By Derby Ahlstone

This 1939-40 Mercury was built for Paul Planette, an aspiring actor from a wealthy family.

In a time when actors like Clark Gable had special cars built to their unique specifications, Paul did the same by commissioning Coachcraft to build this custom Mercury roadster also known as the “door-less wonder” in late 1939 and early 1940. This one-of-a-kind Mercury Roadster was the first of twelve custom-bodied cars built by Coachcraft of Hollywood.

A couple of years after this car was built, Mr. Planette got into a car accident in which both the front and rear ends of the car got smashed. Mr. Planette went back to Coachcraft to have them fix the car, but they passed the business on to fellow custom car builder, Jimmy Summers. Summers made a couple of modifications to the car including replacing the grille with sheet metal. Later a small grille was instaled into it since the engine did not get enough cool air.

The car was found by Derby Ahlstone in 1986 and was restored back to its original version in 2006-2007.

Coachcraft #1 Specifications

Original Owner: Paul Planette

Body: Coachcraft

Body Paint Color: 1940 Mercury – Cigarette Cream

Front Fenders: 1940 Mercury

Front Headlights: 1940 Mercury

Hood: Coachcraft-Sectioned 1940 Mercury hood

Grill: 1940 Mercury

Bumpers: 1939 Mercury

Rear Fenders: 1939 Mercury with custom skirts

Rear Taillights: 1940 Mercury

Windshield: Coachcraft

Dashboard: 1940 Mercury (widened)

Interior Color: Red

Wheels: 1939 Mercury with Flipper Hubcaps

Chassis: 1939 Mercury

Engine: 1940 Mercury flathead, 239 cu.in. @ 95 hp, ports factory relieved

Transimission: 1940 Mercury with Lincoln Zephyr gears

Brakes: Lincoln Zephyr