Hi, I recently purchased a 1966 Mercury M100, 352 cid, 4 speed with a granny. I really don't have much information on her. I made a split decision to buy her and drove her 60 miles home. She was in a garage being used as a litter box, and, is now enjoying her new found freedom. She has had some modifications, someone added power steering and disk brakes (on the front) from a 1978 F250, so the story goes. Looks like she has a newer intake manifold and carb. She has just over 45,000. Somehow she survived and made her way to Chicago! I have been trying to decode her vin plate. I have the basics, but a few things I am not sure of.












Here is her plate:




Here is what I got according to Didgey and vinwiz:

Digit Usage VIN Decoded
1-3 Series F10 F100 2WD pickup
4 Engine Y V8 352-2v 208hp 4400rpm
5 Plant C Oakville ON Truck
6-8 Mod Yr/Mfg Date 777 1966 (Mfg Nov 1965)
6-11 Sequential Serial # 777077 777077

I need help on the Transmission. Was she originally a 3 on the tree or 4 on the floor?
Didgey says a 3 speed but from 1961-65
Fordification Vin decoder for 1967 Ford trucks says:
4-speed New Process (NP-435) A (code)
The original steering column is gone, so, no clues there.

Looks like she was a two tone, blue on the bottom and white on top.

Any clue on the bench seat? She has a torn up black one now. I saw an add for 1966 Mercury trucks that have a higher seat, which would be nice.
Here is a link to the brochure.
http://www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-co...brochure-2.jpg









From reading previous posts, looks like I am out of luck when it comes to the DSO code. Anything I have found on them says the code starts with a number, but mine starts with a number.

This is my first post, so I hope I did it right. Let me know if I need to post more pictures.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!! Thanks!!! Cindy

 

F10 = F100 2WD

Y = 352 2V

C = Oakville Ontario Canada Truck Assembly Plant.

777077 = 1966, assembled November 1965.

129" Wheelbase.

WM: W = Marlin Blue / M = Wimbledon White.

F100 2WD .. 5,000 lbs. GVWR

B81: B = Medium Blue Crush Vinyl & Medium Blue Cody Pattern Woven Plastic / 81 = 81B Custom Cab.

A = New Process 435 4 Speed Manual Transmission (A = 1961/65: Ford 3 speed manual transmission).

17 = Ford 9" Rear Axle / 3.25-1 / 3,300 lbs. Rear Axle Capacity.

5,000 lbs. Gross Vehicle Weight Rating.

172 net HP @ 4,000 RPM

B76568:

B7 = Ford Motor Co. of Canada Ltd, Pacific Lincoln-Mercury Division.

6568 = Domestic Special Order number, truck ordered special by the original purchaser, not "bought off the lot."

DSO codes of trucks assembled in Canada begin with a letter.

Your truck has 5 lug wheels (as it's supposed to), so the disc brakes cannot be from an F250, as they have 8 lug wheels.

Your truck has genuine Ford Styled Steel wheels which were introduced in 1977 F100/150, so the disc brakes are likely from the same vintage of truck.

The steering wheel is the original 17" 3 spoke, the column has a covered A/T shift quadrant and is either from a 1973/77 or 1978/79.

Custom Cabs came with a anodized aluminum grille, Standard Cabs came with a painted steel grille, usually white.

Original paint scheme would be blue roof, blue below the side mouldings, white thru the middle.

Please post some pics of the engine compartment so we can see which type of P/S it has. P/S was optional in 1966, so it might be original.

 

Welcome to FTE.
That's an interesting truck and well worth saving. The B7 DSO is, I believe, Ford of Canada Pacific Region, which was British Columbia and Yukon. My '66 Merc 250 and others I have seen also came with a B7 DSO, so don't be concerned that you don't have a real Mercury. The shop manual will state that all Mercury cars and trucks in Canada had the DSO letter prefix "A".
You should however ensure that your frame VIN matches the door tag. The number is stamped on the top surface of the frame a couple of feet back from the right front corner.
A black seat similar to what is in your photo was optional but I think your trim code does not indicate that it was so equipped when built.
Eric

 

Canadian District Codes .. column right.

 

Yeah, ND, that's why I said "I believe"... I think the document you cite is in error - the "A" prefix codes should be "B" and vice-versa. Maybe someone can post the 1966 Ford and Mercury Trucks factory shop manual decode page to show the difference. Sorry, I can't find my cd version.
Eric

 

Nice truck! A friend of my Dad's has the same truck with the Tu-Tone colours. He didn't want the seat, so I used it for my build. Your truck may have had this seat originally.

 

It all has to do with franchise agreements:

DSO beginning with A: Ford & Mercury trucks could be sold by Ford-Mercury dealers. Ford trucks could only be sold by Ford dealers.

DSO beginning with B: Mercury trucks could only be sold by Lincoln-Mercury dealers.

Pic from 1964/72 Ford Truck Parts Catalog.

 

Sorry for delay! Long work day yesterday, hate when work gets in the way of learning about my truck! She went to her first show today. I really, really appreciate all your help!!! Do you think she was a 3 or 4 speed like she is now? I'm hoping for a 4 . I'm happy she had that beautiful blue seat.
I was able to get pictures of the engine. Thanks again!!!!

 

Reverse is down, towards the seat.

P/S pump was used on 1965/66 Galaxie/LTD & 1966 F100/250 2WD.

 

Thanks for your help and sorry for confusion. Someone was speculating she was originally a three speed and and someone threw a 4 speed in later (mostly because the shift boot and bolts look newer). I just figured I'd see if I could find out from the vin, but I got conflicting information like you did. She goes in for service in a few days and maybe I'll have more info. I was getting antsy in the meantime and wanted to find out from the vin. Again, sorry for confusion and thanks!!

 

The thing is: TRANS code A was used for the 3 speed M/T for 1961/65. TRANS code C was used for the 3 speed M/T: 1966/79.

TRANS code N was used for the New Process 435 in 1965 only. 1966/79 New Process 435 used TRANS code A

But some people are unaware, so they think TRANS code A was used for the 3 speed M/T in 1966. Not so.

 

Awesome!!!! Thanks for all your help!!!

 

Here are a few pics of my Dad's friends truck, minus the seat! Your Merc would have likely looked like this, according to your warranty plate decode.

Your front bumper is probably original, lots were chrome, lots were painted white.






I wonder if you have a steel or anodized aluminum grille under that blue paint?

 

How cool!! I love it. What wheels and tires do you think "they" had? What a great visual reference, it really helps to picture what she looked like before she got painted. I will look closer at the grill. Hope to get her running again today take her to a show tomorrow. Everyone loves her "patina" even guys who own custom and body shops.

I can't get the interior pic big enough to see if your dad's friend's is automatic or 3 on the tree. It looks like the chrome trim doesn't line up from the hood to the front of the cab/firewall like mine. Do you know if that was common?

I see you have mustangs. I had a '67' fastback 289 4bbl, 4 speed back in the day. My aunt is giving me her '71' convertible she bought new. Red, white top and interior, 302. She wants it to stay in the family and knows how I love old cars. The only prob is that a bear clawed the top. Bear 1 Mustang 0. She lives in Colorado. As it sits now:

 

Tough to say what you had for 15" rims. If you had 'innie' rims, then you probably would have had hubcaps like on my truck, just the thinner 15" version. Mine are thicker and for my 16" rims. Hopefully others will chime in, but it's more likely that you had 'outie' rims and hubcaps like this '66 Mercury from user 'johr':

Ford Truck Enthusiasts Forums - View Profile: jrohr


Yeah, that interior pic is pretty dark, but I think my Dad's friends truck has a 3 speed, not an automatic.

Yes, I think it is common that the hood trim doesn't line up. I believe that the hood hinges get out of adjustment and/or the inner fender aprons start to rot, so the hood won't sit properly. I had to cheat a bit with my hood trim to get things to line up nice too.

Yeah, I like Mustangs! I doubt that I'll ever rebuild my '78, I kinda 'broke the bank' on my Mercury restoration. I do like my '05 GT, very fun to drive. Your '71 looks great! I hope you can get the roof fixed and get out on the road sometime soon.