By Brian Brennan – Photography By Fuelish Media
There are many places we wish we were right now, but I imagine Lahaina, Hawaii, would be on many a hot rodder’s dream list. So, excuse us when we say that Abbey St. John of Lahaina is both lucky and fortunate because he not only lives in “paradise” but also drives a 1949 Merc custom built by Dave Shuten of Galpin Speed Shop. In 2017, Shuten launched a new division of Galpin Auto Sports called Galpin Speed Shop, which specializes in period-perfect hot rods, customs, and restorations of historically significant cars.
There’s little denying that the 1949-51 Mercury era has become “the” car to customize. It’s as iconic a custom as the 1932 Ford is as a hot rod. (Let the debate begin, “Is a custom also a hot rod?”)
In the world of iconic builds, some stand out more than others. Still, we would probably all agree that Sam Barris with his 1949 Merc and Bob Hirohata’s 1951 Merc (now owned by the Galpin Premier Collection and on loan to the Petersen Automotive Museum) are on everyone’s “favorites list” of custom Mercs. Since Shuten built Abbey’s Merc, we asked for his favorites. He agrees with the ones mentioned earlier, but he also has a personal favorite: the 1950 Merc driven by Sylvester Stallone in the movie Cobra, which Dave worked on. (Editor’s note: I thought I would jump in with my favorites, which indeed align with the aforementioned, but I must also recognize the Pharaohs Car Club 1951 Merc used in the movie American Graffiti and Richard “Magoo” Megugorac’s 1949 Merc. Both are favorites because of what each represents.)
The late Pat Ganahl, a rodding journalist and customs enthusiast, was quick to point out the popularity of the Merc among the custom car crowd in his book The American Custom Car. He observed that the 1949-51 Ford (including Lincoln-Mercury) body style, despite being significantly redesigned after the war, retained the rounded styling cues popular in pre-1949 cars. He believed that rodders returning from the war recognized familiar styling cues from prewar days and could easily adapt to the new styles.
The Mercury coupe is a 1949 model built by Dave Shuten at Galpin’s Speed Shop for Abbey St. John. It features a Ford 289 small-block engine with an Edelbrock intake and a 600-cfm carburetor, Edelbrock valve covers and air cleaner, and a Holley fuel pump. The ignition system includes an MSD distributor, an MSD coil, Taylor plug wires, and an OPTIMA battery. The exhaust system consists of 2-½-inch stainless steel tubing running from the headers to the back through a pair of Borla mufflers. Engine accessories include a March pulley system, a Powermaster alternator, a Ford starter, and an OPTIMA battery. The automatic transmission is a C4 with a Lokar shifter, delivering power to a Ford 9-inch rear with 3.50 gears.
The entire setup is built on an Art Morrison Enterprises (AME) chassis, which includes AccuAir air suspension at the front and rear, a ¾-inch sway bar, an AME rack-and-pinion steering, paired with a Speedway steering column, completing the front AME IFS. The rear suspension surrounds the Ford 9-inch rearend with an AME four-link setup and AccuAir. The disc brakes are a Wilwood package with Dynalite calipers on all four corners. More corner appeal shows up in the form of 15×6 and 15×7 steelies fitted with Coker 4-inch-wide whites measuring 235/70R15.
The body is based on a 1949 Merc that has been chopped 4 inches in the front and 5 inches in the rear, with the B-pillars leaned back. Interestingly, the rear window is from a 1950 Merc. All removable parts have been shaved, and the hood corners are rounded. Dave Shuten and his team did all the body- and paintwork at Galpin Speed Shop in House of Kolor Jet Black. Inside, the dashboard is from a 1950 Merc, with Dakota Digital instrumentation; the lower dash panel houses the Vintage Air controls and air registers and the Vintage Air system. Both are integrated with an EZ Wiring harness, thanks to John Scheiss, who also handled the wiring. He assisted Shuten with much of the mechanical work, especially setting up the AccuAir suspension and assembling much of the custom Merc. The front seats are late-model Mustangs, while the rear seating, center console, door panels, and trunk details were crafted by Downtown Willy.
All of us have our favorite projects, but it’s safe to say that most, if not all, of us are fascinated by what’s been done to the 1949-51 Merc. As a custom, it has been around since the earliest days of hot rodding and remains popular to this day.
Check out this story in our digital edition here.
