1949 Ford & 1950 Merc
Written by Keith Fudge

In American automotive history, certain vehicles stand out as design milestones. Two such cars are the 1949 Ford and the 1950 Mercury. Sought by purists for restoration, and by custom builders who wanted to chop, drop, and stretch them in their pursuit of the ultimate hot rod, these two designs radically influenced the cars that would succeed them. Recently, Dennis Gage had the opportunity to visit with Roger Morrison, a man who owns a pristine example of each of these legendary automobiles.

Traveling to America 's heartland seemed only fitting to see these cars and experience a true “blast from the past.” Dennis met up with Roger and the two began to talk about the influence that these two cars had on the future, as well as the controversy surrounding their production. First of all, they discussed the 1949 Ford. Roger's car is a stunning convertible painted in Fez Red. He noted the radical post-World War II design and influence from the bullet-nosed grille (simulating the center of an airplane propeller) to the absence of fenders on the body. This convertible was equipped with a three-speed transmission with overdrive and had the luxurious Deluxe Plastic Steering Wheel option (priced at $15). The “Sofa-Wide Seats” were upholstered in cloth and leather and literally fit their description! Under the hood was Ford's legendary “Flathead” V-8, sporting 239 cubic inches and making 100 horsepower. The 1949 Ford was produced from June of 1948 until November of 1949, and during this long-term production run, there were 1,118,000 of these legendary vehicles made!

Next, Dennis and Roger moved on to the 1950 Mercury, and just by looking at this car you cold almost see the ghost of James Dean behind the wheel. Roger told Dennis that the Merc was actually the design that was to be used for the Ford; however, the folks at Ford decided that it would be too costly to produce; consequently, this design became the Mercury and then was later incorporated into the Lincoln . This black beauty was simply awesome and talk about original! This car has 22,000 original miles! Roger told Dennis that the Mercury received a slight upgrade under the hood as it was a 255 cubic inch V-8 producing 110 horsepower. Finally, Dennis urged Roger to take a spin in these legendary vehicles, and after cruising in the Ford, Roger asked Dennis if he wouldn't mind driving the Mercury as they returned them to the garage! Now you know he didn't have to ask Dennis more than once! Dennis told our crew that the Merc was simply too cool—especially for the fact that it was all original—no restoration! This truly made Dennis feel “lost in the 50s.” After their return, Dennis asked Roger if he could come back and see some more of Roger's other fine cars. I have a feeling that it won't be long until Dennis is headed to Kansas again!