1956 Meteor Rideau

Ford in Canada, built the Meteor line from 1949 to 1976, except for the 1962 and 1963 model years, when the name was used on the Mercury Meteor that was sold in the United States. The Ford Motor Company also sold Mercury and Lincoln models in Canada, with the Meteor-badged models being sold at those dealerships. These reasonably-priced vehicles typically wore a Ford body with Mercury styling cues, such as the grille, and were powered by a flat-head V8 offering approximately 100 horsepower. Later, Meteor models received Mercury dashboards and instrument panels.

When Meteor sales resumed in 1964, they had Mercury styling with a Ford dash and interior.

One of the models was the full-size Meteor Rideau, produced from 1954 to 1961 and 1965 to 1976. It was named after the Rideau River in Eastern Ontario, the province where the car was produced. They were initially the top-of-the-line model for Meteor, but in 1956 they became the base model. From 1957, the line included both the Rideau series and the higher-trim level Rideau 500.

by Daniel Vaughan | Oct 2019