Good morning! If you’re a regular reader, you might recall that a few weeks back, we looked at a pair of Cadillacs several decades apart, mainly because I found a really cool old Fleetwood for sale and couldn’t find anything else worthy of it. Well, today I’ve found an equally cool old Lincoln, so we’re going to give FoMoCo’s luxury division the same treatment.
But before we get to those, let’s look at yesterday’s Chicago-style beaters. (Chicago-style could be either the thick kind with the sauce on top, or the really thin and crispy kind cut into squares, by the way.) This was a case of damage you can see versus damage that might be hidden, and I honestly didn’t know which way it was going to go. In the end, you gave the win to the Prelude, which has its share of issues but seems more open and honest about them than the Lexus.
I have to agree. I’ve bought plenty of cheap old cars in my day, and I’ve consistently had better luck with private sellers and cars that look a little janky than with overly-polished turds from a dealership. I think that Prelude would make a fine beater for a while.
Ford’s luxury division, Lincoln, hasn’t been at it as long as Cadillac has. Lincoln opened its doors in 1917 and was purchased by Ford in 1922. The division has built a lot of legendary machines, often with names like Continental and Zephyr, but it has also peddled a lot of badge-engineered Fords, with names like … Continental. And Zephyr. Today, we’re going to look at one of Lincoln’s last great big luxury sedans, and a more modern example that’s got the comfort and features but is maybe a little lacking in panache.
1970 Lincoln Continental – $2,900
Engine/drivetrain: 460 cubic inch overhead valve V8, three-speed automatic, RWD
Location: Lakemoor, IL
Odometer reading: 68,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives, but transmission leaks
“Continental,” for the longest time, was a near-mythical nameplate for Lincoln. Originally appearing on a V12-powered, hand-made car in 1939, then becoming a whole separate division for a while in the 1950s, the Lincoln Continental was something special. Later Continentals were mass-produced instead of being hand-made, but with their massive slab-sided styling and rear “suicide doors,” you couldn’t say they weren’t special. But to be honest, before I spotted this car for sale, I couldn’t have told you what a 1970 Continental looked like; the magic sort of fizzled after the suicide doors left. This car kinda looks like an overgrown Mercury.
It’s still special under the hood, however. In 1970, you couldn’t get Ford’s massive 460 cubic inch V8 in anything other than a Lincoln. With 365 horsepower and enough torque to pull a freight train, this big V8 shoves the big boxy Continental down the road with relentless authority, with the aid of Ford’s simple and tough C6 automatic transmission. This car runs well and is drivable, but it has a serious-sounding leak in the transmission, so that will need some attention. C6s are dirt-common, so repair or even replacement if necessary should be straightforward.
Inside, it’s all leather and carpet and power accessories, just as it should be. I don’t imagine the woodgrain on the dash is real; it’s an American car from the ’70s, after all, but that’s part of the charm. It’s in good shape, with a little bit of wear and cracking on the leather, but otherwise it looks good. And surprisingly, the seller says it has never been smoked in, which as anyone who has owned cars of this age knows is rare.
It doesn’t have the effortless cool of the suicide-door Continentals, or even the contemporary fuselage-bodied Chryslers, but it does look pretty impressive. The paint is nice and shiny, the vinyl top is in good condition, and I don’t see any signs of rust. It has been in the same family for two decades, and it looks like they took good care of it. And by the way, it comes with the service records from their ownership, as well as a Haynes manual – always a welcome sign.
2010 Lincoln MKZ – $4,800
Engine/drivetrain: 3.5-liter dual overhead cam V6, six-speed automatic, FWD
Location: Rutherford, NJ
Odometer reading: 132,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives great
After the 1970s, the Continental got less and less special. First on the Fox platform, then switching to front-wheel-drive in 1988 on the Taurus platform, the Continental became the entry-level Lincoln during the 1980s instead of the flagship, until 2006 when Lincoln decided to dredge up another name from its past and slap it on a Ford – the Zephyr. The Zephyr name had already been sullied, of course, for Mercury’s version of the Ford Fairmont in the late ’70s, so there was precedent. And maybe it was the memory of that Zephyr, rather than the 1936 model it was meant to invoke, that caused Lincoln to drop the name in 2007, and rename it the MKZ.
The MKZ is based on the same platform as the Ford Fusion and the Mazda 6, with a transverse 3.5 liter Duratec V6 powering the front wheels through a six-speed automatic. This one runs and drives great, the seller says, and it has a new battery and just had the brakes done.
Lincoln did a nice job of differentiating this car from the Fusion on the inside, with lots of leather and wood (real wood this time), and a clean, classy look. It looks like it’s in good shape inside, and if it has been as well maintained as the seller claims, I imagine everything still works. The passenger seat looks like it could use some cleaning, though; I think someone spilled something over there.
Outside, it’s in decent condition, but damn, does it look like a Fusion from this angle. The Lincoln-specific front and rear fascias help, but if you see one in side profile, it doesn’t look like much. It does have a little wrinkle in the rocker panel just below the passenger’s door; not sure what happened there. And it might be a trick of the light, but the front bumper doesn’t quite seem to match.
It’s easy, and kind of a cheap shot, to look at these two cars side-by-side and say, “Look how the mighty have fallen,” but it’s more accurate to say, “look how the mighty have adapted and survived.” The ’70 Continental is a damn nice car, but it’s very much of its time, back when cars could spread out and take up more space than they needed to, and sail down highways while giving the middle finger to efficiency. The MKZ is old now as well, but it’s from a time that might come to be seen as the peak for ICE-powered cars. It’s powerful, reasonably efficient, and has all the niceties you could want without a bunch of tech for tech’s sake like today’s cars. So they’re both throwbacks – the question is, do you want one from 54 years ago, or 14?
(Image credits: sellers)
How is this even a question: 70s land yacht or bust.
Have owned a 2006 Lincoln Town Car, so not quite as land bargey but still big, and a 2012 Lincoln MKZ hybrid as well. The Town Car I’m sure that while it drove big could still run circles around the 70 Continental relatively speaking. I really liked the Town Car despite the so so off the line performance. The MKZ hybrid was a very nice car and really felt very well put together. It was efficient of course with excellent economy but ultimately unremarkable otherwise.
I’m sure the MKZ is a fine car, and I’m sure this is a fine example. But it’s a common sedan in a common color, and yeah, if you parked it at a police station, some plainclothes detective might mistake it for his unmarked Fusion.
One Large Car Of Beauty And Grace for me, please. Ain’t no losing that in ANY parking lot. When a plus-size 70s luxo-barge with a whorehouse-red leather interior is an option, you take it. If I want a Lincoln, then dammit, I’m getting a by-God LINCOLN. Besides, the transmission issue is probably easily resolved, and that 460 will smoothly and reliably provide as much torque as you can afford the gasoline to feed it.
Fun fact: the Lincoln/Ford 460 is the rare (maybe even only?) example of a big block that originated in a car and found its way into trucks, and not the other way around. I had one in a 1992 Club Wagon XLT – that thing would pull your house off its slab without breaking a sweat.
I won’t sweat the C6 as you said. Driven many a 460 equipped F350 and you speak truth.
You’re gonna buy a Lincoln, buy a LINCOLN. It is positively menacing.
I have a soft spot for Lincoln. In my college years dad had a 1990 Town Car, midnight blue with a steel roof and parchment leather. Last year with the old 302 but first year with the new body. It had factory dual exhaust and was honestly a sharp, smooth interstate bomber.
I would gladly accept the Junior Soprano signature model Town Car.
A very nice, competent anonymous car versus a very nice, older ill handling one with PRESENCE.
Hoist the main sail and batten down the hatches.
Aye aye, cap’n!
Set sail for the West coast… We will steal, loot and plunder along the way to pay for the copious fuel. I don’t think the old C/D trick will work in this day and age.
I take issue with calling the MKZ a “luxury” car. It’s an “upscale” car but not far enough to be a “luxury” car. Like, no shit, the thing is actually on par with a Ford Fusion Titanium and no better because it already has all the options applied and you get no further choice aside from whether you could feed the thing DVDs for navigation updates instead of an SD card. You get worse exterior styling than the Fusion, a more annoying center stack, and real fake wood.
The interior honestly looks like a pleasant place to be and I have no issue with the underpinnings. Put it against another in period vehicle and I may vote for it. If it were hybrid, I may choose over my current Toyota Camry DD. But I cannot choose it over a Continental in this condition from when they were actually the size of continents.
The MKZ Hybrid was actually a respectable choice because it wasn’t as obnoxious about the badging and interface regarding those features. The MKZ had those little white or blue flowers instead that just looked more like an interface flourish than the distracting bright green leaf cluster. It’s just still not a luxury car is all.
Ford licensed Toyota’s hybrid patents so the reliability is there. I looked at a 2010 Fusion hybrid new years ago and liked it but just couldn’t pull the trigger. I currently have a ’14 Camry SE hybrid I overall love. It is well equipped and durable, if not luxurious. It has the better SE body trim and suspension. Handling is acceptable. TBH, it has all the features and 85% of the handling of my old Acura TSX with more room and better economy. The Acura had “better” but more fragile interior materials and touch points. And an infuriating infotainment interface. It was more engaging and stylish overall, but not necessarily a better car for my needs. I honestly think the Camry is better for the 8+ hour long hauls. My max was 17 hours solo. Fords also seem to rust out far faster than Toyota here in PA.
460 is the kinda motor that pulls a huge rv at 25% throttle. The rest of the throttle range is more noise not more hp.
Mind endless possibilities for mods here. More if something breaks you can order it from jegs.com instead of looking for the last widget made in 1960. Not advocating dropping 10k for modding a motor for hp you could get w a coyote swap for less.
Unrelated, but I’m curious about your username: you’re not referring to a Subaru XT6, are you? Asking because I saw a build years ago in which the upper rear half of a Bronco II or something was grafted onto one.
Stock looking but i put a 2.7l h6 in a wagon. It was easier so later put a sti ver. 1 engine in. Then it got stolen.
Aw, damn: that sucks!
-thanks for slaking my curiosity
I would never pass up that Continental. If only I had the cash on hand, I would go buy it right now.
Whoa, I just saw this classic Lincoln on FB yesterday! That is such an amazing deal that I would buy it if I could…so definitely the awesome comfortable classic land yacht. I also really want a 79 Mark V. The MKZ is just so boring
See, I’ve actually owned a land yacht and don’t especially miss it. Give me the boring but competent modern vehicle, if I’m really going to have to live with this dang thing.
This is my take as well. I grew up riding and driving these barges, and while I get a whiff of nostalgia for them from time to time, I don’t especially want to relive owning and driving one anytime soon. The MKZ isn’t exciting, but it will be much better to live with.
If you grew up driving/riding in these, you were using bias ply tires. Trust me, switching to a decent set of 60 series radials will make you rethink the land barge moniker. There are other handling tricks you can use, although admittedly the mass is something that you can’t really reduce without changing what the car is.
There might even be suspension upgrades around these days – wonder if QA makes anything that would work? Hell, even a set of four 21st-century shocks would do wonders.
No amount of tire is going to change the sheer size of thing. I never minded the ride – it was the size. I know Americans love driving huge vehicles, and I did so myself for a few decades, but once I switched to something more reasonably sized I lost all interest in going back to something with unnecessarily large overhangs that wouldn’t come close to ever fitting in my garage.
I want the big-ass Continental.
Mind you, that’s if I get to keep my “normal” daily driver. Nobody’s buying that thing to parallel park downtown twenty times a week.
Decent shocks help, most were poorly served by the $25 junk shocks that worked for like 5k miles. The lack of spring rate a more complex issue.
Stop the count, he’s already dead