We profile a plethora of 1942 through 1948 Lincoln Continentals here at Barn Finds.  While there appears to be no shortage of Continentals, you never hear much about the other Lincolns in the lineup.  Once the last of the classic K-series Lincolns was completed in 1940, there was just the Continental coupe and convertibles and the various versions of the Lincoln Zephyr in the lineup until 1942.  After the war, the Continental remained in both forms with a few updates.  For the standard Lincolns, the brand chose to drop the Zephyr nameplate and simply name these cars what their body style was.  Instead of the beautiful Zephyr name, they went by Sedan, Club Coupe, and Convertible Coupe.  While historians praise the lavish Continental, those with an eye for rarity and purity of line can argue that the standard Lincolns, like the 1948 Lincoln Club Coupe seen here, are better suited for the redesigned front end of Lincolns of this era.

The black Lincoln you see in the pictures is one of the handful of Club Coupes produced in 1948.  While production numbers for each type of Lincoln are elusive, the whole division sold fewer cars than Crosley in 1948.  Lincoln manufactured just 7,769 cars in that year.  Some of that might be the knowledge that a new Lincoln was on the horizon.  Another reason may have been that Lincoln had to face competitors who were updating their older designs and coming out with new ones.

However, when you look at what these Lincolns brought to the table, they had a lot going for them.  By 1948, it was a proven design backed by a large dealer network.  Many of the bugs of the V-12 engine had been worked out by this time as well.  Customers could also count on excellent build quality and a very smooth ride.

The Lincoln you see in the pictures above and below stands out in many ways.  While we are given no background on the car’s long-term history, it has all the hallmarks of a car that is nearly all original.  The seller tells us that this Club Coupe belonged to his father, who has unfortunately passed away.  Now he has been tasked to sell the car for his mother.  A few clues suggest that it has been sitting unused for some time.  There are pictures of service stickers dating from 2014 in the ad, and we are told that the braking system will need service before the car can be driven.

A close look at the pictures reveals no obvious corrosion or accident damage.  The paint is cracking and showing its age in many areas.  There are also scratches evident in a few of the photographs.  While some may consider these blemishes a reason to restore the car, finding an unrestored car from 1948 in presentable condition is impossible.  Lacquer paints crack, scratches happen, and many would consider the patina on this Lincoln to be a sign of character.  The Antique Automobile Club of America offers a Historical Preservation of Original Features class for such vehicles to encourage their preservation.  This Lincoln would seem perfect for that purpose.

Another interesting aspect of this car is that it has a few unique and rare options.  The first of which is electro-hydraulic power windows.  Packard offered the first such system in 1940, with Lincoln close behind in 1941.  These systems, usually seen in convertibles with power-operated tops, used an electric motor to pressurize a hydraulic system to raise the window.  Letting it down was simply accomplished by releasing the pressure back into the system.  The car also boasts a push button release for each door and a power antenna.  While we take these features for granted today, they were quite cutting-edge for the time.

As you may be aware, one of the most discussed features of Lincolns of this era is their V-12 engines.  This one was completely rebuilt in 2013.  Since then, the car has traveled around 5,000 miles.  The seller can provide receipts and parts lists to document the over $8,000 spent on the rebuild (in 2013 dollars).  The car has also benefitted from a clutch replacement and a rebuild of the overdrive unit.  We are assured that the car currently starts up and runs great.  The overall mileage on this car is believed to be 124,000.

If you would fancy having a rare postwar luxury car in original condition with some neat options, then this 1948 Lincoln Zephyr is for sale on Barn Finds Classifieds and is located in Carrollton, Illinois.  The asking price for this interesting car is $21,000.