1960 Lincoln Continental Mark V

Lincoln upped the ante of the luxury segment in 1955 with the introduction of the Mark II. It surpassed hallmark names such as Cadillac, Bentley, and even Rolls-Royce in terms of luxury and overall cost. From 1955 through 1960, it would build some of the most expensive and luxurious automobiles to traverse the road. Sadly, the economy was in a recession, something that had started in 1958, and would greatly affect Lincoln's sales. In 1956, the company sold 57,000 cars but in 1960 that number had plummeted to just 21,000 total units.

The Continental Mark II of 1956 and 1957 were formal cars with modern style. The Mark III, IV, and V cars of 1958 through 1960 were enormous and heavily sculpted art on wheels. Period advertising brochures continued to champion that Continental was still a separate make and shared its body with that year's Lincoln. They differed from the lower-priced full-size Lincolns by the level of trim quality, accouterments, and the roof treatment, featuring a reverse-angle power rear 'breezeway' window that retracted down behind the back seat.

Both the Lincoln and the Thunderbird models were produced at the new Wixom assembly plant and both featured all-new unibody construction, replacing the traditional chassis frame. This weight reduction was negated by an increased need for steel in the unibody structure. The 19-foot-long Lincoln Continental Mark V weighed 5,180 pounds and had a base price of $7,056.

Although the unibody construction meant they were no longer handle assembled, resulting in lower prices, Lincoln lost over sixty million dollars from 1958 through 1960, partly reflecting the major expense of developing what is perhaps the largest unibody car ever produced. Sales of the full-size Lincolns were not very strong and 1958 was a recession year in the United States, factoring into the losses. Despite the poor economy, the Continental Mark II recorded better sales than the Mark II.

Although this was the era of styling excess, many found the Continental's canted headlights and scalloped fenders over the top. With the large 131-inch wheelbase and measuring 227.2 inches long and 80.3 inches wide, the interiors offered plenty of room for its occupants. The front legroom was 44 inches while the rear passengers had 44.9 inches, making the Continental one of the roomiest vehicles ever produced. The front passengers had 63.1 inches of shoulder room and 63 inches for the rear passengers, a record for Lincoln that continues to this day.

The 1960 Continental Mark V wore more restrained styling than 1958, and two new body styles had been added for 1959 and 1960, both on the same wheelbase as other Continentals, but devoid of the reverse-angle 'breezeway' window (a formal Town car and a formal Limousine). Both of these body styles had dual air conditioning units and a distinctive padded roof offered only in black. The Limousine came with a driver's partition for additional rear-seat privacy. The Town Car had a price of $9,200 and just 214 were sold over the two-year period. The Limousine cost $10,200 and only 83 were sold over both years. Another feature of these cars was the 'Auto Lube' that, as long as the lube reservoir was full, the car automatically lubed itself.

The 1958 through 1960 Marks were essentially Lincoln's as the Continental division was dropped after the Mark II. this was the final time that a Continental would share no major chassis components with a model made by Mercury or Ford. The 1961 Continental would share many mechanical components with the Ford Thunderbird.

by Daniel Vaughan | Sep 2019