In "1968 1/2", as some people like to call the cars (not me), Lincoln started production of the Mark III on a modified Thunderbird chassis with a 385 horsepower 460 cubic inch engine mated to a C6 trans. That was the most power, ever, from that engine in factory form.
It was the design-genetic offspring of the Continental Mark II. The Lincoln Continental Mark III of 1958 had no design DNA with the Mark II and faded into obscurity, but has quite a fan-base now. It was forgotten and they started fresh for 1969 with the Mark III.
What makes this car interesting to me is that my father had a naked or slick-top '70 Coupe, but the seemingly redundant Mark III always spoke to me because of the design tie. None of the Mark IIs had vinyl roofs. Some two tone paint and a one-off with a Hartz cloth roof covering. George Barris installed a padded vinyl top on his Mark II, but, there you are.
There were 95 slick tops made, total. The roof were stamped by Budd I believe, and Lincoln rejected 20% of their output as defective. As hard as the body finishers worked it was an enormous effort to get a Lincoln-level finish on the sheet metal. The vinyl roof that was extra became standard as it was less expensive to install a vinyl roof than it was to finish the troublesome sail panels.
Vinyl was a poor choice for any car. It traps moisture and humidity and rust through the roof at the front and rear of a normal Mark III. It gets to be a pretty nasty science experiment going on under there. Many Mark IIIs were crushed because they leaked. A naked top car has a much better chance of survival, but there don't seem to be many real ones. You can tell by looking under the panel in front of the trunk. If there was a vinyl top there would be trim bolt holes that gave been welded shut or you see a pink booger of Bondo oozing through the hole.
This is a real, factory documented, original. It has it's road rash, but it's just a patina. It has a remarkable finish for a survivor. The owner has a better memory than I. He said that just after he and his partner bought it 17 years ago we talked and I told him that if he ever sold the car........well, here we are.
He contacted me a year ago and was asking a lot of money. I offered what Hagerty says a Concours car was worth. It's not a Concours-condition car but I've never seen a better survivor. He politely refused my offer, but I was tempted to bump it up. My patience paid off. He said he was wary of what others might do to his hot rod Lincoln. He thought I'd be a better caretaker.
He's already arranged shipping, which we've agreed to split.
