Beautiful, But Wildly Impractical.... [PIC]

With its mahogany panel and accent ash stiles and rails, the Mercury "8" 'Woody' estate wagon lost money for the company and for the owners being an expensive automobile to maintain. Yet it was sought after by Hollywood studios, luxe hotels and resorts and country squires who could keep after the failing glued and screwed seams that caused all manner of squeaks and groans... not to mention the factory recommended yearly re-varnishing. Unlike Ford, there was only one version of their woody made... a tudor 8 cylinder wagon. The design for the 1949 to 1951 Mercury actually was done by E.T. "Bob"  Gregorie for 1943 models interrupted by WWll. Unlike previous woodys the ash stiles and rails were made up of smaller pieces to resist seam failures and stress cracking. It was for those reasons too that only the tudor body was used for more integrity. Design work continued in secret during the late war years and was overseen by right hand man, Charles Sorensen, with the death of Edsel in 1943 and old Henry becoming increasingly more senile because the government forbade any new design work during the war years. The wood panels were harvested and built at Ford's Iron Mountain forest reserve and manufacturing plant using a unique and labor intensive lamination process. In spite of all the high tech employed, dealerships were supplied with replacement panels for the woodys, but so few were actually sold, most all were ultimately discarded. The '49-'51 woodys were produced in the greatest numbers and were the last of the all wood woodys. Korean War restrictions were responsible  for the turn to all steel bodies with wood trim but decal panels.

This beautiful 1949 Mercury woody model is a Danbury Mint masterpiece.