If you are thinking about selling a collector car any time soon, do yourself a favor and look over the listing for this great 1956 Continental Mark II. The ad can be found here on eBay as a great example of how to include pictures when selling a car. The car is located in Dade City, Florida. Bidding is up to $7,100 as I write and any reserve has been met.
The seller has included 131 pictures in the description of the auction, and they are good ones. You can see how basically solid and complete the car is, and have a pretty good idea what you are bidding on even if a pre-purchase inspection is out of the question. There is some rust, but again, the seller has included detailed pictures like this one so you can see what you might be getting into. By the way, the seller tells us that the passenger door latch doesn’t work, so the door wasn’t just left open.
To me, this ultra-clean design is the coolest American car of the 1950s decade — period. The red color doesn’t hurt either. It’s easy to dream about cruising in this beauty!
Although the interior is largely intact (at least you have all the trim) it will need a complete refurbishment. The seller states that the car was taken off the road for some engine work and never put back on. It does come with a clear Florida title.
The 368 cubic inch V-8 originally made 285 horsepower and a massive 402 lb-ft of torque! Does it surprise anyone that these cars listed for $9,695 in 1956? That was a whole lot of money when a 1956 Fairlane listed for $2,143! I certainly think this Continental is worth saving, but the question is, do you Barn Finds readers agree? Let us know in the comments below!
Yes, Jamie, the photos show the car in considerable detail. Which, by the way, is a reason to leave this one to someone who is either very skilled in restoration work, or very wealthy. Or, better, both….
Looks to me as if the same rattle-can used on the body — I’d guess this was some years ago — was also used to spiff up the interior (dash, red leather on the seats, etc.). Doesn’t cover up the need to correct a lot of rust that’s working its way out from under the paint and replace virtually every upholstered surface inside. Can the mechanical bits be much better? I wouldn’t trust them, but that’s just me.
Once all that is addressed, the next owner gets to chase down some missing trim — not sure how hard the “Continental” lettering is to find, but the hood ornament has to be like searching for the Hope Diamond’s twin — and a set of hubcaps….
It’s definitely worth saving, but it will not be inexpensive or easy. And the next owner had better love it, so being underwater after completion won’t be a problem.
I agree with RayT. Though a restoration will require lots of time and money, this car is well worth saving. The Continental Mark II is a fantastic design that I wish was produced in greater numbers.
If I remember correctly, Ford reportedly lost $1000, in 1956 dollars, on every one of these they sold. This was their prestige car, and they must have believed they couldn’t have sold them for the extra money.
Bob
Yes, I’ve been looking at this car for the past several days. It seems superficially promising, because it’s shiny, mostly straight, and the inside isn’t an actual bomb site. The deeper I look though, the more ugly rust I see, and that reasonable-looking interior still has a lot of expensive damage. Maybe it’s because I’m a Californian and rust repair isn’t really in my DNA; I think I would be in way over my head with this one.
I remember seeing one of these in dark blue when I was a kid- I thought it was an amazing looking car, perfectly proportioned and styled, with the flavor of an Italian car like a Dual Ghia. Since it was parked a ways back from the street, I thought it was probably about the size of a ’55 T-bird, since there was nothing to compare it’s size to. When I finally stood next to one years later, I was amazed at how big it was ! There was a custom Continental Mk2 at SEMA last year, and it was also a cover car on Street Rodder magazine, June 2019
Best styled American luxury / personal car of the mid 50’s. Would have been interesting to see what Boyd Coddington or Chip foose would have done with one of these.
Doug, you touched on why I wish these were produced in greater numbers. A very small amount of research gave me a production total of just over 3,000 units. Though I think they’re beautiful cars, I’d feel guilty about modifying such a scarce vehicle.
To me its a parts car,It needs a complete frame.Door sills are rotted ,A pillar on body and doors are rotted,floor as well and many other hidden areas.Even if it ran ,I would not risk it! The hood ornament and letters are easy to get,the hood repair is substantial ,let alone to get straight and realigned correctly. Others may find this Mkii worth saving , its a parts car. But what part!
Sold. $7100
Depends on where you live and how you view rust.
Some people see a car like this and welcome the task at hand with open arms. Some run for the hills.
Me, I see a good price on an awesome car. But I just don’t have the stomach for that kind of project. I’ve found I like the process, but its bothers me to no end that I took a running, driving car and made it temporarily useless. Maybe I just need less projects.
having owned one of these in relatively decent shape, I would highly advise anyone thinking about it to check your very deep pockets to make sure you can do it right. This will require taking everything off of it and starting over. You’d be much better off buying one in much better condition for lots more money. You’ll thank me in the end. That being said the Mark II is one of the most underrated beautiful cars of the 50’s. Every time I see one for sale I kick myself for selling mine!
…and ps….why can’t every person who has ever painted a classic car figure out how to properly tape off the VIN plate on a car? Every time there is over spray on them!
Agreed. But you gotta admit, this seller at least cleaned out all the garbage, got the car washed up good and spruced up the interior. Not a bad looking presentation.
But…well bought at $7100? Maybe we’ll see a follow up story.
Wish I had seen this before it sold. What a deal!
When I clicked on the eBay link the car had been sold.
This car has a good stance and the color is really nice too!! It seems to need some freshening up in the motor compartment and the interior!! The fenders and door jams look to be a darker red or maroon and doesn’t match very good with the outside of the car!! It still probably floats like a cloud when going down the road!!
Naw. Right door does not line up. Can be seen in BF listing. Even with ebay ad gone, there are a lot of visible problems with this thing. Lipstick on a pig… That being said, I really like these Continentals. Just not this one…not for the asking price.
“Even with ebay ad gone” You do, of course, realize that Ebay allows you to click on “see original listing” if you so desire… :-)
Like and gone….and as a side note there is one less as of a week or so – one came out of Co-Part into my buddies salvage yard – badly burnt and crumpled up like the Cali fires must have been.
I restored one over 20 years ago and even back then the intricate wheel covers were over $1,000 EACH for complete used ones. There are [IIRC] about 40 pieces per wheel cover and are difficult to restore. If that sale included 4 complete wheel covers, that was indeed a deal!
I had to relist it as the high bidder never contacted me, here is the new listing, thanks Barn Finds !
https://www.ebay.com/itm/1956-Lincoln-Continental/254318901669?hash=item3b369679a5:g:2DYAAOSwjSpdOPkv