1955 Mercury D-528 Concept “Beldone”
Quick Specs
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Ford Y-Block V-8.
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N/A
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1
Continuous Iteration & Changes
Dubbed “D-528” because it was the design (“D”) team’s 528th project, the low-slung Mercury D-528 concept was built to test advanced concepts in seating, lighting, air conditioning, and front frame design. More bold than beautiful, it featured four-door hardtop styling and was the first full-size Ford to be built in-house of fiberglass. Company engineers used the D-528 as a test bed for experimentation and modified and updated it frequently throughout the 1950s. The hinged rear fender bulges were functional, concealing a spare tire on one side and a gas tank on the other.
Since engineers did not want it to be thought of as a show car, the D-528 was never officially named and retained its internal letter/number model designation as long as Ford owned it. “Beldone,” was a stage name selected by Paramount Pictures for the car’s appearance in the 1964 Jerry Lewis film, The Patsy. It later appeared in other movies and television shows, including mid-1960s episodes of The Outer Limits and The Duplicate Man and Back to the Future (1985).
Collection of the Petersen Automotive Museum, Gift of Margie and Robert E. Petersen
This vehicle featured in ‘The Vault’.
1955 Mercury D-528 Concept “Beldone” Gallery
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