1957 Mercury Monterey Hardtop “ The Big Green Machine ” & Ride on My Car Story with Lou Costabile 

Back then many families would make a night out and go see the new cars. The one car that stood out for me was the '57 Merc. Thanks Lou.

Absolutely beautiful, they made cars back in the day !

This 57 is my favorite car as a 6 year kid. I was really was crazy for a Mercury. Thank you for sharing with us. Beautiful beautiful car.

Im in LOVE with that color combo!

Wow! You definitely won't miss this '57 when it pulls into the neighborhood or anywhere else for that matter. This Merc' looks great, John & Lou. Sometimes you really don't have to look all that far from home to find a real automotive gem!

The styling of this beautiful car has me "jaded" against anything made today! Thank you Lou!

These cars had such a spaceship/rocket influence. What a sweet car. GREAT VIDEO LOU.

I would call John the neighbor from heaven. If only I was that lucky . Perhaps there is a house for sale nearby. Very nice car and nicely done with the updated driveline with the stock appearance. Thanks to John and Lou!

Mean green machine!!! The 460 sounded very good. Nice car

My dad bought a1957 Merc Monterey 4 dr sedan It had the mauve & black 2 tone like the one in the picture. I loved that car. I just got my license and my dad let me drive it all the time. I didn't mind taking my mom to the store or pick my sister up from work Just so I could drive. It was the first AMOST NEW car in our family.

“M” stands for magnificent!!!

The color combo is what caught my eye!

What a BEAUTIFUL RARE piece of Jewelry! Smiling ear to ear on that engine sound. Everyone needs a neighbor like John...Thanks for sharing!!!

Like a few others have mentioned.. That's a whole lot of green. Great car. I love that it's a driver. Thank you for sharing.

Beautiful car, love the paint and interior colors.

That's a lot of *green* very cool. Lou, your shirt is awesome, too.

The two-tone green color scheme is to die for. With the big 460 engine it must be a rocket ship !

Love it ! Big green mo chene! 460! Oh Yeah!!

Another cool video. It is true that when you go to car shows, you see a lot of Mustangs, and Chevy's of all vintages, but it is very rare to see a car like this. When I attend a car show, it is these rare cars that I look for. By the way really cool Batmobile T shirt.

I love the fact that he drives it around.

Beautiful Mercury, I love it!

This is a 1957 Mercury Monterey Phaeton (hardtop) coupe with production of 42,199. Standard engine in the Monterey was 312 V-8 with 255 horsepower. The more upmarket models were the Montclair, Turnpike Cruiser, and Wagons (Commuter, Voyager, Colony Park). Despite the new design and gadgets, sales of the 1957 Mercury actually decreased. That was the beginning of a sales decline for the big Mercury. FoMoCo struggled for years afterward to increase sales of the big Mercury. Sales finally increased with the Marquis and straight edged styling imitation of the Lincoln Continental. My personal favorite was the big 1960 Mercury. Former Packard engineers worked on the big Mercurys of that era. The 1949 to 1956 Mercurys were more popular at the time. Jack Reith was general manager of Mercury Division and also took part in the planning of the Edsel. Both cars had underwhelming sales and he left FoMoCo in 1958 even though he was one of the original "Whiz Kids" along with Robert McNamara. Reith committed suicide in 1960. These big "M" cars were advertised on The Ed Sullivan Show. Factory air conditioning was extremely rare. FoMoCo struggled with Mercury, Edsel, and Lincoln in the late 1950s ... the standard Ford sold well enough to keep the company solvent.

My parents used to get invitations to new car showing parties often. One party that really stood out was the 1958 Ford showing which was held inside the huge Hangar at the Airport. About 150 plus people were treated to a buffet style dinner with the desert highlight being the curtain raised for the cars in the center of the Hangar; a baby blue t-bird convertible flanked by 2 t-bird hardtops on the left a black with standard equipment and on the right a loaded bright red hardtop. After the ooohs and aaaahs subsided in drove the rest of regular Fords from behind the other curtains; loaded Fairlane 2 & 4 door hardtops, 2 & 4 Fairlane door sedans, 2 & 4 door custom sedans, 2 and 4 door Country sedan station wagons, a 4 door loaded Country Squire station wagon, a loaded Ranchero, a F-100, a fancy two tone F-250 a F-350 dual rear wheeled stake bed and finally FT-850 Dump Truck. Many people purchased vehicles including my parents who took the mettallic green 4 door Country Sedan which they delivered the next day and picked up the trade in.

Always get excited for any car from 1957, the year I was born! And this one is a beauty! Being a neighbor and getting to see this car all the time must be a real joy! And you know Lou...... there is a song by Alan Jackson called the Mercury Blues! He sings " I'm gonna buy me a Mercury and cruise it up and down the road" Another great "My Car Story", Lou....... I'm partial to all of your Ford Motor Company stories!

What a pretty car!! Space age!!

I LOVE WATCHING THIS SHOW OF THIS. CAR. OVER AGAIN

Dad had a '57 Merc two tone blue and white post real rare!

LOU. YOU REALLY SHOW YOUR CARS TO US SO PROFESSIONALLY

1957 is the year I was born. Amazingly beautiful and perfectly designed car. Love it. Thanks for a great video, Lou. I'm so glad I'm a subscriber.

Everything was analog back in the day.styling over the top,Ford loved those vent windows with little push button and rubber seal , paint looks like a rattle can job, factory paint was quite poor back then, however it is representative of the era.glass packs Lou?

My first car was a 1957 Mercury Montclair 4door sedan. The mid level model. It was 1970 and I paid $75.00 for it. I was so wound up having a car with crappy brakes and clacking lifters. It had a vent window on all four doors and that superfluous hood ornament in the rear window shelf. Why ? It was painted that very popular color called "Persimmon" with white along the thin arrows that went from the back door to taillights. Mine had faded badly so I knicknamed it "The Old Pink Beauty" like what they called the '65 Imperial on the TV show Green Hornet. The '57 Merc was a car that looked better with the two headlamp arrangement. But I thought the exclamation point rear end lights were so cool. Thanks for yet another xlnt video and thank your friend for a nice memory

Nice '57 Mercury...and what a huge range of cars in the Mercury lineup. I had a 'cruise' through Hampshire Ill...nice little town, like many small towns in Australia where I am, except the grass is always greener in USA towns. Australia is much drier and a li'l bit warmer than many US states. Thanks for showing us your neighbours sweet ride Lou.

I love the 'M' on the front of the car, and on the back too, of course. The car is a nice color. The interior looks nice too - 2 tone, really sharp.

What an absolutely gorgeous Mercury!

Watching this made me "green" with envy! All kidding aside, though, that's a very nice car. You don't see many '57 Mercurys today. So this is a treat. Would have been even better to see it in person. An even rarer sight is the Turnpike Cruiser. Have you seen one of those? The TC was equipped with every imaginable gadget: power seats, a retracting rear window, a small antenna in each front corner above the A-pillar, and even a small medallion on the rear trunklid that lit up at night! A '57 TC convertible was pace car at the Indy 500 that year. I'm going to keep watching for more videos, Lou! Can't wait to see what's next! (10/10/2020)

Two new neighbors who are both car guys - nice. Hope the wives are okay with this : ) Love the interior of this Monterey, really looks smart. In all, a cool looking coupe that you likely won't see another one at the local show. Congrats to owner, and thanks Lou.

I really like the green tones on this one. One of my favorite colors on '50's cars. The Turnpike Cruisers were a bit more impressive, but I do like the clean look of the Monterey, particularly the use of the standard round steering wheel. It's a nice practical cruiser with the upgrades, but I would invest into getting those proper '57 wheel covers. The '57 Chevy-like design of them were very appealing.

Nice to see the 57 Mercury! They sure were nice cars back then and today, you just don’t see them. I love all the books and the way you present them. Great job on this one!

Hi, Lou! Such an interesting coincidence how a classic car guy owner just happened to move next door to you! You've featured so many uncommon cars and now this one's found you! As you say, this Big M is magnificent. Alan Jackson ought to be crazy about this one for sure!

A nice car. Actually a green car can look nice! I remember like a while ago my husband went to buy a car for me. He asked me: "What color do you want your car to be?" I said: "Any color, but not green!" LOL!

Hey Lou. How have you been? Awesome looking 57 Mercury Monterey. It must be awesome to have a neighbour who's also a car enthusiast. I've always loved the pre-dual headlamp cars. I love the condition. 🙂

Great, don't see many of these rare classics anymore. great vid. thanks.

ASTONISHING AMAZING THIS WAS THE DRIVE AND LOOK THAT CAN´T BE TOPPED.

Looking great that Mercury, thanks Lou for the video!

beautiful car beautiful beautiful amazing keep doing what you doing stay safe

I really like how the taillights look like an Angry Eye Sore dove

Another jewel Thanks Lou.

What a nice old Mercury! I love the colors so neat and that interior really was neat. I liked the engine sound too and that motor wow! What a cool owner too he was fun as well. I loved that T shirt you had on too Lou!! Gotta love that Batmobile!!! Thanks for sharing Lou!

This 1957 Mercury looks great in 2 tone green . I do like that the steering wheel is also 2 tone .

My dad a 57 Mercury when I was little. It was the first car we had with A/C. I rember the A/C vents came out of the top of the dash. It wasn't much good but my mother loved it!!

LOU OMG ANOTHER CAR. DAD HAD ! WE HAD. 2 TONE GREEN. 4DSD. PLASTIC SEAT COVERS DOUBLE HEAD LIGHTS ...HIGH HATS HUBCAPS ... LOVE THAT CAR . A REAL LOOKER TRANSMISSION. WENT ...

Way Awesome resto mod, love the colour scheme, have fun!!!!!

For real SOMETHING ELSE. ❤️it

Nice! What no burnouts? The 460 is a great addition and not a more modern crate motor. Thanks for sharing this Lou it is a beauty.

Whoa! You had me from the get go of this video Lou! I love it buddy! 👍👍🤘✌🏻

well that never happens lol. Imagine having a carnut move in next door and he seems like a awesome guy! Lou has Angels looking after him.

REALLY NICE CAR LOU.NEAT COLOUR AS WELL.DISMILL DAY IN HOLLAND JUST RIGHT TO ENJOY YOUR VIDEO

LOVE THIS CAR.

And here I thought Buick was the first with a tape speedometer. Very cool car and with a high compression 460, it should scoot along well. Another find and you just had to walk a few blocks! Even better!

Amazing car! Thanks for sharing!

AFTER MARKET. "AIR ?" AWESOME

In the first part of the 1968 run, Lincoln was still using the 462 MEL, which had a C6 with its own bellhousing bolt pattern, differing from the others and very hard to find these days. The C6 that arrived with the 460 had the 385-series bolt pattern which was used into the 90's. The rear deck speakers here are just weird enough to blend in, but need to be chromed like everything else. I suggest Molotow. Look it up... Oh no!!. It's a huge green Rumblesaurus! Everybody run for your lives!!

Hey Lou, very nice 57 Mercury Monterey, the green paint & multi colored upholstery sets it just right. Sure don’t see too many of these cars at classic car shows anymore. I tend to like these type of classic cars which are more unique & rare then the “more “ abundant models. Great interview Lou & nice to see you have a COOL neighbor with a classic car.Now you need to buy a old classic car Lou & go cruising with your neighbor.👍💚✌️❤️😎

Beautiful Merc❤️

That is a very nice Mercury.

What a stunning automobile that Merc is ! That color is outstanding and those hardtops were great and looked cool with a lot of open air feel. This was an era when cars makers took great pride in their designs and paid attention to every detail letting everyone know their brand by name identification and distinctive badges. Now a days you can hardly tell one bland vehicle from the other. Thanks for this one Lou. Are you guys in the south suburbs ? I'm up north in IL near the Wisc. boarder.

Very nice Mercury - in fact, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a 57 Monterey (I’m not sure if they sold them in Canada - Canada might have only gotten the Montclair ). The channel serves as a good reminder of the Windy City. Thanks Lou!

does it still have some of the plastic on the seats?

Nice old Merc, there. Very surprising that they had a power seat, with position memory. Didn't know those existed back then!

Most cars now look like Angry Insects from the front and Jellybeans from the side.

Seems like it's doing 80 miles an hour just standing still, beautiful design.

One of your best one's yet, Lou! Hilarious, and you guys are neighbors?? Too bad you two got nothing in common, Lol. Sadly, Lou has apparently gone blind as he didn't see this green (or is it GREEEEN?) Big Bad Merc sitting across the road. Or perhaps Lou was blinded by the chrome, hmmm? Ok, first thing; This car is ridiculous and I LOVE it! BAD-RIDE is what it is. Two thumbs and ten toes up to John for not destroying the look of the car with aftermarket skirts and a "continental" kit. John's got a big back seat, he don't need the extra length out back;) Best line, Lou: "Uhm, this things got brakes right?"...., John; "Did I mention the HUGE 460!! cube plant was introduced in 1968??". One last request before I get serious..., John NEEDS to dress up, full tilt, top to bottom, hat coat beard shoes pipe.., as a leprechaun, drive around town like a criminal in the Big M, Dukes of Hazzard style, smokey burnouts, donuts..., while Lou films the reaction of the local gentry😂 Only then, shall we have world peace. WONDERFUL CAR John. "Gee, that's a neat old car mister"...., "shoulda seen it 5 minutes ago at 113 mph...." Period perfect hot rod, had me thinking of "Steve's/Terry the Toad's" loaded up '58 Impala from American Graffiti. Candy Clark: "Can it lay rubber? I just LOVE it when guys peel out..." Lou, the invite is still open. If you're ever in the rolling farmland of Sussex County N.J. I'll let you drive/ride in (your choice) my 1972 Stingray for feature on your channel. I'd be honored actually. Best wishes....

Nice!!

Great car.. your hometown is a lot like the one I had back in the USA

My dad bought one and the mercury was labeled as the big M and it was bigger than the 56 mercury. It was a great car. Rose pink color

Am absolutely green 💚 with envy!

Thanks my friends what a beauty Doug in Ga

Hats one great restomod love the sound the lights ore cool wish you would shown them lit up

I’m just taking a guess, but the roofline over the rear window looks to be part of the airflow ventilation system. Not quite sure of the workings on that though. And that’s if I’m even close to that. Another interesting item I noted is that the lower portion of the rear bumper looks very similar to the mid-1960’s Thunderbird combined bumper & taillight design. What a beautiful emerald piece of automotive history. Thanks Lou so much!

Green emerald 😍 very very beautiful

Hi John & Lou • Nice 👍

Thanks as usual for sharing and to the guy who shared. A wish if possibile, if ever you find a 58 Super Marauder Merc, I would looove to see one?

Blue… I subscribe today… You definitely are awesome at what you do. The cars is you choose amazing.

Aftermarket Air Conditioning..”Factory Installed”. Ah....don’t think so! Sears maybe?

Very nice 😀😀

Sou de Salvador Brasil meu pai tinha um Ford 1951 parabéns para você adoro seu canal no RU-vid

Great stuff 👍 Lou.... If you are doing more rehearsal! Then it shows 👍.... Lincolnesque with a dash of Edsel. Very desirable...57 Olds Starfire probably just edges it. But it is a close run thing...

JUST A GREAT CAR . A REAL LOOKER. CLASS. GOING. DOWN THE ROAD WISH IT WAS. 4 $ALE DAD & MOM HAD A 4DR 2 TONE PASTEL, DARK GREEN. TRIM. ALONG THE REAR UPPER FENDERS GREEN GREEN. PLASTIC COVERINGS ON THE SEATS . CLEAN .

Thanks, JOHN AND Lou: great overview... Interestingly, seem like there should be a lot more MERCURY “: “Restorations”.. THE 40-50-60 MERCS were many times optioned up, and more decorated: “my car Crowd”, thOUGHT of MERCS AS A BETTER BUILD , MORE POWEEFUL ..INTERESTINGLY, ALWAYS wondered about the F Codes 1957 ( Fuel INJ, Dealer stuff , etc ) in Mercury Cars: IF SOME DID GET “:Interceptor, Police stuff, ETC,

Wish I had a neighbor like you guys Lou! What kind of HP was that 460 making? I'll bet it was also a torque monster.

The “dirty pickle” 😎

My dad had a Monarch with the same 2 tone green.

I know somebody that has one of those. It's a really cool car. He put a modern fuel injected v6 in it so the car is easy to start.

Hi Lou! 🚙🔥🔥🔥💨💨💨

Oh man.... can we trade neighbors? I would love to go for a ride in that car. Great color combinations in the 50s!

It would have been nice to hear a few details about that dual-quad 460 engine build. Lou, if you happen by a Canadian-marketed Mercury (Meteor and Monarch): www.macsmotorcitygarage.com/fords-canadian-cousins-meteor-and-monarch/ en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monarch_(marque) , that would be cool, because they had different bumpers and trim. In my opinion, even more fancy and luxurious than Mercurys sold for the U.S. market had. Even Canadian Ford trucks were sold as Mercurys, trimmed and badged accordingly

O M. G

Had to check on that 460 information; it was indeed introduced in 1968 as exclusive to Lincoln until the 1972 model year.

Poor John's colorblind, bless his heart. Otherwise nice car.

See you on St. Patties Day.