Woody’s are considered to be quite rare as these fine works of art always didn’t age as gracefully as their sheet metal brethren. Often difficult to find one, this seller appears to have two 1952 Woody station wagons when it is thought that only 2400 were built for that year. With one wagon having a promising appearance, and the other a little on the rough side, it would seem that there could be enough to almost make one complete woody wagon. This duo project is offered for a very reasonable $1,250! Check them out here on craigslist out of Van Nuys, California.
Of the two woody’s this particular one looks the worst. Missing its front end, and missing part of its passenger rear quarter, it is clear this ‘Merc would need a lot of attention to be a driver again. On a good note, the flathead V8 engine appears very complete, and may even be a worthwhile runner, who knows?
Despite the large missing chunk of body work, it would seem that rot is a minimal concern with this wagon. There is obviously some surface rust to be seen, but it would seem there are some solid parts to make good use of.
The burgundy wagon is a bit confusing, as the passenger side has a patina from where the wood paneling was fitted, while the driver side does not. The tailgate is obviously missing its wood, as are the sides. This woody in particular “wood” be the one to save, and doesn’t look too shabby based off of the pictures. There does appear to be some rust and perhaps even rot around the driver side window trim area, as well as some surface rust spread all over this classic. Appearing fairly complete, the burgundy wagon could wind up being a fairly cheap woody project for someone. “Wood” you take the chance on these cheap woody’s?
so, the car that appears to be taken apart is the BETTER of the two? Lots of possibilities , though at first glance I think the burgundy car is the better of the two , if the engine runs or is able to get running, keep it . being so rare, would hesitate to ” rat rod” it , but a small v/8 and period correct tires would make it a looker … but..can’t help but say.. small 8. make sure the undersides are up to snuff nice interior bench front, redo the wood radials, duals . would be a looker at a Ford/Merc show!
The flathead in the parts car isn’t locked up. So with a rebuild, you’re all set with the small V8.
Interesting cars. As stated rot is minimal on car one because 30% of body has been scavenged.
My favorite Ford products from the 50s are the ’52 – ’54 models. Even though Mercury might be my second choice, I sure wouldn’t put a paper sack over my head so I wouldn’t be recognized driving a ’52 Mercury wagon. But it’s out of the question for me at this time. Too many projects, not to mention that my Better Half isn’t a fan of wagons…
There’s always hope geomechs… my other half hated El Caminos, mainly due to her dad owning one when she was in high school, and never wanted to ride in any of my old cars including a recently purchased ’83 ElCo. But last week, thanks to a 300 mile trip to get a piece of furniture she wanted that wouldn’t fit in our modern SUV, she’s beginning to come around! “This thing is actually comfortable..”
The more complete car looks a bit strange. Was it half woody and half stock? It kind of looks that way given the trim. From looking around, this is after the wood became an exterior trim, but before the shift to plastic to recreate that look. Here is a site I came across with pages of pictures from a restored one. At that starting price, with the turning, original flathead in the parts car, seems like a great start. From his mention of potential values, I think the price is extremely reasonable. Most ads like this would tack on an extra zero.
http://www.hotrodscustomstuff.com/OLD_SITE/mercury-woodie-01.html
IMHO the woody would be a nice car restored but unless you are very talented you will have invested as much as you can get out of it for a investment purpose. Rebuild drivetrain, bodywork, wood trim and interior would need someone familiar with this type of car not your average bodyshop which would be costly. Good luck to the buyer just not me.
52 Mercs are scarce enough,let alone a woody.
I don’t have any “wood skills”,but would still like to try!
would be nice if both could be saved,but probably not.
These are very beautiful when done,and I wouldn’t rule out
an old school resto rod,keep the flathead,as they sound so very good,
especially with headers and smitty’s short mufflers,heres a pic of my dad’s
52 Monterey,maybe some day we will have time to get rid of it’s patina,
even though some people love it just like it is!
GMadmatt outside of the color that could be a twin to my cousin’s ’52 Monterey,it runs and drives but retains its patina finish because he likes it that way,just part of his iron menagerie he’s accumulated since his retirement which includes such rare birds as a ’37 Hudson Terraplane 2 door and a ’35 Hudson 4 door plus a Model T coupe and a ’49 Dodge pickup with a ’48 Chrysler flathead six in it.see you’re from Ohio,I’m from there and my cousin is as well.
I’m surprised the roof hasn’t caved in on the parts car, if that were a late model it would be resting on the bumper. This would indeed be a nice car to restore. I think you can buy prefab wood kits for these which is great for the do it yourselfer with no woodworking experience. The price seems great too! There was one ( Ford ) for sale locally about a year ago that didn’t look much better than this Merc. The asking price was $10,500, I don’t know if it ever sold, but it has disappeared.
Here’s the saved ad with all the images http://www.craigslistadsaver.com/view.php?name=1952MercuryWoodyWagons
These are metal cars with the plastic wood side panels….not true woodys !
I was going to point this out earlier. The perimeter trim around the decal was still wood on these however.
FrankenMerc! The half-woody reminds me of the Marx Take-A-Part toy I have dating from the same period, which made it from the manufacturer with only a wood decal on one side, not both. Now I see I could happen on real cars too!
Oh, I had one of those too! I was going to ask if anyone else had had one. Baby blue. Everything opened. Wheels could be removed. Came with a spare. Detailed engine. Big scale. Much bigger than even 1/18. (Of course, I was a lot smaller too!)
So not to be a grammar cop..or spelling cop..but the Woodie preferred spelling is woodIE and yes this is not a true woodie.
https://www.sandiegowoodies.com/
The last wooden bodied car east of the firewall,north and south of the fenders was the 1949 Ford as far as I can remember, along with the ’48 Chrysler T&C. . I don’t believe any of the wood trimmed wagons beginning in the Fifties were true wood bodies and not wood trim over a metal framed bodies.
On the subject of Fifties Mercury’s our first car I rode in as a baby was a 1954 Mercury. Always liked that iteration’s taillights.