Re: 1959 Mercury Serial Number Breakdown

[Virgil & Sue Klein]

I looked at Gary Richard’s Tech info in the Fall/2001 issue of Quicksilver which discusses the ’59 Model Identifications.  In that article the first letter in the serial number is the engine code.  For ’59 the identifying letters are either L, M, N, or P for the US produced models.  It appears obvious that the Canadian cars use a different ID code.  Not sure where to find the Canadian IDs.  Did you buy a complete car or just the engine?  Where on the car is the R1 located?  There were only three engine sizes offered in the US for ’59.  They are the 430 cu. in., the 383 cu. in. (two barrel carb or four barrel carb) and the 312 cu. in.  Sorry I can’t currently be of more help.