1956 Continental Mark II Coupe

The Continental Mark II Story

The Continental Mark II was the elite automobile of the 1950s' rich and famous: Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra, Louie Prima, Dwight Eisenhower, Barry Goldwater, Spike Jones, Nelson Rockefeller, Henry J. Kaiser, Howard Johnson, the Shah of Iran, and many other celebrities owned them.

The Mark II wasn't made by Lincoln but by the short-lived Continental Division of the Ford Motor Company. Its general manager was William Clay 'Bill' Ford, Edsel Ford's son and Henry Ford's grandson.

Fact: there never was a model designated as a Lincoln or Continental Mark I.

The Mark II's sticker price was $10,400, twice the price of the 1956 Lincoln. Much of the car was assembled by hand and Ford claimed it lost $1,000 on each Mark II it sold. The unprofitable Mark II and the Continental Division were discontinued after Ford went public in 1956, even though these cars brought people into showrooms to buy other Ford products.

Ford originally planned to build about 2,000 Mark IIs a year for five years. 2,550 Mark IIs were built during the 1956 model year (June 1955 through September 1956) and 446 (including 2 convertibles) during the 1957 model y ear (October 1956 through May 1957) for a total of 2,996 Mark IIs. About 1,500 Mark IIs are still in existence. (About half are roadworthy) Their current market value ranges from $15,000 to $100,000, depending on condition. (Although some have sold in the low-to-mid $100s)