Werner Pauli with his military...
Werner Pauli with his military and civilian bombers
Yesterday's Young Guns
Werner Pauli
Holly Hill, Florida
1951 Mercury
In 1956, Werner Pauli was 24 years old, home from Korea (where he flew B-26s), and owned this custom Mercury.
This story comes from his son Dave. "Dad bought the '51 off the lot in Arlington Heights, Illinois, while visiting home and drove it to Langley AFB in Virginia, where he was stationed. He and some friends had a garage off base and made all the standard leadsled mods: nosed, decked, shaved, and lowered (with 4-inch blocks in the rear), frenched headlights, and '54 Packard Clipper taillights. The center '56 Chrysler grille bar pivoted when pushed to open the driver's door using a '51 Buick starter solenoid. Switches on the driver's seat operated everything, including the passenger door.
"The 331ci Hemi had dual carbs, dual exhaust, and flamethrowers. A '37 LaSalle three-speed had the obligatory tall shifter with an adapter plate made by Lee Petty.
"He switched between Caddy hubcaps and Olds Fiestas, depending on where he was going, because 'There was always a good chance the Caddys would get ripped off.' The 31-gallon fuel tank with boost pumps was for extended cruising. The B-26 landing light mounted in the trunk was for anybody who followed too close.
"The 30-coat lacquer job-Sherwood green over a gold base-would change from deep green in bright sunlight to dark blue to jet black at night.
"He had a lot of fun with the car, which ran 'pretty fast for a custom.' The Merc's long gone, but Dad is still kicking!"
Tim Brown
San Diego, California
1927 Ford Track Roadster
Tim says that he got the car bug early in life and knows who he caught it from. "Growing up close to my dad, we would go to all the local swap meets to collect Model A and Model T parts-that's how you had to do it in those days because there was no eBay." Tim's dad Ed enjoyed restoring his cars, but Tim always want to "hot rod" them. After reading the July '04 issue of R&C, featuring a special section on track roadsters, he knew that's what he wanted to build. He and his dad spent 21/2 years building this one, powering it with a '47 Ford Flathead with dual 97s and Edelbrock heads, followed by a '39 Lincoln Zephyr trans and a '47 banjo rearend with a Winters quick-change. He says that he and his dad are proud of their two-man project, as they should be. At the Goodguys Del Mar Nationals, the Track T was honored with a couple of awards, including the very appropriate "The Real McCoy" award.
Hoss Sauvageau
Fort Collins, Colorado
1948 Cadillac Series 62 Sedan
The next time you're driving in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains, be on the lookout for this cool '48 Cadillac.We'd say Hoss showed pretty good judgment when putting together his award-winning resto-rod by letting the original style of the car speak for itself, making just a few mild modifications. The car is powered by a bored and stroked '48 Cadillac flathead engine, with a three-speed Hydramatic transmission behind it-both built by Dirty Dan. Wide whites rolling on '49 Cadillac wires complement the overall tone of the car. The seats were covered in brown and tan leather with 3-inch tuck 'n' roll. Hoss and his friend Kenny Petty did the bodywork. The eye-catching paint, Hot Hues Sinful Cinnamon painted at Ozzie's Body Shop, make this one pretty hard to miss.
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