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Hot Rod Lincoln

1946-lincoln-continental-custom

Hot Rod Lincoln by Arkie Shibley was a good song, but we think it is also a fitting title for this 1946 Lincoln Continental that reader Robert J. sent in. After taking a closer look, you will know what we mean. The current owner found the car in a trailer park and has owned it for 10-15 years. They have decided they are never going to get around to doing anything with it, so they have listed it here on eBay where bidding is currently at $1,000. Thanks goes to Robert for the submission.

1946-lincoln-continental-custom-rear

When we first looked at the listing, this shot had us scratching our heads. Turns out that those fenders are from a Cadillac, the belt molding is from a Packard, and the rear window is from a Chrysler. No wonder this thing didn’t look like any Lincoln we had ever seen! One of the previous owners performed all the modifications which also included shaved door handles and frenched headlights. We actually like the look of these luxury Lincolns, so we are not sure how much of an improvement these changes really made.

1946-lincoln-continental-engine

No car could be considered a hot rod without a hot engine. We are not sure how hot this one is, but it is a more modern Chevy V8 so it is bound to have a little more power than the stock mill. Still, these originally came with a V12 which was good for 130 horsepower. Not astounding today, but that was pretty good back in the forties.

1946-lincoln-continental-ad

We are actually surprised that someone ever modified this car. Lincoln Continentals were very expensive in their day and some even considered them the American equivalent of the Rolls-Royce. Someone already did the deed though, so the next owner will have to decide if they should restore it back to factory specifications, or embrace its hot rod past. Which route would you take?

Comments

  1. Avatar Chuck

    Really a shame this classic has been modified. Considering the hood has been chopped, Cadillac rear fenders & Chrysler rear window, the job or restoring it to original would be cost prohibitive. Installing that rear window was quite an accomplishment.

    Like 1
    • Avatar Steve Donnelly

      Very nice I got 2 grand

      Like 1
  2. Avatar DusterDave

    Son..you would have driven me to drinken if you had continued driven that HOT ROD LINCOLN. Then i found out it had a lawn mower engine in it..You will be fine son..!

    Like 1
  3. Avatar frederick hughes

    Of all the sites I visit, your site is by far the most interesting. i love the fact that many of your finds are cars from 50’s 60’s 70’s 80’s and 90’s! Being 64 like a whole bunch of us, your site really gives us a nice way to reflect and to see the beauty that we have had the pleasure of being part of. Now that we are getting ready to die, thank you for what you do. I’ve got a ’94 Mazda RX-7 I bought new and it too sits in my garage with 2800 miles on that powerful little rotary. My friend, Terry tells me it will never be worth much. My opinion differs with his. Besides he isn’t a “car” guy. He has owned Ford Taurus’s for 20 years. Dependable, but not much to look at. I tell him he can kiss my a** when he starts badmouthing my little sports car. It’s still a head turner and sweet to sit in! I hope Mazda rethinks RX-7 and the rotary and bring it back with a vengeance! Oh yah!

    Like 1
  4. Avatar twwokc1

    Do everything I could to get it back to as close to original as I could. This is horrible.

    Like 1
  5. Avatar Patrick Calhoun

    I see only a custom rod after A LOT of work.

    Like 1
  6. Avatar Brian

    Man,

    Judging by the 8 track player in the dash, it looks like somebody from the 70’s was into resto-modding before it was cool! Kinda neat although I’d like to see it original.

    Like 1
  7. Avatar geomechs Member

    Very disappointed. There are too few of them left to butcher. We need to preserve them so future generations can have the opportunity to see one of them up close and personal, and not in pictures or a museum.

    Like 1
  8. Avatar Dom

    Perfect. I say leave it as is. It looks really cool to me.

    Like 1
  9. Avatar Dolphin Member

    This was one man’s vision, but after a long night with lot of tequila the vision got a little blurry……

    Like 1
    • Avatar paul

      someone went to a lot of trouble & from the pictures it looks like decent workmanship, just sad that he chose this car to do it with.

      Like 1
  10. Avatar paul

    I would like to poke around the yard it’s in.

    Like 1
  11. Avatar Jim B.

    What a shame to have messed up a beautiful car. I love both the original pre-war and the post war versions. However, it should be noted that the flathead V-12 was a real problem and many of the original owners of these cars replaced it with OHV V-8’s in the ’50’s. Zephyr owners hated the V-12’s as well. I have seen them with Mercury and Lincoln Y-blocks and Cadillac V8’s from the early and mid-’50’s.
    I personally think a 368 ’56-57 Lincoln OHV V-8 would be an appropriate driveline for these cars. The 368 was used in the Mark II’s also.

    Like 1
  12. Avatar Rene

    I would choose the hotrod route. Try to finish the work, that previous owners started.

    Like 1
  13. Avatar Bill

    Did the previous owner live in San Pedro?

    Like 1
  14. Avatar Jason

    Looks like the spare tire may be flat, rad looks like it leaking, not sure if the tires are original but that is a big thing all and all, a good wash may help, may need to have windshield wipers fixed up for safety

    Like 1
  15. Avatar shawnmcgill

    You gotta remember that at some point in it’s life, this was a $50 car. Even Deusenbergs, Cords, and Auburns were just old cars and were once ordinary and affordable.

    That being said, I don’t really love the mods someone did to this car back in the day, but that’s just a matter of aesthetics. I may not like them, but the guy who did them probably loved them. If this thing wasn’t on the opposite side of the country, I might be willing to go for it. Really, when’s the last time you saw anything like it?

    Oh, and the “Hot Rod Lincoln” analogy doesn’t work – the Hot Rod Lincoln in the song was a Model A with a Lincoln motor! (“That Model A body makes it look like a pup”)

    Like 1
    • Avatar Soren

      I agree with people about the mods not being pretty, particularly the rear window, but it’s also clear that these are not new mods. If somebody did this today I’d agree with the comments.

      But these were likely done a long time ago, and the fact that somebody put that kind of work and, presumably, love into this car probably helped make sure it’s survived 6+ decades later. Perhaps we should all be thankful that the car survived in any condition, rather than berate mods done, likely, decades ago.

      Like 1
  16. Avatar scot c

    ~ ‘headlights are frenched’ – huh?
    headlights are not frenched.
    if your’re looking for a Continental check this one on craigslist in StLouis area.
    http://stlouis.craigslist.org/cto/3531343229.html
    only $16900 and worth the difference.
    http://images.craigslist.org/3Gf3J43H15G95Ff5J2d187521e04f004b1d7c.jpg

    Like 1
  17. Avatar Rancho Bella

    Like many of you mention…….these are stunning cars…..from the factory.
    Now, on to something that has me curious. With all the work that was done, without seeing close up…….it looks very professional. And, why would you paint the car that color if you were hot rodding it?……..something doesn’t add up. Looks like this guy has more than a few projects that will never get done……….

    Like 1
  18. Avatar 1750GTV

    Judging by the 8-track stereo cut into the dash, this was modified in the 70s.

    Like 1
  19. Avatar A.J.

    “Still, these originally came with a V12 which was good for 130 horsepower. Not astounding today, but that was pretty good back in the forties”. No. These were good looking cars and the reason they don’t bring more money when original is because the engine is a slug.

    Like 1
  20. Avatar FRED

    I THINK THE JOHNNY CASH SONG ONE PIECE AT A TIME FITS IT BETTER THAN HOT ROD LINCOLN.AT THIS POINT I THINK MAKING A HOT ROD OUT OF IT WOULD BE EASIER AND COST LESS. START BY FINDING THE BIGGEST FORD-LINCOLN-MERCURY MOTOR YOU CAN AND MAKE IT BIGGER AND BADDER AND GO FROM THERE.

    Like 1
  21. Avatar Duffy Bell

    How could anyone in his right mind modify a car that was so beautiful in the first place? And the original V-12 ran beautifully if they were properly maintained. The trouble was they were expensive, so the owners let them wear out prematurely, and replaced them with a simpler V-8 engine. Less expensive & easier to repair

    Like 1
  22. Avatar Duffy Bell

    How could anyone in his right mind modify a car that was so beautiful in the first place?

    Like 1
  23. Avatar Duffy Bell

    How anyone in his right mind would modify such a beautiful car in the first place is beyond me..

    Like 1
  24. Avatar Foxxy

    when compared to the stock Lincoln, the custom body work is very good. The front end of the car is mostly stock, except for the shaved hood. My guess is this was a victim of a rear end collision, and went from there. the changes look very stock, I don’t think Hot rod was the theme. The chevy v8 is probably a older 283, it has the oil fill in the intake which means it’s a pre- PCV engine. I think it is pretty cool, but was way to big of car to be a hot rod. The small v8 would have to work pretty hard to just haul that heavy of car. Most folks would not even thing it wasn’t a stock. jmo

    Like 1
  25. Avatar Jesse

    Bidding ended at $3,701.99 with 32 bids!

    Like 1

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