Kevan Sledge's 1940 Mercury
1940 Mercury coupe owned and restyled by Shifters of So. Cal. car club member Kevan Sledge. Kevan bought the Mercury from Rudy Rodriguez after selling a 1939 Ford coupe. Kevan first fell in love with Mercury customs after seeing John D'Agostino's Stardust in the late 1980s. It was through the Stardust that Kevan found out about the Matranga Mercury. After that, he always wanted a 1940 Mercury. According to the Rodder's Journal Number 65, Kevan bought his first Mercury in 1992. He didn't do much with it and ended up selling it to fellow Shifters member Vic Jimenez.[1]
It was Vic who in 2002 talked Kevan into checking out Rudy's Mercury. The car was in a nice original condition, and he bought it in September of the same year. At the time, Kevan was living in Orange, California. The car was brought to Anthony Castaneda's place, where Anthony rebuilt the brakes while Kevan messed with the motor. A Magnum three-inch dropped axle was installed up front, while the rear was lowered by flattening the rear crossmember.[1] After Kevan and Anthony had gotten the car back on the road, Kevan continued the build by repairing rust and replacing bad body panels. When the body was repaired, it was finally time for a haircut. Vic helped Kevan during the chop. 6 inches were cut out of the A-pillars, while 7 inches were removed from the C-pillars. The A-pillars required cuts top and bottom, and the bottom of the pillars needed to be slightly leaned back to line up. After Kevan got the A-pillars set, he began reshaping the C-pillars to achieve a better flow. He cut out the back window, leaving about 3" all the way around so there would be plenty of meat to work with. The crown above the back window was softened, and the flow of the C-pillar was rendered with cutting slices right in the heavily curved area. The sail panels were re-shaped to add more length to the roof, and the B-pillars were removed for a hardtop roofline, similar to the Matranga and the Stardust Mercury. After the roof was fully tacked in place, the drip rails were shaved.[2] With the roof tacked back together, Kevan drove the Merc to the Hot Rod Reunion in Bakersfield a few weeks later. The back half of the roof was in bare metal, while the rest of the car wore the weathered blue re-paint that was on it when he bought it.[1]
After the top was chopped, the car continued evolving over the next few years. It was nosed, decked, and shaved for door handles. The side trim on the hood was shortened, and the rear fenders were molded to the body for a cleaner appearance. Robert A. Radcliffe III did much of the metalwork on the car, and he had the car in his garage for two years while working on it.[3] The gas filler was also relocated inside the trunk. The in-progress custom appeared in shows all over California, featuring various stages of paint, primer and bare metal. When the bodywork was done, the car was painted flat black. Later on Kevan built a custom splash pan which was made to fit a 1946 Ford bumper, and the taillights were removed, and relocated in the bumper guards. Up front, a 1941 Lincoln Zephyr bumper was installed. This version sported a set of 1947 Cadillac Sombreros, which were 16" and super rare since they only came on series 75 Caddy Limos and ambulances. Kevan looked for four years before he found a good pair! The 16's are deeper and stick out slightly more so the 40 Merc spindle isn't a problem. He installed them by using 1940 Ford beauty rings, and used a resin to attach the two.[2]
In 2004 Kevan installed a 1947 Mercury 59A flathead engine in the car. The engine came from a 1932 Ford that was built in the 1950s. Tom Hutchinson went over the engine, boring it .030-over and installing a Winfield cam, Johnson adjustable lifters, polished Sharp heads, and a Thickstun high-rise intake with two Stromberg 97s. The rest of the drivetrain was kept stock.[1]
When Kevan and Vic first chopped the top on the Merc, they overlooked the height of the windshield, so in 2008, Kevan decided to raise the windshield 1 5/8" up into the roof. In 2013, Kevan told Kustomrama that "It's easier to do this step first; that way, you don't have to add a filler piece to the A-pillar later. By raising the windshield, you remove the "forehead" above the windshield, making the front window even with the side windows." Around the same time, Kevan decided to clean the car up so he could show it at the following year's Sacramento Autorama's celebration of Mercury's 70th anniversary. He had about six months to get the car ready for the show. Before the show, Octavio Chavez shot the Merc in a flattened green basecoat. He also did a lot of the bodywork before the paint. Inside, the stock seats were lowered before Daniel at Precision Upholstery spent a week and a half in Kevan's home garage stitching a two-tone dark green and off-white Naugahyde tick-n-roll interior. Rolling on 600-16 Lester 3 7/8" Whitewall Tires, it was dressed up with Appleton spotlights, National Hollywood flipper hubcaps, and beauty rings. The Sacramento Autorama lit the fire for Kevan to finish the build, so shortly after the show he had the rest of the interior and trunk upholstered in two-tone tuck-n-roll. Chris Johnson at Johnson's Kustom Upholstery trimmed the trunk and spare tire cover.[1]
In 2011 Kevan moved to Auburn, California, bringing the Mercury along. In 2012, the car came apart once more, and Kevan began preparing it for its final coat of paint. Charlie Pascuzzi handled most of the block sanding, while Jason Haskin went over it one last time before it was delivered to Bill and Dave Wolcik at Edward's Collision Studio in Rocklin, California. The Wolcik's and Jason Haskin laid down a custom mixed Dark Organic Green paint job.[1] The build was completed in May of 2014, making it's debut at the 2014 Cruisin' Nationals in Santa Maria. It won the Early Customs Award at the show. The same year it featured on the cover of The Rodder's Journal Number 65.[2] In 2015 it landed the cover of Kustoms Illustrated Issue 43, and in 2016, it did also make an appearance on the cover of Gasoline Magazine Number 2 2016, a Swedish magazine.
Contents
Sold to Darren Hauck
Kevan sold the car to a guy named Darren Hauck. Hauck had it for about a year before he decided to sell it through Barret-Jackson.[2]
Sold at the 2018 Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale Auction
In January of 2018, Kevan's Mercury was offered for sale at the 2018 Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale Auction. It was advertised without a reserve, and it sold for $82,500.00. The highest bidder was David Kimmerle of Glendale, Arizona. Kimmerle runs Sanderson Ford, a Ford Dealership in Glendale, and he has a museum at the dealership where the car is displayed.[4]
Sold to John D'Agostino
January 26, 2024 the Kevan Sledge Merc was back at the Barret-Jackson Scottsdale Auction. Advertised without a reserve, the car once again sold for $82,500.00. In a stunning turn of events, the iconic custom car was sold to custom car promotor, collector, and builder John D'Agostino from Discovery Bay, California. With this transaction, the Merc's journey comes full circle, as it was D'Agostino's own Stardust that ignited Kevan Sledge's passion for Mercury customs in the late 1980s, eventually leading him to cherish the Matranga Mercury and dream of owning a 1940 Mercury himself.[5]
Magazine Features and Appearances
Rolls & Pleats Number 12
The Rodder's Journal Number 65
Kustoms Illustrated Issue 43
Gasoline Magazine Number 2 2016
Car Kulture DeLuxe February 2020
References
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