1942 Lincoln Continental Cabriolet

Henry Leland founded Lincoln Motor Company in 1917. Leland had previously started the Cadillac Motor Car Company in 1903 from the remains of Henry Ford's second failed attempt to start an auto company (Henry's third attempt resulted in the Ford Motor Company we know today)> Leland's Lincolns were very expensive and well-built, but stodgy in design. Ford Motor acquired Lincoln in 1922 and Edsel Ford, Henry's son, used his natural design instincts to lead Lincoln to build beautiful, luxurious cars. With Ford's backing during the lingering depression, Lincoln was able to continue its focus on the luxury market.

The 1942 Lincoln Continental was in production for only a few months due to the outbreak of World War Two, which resulted in a shutdown of the U.S. auto industry. The 1942 Continental's front end design was a major design departure from the 1940-41 models.

The Continental was the brainchild of Edsel Ford and the design was executed by Ford's chief stylist, Bob Gregorie. The Continental was introduced in 1940 as an exclusive, luxurious, hand-crafted automobile for the status conscious consumer.

The early Continental was recognized by the Museum of Modern Art as one of eight automotive 'works of art' and by Time magazine as one of the top ten best-designed commercial industrial products of all time.

With only 136 Cabriolets produced in 1942, this was the lowest production of Continentals of the early 1940s era. It is estimated that as few as 10 or 12 survive today.

Weighing in at 4,065 pounds, the 1942 Lincoln was redesigned to be a larger, longer, wider car than its 1940-41 predecessors. The front end was much more massive, with more chrome and redesigned headlights.

This example was restored from the ground up from 2008-2010. Disassembled to the frame, the engine was rebuilt as were all mechanicals and electrical components of the car. All of the chrome went through a re-plating process and all the stainless parts were professionally re-polished. The correct dark blue paint was applied. The convertible top was replaced and the interior was completely redone, including the gold-plating of the dash panels.