also look under rear end,bumper, behind b some people put a release pull or push, for opening trunk. could look like loose stiff wire... might be inside gas flap too.!! looks like a 49 Plymouth bumper to me..
I would put that thing straight in my garage and tell everyone else to fuck off if they want to sell it. It looks like SUCH a good base for as above, a nice tail dragger. Think '40s era custom. A lot of tacky shit is on it but that can all be changed.
You should go over to Fordbarn and ask for pictures of what the interior looked like original. They would probably be able to help you with that part of it. I knew a guy years back that had a stock '40 Merc, it didn't have any wood on the dash from what I recall. Good luck with it.
please leave it the way he built it. No need to "modrnize " it, it is a true early 60's HOT ROD. the wood dash is awsome, and clean up the wheels and use them.
The plan at the moment is to get the brakes working, motor running and get it movable. I've noticed looking at pictures the tail lights are shaved?
Me and my uncle are going up to work on it later this week. We are going to clean all the pine cones and needles up. The floors seem to be intact but I'd like to pull the carpet up to check. Here in ny it's winter and the way the car was stored outside, the ground below the car was dry Sandy dirt. It was soft, as it sunk in the car wasn't exposed to damp wet ground. It was odd on how loose the dirt was under the car. We practically dug the vehicle out with our hands. Almost was like silt...
My question today is what rear end would this merc have if it wasn't swapped out? I found 2 rear ends outside one looked like a Ford rear end. Looks simular to the picture. No brackets or brake assembly. Just a bare axle housing. The other axle I couldn't get a good look at but I saw it had shoes
Go to the BING search engine, type in "1940 Mercury convertible - images" for reference pictures. Concerning value - Your Mercury is a great find, but ultimately it's worth only what someone is willing to pay for it. Yes it's desirable and yes it's rare but several running and driving 40 Mercury convertibles have been offered for sale recently in the $40,000.00 range and they looked like nice original cars from dry states. Good luck keeping it.
Try to convince the family of the history and memories and that it would be better kept in the family.Sad when money takes the lead upon one's passing.
I agree 100% 4 out of 5 want to keep everything. I have no say in anything, but I been convincing to the ears
The early Merc rear axles were almost the same as the Ford banjo axles except they had a one piece pinion/driveshaft set up where the there was no coupler. It just went all the way from the u-joint to the ring gear. A 37 thru 42 Ford or Mercury rear axle can be made to fit. Mercury cars were longer wheel base but it was all in front of the firewall. Ford & Mercury side shift transmissions were all the same from 1940 thru 1948. Any Ford 59A flathead engine would fit but it would be nice if your uncle put the old one under a bench somewhere. The 99A engine has very thick cylinder walls and can be bored out to 3 3/8" for a Big Bore engine.
We are hoping my great uncle kept the flat head, that's if the flat head was in the merc when he bought it in 1960. A lot of information was never passed down and it's becoming a mystery that were trying to solve. Thank you for your input. All of this information is helping us out greatly. Thank you
The parts of the dash that are wood are not original. The metal parts are, but things like the glove box lids may be missing. The steering column, seats, shifter and pedals are not stock. There is a chance the engine was fitted to the original gearbox with an adapter, and the original rear axle was retained. What is probably more likely is that the engine, box and axle were changed. The bolt patterns on the hubs will provide a clue to what has been kept and what has been changed. I like the 5 spokes and the bias plys. Mart.
The lid for the glove box is their. The wood is mounted to it. We opened the glove box and found the registration and insurance from 1996. The owners Manuel for the radio and a home from a critter
Why don't you just buy the car from the estate? Take a bunch of pictures and put it on E-Bay with a huge reserve and when the auctions over, pay the highest bid amount to the estate. Sounds fair to me.
Sorry about your family's loss,great find, perpetuate your uncles love for cars and get her back on the road.Hope money doesn't enter on doing the right thing.
Yes......that's a 1949 Plymouth rear bumper (has the "ripples"). Those have been a popular item on custom cars over the years. The seats appear to be covered in velour or crushed velvet.....originals would have either been leather or probably a gray or tan fabric. Here are links to a couple ads of 40 Merc converts for sale.....you can see what an original dash and interior would look like. http://www.hemmings.com/classifieds/dealer/mercury/unspecified/1327998.html This one is a resto-rod...........http://www.hemmings.com/classifieds/dealer/mercury/unspecified/1675900.html
Nice old Merc, I have one like it, if you find that you need any infro. or small parts ,please contact me, I'm sure that I can help you get it back on the road.
Thank you. Haven't had a chance to this week, planning on Monday if the weather is good to start playing
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