Car: Mercury Marauder 2-Door Hardtop

Year: 1963½

What makes it special: The Marauder nameplate was used by three distinct full-size cars produced by the Mercury division of Ford Motor Company. Deriving its name from the most powerful engines available to the Mercury line, the Marauder was marketed as the highest-performance version of the full-size product range. During its first production run, the Mercury Marauder was a trim option on standard Mercury coupes; the equivalent of the Ford Galaxie 500 and 500/XL, the Marauder was given a “fastback” rear roofline.

What made it famous: In sharp contrast to the distinctive reverse-slant “Breezeway” roofline option, the Marauder hardtop coupe was styled with a sloping notchback rear roofline; matching the same roofline that was introduced at the same time on the contemporary Galaxies. This roofline was optimized to make the large sedan more competitive for stock car racing. Along with the “sportier” roofline, the Marauder trim package included bucket seats and central console, similar to its Ford counterpart. Shared with the rest of the Mercury sedan line, the Mercury Marauder was powered by Ford “FE-Series” V8 engines, shared with the big Fords and the Thunderbird. A 390 cubic-inch Marauder V8 was standard, with a 427 cubic-inch Super Marauder V8 replacing a 406 V8 in 1964. Along with 3-speed and 4-speed manual transmissions, a 3-speed “Multi-Drive Merc-O-Matic” automatic transmission was offered.

Why I would want one: It’s a great looking car and the V8 options make it even more enticing to own.

Fun fact: For the first time for a mid-year introduction, the Marauder was introduced as a “1963½” model as was an entire line of new, “sports” models from Ford in many of the existing series. All 1963½ Marauders were two-door hardtops.
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Car: Oldsmobile Dynamic 88 2-Dr. Hardtop

Year: 1959

What makes it special: Oldsmobile had three series for 1959, the Dynamic 88, the high-performance Super 88, and the ultra-luxury Ninety-Eight. The two-door hardtop was named the ‘Holiday SceniCoupe.’ The Oldsmobile Eighty Eight was a representation of an image. Especially during the beginning three years, the Oldsmobile 88 was one of the best performing automobiles. This was most likely due to its small size, along with the lightweight and advanced over-head valve high-compression V8 engines. 

What made it famous: The Oldsmobile Dynamic 88 for 1959 had fins that started atop the front fenders and rose as they went to the back in rocket-shaped appendages. The Oldsmobile designers called it the ‘Linear Look’ and was an extreme departure shape from its highly chromed 1958 predecessor. The Dynamic 88 was powered by the standard 371 cubic-inch ‘Rocket’ V8 engine and fitted with an optional 4-speed ‘Jetaway’ Hydra-Matic transmission.

Why I would want one: Those beautiful stylish fins and boatloads of chrome.

Fun fact: The Eighty Eight inspired a popular song ‘Rocket 88’ and a popular 1950’s slogan, ‘Make a Date with a Rocket 88’.
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