“It was born in hell – lots of rusty steel smashed to the ground, a wooden steering wheel channeled and chopped – all the way to the top and running cool, with a bad big block.”
Some cars have an attitude. Others, an aura. But few possess the almost supernatural presence of the Rockabilly freakout – a 1949 Mercury Coupe that could just as easily have appeared in the fires of hell if it had been manufactured in an Austrian hot rod shop.
This Kustom Merc is an unholy mix of rockabilly culture, hot rod brutality and Karl Buche‘s dream comes to life. At its core is the Rockabilly freakout embodies raw power and aggressive style – you can easily imagine it tearing down Route 666 with a one-way ticket to hell.
It all started when Karl became fascinated with Bill Haley’s at the age of 13 ‘Rock around the clock’ blaring from a jukebox during a street party in his small hometown near Linz. That sound, combined with the images of cars, bicycles and fashion from the 1950s, led to a lifelong love affair with rockabilly.
“I just think this is the coolest way a man can express himself,” says Karel. “The clothes, the hairstyles, the bikes, the cars, the music, the attitude – everything. It caught my attention and never left.”
Karl’s teenage obsession with rockabilly culture led him to embrace the second wave of “Neo-Rockabilly” and “Teddy Boys” culture, eventually purchasing his first Harley-Davidson motorcycle at the age of 21. But as much as he loved his stripped-down Harley, the dream of owning akustom Mercury still lingered.
In 2015, after visiting an American car dealership with a friend, Karl decided it was time to build the car of his dreams: a broken, chopped-up, menacing Mercedes.
If you build a car in Austria that is as extreme as the Rockabilly freakout, there is one builder for the job. Execute Knud Tiroch Hotrod hangar.
Knud is known for his radical approach tokustom builds, and almost immediately he and Karl were exchanging ideas with each other and forming a vision for the Rockabilly Freakout. “We didn’t just talk about specifications and design; we talked about the character and attitude of the car. Knud motivated me to write it down (fictional) (back)story of the Rockabilly Freakout,” Karel explains.
I’ve summarized Karl’s story as briefly as possible, but I felt it was an important part of understanding how Knud translated it into the build.
A rebellious scoundrel (German for greaser) buys a beat-up ’49 Mercury and dreams of building the ultimate lead sled. After a deadly brawl, he crashes the car and ends up in a hellish garage. There, the ‘Hot Rodder from Hell’ offers to build him the ultimate custom Mercury in exchange for his soul. The result? The Rockabilly Freakout. The greaser returns as a ghost, looking for someone to take over the car and save his soul. Years later, a rockabilly enthusiast with a perfect pompadour accepts the deal, and the Rockabilly Freakout stalks the night – a symbol of rebellion, speed and the dark side of rock ‘n’ roll.
The basis for this masterpiece was a 1949 Mercury Coupe, originally from Texas, already cut up but otherwise untouched. It was immediately shipped to Austria, where Knud and his team got to work on the monster transformation.
And when I say “monster,” I mean it.
Under the hood, a Chevrolet 572ci big block V8 from Shafiroff Racing delivers 700 horsepower to the rear wheels through an ATI TH400 transmission and a Ford 9-inch rear end with a Detroit Locker differential.
The Merc rides on a 1970s Cadillac chassis with adjustable coilovers, with independent front and 4-link rear suspension for better handling – because this beast was built to drive.
The outside is a study in customization. The roof was cut off about six inches, the body was channeled and lengthened, and the rear fenders were radically reshaped to accommodate the 17-inch steel wheels with bullet center caps. Suicide doors, a forward-tilting hood and custom bumpers with elements from DeSoto and Cadillac give the Rockabilly freakout a position that is different from all other Mercedes. It’s low, long and mean.
“Knud’s racing background played a role here,” Karel explains. “Everything about this car is functional, from strengthening the body and firewall to the modifications. It’s not just about looking good, it’s about going fast and handling all that power.”
The custom paint job is where the Rockabilly freakout really shines. Finished in a rich mocha black with ghostly red flames and airbrushed holograms of skull heads, the car looks as if it emerged from a twisted dreamscape. Inside the doors and on the firewall, the Rockabilly Freakout story is written in detail, a nod to the creative story that inspired the build.
The interior is handmade, with a completely restyled original dashboard with functional skull buttons. The front seats are from a 60’s Nash, all black leather with striking red diamonds.
Upon completion, Knud surprised Karl with a rockabilly song he had written – a distillation of the Rockabilly Freakouts story, a few lines of which I mentioned in the opening paragraph. Now it has been immortalized on a CD that they recorded together.
To simply call Knud Tiroch a car builder would be a huge understatement. One of Europe’s first airbrush artists and a veteran of Formula 1 collaborations, his approach to cars combines art and performance.
So, what’s it like to be in the Rockabilly freakout? In short, it’s cruel. “It’s loud, aggressive and fast – very fast,” says Karel. ‘It’s not for cruising with your girlfriend. You have to respect this car because it takes no prisoners. But if you have the courage, it’s quite a ride.”
The Rockabilly freakout started as a dream, and today it is a reality – a dream that plagues Europe’s roads. It’s more than just a car: it reflects its owner’s life and love for rockabilly and coastal culture. Traditional in spirit yet progressive in style, every bend, chop and rev of the engine tells a story – a story of a vehicle born in hell, here to make a little more.
Vladimir Lyadov
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