1949 Mercury Eight Custom Coupe with matching steel trailer
The ultimate lead sled with matching sled trailer
Same owner for the past 11 years
First year for post-WWII styling and still extremely desirable today
Chevy 350ci V-8 engine and Holley 4-B carb
Three-speed automatic transmission
Air-conditioning, power steering and power brakes
Red/gray exterior, custom pin striping and matching interior with Mercury deity theme
Dual exhaust, vented hood, rear fender skirts, dual Frenched antennas, dual spotlights, tilt column and tinted glass
Push-button start, door poppers and a trailer popper
Matching “Short Cut” all steel trailer custom made from a donor Mercury
Don’t want anyone to know if you’re coming or going? Then we have the perfect vehicle to confuse bystanders and onlookers, a 1949 Mercury Eight Custom Lead Sled Coupe with matching trailer.
Finished in a high quality and handsome tri-coat red and gray splendor, the car’s paint and trim are in overall very good order. There is a blemish on the left rear corner of the hood, near the cowl. The tinted windows are in very good shape with no cracks except for the drivers side vent window has a crack and the car’s lights are in similar good order, even the custom headlights.
Car rolls on BFGoodrich Silvertown wide whitewall radials, size 225/70R15 and surrounding turbine wheels, complete with neon green valve stem caps and all are in very good order. The car’s body panels, including its vented hood and rear fender skirts, are straight and solid.
Under its heavily sprung hood is a Chevy 350ciV-8 engine in a completely billeted engine bay that is very tidy and backing up that motor is a three-speed automatic transmission. Driver assist features include push button start, tilt column, air-conditioning, dual spotlights and poppers for the doors and trunklid.
Inside, the red and gray interior is done in a Mercury deity theme, complete with “49” and images of the Roman god on the steering wheel hub and back seat. The red and gray velour bench seats are in excellent shape. The black carpet is in very good order. The gray headliner is lush and in excellent shape and the red instrument panel is in identical good shape. The two-spoke steering wheel is an aftermarket item and in very good condition. The inner door panels look fantastic. The mirror glass and shift lever are in good shape. Completing the interior are an AM/FM stereo with CD player with a 5.5-inch CRT screen and a pair of black, fuzzy dice dangling from the rearview mirror.
The first postwar Mercury was introduced in the 1949 model year. The engine was a flathead V8 that produced slightly more power than the then also newly designed 1949 Ford. A new overdrive system was optional, activated by a handle under the dash. The styling of the Mercury Eight, when it was released in 1949, adopted the “ponton” appearance, and was successful in both ending the monotony of warmed-over pre-war style, and differentiating Mercury from its comparable Ford cousin, a trick that spelled sales success. Sales figures for both Ford and Mercury broke records in 1949. The new approach to styling was also evident on the completely redesigned Lincoln and the all-new Lincoln Cosmopolitan. The Mercury Eight used full instrumentation. An eight-tube radio was an option.
Included with the car is “Short Cut,” a all steel trailer designed and built to echo the car’s nose and tail. The trailer was custom built from a donor Mercury and the rear and front clip sections were placed together. It has headlights, a grille, front bumper, taillights, a rear bumper and even a center high-mounted stoplight. To open the trailer, it needs to be hitched to the car for battery power. Inside the trailer is storage space and a stereo with cassette, its even included with a “Dirty Dancing” soundtrack tape from the 80’s! If you are not interested in this awesome custom trailer, please call us to negotiate a deal. The trailer does have a few blemishes but doesn’t distract from its overall uniqueness.
Within its era and beyond, the Mercury Eight was popular with customizers. In 1949, Sam Barris built the first lead sled from a 1949 Mercury Eight; the Eight became the definitive lead sled, much as the Ford V-8 (as the “deuce”) was becoming the definitive hot rod. The Eights were among the first models to receive an aftermarket OHV engine swap, since Oldsmobile and Cadillac developed the first high-compression OHV V8 engines in 1949, whereas Ford was still using a side valve engine. Sam and George Barris also used the 1949 body style to build “the most famous custom car ever,” the Hirohata Merc, for customer Bob Hirohata in 1953. Setting a style and an attitude, it had a “momentous effect” on custom car builders, appeared in several magazines at the time and reappeared numerous times since, earning an honorable mention on Rod & Custom’s “Twenty Best of All Time” list in 1991. The Eight remains a very popular subject for car modelers.
This car is currently located at our facility in St. Louis, Missouri. Current mileage on the odometer shows 91,273 miles. It is sold as is, where is, on a clean and clear, mileage exempt title. GET OUT AND DRIVE!!!
Price: Auction
More info: Listing has ended. Click to search on eBay for similar 1949 Mercury Eight (Affiliate link)
Location: Saint Louis, Missouri, United States
