1950 Mercury Eight Sport Sedan
"Those smooth, sleek lines make the six passenger 1950 Mercury Sports Sedan a car to be admired at first sight. And your first drive will make you admire its down to earth roadability. Long, broad, sturdy, the "better than ever" 1950 Mercury Sport Sedan is sure to be a hit with style-wise people wherever it's seen." From the 1950 sales brochure.
For consignment, a 1950 Mercury Eight sport sedan showing 72,256 unverifiable miles as the title reads Mileage Exempt. This car was meticulously restored and has fantastic body lines that are iconically American and representative of the transition in preferences of shapes and accenting between 40's era cars and the chrome laden era the 50's would soon become.
Exterior
With this Black car we start at the very beginning which means the back. Yes, the back, with its bulbous lid, rounded rear quarters on either side, wraparound chrome bumper and spectacular sliver cut tail lights. A trim spear runs the length of the car and is polished and pointed at both ends. An elongated and curving oval rear window is above the trunk, and this comes off a rounded roofline. The rear doors which are configured in suicide style, have a vent window which is mirrored in the front, traditionally hung front door. Bulbous front quarters send body expansion into the front doors just a bit, then dips to a body line that runs parallel to the spear. These have round headlights in their front partisans and work as accomplices to the wide rounded over "aero" hood which has a chromed stylized airplane ornament, and an art deco inspired Mercury badge on its very front surface. A wide visor fits over the V-style window and is painted the same glossy black, while 15-inch chromed steel wheels wear moon hubcaps and wide white wall tires. Stunning metal work and paint are just about flawless, and we could not find any glaring exterior imperfections.
Interior
A swing of any of the 4 doors reveals a two tone purple cloth upper with gray lower and chrome thin delineating trimming. Inside, purple cloth over gray and white striped fabric covers the front and rear benches cleanly and the back bench sports gray vinyl stitched armrests on either side. With the suicide doors, rear occupants have an easy entrance and enjoy lots of leg room, a corded handle on the back of the front seat, and more than adequate headroom. The dash remains in its original vertical chromed ribbed state, holding on to a deco motif, with a gold background while the gauge cluster has an arching speedometer flanked by square readouts. This is all behind a robust black steering wheel with horn ring and a center cap that looks a bit like a winged torpedo. Beautiful black trimmed knobs abound, and appear on the AM radio that's embedded in the center as well. Plenty of original shaped pulls and knobs are on the vertical ribbed lower section as well. Clean gray carpeting floods the floors, and above is a nice tight like new headliner. The sizable trunk has a flat load point, something cars still strive to achieve today! It houses a rubber mat and spare white wall tire.
Drivetrain
Under the big hood we find a clean though driver quality 255ci flathead V8, producing 110 horsepower and fueled by a 2-barrel carburetor. This is tied to a 3-speed manual transmission sending power to the rear axle and 3.90 gears. Drum brakes are supplied front and back. The engine shows some wear and dirt but is absolutely presentable in its current cosmetic condition.
Undercarriage
Wonderfully clean and simple underneath as the driveshaft flows through the dominant X-frame that spans the underside. There's no surface rust at all but we do note some oil, a residual coating on the rear differential and some dampness on the X-frame and just a bit of grease build up on the knuckles. A single exhaust enters a stock style muffler before exiting out back through a straight tailpipe. Coil springs are found in the front and leaf springs in back on this underside lesson in simplicity.
Drive-Ability
The flathead came to life as we refresh our three on the tree technique. Off to the test loop where it cornered nicely given its weight, and ran very smoothly with nice acceleration, bias free braking on the panic stop test, and all functions were working just swimmingly with the exception of the high speed position of the blower. While Classic Auto Mall represents that these functions were working at the time of our test drive, we cannot guarantee these functions will be working at the time of your purchase.
A stunning Mercury that for the first time in the model's history, eliminated separate fenders and a running board, opting for straight panels adorned with accents and some body curves to create what must have seemed revolutionary in 1950. We have a great body and paint here, as well as a clean interior with a dash that will take you back in time. As the brochure touted, this was the "better than ever" Mercury. If that's your brand, feast your eyes on this one!
50ME59203M
50-1950
ME-Metuchen, NJ Assy Plant
59203-Sequential Unit Number
M-Mercury
Classic Auto Mall is home to more than 1,000 classic and collectible vehicles for sale via consignment in a climate controlled 336,000-square foot showroom (that's more than 8 acres!). The largest single location consignment dealer of classic and collectible vehicles in the country is located in Morgantown, Pennsylvania, just 1-hour west of Philadelphia off Exit 298 of the I-76 Pennsylvania Turnpike. For more information visit www.classicautomall.com or call us at (888) 227-0914. Contact us anytime for more information or to come see the vehicle in person. There is no guarantee of mileage. A $299 Dealer Administrative fee is not included in the advertised price.
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