Cool Cruiser

When Gary was a teenager, one of the “cool guy” cars was the ‘50 Mercury. These were the days when such terms as “shaving chrome,” “chopping and channeling,” and “lowering” entered hot rodders’ vocabulary and the Merc was a favorite car for these procedures. It was only natural that he would want one of these cars and when his wife Emilie found one in Hemmings Motor News in 1990, he bought it. Being a cautious person, he sent a deposit, the balance of which would be paid if the car was as promised when it arrived from Minnesota. It was looking and running very well with a rust-free body. It was black, with a burgundy/wine velour interior and a flathead V-8. In 2003 he decided to update the drive train and to make it a true custom car. The body was professionally done, with all the chrome “shaved” (removed and holes filled), headlights were “frenched” (set into the body), the hood was shortened and a custom grill was made from two ‘52 Merc grills. The taillights were lowered to follow the body lines. It was painted candy apple red, a color made famous by hot rodders. Air bag suspension was added to give a “lowered” look. After a bad experience with a local mechanic who shall be unnamed to protect the guilty, he found Duke at Gin’s Little Valley Auto Care, a Roamin Angel. He dropped in a 351 CID Cleveland Ford engine mated to a C-6 auto trans that runs very well. Now Gary and Emilie cruise their cool car to shows, where it wins cool trophies.

The dash and steering wheel are stock, but painted white to match the upholstery. Gauges were added to give accurate information on the engine. The upholstery was redone in white with matching-red piping and carpet.

Story & photos by Roamin Angel Ron C. ©2007