Mercury's S-55 package turned a plain Monterey into a bucket-seat performance special, with its own 405 hp 406 V8 not offered on the standard car.
Lead trim: S-55 390 cu in V8 (300 hp) · up to 425 hp
Mercury S-551962–1963
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Nobody in Burbles has spotted a Mercury S-55 yet. See one on the street, point the app at it, and the first card is yours — with your @handle permanently credited on this page.
FactMercury's S-55 package turned a plain Monterey into a bucket-seat performance special, with its own 405 hp 406 V8 not offered on the standard car.
The Mercury S-55 was a performance-oriented variant of the Mercury Monterey, marketed in 1962–63 and again in 1966–67 as the divisional counterpart of the Ford Galaxie 500XL and an alternative to the Chrysler 300 "letter series"; it was the full-size version of the Mercury "S" (Special) range (the smaller S-22 Comet and S-33 Meteor being primarily exterior trim, badging, bucket seats and floor shifters), offering upgraded interior features along with a higher-performance powertrain. The 1962 S-55 was introduced alongside the Monterey as a two-door hardtop (US$3,488, 2,772 sold) and convertible, with bucket seats, a center console, a floor-mounted shifter and special wheel covers, powered by the two largest V8s available in the Monterey: a 390 cu in (6.4 L) engine rated at 300 or 330 hp, or a 406 cu in (6.7 L) rated at 385 or 405 hp; the triple-carbureted 406 was a special-order engine that achieved over 95 mph in quarter-mile dragstrip tests by Road & Track. For 1963 the line was expanded to include four-door hardtops, the notchback roofline was replaced by the reverse-slant "Breezeway" retractable rear window design with the semi-fastback "Marauder" hardtop continued, and the 406 was replaced by a 427 cu in (7.0 L) engine rated at 410 or 405 hp (the page gives both), with a special-order 425 hp version intended for racing. Mercury discontinued the S-series after 1963; performance versions in 1964 carried the 390 and 427 V8s and a Marauder fastback roofline, with bucket seats and console as the extra-cost "Sports Package" for the Park Lane two- and four-door Marauder models.
Collectors Spotted in the Mercury S-55 Lineage
No member has published a public street spot of the Mercury S-55 yet — the First · Worldwide stamp is wide open.
Trims & Figures
6 published trims in the catalogue. A blank is a figure not recorded, not zero.
| Trim | Years | Engine | Power | Torque | 0–60 | Drive | Gearbox | MSRP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S-55 390 cu in V8 (300 hp) | 1962–1963 | 6.4 L V8 | 300 hp | 427 lb-ft | — | RWD | — | — |
| S-55 390 cu in V8 (330 hp) | 1962–1963 | 6.4 L V8 | 330 hp | 427 lb-ft | — | RWD | — | — |
| S-55 406 cu in V8 (385 hp, 1962) | 1962–1962 | 6.7 L V8 | 385 hp | 444 lb-ft | — | RWD | — | — |
| S-55 406 cu in V8 (405 hp, 1962) | 1962–1962 | 6.7 L V8 | 405 hp | 448 lb-ft | — | RWD | — | — |
| S-55 427 cu in V8 (1963) | 1963–1963 | 7.0 L V8 | 410 hp | 476 lb-ft | — | RWD | — | — |
| S-55 427 cu in V8 special order (425 hp, 1963) | 1963–1963 | 7.0 L V8 | 425 hp | 480 lb-ft | — | RWD | — | — |
Owning one
We don’t estimate running costs for a car like this. What it costs depends on its condition, its specialist and how it is driven, and an average would mislead.
Owners’ builds
Nobody has claimed one yet.
Photographs
The S-55’s big-block 428 wasn’t a Mercury-only engine — it was the exact same "Super Marauder" V8 that powered the Ford Galaxie 500 7-Litre that same year.
Mercury's S-55 package turned a plain Monterey into a bucket-seat performance special, with its own 405 hp 406 V8 not offered on the standard car.
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Same body, same money, other badges — tap any card to flip.
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