Battle Of The Sideways V8s: 1999 Lincoln Continental vs 2000 Cadillac DeVille

Welcome back! Today’s contestants were direct competitors in their day, and you can tell from looking at their specs. Both are front-wheel-drive luxury sedans with four-cam V8s turned sideways, both are full to the brim of electronic gadgets and gizmos, and both are something your uncle who owned the dry-cleaning business might have bought when he retired.

I try not to put a non-running car up against a running one too often, because it doesn’t seem fair. But yesterday, I figured that the Oldsmobile had enough problems of its own to balance the scales, and in fact, it ended up losing to the little non-op Spitfire. This is definitely the way I would go; I hate doing body and interior work, and I don’t even want to think about replacing a top motor on that big Olds. But mechanical work, on a rust-free little British car? Sign me up.

Someone asked in the comments if the Olds’s Rocket 350 V8 would fit in the Spitfire’s engine bay, thereby neatly solving both problems. I don’t think so; if I recall, a small-block Ford or Chevy V8 will fit, but it’s not pretty. Engines I have seen swapped into Spitfires include both Ford and Chevy 60-degree V6s, Miata twincam fours, Toyota 20R/22R truck engines, Mazda rotaries, and of course Triumph inline sixes from the GT6 or Vitesse. I’ve also seen a BMW M10 four-cylinder installed in something British, but I can’t recall if it was a Spitfire or a TR4. And of course, there’s the guy on Opposite Lock who transplanted a Fiat Lampredi twincam four into an MG Midget – he calls it the Fidget. Lots of possibilities, but no, I think the Delta 88’s V8 is safe.

No engine swaps are necessary today, but you may not enjoy working on either of them. The transverse engine/FWD formula worked pretty well when it was limited to inline fours, but once GM decided to turn a V6 sideways and stick it in the front of a Chevy Citation, it opened up a whole new can of worms when it came to serviceability. Every other automaker that I can think of eventually followed suit, leaving us poor DIY mechanics with a whole host of cars that are damn near impossible to work on.

And then, Cadillac decided to make it two cylinders worse by making a transverse V8. Then it made a dual-overhead-cam transverse V8. And how did Ford respond? In kind. Working on these cars is not fun. Are the rest of them nice enough to make it worthwhile? You tell me. Here they are.

1999 Lincoln Continental – $2,999

Engine/drivetrain: 4.6-liter dual overhead cam V8, four-speed automatic, FWD

Location: Oakland, CA

Odometer reading: 240,000 miles

Operational status: Runs and drives great

The Lincoln Continental is a nameplate with a long and very cool history. From V12 engines to suicide doors to hand-built quality, the Continental meant something special – up until about 1982, that is, when it became yet another Ford Fox body. In 1988, it got even worse, becoming a Taurus in a prom dress, with a lackluster 3.8 liter V6 driving the front wheels. But even Ford realized that a Continental should have at least eight cylinders under its hood, which leads us to this car.

It’s powered by Ford’s 4.6 liter modular V8, with four overhead camshafts and four valves per cylinder – the same spec as the RWD Lincoln Mark VIII coupe. But since it’s still largely a Taurus underneath, it’s still front-wheel-drive, so the V8 had to be turned sideways. Regardless of which way it’s facing, though, this engine has a decent reputation for longevity, and this one is no exception – it has 240,000 miles to its name and still runs like a top.

Lincoln’s advertising once claimed its cars were “What A Luxury Car Should Be,” and if you buy into the premise that a luxury car should be soft, quiet, and chock-full of power-operated toys, then yeah, I guess they’re right. I don’t think I’ve ever been in this generation of Continental, but I know the Town Cars from the era, and this looks really similar inside. It’s in good condition, too, especially for the mileage, and the seller says everything works, which is impressive.

Outside, the Continental hides its Taurus roots pretty well, looking more like a mini-me version of the Town Car than anything, especially in black. The paint on this one looks a little dull and faded; I don’t know if it would polish back up or not. But it’s a California car, so you probably don’t have to worry much about rust.

2000 Cadillac DeVille DTS – $2,200

Engine/drivetrain: 4.6-liter dual overhead cam V8, four-speed automatic, FWD

Location: Staten Island, NY

Odometer reading: 66,000 miles

Operational status: Runs and drives great

The Cadillac DeVille, with its infamous Northstar V8, was almost certainly Ford’s reasoning for dropping the V8 into the Continental. Cadillac had been using transverse V8s since 1985, across its range, and phased in the Northstar as a replacement for the older HT overhead-valve V8s in the early 1990s. The Northstar had some well-publicized problems, but eventually got fairly well ironed out, and was certainly a step up in power and refinement over the HT.

This DeVille has just 66,000 miles on it, and is from the year after some changes were made to the Northstar to improve its reliability. The seller says it runs “excellent,” and just passed a state inspection. It belongs to the seller’s grandfather, who is no longer able to drive; a story I bet is common to a lot of gently-used Cadillacs.

Inside, it’s immaculate, as you’d imagine for so few miles, and it even has plastic on the floor mats, just like Grandma’s “fancy” sofa in the front room. It’s loaded with power options, of course, but the seller doesn’t specifically say what’s functional or not, only that the air conditioning “needs freon.” Which, of course, means it probably needs new seals, which dried out because Grandpa never used the AC, because it uses too much gas. He’s on a fixed income, you know.

Outside, it looks good, nice and shiny, though it does have a pretty good dent in the left front corner, and I can’t help but wonder if that dent has something to do with Grandpa’s decision to hang up the keys. It’ll happen to us all eventually. It’s not a big deal, and looking at it, you might even be able to pop it out most of the way, if you can get to the inside of the fender.

Cheap luxury cars are often cheap for a reason – the purchase price is only the beginning, and the car’s complicated mechanical systems neither know nor care that its market value is now so low. Maintenance and repairs are still the same price they were when the car was new, unless of course you’re willing and able to take it on yourself. Then it’s just Ford and GM parts available at any Autozone, and some frustration over the tight quarters under the hood. In either case, the reward is a nice comfy car on an economy car budget. Which one are you going for?

(Image credits: Craigslist sellers)