1942 Lincoln Continental Cabriolet Walkaround

The most distinctive classic first-generation Lincoln Continentals were the 1942 models.

That's because Lincolns were heavily facelifted for that model year, getting boxy fenders, a wider hood and a new grille design which Continentals shared.  World War 2 intervened for the USA with the attack on Pearl Harbor.  Car production was curtailed before March 1942 and not restarted until after Japan's surrender in 1945.  Postwar Lincolns and Continentals retained nearly all the 1942 styling features.  Except the grille.  1946-48 models had one with an egg-crate bar pattern.  Result: 1942 Continentals were few in number and featured a grille design not found on any others.

For some background on Lincolm Continentals, the Wikipedia entry is here (scroll down for information about the first, 1940-1948, generation.

I recently compared some 1942 models in my post "Lincoln's Rare 1942 Convertibles: Basic and Continental."  And in an early post, I wrote about "Lincoln's 1942 Facelift."  Today's post examines 1942 Lincoln Continantal design in more detail.

Images below are a composite of the same car (serial number H133783) auctioned by Mecum three different times.

Gallery

For context, a 1940 Continental Cabriolet, BaT Auctions photo.

The '42 facelift drastically changed the aesthetic "feeling" of the car from graceful to aggressive.  Continental-specific details largely disappear when viewed from this perspective: might as well be considered a new design.

"Suitcase" fenders follow General Motors' 1938-41 lead.  Side-view styling is thematically-consistent and attractive -- courtesy of the tastes of Edsel Ford and styling director Bob Gregorie.

The trunk and separate spare tire are carried over from previous Continental styling.

Tail lights were moved from the main body to the fenders.

The boxy original trunk design blends well with the new "suitcase" fender scheme: consistency.

Original low level chrome trim is retained.

The above-the-bumper bulge theme was used on '42 Mercurys too.

Grille design is logical, given the "bulge" just mentioned.  Nicer than the 1946-48 version, in my opinion.  Note the fashionable "whiskers" flanking/extending the lower grille element.  Headlight assemblies are massive and a bit odd-looking.  They do keep auxiliary lights from otherwise cluttering other parts of the frontal design.

Symmetrical design, the clock balancing the speedometer.  The central element is the radio/speaker.

Frontal overhead view.  Wider hood than before.  Wide fender tops: no catwalk connection.

Continental details are concentrated here.  Rear fenders are distinct from the main body, unlike at the front.

1981 2-door Lincoln Town Car: One Year Only

Actually, that car was produced for two model years.  For 1980, it was the Lincoln Continental Coupé, with a wheelbase of 117.3 inches (2979 mm).  Not to be confused with the 1980 Lincoln Continental Mark VI Coupé whose wheelbase was 114.3 inches (2903 mm).  The 1981 2-door was part of the newly-named Town Car line.  It was called a 2-Door Sedan in some publicity literature, and I've also seen it referred to as Town Coupé.

In that same 1980-81 time frame, Ford Motor Company produced 114.3-inch wheelbase Mercury Marquis 2-door sedans and Ford LTD 2-door sedans on the same wheelbase.  That is the same as the 1980 and 1981 Continental Mark VI 2-door.

The circa-1980 setting had Ford Motor Company producing cars on five different wheelbases, simplified to four wheelbases for 1981.  Given its three car marques (Ford, Mercury, Lincoln), those basic bodies were shared across the line, with a few exceptions.  Ford and Mercury lacked 117.3-inch models, whereas the 114.3-inch wheelbase was Lincoln's shortest.

Lincoln Continental Mark VIs included 2-door models into the 1980s and beyond, on increasing Mark numbers.  Lincoln Town Cars were 4-door sedans from 1982 until the line was dropped after the 2011 model year.  Those 117.3-inch 2-doors did not sell well: 7,177 and 4,935 for 1980 and 1981, respectively.  So management probably decided continuing that style was not economically realistic.  Further, it clarified the Town Car's image as a 4-door sedan only.

Gallery

1980 Ford LTD 2-Door Sedan - car-for-sale photo
This design debuted for the 1979 model year.  The massive B-pillar was for rollover protection required by government regulations.

1980 Lincoln Continental Coupe - car-for-sale photo
The longer-wheelbase Lincoln appeared for the 1980 model year.

1981 Lincoln Town Car 2-Door Sedan - car-for-sale photo
Basically the same design, but given a different model name.  Boxy, plenty overhang, slightly fussy abaft of the B-pillar.  But fairly attractive, aside from those quad headlights.

1982 Lincoln Continental Mark VI Coupe - BaT Auctions photo
Mark VI coupes were produced model years 1980-1983.  Its wheelbase is the same as the Ford's in the first image above.  In 1981, 18,740 were built, compared to only 4,935 2-door Town Cars.  Which probably explains why the latter was dropped for model year 1982.  That oval opera window seems silly.  Also, the opera window fad was nearly over.

Continental Mark II Walkaround

Seventy years ago, Ford Motor Company's Continental Mark II was a big deal.  It was a luxury car intended to evoke the classic Lincoln Continental of the 1940s, especially the original, prewar version.

For the public at large, a more sensational feature was its publicized price: $10,000 (actual list was $9,695).  A lot of money in those days.  Google AI has consumer prices increasing 12.24 times, making the publicized price $122,400 in 2026 dollars.  Put another way, a 1956 Ford Victoria hardtop coupe listed at $2,194, so the Mark II cost more than four times as much as that fairly standard car.

I wrote about the Mark II here, and presented competitive alternative designs here.

However, rather than evaluate the Continental's styling in reference to the original, classic Lincoln Continentals, for today's post I'll try to evaluate it as an independent effort.

The color of the featured car below is not very attractive.  I selected its photo series because the colors and lighting show body forms better that can be seen on the usual images of black-painted Continentals.

Gallery

1957 Continental Mark II - Broad Arrow Auctions photos
The Mark II debuted in the Fall of 1955 when panoramic (wraparound) windshields were at the height of their American fashion.  More will be said about it below, but for now I'll assert that its design was unique in its day.

Wheelbase is fairly long at 126 inches (3200 mm), same as '56 Lincolns, but not as long as those of contemporary standard Cadillacs.    Regarding proportions, the passenger compartment greenhouse strikes me as being too short for the car's length.  A slightly shorter hood/front end, say 6-9 inches (150-229 mm) worth might improve matters.  Also, a similar reduction in rear overhang would be useful stylistically.  That said, large, long trunks were becoming accepted practice then, so that overhang was a marketing consideration.

The backlight window curve echoes the windshield's.  Salient rear feature is the rounded cover over the spare tire's interior space (it was mounted at that angle, placed behind the trunk's floor.  It was a major linkage to the original Continental's appearance -- spare tire mounted behind the trunk.

Another mid-1950s feature is the engine exhaust venting in the rear bumper ensemble instead of the usual pipes set below the bumper.

The angle of the spare tire shape seems about the same as that of the backlight, a subtle, unifying touch if so.  Rear fenders are strongly defined at their tops and aft ends.  Tail light assemblies are discretely done.

Side character sculpting related to the fenderline except at the very front.  Its upkick by the rear wheel opening is a subtle, useful detail.  However, the rear fender upkick is too close to the forward anchorage of the C-pillar, creating a small zone of fussiness.  I wonder if the C-pillar is too wide.  Note the A-pillar angle.  Similar to '55 Chryslers and DeSotos, but wrapped farther aft.

The crisp, nearly-flat, nearly-linked windshield and side window tops was unusual; most American windshields were taller than the side windows in the mid-1950s.  Headlight assemblies are "frenched" and aggressive, another '50s thing.

The grille's shape is wide and bold, but the "eggcrate" mesh is subtle by comparison.  Turn indicator/running light assemblies mimic the rear end's engine exhaust ports.

1956 Continental Mark II - Daniel Schmitt photos
Bonus images showing the design from a higher perspective.  From here, the hood/front still seems too long, and the greenhouse too short.

The after part of the design flows better than the frontal.

1956 Continental Mark II - Broad Arrow photos
Now seen from near-overhead.  This clearly shows how window/windshield tops and adjacent roofline form a coherent visual unit almost unique in 1955 America.  (Studebaker was the other main exception to that norm.)

From above, the hood/front doesn't seem too long.  So maybe it's the fender length with those protruding headlight assemblies that's causing the visual problem.

Lincoln's Rare 1942 Convertibles: Basic and Continental

The 7 December 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor triggered the entry of the United States into World War 2.  Domestic automobile production ceased before the following March, making model year 1942 a drastically shortened one.  For example, Ford Motor Company's Lincoln built only 327 convertible coupes, 191 of which were basic Lincoln-Zephyrs, the remaining 136 were classic Lincoln Continentals.

Today's post compares the Zephyr and Continental convertibles.   The Wikipedia entry for Lincoln-Zephyr is here, that for the Continental is here.

Both models were built on 125 inch (3175 mm) wheelbases, but Continental's proportions differed, as can be seen in the Gallery.  The Zephyr convertible's list price was $2150, Continental's was $3000.  So the Continental was 40 percent more expensive than the Zephyr alternative.  Put another way, a Zephyr convertible could be had for 72 percent of the price of a Continental.

Lincoln-Zephyrs, launched for model year 1936, were redesigned for 1940, and the '40 design was given a significant facelift for 1942.  When car production resumed after the war ended, 1942 styling was retained until the 1949 redesign.  With one major exception: grille bars were completely revised, making '42 Lincolns distinctive as well as rare.  I wrote about the 1942 Lincoln facelift here.

The Lincoln-Zephyr images are via BaT Auctions.  Lincoln Continental photos are from Mecum Auctions -- likely the same car, but via publicity for different auctions.

Gallery

1942 Lincoln-Zephyr Convertible Coupe
Showing the new, wide, grille design promoted by Ford's styling chief Bob Gregorie, who later felt that it made the rest of the car seem a bit diminished (see my link above).

1942 Lincoln Continental Cabriolet
The Continental is lower, but doesn't seem much different from the Zephyr at first glance from this perspective.

Now differences show up.  A minor instance: the door and lower body sides flow over the running board, a very early-1940s American thing.  The Continental's running boards are tucked in below the doors and body sides: no flow.

The Continental's passenger compartment is shifted aft of the Zephyr's.  The result is a long hood and longer front fenders.  The hood and beltline are slightly lower, creating a more elegant appearance.

Greatest differences are at the rear.  Here we find a rounded trunk lid related to previous Zephyr practice, and contrasting the new, more angular front.  The rear fenders were redesigned for 1942, largely in the form of the raised tail light assemblies.  This is another contrast that seems a trifle odd given its juxtaposition with the nearby trunk.

Rear fenders are shared with the Zephyr, but the rest of the car's back end is standard Continental design.

Low-Mid Level Ford Granada Becomes Continental-Peer Lincoln Versailles

The automobile industry is usually in a turbulent state.  At times, the turbulence is more extreme than usual.  One such period for American carmakers was from around 1973 into the early 1980s.  Two major factors were (1) the oil supply crisis in the wake of the 1973 Yom Kippur War, and (2) increased federal government regulation activity regarding fuel economy and collision safety.  The result was that new design generation cars were smaller/lighter/more-streamlined than before, while having more robust bumpers and stronger passenger compartment pillars.

This downsizing affected even luxury brands.  Cadillac introduced its 114.7 inch (2903 mm) wheelbase Seville for 1975, and Lincoln followed with the 109 inch (2769 mm) wheelbase Versailles for model year 1977.  In 1977, base prices were $11,500 for Versailles and $13,359 for Seville, the latter being 16 per cent more expensive.  Annual production in 1977 for Versailles was 15,434, 45,060 for Seville -- Seville production almost three times that of Versailles.

Why the large difference despite Versailles' price advantage?

The Seville was based on its own platform (derived from other General Motors platforms).  But the Versailles was a derivative of Ford Motor Company's 1975 Mercury Monarch and Ford Granada.  That's the American Granada, not Ford's European one.  The problem was that the Versailles was too similar to its less-expensive stablemates, even sharing the same motors.  More importantly, the 1977 base price for the entry-level 4-door Grenada was $4,118.  That's only about 36 percent of the Versailles' price.  And the two cars looked nearly alike, as is shown below in the Gallery.  No wonder the Versailles was a market failure.

Gallery

1975 Ford Granada - unknown photo source, probably car-for-sale photos
A "three-box" design, fashionable during the non-streamlined 1970s.

1977 Lincoln Versailles - car-for-sale photos
The grille design is similar to that of standard-size Lincolns.  Quad headlights are here rather than the round, twin headlights of the Granada.  However, bumpers and turn-signal light assemblies are almost the same on both cars.

Side views: this Granada has vinyl roof covering like the Versailles below.

The most obvious side difference is the carriage light seen on the B-pillar.

Rear quarter views.

The "Continental" spare tire bulge on the trunk lid is non-functional; the tire itself lies flat under the trunk's floor.  The padding under the roof vinyl is obvious from this viewpoint.  Tail light assemblies differ, bumpers are nearly alike.

1980 Lincoln Versailles - Mecum Auctions photo
For 1979, Versailles got modified roofs, and sales briefly rose.  ('79 production was 21,007, but fell to 4,478 for 1980, the model's final year.  Total Versailles production was 50,158.

1960s Lincoln Continental Gets Its Hardtop Coupe in 1966

The original, classic Lincoln Continental was a prestige car that lived in the minds of Lincoln marketers and potential buyers for decades.  This Wikipedia entry deals with all Continentals from 1940 through 2020 (though there were some model year gaps).  Some versions were little like the original concept.  Others, such as the famous (to automobile history buffs) 1956-57 Mark II, that I wrote about here and here, were attempts to evoke the original's spirit.

Today's post deals with some aspects of what Wikipedia calls "Fourth Generation (1961-1969)" Continentals.  These were stylistically unrelated to the original, yet the initial, 1961, design is considered by many (including me) to be a classic.

Model year 1961-1965 Continentals were four-door sedans and four-door convertible sedans.  Lincoln marketers decided that the line should be expanded to include a hardtop coupe to compete against Cadillac's Coupe DeVille.  It appeared model year 1966.

While researching this post, I noticed that passenger compartment greenhouses on the 1966-67 and facelifted 1968-69 Continental coupes had structural features similar to those found on contemporary Mercury models.  That became the main focus of the discussion in the Gallery below.

Lincolns were wider than Mercurys, so there must have been some necessary structural differences if other aspects of the passenger greenhouse actually used some Mercury tooling.   I do not know if that happened, but I find the similarities suggestive.  Comments with solid information are welcomed.

Gallery

1966 Lincoln Continental Sedan - BaT Auctions photo
The basic 1966 Continental.  Enough changed from the 1961 original that I can't call the design "classic."

1966 Lincoln Continental Hardtop Coupe - Mecum Auctions photo
Here is the new hardtop coupe version.  Note the shape of the passenger compartment greenhouse and the window profiles.

1966 Mercury S-55 Hardtop Coupe - BaT Auctions
This is Mercury's top of the 1966 hardtop coupe line.  The C-pillar and after greenhouse segment led some to consider this a "fastback."  Ignore that: focus on the rest of the greenhouse and compare it to the Continental's in the previous image.  Note the widow profiles forward of where the C-pillars begin.  They seem identical to me.

1966 Mercury Park Lane Convertible - photo via Pinterest
As a side-note, this convertible's top illustrates what the Mercury's greenhouse shape might have been absent the "fastback" effect.

1968 Lincoln Continental Hardtop Coupe - car-for-sale photo
Continentals were slightly facelifted for 1968.  Here we see a revised greenhouse that was mostly changed in the C-pillar zone.

1967 Mercury Cougar Hardtop Coupe - car-for-sale photo
This is the first-year version of the Mercury Cougar.  Its passenger compartment greenhouse seems nearly the same as that of the '68 Continental.  Visible differences include the slope of the windshield and the upper right corner of the window profile.
Be aware of the different sizes in terms of wheelbase of the cars shown above.   Continental: 126 inches (3200 mm); standard '66 Mercury: 123 inches (3124 mm); 1967 Cougar: 111 inches (2819 mm).  The latter helps explain the differences in windshield slants.

"Breezeway" Mercurys of the 1950s and 1960s

A late-1950s - mid-1960s concept that reached production, yet did not become an American car industry fad such a tail fins and panoramic windshields, was the retractible backlight window.  This yielded what folks nowadays call "Breezeway" passenger compartments.  The idea being that air admitted from windshield area intake vents or "ventipane" windows would exit through a backlight zone at the rear.  The result would be a breeze from front to rear of the compartment.

Wikipedia's Breezeway entry is here.

I wonder how this worked when a breezeway car was at highway speed and the backlight window was rolled down.  Perhaps air turbulence aft of the top edge of the roof might be overwhelm the breeze flow and impact back seat passengers.  Let me know in a Comment whether that was the case.

The first Mercury Breezeways (model years 1957-58) were called Turnpike Cruisers, retaining some features from a concept car of the same name.   I wrote about the 1956 XM Turnpike Cruiser concept car here.  More Turnpike Cruiser background is here.

As noted in the Gallery, there were Breezeway Lincolns in the late 1950s.  Mercury reintroduced Breezeways on some models 1963-66, and some '63 versions are pictured.

Gallery

1953 Packard Balboa concept car - Packard photo
An early American breezeway design was this Packard concept car.  Note the slanted backlight window.  It was designed to roll down, but the mechanisms were never installed.

1956 Mercury XM Turnpike Cruiser concept car - Mercury photo
The concept Turnpike Cruiser.  The center section of the backlight was flat glass that was not retractible, alhough in theory a production version might have included that feature.  The XM's passenger compartment greenhouse extended over the trunk, and the spare tire was positioned centered below the aft edge of the greenhouse.  Since it certainly looks like the center window pane could have been retractible by reconfiguring the trunk, I'll call this an "honorary" Breezeway design.

1958 Lincoln Continental Mark III - car-for-sale photo
A rolled-down Breezeway window on a 1958 Lincoln.  Only Continental Marks III-IV (1958-60) had breezeways.  Total production was around 34,000, much less than Mercury versions.

1957 Mercury Turnpike Cruiser hardtop sedan - Mecum Auctions photos
Most production Breezeways were Mercurys.  Intake vents are atop the windshield.  Side window ventipanes also admitted air streams.

Again, the Breezeway window is retracted.

1957 Mercury Turnpike Cruiser hardtop coupe - car-for-sale photo
Mercury also made two-door Breezeway cars.

1963 Mercury Monterey Custom hardtop coupe - car-for-sale photos
Breezeways were reintroduced on some 1963 Mercurys.  This is a top-of-the-line version.

Rear quarter view showing the window arrangement.

1963 Mercury Monterey Custom hardtop sedan - Mercury publicity photo
The sedan hardtop's rear doors had small triangular upward extensions on the aft beltline.

1963 Mercury Monterey Custom 4-door sedan - car-for-sale photo
All Breezeway Mercury's and Lincolns had wide, V'd C-pillars.