Last updated on February 22, 2023
Today’s car is a 1963 1/2 Mercury Comet S22 Convertible owned by Bicycle Jim. I saw this car at the 20th Annual San Juan Capistrano Classic Car Show held by their local Rotary Club. It is finished in Carnival Red with a matching red vinyl interior and a matching top boot cover. It is powered by a 170 cu in, inline 6 cylinder, that produces 101 horsepower, with a Holley single – barrel carburetor. It is mated to a Merc-O-Matic 2 speed automatic transmission with a 3.50:1 rear axle. Slowing this beauty down are 9″ hydraulic drum brakes all around. The front suspension is Independent with coil springs and in the rear solid axle with semi-elliptical leaf springs.
The S-22 was Mercury’s answer to the Corvair Monza, Chevy II SS and Falcon Futura. It came with a sporting trim package that included stylish bucket-seats, S22 distinct side medallions, and tricolored wheel cover medalians. The taillights were a special triple light arrangement set on a rear grille. The S-22 trim package was available on only 3 models, the convertible with a power operated top, a 2-door hardtop, and a two-door sedan.
There were 28,105 1963 S22s produced with 5,757 of them being convertibles. The MSRP was for a S22 convertible was $2,710.00, Top speed was 86 mph and a 0-60 mph time of 18.2 seconds. This is a nice car to take to local car shows, Car and Coffee events and just some summer cruising along the coast, top down of coarse! Thanks for riding along. Frank
