The Mk II was so unique and special that it spawned its own Continental Division of the Ford Motor Company
Lincoln used to make great cars.
Unfortunately, that statement is now longer completely nor technically true — because Ford’s Lincoln brand doesn’t make cars anymore. It has a full, and worthwhile, fleet of only SUVs — all of them handsome, well equipped, and luxuriously trimmed and appointed.
Why no more Lincoln cars? I imagine the prime reasons are that the cars they made weren’t selling well enough to pull their weight and production capacity, included in this equation is the notion that buyer tastes have changed over time, and that by and by, most buyers want at least one SUV in their real and metaphorical garages. So was Lincoln making cars wrong, or merely making the wrong cars? It’s a compelling question.
Today’s marketplace doesn’t evidence nor prove that nobody wants conventional cars anymore. Lexus and Mercedes-Benz make a fairly full roster of luxury coupes and sedans. As does Cadillac. And Honda. Toyota. Nissan. BMW. Infiniti. Buick. The Ford brand itself makes hardly any, the Mustang really being the only nameplate that qualifies. Taurus, Fusion, Focus, Fiesta, Crown Vic, LTD, and all the rest, all the gone. Also the Chrysler — sorry, Stellantis — is also pretty much out of that game.
I fairly grew up in Lincolns, as my father always owned and drove them in the 1960s, and I’ve had a couple of my own since. The 60s sedans were both winners: the first an elegant Continental sedan, subtle in a champaignish gold with a light tan / parchment colored leather interior. The ’69 Town Car was totally Entourage; suicide doors, 365 horse 460 motor, Dark Ivy Green exterior, with a dark green vinyl roof, and matching green leather trimmed cabin. Like flying a 747. In First Class.
Above – my very own 1971 Continental Mk III
Everyone has their favorite picks from the 50s, for some its a ’57 Chevy, or a ’55-57 Thunderbird, or a Hemi powered this or that. For me the vehicular Great American Hero of the 1950s is the Continental Mk II (see lead photo). Hand built to a standard, not a cost budget, large, elegantly devoid of gingerbread in the often-overwrought 50s, and a wonderful reinterpretation of the “Continental kit” spare tire trunk hump. Every engine hand assembled and balanced; Bridge of Weir leather inside, an American Bentley if there ever was. All the Rat Pack guys had them, as did Elizabeth Taylor — hers was color matched to her dazzling violet-colored eyes. It was that kinda car.
Considering how may premium marques still produce and sell “cars” I’d like to see Lincoln take one more crack at it — handsome commanding yet smartly sized vehicles that are intensely design driven, elegant, luxuriously modern, appropriate to today’s market and buyer tastes, built and finished to high standards. And they must drive as good as anything made by any of them other guys.
What thinks you?