RP14 Posted July 1, 2021 Share Posted July 1, 2021 Looking to pick this car up and need help identifying what it is. I know the back part was chopped to make a truck. I think I am going to keep it the way it is and make it road worthy. It does have the V8 engine. I cannot get the doors opened at this time till debris cleared away. Hopefully not too far gone on bottom frame, etc... Can someone tell me what the wheel bolt pattern would be on this car so I can get wheels for it to roll, right now pretty much on the ground. Any advice or suggestions would be great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The 55er Posted July 1, 2021 Share Posted July 1, 2021 It was originally a 1939 Mercury 4-door sedan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
19tom40 Posted July 1, 2021 Share Posted July 1, 2021 Agree and the wheels originally were the Wide 5 used on the 36-39 Ford products. It may have been changed over to the 5lugs on a 5.5 diameter circle. You will have to clear the debris so you can see the drums to determine this. I can't see the rear drum in the photo clear enough to determine the rear wheel size. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RP14 Posted July 2, 2021 Author Share Posted July 2, 2021 (edited) Happened to have a job near the car so I went down there to look. 5 bolt measures 5.5 from end of stud to center of second next stud. Need to figure the rim sizes to find used tires that hold air. My 54 GMC Truck as flat and has split rims, surprisingly it aired up and held air for over a year. Took pictures of the under car, forgot the wheel studs. Saw another engine that may be a spare for this car and 1 head, need to find the other head. Will take the block and head in case there is something I can use off it. Will take pictures of the one under hood. Can take more pictures when I go back there to start clearing the way as well as spray the wheel nuts, found 2 rims with ugly flat wheels, at least it'll roll right. Will look for 2 more so I can at least get it on the trailer. Looked closer in the window, seems to look clean, no seats and no holes in floor. Gonna be fun getting it on the trailer, was told I might as well as get a tow truck to do it. Edited July 2, 2021 by RP14 Adding and corrections (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The 55er Posted July 2, 2021 Share Posted July 2, 2021 Seems like you're going to a heck of a lot of trouble to extricate this cut-up 4-door sedan from what most people would consider to be its final resting place. There are many, many more old cars available that are better restoration candidates than this hulk. I think once you get this one out of the ground it will be much worse than it looks and you're gonna be pretty disappointed. All the glass needs replaced and you will find the interior to be in shreds. There will be hundreds of dents and dings in the body to straighten. You will never be able to even make this vehicle roadworthy without spending a tremendous amount of time & money on it. STOP. find something else to fix up. There are plenty of old cars out there. Just my 2 cents. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RP14 Posted July 3, 2021 Author Share Posted July 3, 2021 This car will be given to me and I am getting a Dodge Truck, think 49, also buried in the shrubs. Gotten a 54 GMC Truck and it's in better shape that I thought. So I'd like to challange myself to this Merc to maybe a rat rod, nothing fancy as I don't want to put that much work into it. Have a S10 if the frame is bad. Otherwise it'll sit or go to scrap. So not much loss there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
19tom40 Posted July 4, 2021 Share Posted July 4, 2021 Some of the parts for that car can be sold if you don't make a rat rod out of it. If the rear fenders are solid, they will sell for $100 or more. The same can be said for the front fenders and hood. 39 Mercury parts are hard to find, but there is not much demand for them, so prices can change quickly when someone needs the part. What is the general location of the car? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RP14 Posted July 6, 2021 Author Share Posted July 6, 2021 I'm in North Dakota. I'm almost wanting to keep the car the way it is or possibly convert it to a convertible from what I have seen in some pictures. Probably not going to have a top though. But then again, I like the "truck" style. Till I get it home, I'll start going thru it and see what I want to do with it and what the "damages" are. Just a fun project to do together with son and grand children, little Kalynn almost 2 loves to help me. Figure one of the vehicles will be hers. Have a place to park it, work on it and a fab shop at work I could use. Just need the time... Need to make some sort of roller cart or a way to move it in and out of the shop at work. Right now I am working on my 54 GMC Truck on my car hauler, made a tow hitch on truck to move with forklift. Wanted to work on them this weekend but threw my back out. Fun... Picture of truck, hope ok to post? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RP14 Posted July 20, 2021 Author Share Posted July 20, 2021 Got the car home. Going to be a LOT of work, I'm still going to do it as long as I can get parts. Going to start cleaning and making list of what needs to be done as well as what I want to do with it. Question I have is, is there a model and serial nameplate on it? If so where would I find it? I found a tag that says body number 99A73.1859 and another tag below it that's not readable. I need to figure out how to get a title made for this. Any help greatly appreciated including disassembly. I screwed up a bearing cap to take off the brake drum since it wouldn't turn, didn't realize it was screwed on, thought it was pressed on like a trailer cap. Lesson learned... Love the steering wheel, need to take off and restore it. Like to find replacement body parts, I noticed the floor where feet go looks like it's bolt on covers. Maybe find rear window panel and windows. Unsure what I want to do with back end yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
19tom40 Posted July 20, 2021 Share Posted July 20, 2021 The serial number is stamped on the left (driver's side) frame rail near the steering box mount. Most serial numbers are there, but you may have to search the left frame from the body mount to the front cross member. These numbers may not be stamped very deep, so be careful when cleaning. Use Evapo-Rust to help clean the rust. There were wooden boards under the pedals on the driver's side and on the passenger side. Dennis Carpenter may still have some. IMHO it would not be worth the effort to try to restore the car. If the frame is solid, it would make a good Rat Rod with repairs to the floor and safety items. Front fenders and grills show up on E-bay occasionally. The front fenders on a 1940 Mercury are the same as the 1939, the 1939 rear fenders have a smaller wheel opening and different openings for the tail lights from the 1940. Rear fenders rarely show up on E-Bay. Your wheel hubs are not stock 1939 as it would have the wide 5 bolt pattern like the Volkswagen. You will need a special hub puller in order to remove the rear hubs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RP14 Posted July 20, 2021 Author Share Posted July 20, 2021 Good to know on the hubs, at least I didn't need to pull hubs to take brake pads out, had to do it with the fronts. Wheels were what I could find as the car was sitting on blocks that sunk onto the ground. Interesting that the floor section was wood, yes I'll make it safe as well as road worthy. Probably change the axle to a more current one. Unsure the condition of the flattop engine till I get to it. Carb is missing and one side has plugs removed. Was told the engine has brass rings and was worth more than the car itself. I plan on leaving pretty much a simular body style as a truck, just haven't gotten that far to looks. Yes rat rod it may be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The 55er Posted July 20, 2021 Share Posted July 20, 2021 If you are serious about getting this car fixed up and back on the road I wouldn't do anything to the car until you have the paperwork issue sorted out. Getting a clear legal title for it in your name should be your top priority. Then you can get serious about finding that replacement engine you're going to need since the unusable flathead that's in it is rusted tight because the vehicle has been sitting outside for the past 50 years. You will have your hands full just restoring that interior and steering wheel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
V.Milke Posted August 19, 2022 Share Posted August 19, 2022 (edited) Just curious if you decided to restore the car. In case you didn't, I might be interested in grill, bumpers and a few parts. Thanks, Victor Edited August 19, 2022 by V.Milke (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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