Finding one of these big Lincoln Continental drop tops in the US is a pretty tricky task, finding one in London is nearly unheard of. This ’65 has been in the country since 1987 and eventually found its way into this barn in Uxbridge, London. It has supposedly been used in films and as a wedding car, which leaves me wondering how it ended up in its current state. You can find this big drop top here on Gumtree with an asking of £15,950.
Can you imagine seeing this luxury classic rolling down the narrow streets of London? It has to look massive compared to just about everything else on the road. Perhaps that’s the reason it got parked? I don’t see it being the kind of car you would want to commute in everyday. One thing is for sure, it would garner a lot of attention, especially with the top down!
The seller claims they already have it running and driving, which isn’t all that surprising considering it was their flagship model. The 430 MEL V8 was related to the Ford FE and should be easy to find parts for, well at least in the States. Hopefully it runs as well as the seller states so it isn’t something you’ll have to worry about. Moving this 5,000 pound beast can’t be easy, even with 345 horsepower.
I absolutely love the looks of these big Lincolns and have always been fascinated by the combination of a drop top with a suicide rear door. This is a long car to not have a solid roof holding it all together, not only did Lincoln make it work, they made it look good! I would want to go over this one very carefully to make sure there isn’t any rust underneath. So will any of our European readers being adding this drop top to their collections?
Love the suicide door Lincolns ! One of my favorites . . .
The Centurion convertible in the background is for sale as well.
I once had a light yellow last year 67 model, The main two reasons I bought it was first off, the price was right but most important, the top worked fine. You should see all the wires and other junk needed to make that top set up work. It also had a key hole on the quarter panel that you put your key in and turned it to make the trunk open. When the top quit and I was told how much it would cost to fix it, I sold it. Made a few bucks so I was happy. Now that I look back, I should have kept it.
…and, next to it, a 1973 Buick Centurion Convertible! They like big cars you can only drive on major roadways there!
I know this car very well, it’s owned by a retired auto repair shop owner who along with his lovely wife, have quite a few US cars. The main reason it’s for sale is simple: in the UK fuel is approaching $9/gallon, and the car gets about 6mpg around town. Do the math; Taking it out for a fairly short drive can cost $100.
You mentioned the fact that this was a huge unit-body car, with suicide doors too, yet they were quite solid without a steel top.
One of the ways the engineers solved the tendency of the body to “wiggle” and shake was to suspend 4 very heavy solid cast iron weights on leaf springs at the 4 corners of the car! While I never bothered to check the weight of these massive counterweights, I figure they are at least 100 pounds each. Leaving the weights off the car results in a pronounced shake at highway speeds. I had a customer bring in his Lincoln with shaking problems, I told him to bolt the weights back on, and the shaking stopped!