Mercury coupes built from 1949 to 1951 became popular with this car with body modified by George and Sam Barris in 1953, called the “Hirohata Custom” after its owner’s surname.

The car built by Barris is the quintessential “custom car”, and its impact on American automotive culture was so strong that in the following years, most of these Mercurys that did not end up for scrap received a “chopping” treatment of the roof, plus other modifications to make it look like Hirohata’s car. Unfortunately most of these were badly made and tasteless, and they too were eventually scrapped.

This one is therefore one of the very few Monterey two-doors to have survived the buzz saw, and has remained in remarkably good condition all these years. We are not connoisseurs of these cars but at a superficial glance it seems to us that everything is original and in its place: the interior, the external decorations, the flathed engine and even the Mercury badge on the exhaust tip: never seen before. Find it for sale at $38,000 here in Cape Coral, FL.