It’s well documented that this particular Lincoln was used by Harry Truman as a parade car in the late 1940’s! Unfortunately, since then, it’s lost its original engine and transmission and has seen better days. The seller has decided to sell the car because they feel that the storage bill has exceeded the value of the car. They are done paying. The big convertible is located in Tulsa, Oklahoma and is for sale here on eBay with a buy-it-now price of $8,750 and bidding currently less than $2,000. It needs a full restoration, but its past does make it more interesting than most other Lincoln projects.
Here’s a picture of the car in much better shape, with President Truman aboard. The color change threw off the current seller when he was looking to buy the car originally, but he was able to discern that the car had been painted and the original tan paint is still there. The seller also talks in the auction about picking up the car in the first place and researching to find that President Truman used the car for about a year. It wasn’t actually his; it was on loan from Lincoln. The seller seems quite serious about selling; it makes me wonder what the reserve is. What do you think? Does the Presidential history add any value here?
For a car so well-documented, it seems long on talk and short on documents. Do you think they even know what documents are????
Very little of the original car left and very little value, IMO. Sure it’s historical but it’s going to take some awfully deep pockets (like the Henry Ford Museum perhaps?) to restore this poor thing…
As an old Lincoln, it is automatically cool. As a presidential vehicle it does have some historical value although I couldn’t say how much. Personally I would like to see it in the Henry Ford Museum with the other presidential cars on display.
The early continentals of all body styles bring no money. I think the issue is the 292 cubic inch engine which is way underpowered for the weight.
I take it that the car is for sale with no engine. Going to be a daunting task to find an engine for this one. I’ve run across this numerous times in projects over the years. Someone buys the car, pulls the engine, then somewhere along the line the engine either gets scrapped or sold off.
The trans. showing in the pic. is not a GM Powerglide, but is a Ford Cast Iron FMX trans. for a 289,302,or 351W orC Ford motor.
Just $.02 from an old tranny man.
The V-12 used in all Lincolns ’39 through ’48 was underpowered and problematic, and if the car was regularly used by the l950’s engine swaps were common, typically a then modern Ford V8, but some GM V8’s as well. The Continental version, cut down body, convertible or hardtop, is a classic, and much admired at the time, but they are not bringing a lot of money and the non-Continentals, coupe, 4 door or convertible, even less. So fixing this looks incredibly expensive and not a good “investment” at all.
The buck(s) stop (s) here.