A customized 1950 Mercury named “Maximus” took home the Detroit Autorama’s 2023 Don Ridler Memorial Award late February, considered by many to be the top prize in the hot-rod hobby. The Mercury, owned by Luigi Deriggi of New Jersey, was built by Bruce Harvey of Pro Comp Custom, of Pittsburgh; the car’s taking home the trophy this year marks the second Ridler win in a row for the shop.
Deriggi, who also owns a 1941 Ford and a 1968 Mustang, traces his love of the iconic late ’40s Mercury to the star car in Sylvester Stallone’s 1986 movie Cobra, reports Hot Rod Magazine.
The work he commissioned from Pro Comp Custom is extensive. Starting from the bottom up, it involved first swapping the car over to a modified Art Morrison chassis; an air suspension system backs up the four 10-inch-wide ten-spoke one-off wheels by Chris Boyd, which measure 20 inches up front and 22 inches in the rear.
On top of that sits the heavily customized bodywork, which saw the ’50 Merc shell treated to a five-inch chop, molded bumpers, Mercedes-style headlights, custom taillights, a hand-built grille and hood scoop, and then coated it all in a few deep layers of Candy Root Beer, topped by custom graphics.
Under the hood sits a Ford Coyote V8 topped by an eight-stack fuel-injection system, and backed an AOD transmission and a quick-change rear end. The guts of the cabin were done up in tasteful tan leather by Paul Atkins, and set off a full-length custom center console; and a one-off steering wheel by Sparc Industries.
Shawn Nichoalds’ 1967 Chevy Nova “Rome”, a 2023 Great 8 finalist at the Detroit Autorama Photo by Detroit Autorama on Facebook
Kathy Cargill’s 1969 Dodge Super Bee, a 2023 Great 8 finalist at the Detroit Autorama Photo by Detroit Autorama on Facebook
George Conrad’s “King Coyote,” 1978 Ford Mustang II, a 2023 Great 8 finalist at the Detroit Autorama Photo by Detroit Autorama on Facebook
Tim Hampel’s 1953 Chevrolet Pickup, a 2023 Great 8 finalist at the Detroit Autorama Photo by Detroit Autorama on Facebook
The Ridler award, sponsored by Meguiar’s, is perhaps hot-rodding’s most prestigious, and is handed out every year at the Detroit Autorama custom-car exhibition, save for 2021, when the event was cancelled over COVID-19 concerns. Contenders for the trophy must have never before been shown in public. A team of elite judges use criteria like build quality and attention to detail to whittle down applicants to an octet of finalists known as the BASF Great 8.
This year, those eight cars included some very stiff competition in the form of Shawn Nichoalds’ 1967 Chevy Nova “Rome”, which started as a father-son project but was completed in memoriam to his dad; Kathy Cargill’s 1969 Dodge Super Bee, powered by a Gen III Hemi; George Conrad’s “King Coyote,” a wildly modified 1978 Ford Mustang II; and Tim Hampel’s 1953 Chevrolet Pickup, which he’s owned since age 18.
The Detroit Autorama has been hosted by the Michigan Hot Rod Association (MHRA) since its start in 1953, when it was launched as a fundraiser for the construction of the state’s first drag strip. The Ridler trophy dates to 1964, and was so-named in memorial to one of the Autorama’s first promoters, Don Ridler.
Keyword: 2023 Ridler top-hot-rod prize goes to 1950 Mercury 'Maximus'