Lincoln Continental Mark III / IV / V 1958-1960 [Archive]

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02-06-2022, 01:45 PM

The Continental Mark series (later Lincoln Mark series) is a series of personal luxury cars that was produced by Ford Motor Company. The nomenclature came into use with the Continental Mark II for 1956, which was a successor to the Lincoln Continental of 1939–1948. Following the discontinuation of the Mark II, Ford continued the use of the Mark series on Continental branded vehicles from 1958 to 1960. Following a hiatus, Lincoln-Mercury relaunched the Continental Mark series during 1968 and would produce six successive generations through the 1998 model year.

Serving as the flagship vehicle of Ford Motor Company for its entire production, the Mark series continued the use of Continental branding positioned above Lincoln after the Continental Division was discontinued following the 1957 model year (distinct from the 1961 and onward Lincoln Continental); it was marketed and serviced by Lincoln-Mercury. To eliminate the branding confusion, the Mark series adopted the Lincoln name from the 1986 model year onward. In line with both the 1940s Lincoln Continental and the Continental Mark II, most versions of the Mark series were produced as two-door coupes (personal cars); at various times through its production, various body styles have also been offered for the model line. With the exception of the nearly hand-built Continental Mark II, the model line has shared chassis underpinnings with other Ford or Lincoln-Mercury vehicles, with model-specific interior and exterior body panels.

Derived from the original Lincoln Continental, the continental tire trunklid design feature was adopted by each generation (in various forms) from the Continental Mark II to the final Lincoln Mark VIII. The Lincoln four-point star emblem is a design feature that was introduced by the Continental Mark II.

After the 1998 model year, Lincoln ended the Mark series with the Mark VIII, as the division shifted away from personal luxury cars to concentrate on four-door sedans and SUVs. From 2007 to 2020, Lincoln introduced a visually-similar "MK" prefix for its sedans; the nomenclature was phased out in favor of conventional names (or model lines dropped altogether).

From 1958 to 1998, Mark series vehicles were produced alongside Lincolns by Wixom Assembly at Wixom, Michigan.

Successor (Mark III, Mark IV, Mark V; 1958–1960)
Following the integration of Continental within Lincoln-Mercury in July 1956, Ford sought for ways to bring its flagship brand to profitability. After the 1957 model year, the hand-assembled Mark II was discontinued and replaced for 1958 with the Mark III branded as a Continental which was positioned above the Lincoln brand with higher trim sharing all new bodies that were built at the new Wixom Assembly Plant.

As part of an ultimatum to continue the brand, Continental underwent a US$4,000 (40%) price reduction ($35,880 in 2020 dollars), giving the all-new Continental Mark III a market position against the highest-trim Cadillacs and Imperials. To facilitate the price reduction, the Mark III was assembled in the same factory as the Ford Thunderbird, Lincoln Capri and Lincoln Premiere. Distinguished by its reverse-slant retractable "Breezeway" rear window on all models (including convertibles), the Mark III was one of the first Ford Motor Company vehicles to feature unibody construction (and one of the largest) also shared with the Thunderbird. In other firsts, FM radio joined AM radio as an option; "Auto Lube" automatically lubricated the entire car (through an oil reservoir kept full by the owner). The 1958–1960 Mark III–V has the distinction of being the only Continental Mark series vehicles offered as a convertible.

The 1959 Mark IV introduced two formal sedans, the Continental Town Car and Limousine. The Town Car/Limousine replaced the reverse-slant window with a forward-sloping rear window (moving the rear seat several inches rearward); the Limousine has a rear-seat partition. Other options include dual air conditioning units and a padded vinyl top; both versions were offered only in black. 214 Town Cars were sold and 83 Limousines were sold, making them the rarest Mark series variants.

The 1960 Mark V was restyled slightly, receiving a larger grille and new "dagmar bumpers".

Superlatives
In terms of standard production sedans without an extended wheelbase, the 1958–1960 Continentals and Lincolns are some of the largest automobiles ever made. The Continental Mark III, IV and V are the longest cars produced by the Ford Motor Company without federally mandated 5-mph bumpers. The 1959 Mark IV and 1960 Mark V Limousines and Town Cars are the heaviest American standard-wheelbase sedans built since World War II. 1960 is the only model year that a Mark series vehicle is mentioned as a Lincoln Continental in brochures and advertising.

While designers of the model line are related to a number of contemporary significant styling achievements, the launch of the 1969 Continental Mark III (and its relaunch of the Mark series nomenclature) has led to the term "forgotten Marks" in relation to the 1958–1960 generation.

Source: Wikipedia