The seventies were a paradoxical time.  Americans were suffering through numerous gas crunches, small Japanese cars were gaining market share in leaps and bounds, and American manufacturers punched out some of the largest road barges ever.  Decades later, a lot of these cars survive with relatively low mileage.  For example, this 1979 Lincoln Town Car for sale on Craigslist in Williamstown, Kentucky is one of those mythical beasts from that strange time.  This enormous Lincoln was the high point for land yachts from the Ford Motor Company and has just 58,000 miles on the odometer.  One has to wonder why so many seventies luxury cars still exist and usually have low mileage.  Was this aircraft carrier of a luxury car driven infrequently because it had a late-in-life owner, or did the burden of feeding it end up being too onerous?  Can parallels be drawn between it and similar cars of that era?

Let’s work on the first theory: owners in the latter half of their life.  The car as a status symbol was much more of a thing in years past.  GM’s foundation as a company was based on a customer starting with a Chevrolet, then working their way up to a Cadillac over the course of their lifetime.  That is if they “made it” in life using this barometer.  When do you “make it?”  Usually in the last decade of your career and when you can afford to retire.  A car like this Lincoln was not just transportation.  It was a symbol that you didn’t have to work as hard anymore and could live a life of leisure.  Leisure usually doesn’t mean driving to and from work so much.  Retirement lessens the driving burden even more.

The second theory is that it became too much of a chore to feed it.  That was surely a contributing factor.  We have experienced many ups and downs with fuel costs as they relate to the percentage of a family’s income.  Many theorize that the spike in fuel prices that preceded the Great Recession was the event that kicked off the festivities.  The fuel economy rating on these Town Cars was 15.9 MPG.  Can anyone think of an example where a buyer got the fuel economy rating on the sticker?  Even with the 460 cubic inches V-8 option ending in 1978, this vehicle might have gotten even worse fuel economy with the standard 400 cubic inch V-8 trying to shove around all that extra weight.

All of this brings us to the 1979 Town Car we see here.  In traditional Craigslist fashion, there is little in the description to help us understand the car better.  We are told that this is a three-owner car that has spent its life in Kentucky.  It has just 58,000 miles on the odometer.  It was also loaded with options at the factory, and the standout ones are the leather interior and the alloy wheels.  The off-white leather in the car seems to have experienced little in the way of abuse.  With a thorough cleaning, it would probably look even better.  The leather’s condition, along with the exterior finish, point to the car being garaged its entire life.  It is called a true barn find in the ad.  Cars of this size need barns to hold them.

The picture above is just one glimpse into why these cars still have a fan base.  The acres of leather, plush seats, and power-everything nature of this car are a window into a world we will never see again.  A Lincoln Town Car of this vintage was built with excellent materials and was a luxury car without excuses for its excess.  One special edition of the Town Car in 1979 had a leather-covered toolbox included in the package.  Who wants a leather-covered toolbox?  The eighties would bring us luxury cars that were rebadged versions of more pedestrian stable mates.  Luxury cars were never the same again.

Another death knell for these vehicles was a gift from the Federal Government.  Corporate Average Fuel Economy Standards (CAFE) were voted into law by Congress in 1975 and implemented in 1978.  The end was in sight for cars of this heft.   The fact that the engine you see above has 400 cubic inches instead of the 460 that was optional the year before is a testament that the Feds were breathing down Ford’s neck in some way.  The seller tells us that this last great Town Car starts up just fine and runs and drives well.  There is no further information about maintenance if the air conditioning works, or if anything needs to be repaired.  Other than some insulation separation and a swampy radiator reservoir, this one is probably a good checkup away from cruising the highways again.

At $7,500, one could do a lot worse finding a good, reliable classic that turns heads.  It is one of the many survivors of this amazing class of enormous luxury vehicles that will never be built again.  In some ways, that is a shame.  People who work hard and want a symbol of their success should be able to find something big and luxurious along the lines of this Town Car.  Let us consider ourselves fortunate that cars like this are still around to remind us who we were at that time in our history.