that here is dream-smooth driving... so free of bumps, vibrations and noise that it’s like rolling along on a luxurious carpet."
Other Big M options for the year included, power steering, power brakes, power windows, radio, heater, air conditioning and a continental kit, in case the provided glitter just wasn’t enough to suit your tastes. A manual, three-speed transmission was standard equipment on Merc for ‘57, but a scant four of every one hundred were so equipped. Although a/c was offered, only 1.3 percent of buyers chose the still relatively new feature. Perhaps many people were not sure they needed the feature what with the openness of the new Mercury pillarless hardtops, especially the Turnpike Cruisers, equipped with an electrically operated, roll-down rear window whose center section retracted for ‘flow through’ ventilation.

Mercurys for 1957 were built in one of five manufacturing plants including Dearborn, Michigan; Los Angeles, California; St. Louis, Missouri; Metuchen, New Jersey and Wayne, Michigan. Three trim level series were offered, Monterey, Montclair and Turnpike Cruiser in a variety of body styles including two and four door sedans, hardtops, convertibles and station wagons. All rode the same 122 inch wheelbase and had the same 211 inch overall length.

A wide range of sparkling, fifties-fashionable hues were offered including such favorites as Tahitian Green; Moon Mist Yellow; Pastel Peach; Rosewood; Lexington Green; Sunset Orchid: Terolian Blue; Spring Valley Green; Brazilian Bronze; Fiesta Red; Nantucket Blue; Pacific Blue; Sherwood Green; Regency Gray; Persimmon... and of course, Tuxedo Black and Classic White. Our feature car for this week’s story is dressed in Classic White over Nantucket Blue.

The 1957 Montclairs were base, factory priced from $3,188.00 for a four door sedan, to $3,430.00 for a drop top. Montereys averaged about $400.00 less, model for model and Turnpike Cruisers were about five to six hundred above the Montclairs. The Montclair Phaeton Coupe was $3,236.00 sans options. That figure equates to around $26,170.00 in ‘08 dollars... just about smack dab in the middle of the 2008 Mercury Sable and Mercury Grand Marquis base prices.

If you’re thinking of picking up a (like the one featured in this story) for the Route 66 Festival on the old Chain of Rocks Bridge this October 4th, be prepared to shell out around twenty G’s for a trophy winning example. Expect to add around five Gs for a Turnpike Cruiser and perhaps another ten percent or so if equipped with that ‘M-335’ power package.

A good resource for finding a vintage Mercury would be the Classic Mercury Club, just one of many Mercury clubs in the U.S. You can get more information by contacting Ron Hauser at 216-968-3932.
American car makers were riding high on the crest of a wave in 1957. The booming post war economy was at its peak, gas was a bargain and citizens from Maine to California were striving diligently to achieve the American dream of a home in the suburbs, a pool in the back yard and a two car garage. The hopes of many, however, would soon be dashed, however, by the recession of 1958 when automobile sales plunged.

For more about the 1957 Mercurys, including pages from the 1957 sales brochure which illustrate some of the features covered in this story, visit my web site at www.thefinman.com.
Don’t forget to MARK YOUR CALENDAR. Join The FIN MAN for the Route 66 Festival on Saturday, October 4, 2008. For details visit his web site at http://www.thefinman.com.

Bruce Kunz is available for your group’s special event and is currently booking dates for 2008 and 2009. During his appearances, he presents an overview of the collector car hobby plus a detailed look at American cars from the fifties and sixties. His program includes a Power Point presentation with images of collectible automobiles and various associated nostalgia and Americana. Guests also have the opportunity to play "FINS for FUN" (which inspired his nickname), the video car trivia game Mr. Kunz first produced in 1987, in which players compete for auto related prizes donated by supporting Fin Man sponsors. For more information, click on this link: http://groups.msn.com/the-fin-man/seminaragenda.msnw.

Bruce Kunz is a member of the Society of Automotive Historians, the St. Louis Chapter of the Buick Club of America and the Monte Carlo Owners Association of America. He welcomes your comments and suggestions. To e-mail him, click here > mailto:the_fin_man@msn.com.