The Lincoln Motor Company (also known simply as Lincoln) is a division of the Ford Motor Company that sells luxury vehicles under the Lincoln brand.
open images in new tab to view full sizeFounded in 1917 by Henry M. Leland (1843-1932), Lincoln has been a subsidiary of Ford since 1922.
Lincoln Motor Company - 1917–1940
The Lincoln Motor Company was founded in August 1917 by Henry Leland and his son Wilfred. An engineer, Henry Leland named his new auto-mobile company after Abraham Lincoln, the first presidential candidate for whom he had cast a vote (in 1864). As the United States was still involved in World War I, the primary source of income for the company was military contracts; Lincoln co-assembled Liberty V12 aircraft engines, using cylinders supplied by Ford Motor Company, along with Buick, Cadillac, Marmon, and Packard. Alongside aircraft engine production, Lincoln produced its first auto-mobile in 1917, the Lincoln Model L. Powered by a V8 engine, the Model L was marketed as a luxury auto-mobile, competing against other American luxury car manufacturers. Following the end of the war, the Lincoln factory was retooled entirely for auto-mobile production.
Purchase by Ford
During the early 1920s, Lincoln suffered severe financial issues, balancing the loss of revenue of Liberty engine production with the obsolete design of the expensive Model L. After having produced only 150 cars in 1922, Lincoln Motor Company was forced into bankruptcy and sold for US$8,000,000 to the Ford Motor Company on February 4, 1922; some of the proceeds of the sale went to pay off its creditors.
For Henry Ford, the purchase of Lincoln was a personal triumph, as he had been forced out of his second company (Henry Ford Company) by a group of investors led by Leland.The company, renamed 'Cadillac' in 1902 was purchased by General Motors in 1909, serving as the chief competitor to Lincoln. While Henry Ford had previously introduced Ford-branded luxury vehicles (the Ford Model B in 1904, the Ford Model F in 1905, and the Ford Model K in 1906), the company found little acceptance. With the acquisition of Lincoln, the nameplate became a top-selling rival alongside Pierce-Arrow, Marmon, Peerless, Duesenberg, and Packard. Although the chassis itself saw few major changes (with its L-head engine and unusual 60-degree cylinder block), the body saw significant updates.
Henry Ford
At the direction of Henry's son Edsel, in 1923 several body styles were introduced, that included two- and three-window, four-door sedans and a phaeton that accommodated four passengers. They also offered a two-passenger roadster and a seven-passenger touring sedan and limousine, which was sold for $5,200.A sedan, limo, cabriolet, and town car were also offered by coach-builders Fleetwood, Derham and Dietrich, and a second cabriolet was offered by coach-builder Brunn. Lincoln contracted with dozens of coach-builders during the 1920s and early 30s to create multiple custom built vehicles, to include American, Anderson, Babcock, Holbrook, Judkins, Lang, LeBaron, Locke, Murray, Towson, and Willoughby in the 1920s. Murphy, Rollston, and Waterhouse were added in the 1930s.Vehicles built by these coach-builders went for as much as $7,200, and despite the limited market appeal, Lincoln sales rose about 45 percent to produce 7,875 cars and the company was operating at a profit by the end of 1923. In 1924 large touring sedans began to be used by police departments around the country. They were known as Police Flyers, which were equipped with four-wheel brakes, two years before they were introduced on private sale vehicles. Optional equipment was not necessarily an issue with Lincolns sold during the 1920s, however, customers who wanted special items were accommodated. A nickel-plated radiator shell could be installed for $25, varnished natural wood wheels were $15, or Rudge-Whitworth center-lock wire wheels for another $100. Disteel steel disc wheels were also available for $60. Lincoln chose not to make yearly model changes, used as a marketing tool of the time, designed to lure new customers. Lincoln customers of the time were known to purchase more than one Lincoln with different bodywork, so changing the vehicle yearly was not done to accommodate their customer base.
Edsel Bryan Ford
Lincoln-Zephyr
In 1932, Lincoln introduced the V12-powered KB platform alongside the V8 powered KA platform with an all-new streamlined appearance.In 1933, Eugene T. "Bob" Gregorie, at the styling studio created by Edsel Ford, began designing the smaller Lincoln-Zephyr, which led to the first 'Continental', a bespoke one-off specially created for Edsel Ford, Henry's son.The smaller Lincoln-Zephyr was introduced for the 1936 model year as a marque of its own, with a 267 cu in (4.4 L) V12.The Lincoln-Zephyr was so successful in its first year as to increase Lincoln sales nearly ninefold.It remained a separate marque until the end of the 1940 model year and then became a model under Lincoln, when the large Lincoln Twelve was discontinued.In the 1941 model year, all Lincolns were based on the Zephyr chassis, and when production resumed after the War the 'Zephyr' name was not continued.Interestingly the name 'Zephyr' (God of the Winds) was given to a top of the range British Ford car in the 50's and 60s.
1940–1945: Lincoln Division
On April 30, 1940, the operation of Lincoln changed as the Lincoln Motor Company became the Lincoln Division of Ford Motor Company.Once an autonomous entity, Lincoln was now brought closer under Ford control, in part to modernize the division to better compete with the equivalent competition from Chrysler (Imperial), Packard, and General Motors (Cadillac).In 1946, an all-new model called the Lincoln H-series was offered as a coupe, sedan, and limousine, all installed with the Lincoln V12 as standard equipment.
Lincoln Continental
In 1940, the Lincoln Continental commenced production as a personal luxury car quite literally due to the popularity of the personal car of Edsel Ford.Dissatisfied with the boxy designs produced by his father, Edsel wanted a European-style car to drive around on vacations in Florida.In 1938, he commissioned Ford Chief Stylist E. T. Gregorie to design a body for a 1939 Lincoln-Zephyr V12 Convertible Coupe.Most of the bodywork involved sectioning the body 4 inches (102 mm) and the deletion of the running boards, and an external-mounted spare tire on the trunklid. The styling of the rear tire mount proved popular; it would become a styling feature of the Lincoln Mark series and those who work on custom cars call a similar mount a "Continental kit".The car was put in production for the 1940 model year as a model under Lincoln-Zephyr. In June 1940 the Club Coupe was added, and from 1941 to 1948 it was a model under Lincoln marque. When production ceased in 1948 a total of 5322 had been built.
1945–2012: Lincoln-Mercury Division
In 1945, Ford Motor Company merged the Mercury and Lincoln divisions together, forming the combined Lincoln-Mercury division. For the revival of civilian production in 1946, Lincoln introduced a two-model line-up: Continental and the Zephyr-based range. Based on the former Zephyr, the standard Lincoln range only wore the Lincoln nameplate.In 1949, both the H-Series Lincoln and the Continental were discontinued.In their place were a new generation of cars.Magnifying the relationship between Lincoln and Mercury was the new EL-Series, as its styling shared much with that of the Mercury Eight.More significantly, the 1949 Lincoln and Cosmopolitan were the first Lincolns since 1932 without a V12 engine; as Lincoln could not develop a new V12 in time, a V8 was borrowed from the Ford F-8 medium-duty truck.In 1952, Lincoln developed its own Overhead valve V8 engine, the Y-block.
Continental Division (1956–1960)
For 1956, Ford revisited the original concept of the 1940–1948 Continental. Organized under its own marque, the newly created Continental Division, the Continental Mark II was a two-door hardtop coupe.Significantly, instead of an actual spare tire mounted on the trunk-lid (boot lid), the trunk-lid was styled with a tire-shaped hump.Unlike many cars of the era, the Mark II wore conservative styling; relatively little chrome trim was used on the body and tail-fins were notably absent.Positioned above the Lincoln marque, the Continental Division's Mark II was the only vehicle in the division, and was designated as the flagship of the Ford Motor Company, at a base price of $10,000 (equivalent to $88,091 in 2016, comparable to a Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud. Until the introduction of the 1957 Cadillac Eldorado Brougham, it was the most expensive American-produced car.As a result of its largely hand-built construction, every Mark II was sold at a loss of over $1,000.Production of the Mark II ran from June 1955 to May 1957.
Lincoln Continental Mk II 1956
Uni-body Era (1958–1960)
In a cost-cutting move, the Continental Division was expanded as a single vehicle and shared a platform with Lincoln-branded vehicles in July 1958.
Lincoln Continental Mk III 1958
The hand-built Mark II was replaced by the Continental Mark III.
While still badged and advertised as a Continental, the use of the standard Lincoln body allowed for a $4,000 reduction in price. The final Continental-badged car would be the 1960 Mark V.
For the 1958 model year, a number of changes were made to Lincoln.
Along with the integration of Edsel to form the Mercury-Edsel-Lincoln (M-E-L) division, production of all Lincoln and Continental vehicles was shifted to an all-new assembly plant in Wixom, Michigan.
Showcasing the new assembly plant was a redesigned product line-up.
Lincoln 'Town Car' - 1959
The new V-8 430 cu. in. Ford MEL engine was used in all Lincolns.
In a radical change from 1957 Lincolns, the chassis was of uni-body construction.
Sharing a body with the Continental marque, the 1958–1960 Lincolns would become some of the largest production vehicles ever built; they are the longest Lincolns produced without 5-mph bumpers.
They are the longest-wheelbase cars ever produced by Ford Motor Company.
In 1959, the 'Town Car', heavily loaded with rear 'bright-work' (chrome), made its first appearance.
A formal-roof sedan, it was available only in black.
1961–1969: 'Slab Side' Continental
For the 1961 model year, Lincoln consolidated its model line-up, with a single Lincoln Continental model line taking the place of the Lincoln Capri, Lincoln Premiere, and Continental Mark V; the separate Continental nameplate was discontinued entirely.
Lincoln Continental 1961
The newly introduced 1961 Lincoln Continental was one of the first cars to undergo downsizing. Although only nominally lighter than a 1960 Lincoln, the 1961 Continental shed 15 inches in length and 8 inches in wheelbase.
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| Lincoln 1966 - Two-door Hardtop |
Distinguished by the use of rear suicide doors, Lincoln introduced what would become the final mass-produced four-door convertible sold in North America. Designed by auto-mobile designer Elwood Engel, the design of the Lincoln Continental began life as a variant of the 1961 'Thunderbird'. Distinctive for their relative lack of side chrome trim, the Continental was considered a conservative design in contrast to its competition. Lincoln would sell the Continental from 1961 to 1969 with minor yearly changes. In 1966, a two-door hardtop model joined the line-up, with the convertible ending production in 1967.In 1968, the Continental sedan was joined by the Mark Series.
Lincoln Mark Series
The Mark III revived the Mark II's signature spare tire humpFor 1968, as a competitor for the successful Cadillac Eldorado introduced in 1967, Ford Motor Company developed a revival of the Continental Mark II personal luxury coupe. Named the Continental Mark III, the vehicle served as the flagship of all of Ford Motor Company. Although technically not a Lincoln division vehicle itself, the Continental Mark III was sold and serviced by Lincoln-Mercury dealerships. To control production costs, the Continental Mark III utilized the chassis and underpinnings of the four-door Ford Thunderbird. Alongside the spare tire-style trunklid and hidden headlamps, a styling feature that distinguished the Mark III from the Lincoln Continental was its radiator-style grille.
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