Maggie Mercer leans on her '55 Pontiac in Muncie, Ind. She found her Pontiac on Facebook Marketplace and traded for her Volkswagen Beetle. Her family bought, sold, and traded for the 13 cars they own. Shannon McCloskey, Ball Bearings Magazine.
Lifestyle

A Key Connection

A Muncie family fosters their love for cars at local car shows, and even in their own garage.

Shannon McCloskey·

The baby-blue hue of Maggie Mercer’s ‘55 Pontiac, Lucy, nicely reflected the sunlight, and the original interior got some fresh air as she rolled up with the windows down. 

Lucy is actually completely original, except for the fresh paint job. She takes after the ‘55 Pontiac convertible from “I Love Lucy” that cruised Los Angeles. 

“The dash is just so beautiful. You know, there’s something about the dashes on the old cars that they just don’t do anymore,” Maggie says.

Maggie’s whole family revels in the vintage-car culture. Her daughter, Morgan, is almost ready to get her license and hop in the ‘57 Ford Fairlane that she’s been working on herself. She has been surrounded by cars coming and going out of her garage all of her life, but something about this one was different.

“When he traded for my 1957 Ford Fairlane, I didn’t really think much of it, as I figured it would be gone soon after,” Morgan says. “Once [my dad] started to paint it, I absolutely fell in love.”

Maggie fell in love with a Volkswagen Beetle first, and then her Pontiac, but she has always loved the ‘50s and ‘60s classics. 

“When the Space Race began, they started really trying to put like space-age looking things into the designs of cars. So that’s why you’ll see some things that have a crazy bubble top, or they have those big tail lights that come out,” Maggie says.

Morgan, too, has always had an affinity for history, and vintage cars tell an old story, from the interior to the rims.

“My car is not only a direct bridge to the past, but also to my family,” Morgan says. 

With a total of 11 cars at their house, Maggie and her family could be considered enthusiasts. Morgan has been attending car shows with her parents since she can remember. 

Muncie’s vintage car owners have been presented with more opportunities around town to get their prized set of wheels out and about. The DWNTWN Muncie Car Show, being held next on June 4, is a moment for all the traditional rides and hot rods older than 1980. Once again back on the calendars is Cruising South Madison Street, an event that fell off until about 2018.

Cruising South Madison Street is set to start in April and run until November on the third Saturday of each month. Times and any updates can be found on the City of Muncie’s calendar and Cruising South Madison Street’s Facebook page. 

Pontiac, Mich. gave Pontiacs their name, after producing the first one in 1926, according to Consumer Reports. Pontiac cars were discontinued in 2010. Maggie’s is a 1955, an era of vehicles that has a special place in her heart.
The dash on Maggie Mercer’s classic Pontiac is completely original, and she says the black will match any interior. “Thankfully, the interior is black. I loved that because I can do anything I want with this car,” Maggie says.
Many original features still exist on Maggie’s car, even though she has plans for a few cosmetic changes. But, there’s value to keeping its integrity. “For me, it’s awful if someone cuts up the interior. Like you see a classic car and someone’s cut a hole in the dash to put a stereo in it, and it’s just it’s horrible,” she says. “That to me is a big thing. I don’t want something someone’s cut apart.”
Maggie Mercer’s Pontiac takes after the 1950’s and the colors they enjoyed back then, but she plans to change some of that. “Right now, it’s kind of an aqua green combination that I like, but I don’t love,” she says. “Someone at least repainted it from the original. The original was hideous.”
Classic cars are surrounded by a community in Muncie with annual shows and rides. Maggie Mercer says it’s extended past Muncie into Delaware County as a whole. “If you see someone, even if you barely know their name, and their car is broken down on the side of the road, you know that someone in this community will stop and help you,” she says.

Sources: Downtown Muncie, Muncie Calendar, Facebook

Images: Shannon McCloskey

Featured Image: Shannon McCloskey