With peacetime upon America, Mercury released its first redesigned models in 1949, but nobody would have foreseen what impact these cars would have on popular culture. To this day, the 1949-’51 Mercs are considered the iconic early postwar styling for street rodding, and this example lives up to that notoriety in more ways than one. For one thing, the flathead is gone, replaced by perhaps the most iconic street engine of the following decade, the 426 CI Hemi V-8 engine. Topped by the dual Carter-design 4-barrel carburetors on an inline intake manifold, upgraded cooling accessories, and headers with fender-side exits, power will be no problem here. There is a Chrysler A727 automatic transmission and Currie aluminum 9-inch rear end with 4.56 gears backing this up. From that point, however, this car becomes even more radical, with a custom hydraulically-operated tilt hood, front clip and body! When open, the trunk-mounted fuel cell is exposed, as is the unique chassis, roll cage and body underpinnings with monocoque racecar-like tinwork. The suspension includes detailing, tubular A-arms and coilover shocks. The top was chopped, door handles shaved and power doors and windows added, with two-tone black and silver paint selected to cover it all. Inside, one finds custom Recaro seats with Crow harnesses, a B&M floor shifter with piston-design shifter knob, an Orion sound system, custom-designed Faria dash instruments with vintage-font faces, and center divider supporting the shifter. The door panels were custom formed, and the interior components are color-coordinated with the car’s overall theme of unbridled metalwork. From the outside, one sees the Moon Eyes front tank in place of the grille, blended bumpers painted in body color, lower rocker fairings, and narrow rear window. Shod in massive Mickey Thompson street tires out back and Centerline wheels all the way around, this first-year Mercury defines rodding taken to an extreme.
