Mercury 1949 - 51 custom & mild custom galerie

Chopped 7 inches, channeled 4 inches over a custom 2x3 tube frame, mustang IFS front with rack steering, 2008 charger hood scoop, all corners rounded window layed back 7 inches, 54 Cadillac bumpers 54 buick headlight have almost all pieces to go with the car, still needs lots of work, set up for a sbc or bbc, comes with dash, original stereo, fender skirts, tail lights and chrome, t 400 tranny with a gear vender overdrive, lots of misc parts, this is and will be a one of a kind ride, just needs finished.

non-chopped 1951 Mercury two door coupe, mild custom.  I have owned the car a little over two years... have never registered the car. It has stayed in

my carpeted garage & down to my mechanic's garage where it has received lots of TLC ... fluids changed with Syn. oil and coolant flush .. a couple of small leaks fixed.

We then added the side pipes, just for looks, added a new battery, and just installed a new set of Coker Classic wide white wall tires & new "spider" hubcaps on the front.

The engine is a 350 small block crate motor, and has an aluminum intake with an Edlebrock 4bbl carb.  Engine has a serpentine belt driving all accessories, including the

A/C unit.  The engine/trans. appears to be a fairly recent installation (not done by me), as the bar code label is still on the block, and the driveshaft & exhaust seem to be

quite new.  The trans. is a four speed overdrive unit, and performs perfectly.  We have also added a new electric fuel pump.

The Merc. also has power steering & power disc braked on the front.  It has a super exhaust system that just "burbles" at idle and has just the right growl at speed.  The body

has been lowered as shown in the pictures .... it has also been "nosed and "decked", and door handles "shaved".  The headlights and taillights have been "frenched" in.  It

has a modern steering column from a modern Mercury car, and has directional & tilt.  The seats, door panels & headliner have all been done in a very high end "leather look" vinyl.

Believe it or not, there was once a time when rods were rods and customs were customs, and never the twain should meet. Even the builders stuck to it; rodders stripped stuff off to go fast, while customizers tacked it all on to look good.

Anyone who's familiar with the rod world's Dick "Magoo" Megugorac can tell you this: He's all about hot rods. He's such the proponent of A/V-8s, you'd think he'd invented the combo. From the time he ran Magoo's Street Rods in Los Angeles, it was his ethos, his trademark, if not his lifeblood.



So, what on earth is his name doing next to a '49 Merc, the quintessential custom? Well, consider these modern times.

"I've always liked this model and wanted to show that a good-looking, driveable car could be built without spending huge amounts of money," Magoo said. So following his hot rod "less is more" ethos, he built as efficient yet tasteful a custom as you can get. Check it out: There are no dummy spots, no ornamental lakes pipes, no kitschy fuzzy dice. About the only thing tacked on for aesthetic sake is a set of Dick Dean's skirts-modified by Magoo, of course.

Magoo found the wayward Merc in Montana after some searching and dragged it home in 1996. Once home, he addressed the chassis with a frontend rebuild with Fatman Fabrication's dropped uprights. Drawing from hot rod fabrication, he whipped up a disc brake setup with the stock hubs and Wilwood rotors. He mounted the Wilwood calipers with fabricated steel caliper mounts of his own design. Nobody wants to wrestle old worm-and-gear steering, so Magoo outfitted the front with an '85 Ford F-100 power steering box, once again with Fatman parts and a Heidt's adjustable power steering valve.

Out back he mounted a Ford 9-inch rear on Posies springs. About the only thing remotely air-adjustable is the Monroe air shock set to bump-up the rear for luggage while on the long hauls. Speaking of long hauls, he also reworked the stock motor mounts to accept a Ford Racing injected 5.0 that backs up to a B&M Performance-equipped AOD. For rollers, Magoo dusted off the old Merc hoops 'n' caps and shod 'em with Diamond Back Classics' wide white radials.

Since a custom with a stock top just ain't right, Magoo took the blade to the Merc's top-believe it or not, the first time he'd ever chopped a top!

"Chopping a car isn't as easy as it appears," he said. "All the parts that have to be chopped to get a good result are staggering! Windshield frames, wind wings, garnish moldings, rubber parts, etc." He dropped the lid a very mild 2 inches and radiused all the doors, decklid, and hood corners. He also reshaped the rain gutters, lowered the taillights, and handmade all new window trim from steel flat stock.

With everything straight and clean, Magoo commissioned Frank "Cisco Kid" Garcia to spray the sedan in PPG Vermilion. Magoo then had L.A.'s Bumper Boyz clean up and replate the bumpers. Phoenix's Pete's Plating re-shined all the trim and brightwork.

Magoo then scared up a Lincoln bench seat and let Lois "Mrs. Magoo" Megugorac stitch up a proper trim job from pearl gray Allante vinyl with an imported wool broadcloth headliner. Dean Livermore wired the Merc for power with one of Ron Francis' Wireworks kits. Magoo carved out a set of A/C vents and mounted a Vintage Air unit behind the dash. For gauges he backed the stock dash with Sun Pro dials-creating a neat effect, at that. A Colorado Custom tiller tops the GM van column.

But this isn't just a collection of bitchin' parts in the shape of a cool car. It's something more: It's a Magoo car. It's got everything it needs and nothing else. After all, what would you expect from a hot rod guy?

Custom "Lead Sled" Show Car, Awesome Top & Bottom and Inside & Out, Chopped Top, Handle-less Popper Doors & Hood & Trunk, Gorgeous Custom Paint Job, 1995 Lincoln Mark 8 Engine & Running Gear, Nova Front End, Power 4 Wheel Corvette Oversize Disc Brakes, Air Bagged, Tilt Steering, Powder Coated Frame, Polished Stainless Exhaust, Chrome A-Arms & Suspension, Stereo & CD Changer,

Mercury Custom. Chopped, nosed, decked, shaved, lowered, Buick tail lights, Frenched headlights and Antenna. Custom Paint and chrome were done years ago, but still show well. Stock 51 Fender skirts, louvered and rounded hood, custom pin striping front and back. All window trim finished in stainless. Nice side trim and belt moldings, Peep Mirrors and Dummy spots. Rolled and pleated interior in excellent condition, tilt, tele Caddy Column, all gauges work as well as the speedo. New Coker Classic Wide White Walls, Caddy Caps. Under the hood is a 390 with Tri-Power backed by a C6 Tranny and 8inch rear, Runs smooth and shifts nice.

This is a real convertible, customized in the early 50's. The car was purchased by my father in the early 50's after returning from Korea. The car was customized in southern
Wisconsin. This car needs a total body and mechanical restoration. It has rust holes in the floors and trunk outers. Rockers are gone and fender corners have holes. Frame is rusty.

 It does not run. I have not tried to get it running due to I do not want to damage some of the vintage speed parts on the engine. The motor may be frozen. The last registration plate
 on the car is 1962. It has only been driven and run in the mid 1970's, where I got it running and drove it for a  school project. The car has been sitting for 53 years. The motor was
 rebuilt before it was put in storage and I really don't know why my Dad put it away. 
VEHICLE DETAILS:  Flathead V-8, Fenton Aluminum Heads, Intake Manifold, and exhaust headers. Buick 4 barrel carb, Cadi air cleaner. Copper exhaust from engine to mufflers.

3 speed OD manual trans. Power Hydraulic top and windows.

Body Mods: Frenched headlamps, Hood nosed and decked, 1949 Cadi rear quarters. Modified body lines. Factory Ford Spot lights. Top appears to be stock. and rest unknown.

Front grill halves, cadi fender skirts, trunk emblem, and front seat frame and springs included. Keep in mind car needs total restoration!!