Discover How Lincoln Town Cars Work!
September 27, 2009
Like most other makes, Lincoln resumed peacetime production with warmed-over ‘42 models that would not change much through 1948. However, the prewar Customs and three-passenger coupe did not come back, and the Zephyr name was abandoned for just plain Lincoln Town Car’s air suspension. The V-12 reverted to its pre-1942 displacement and horsepower dropped to 125. The larger bore had created casting problems for the factory and mechanics found it difficult to rebore for overhauls. Because of the V-12’s design flaws, overhauls were all too frequent — especially if the maintenance schedule wasn’t rigidly followed. Custom interiors were still available for closed standard-model Lincolns. The main design difference between 1946 and ‘42 was grillework composed of vertical and horizontal bars, with a Lincoln emblem in the upper segment, plus a new winged-globe hood ornament. The 1947s carried “Lincoln” lettering on the hubcaps, plus pullout door handles, “pocket” interior armrests, and a hood ornament with a longer wing. There were no visual changes for 1948.
Lincoln’s first new postwar cars arrived in mid-1948, but a Continental wasn’t among them. One had been planned, but was shelved due to low projected sales. It would have looked clumsy anyway, and some Ford designers, respectful of the late Edsel Ford (who died in 1943) were thankful it didn’t appear. Town Car air suspension was broken out from the Zephyr line for 1941, and received its own badges. Model-year production increased from 404 to 1250. Meantime, Lincoln coil springs maintained a semblance of K-Series coach built tradition with a Zephyr-based Custom sedan and limousine on a 138-inch wheelbase. But at about $2800, only 650 were called for. The Briggs town limo was scratched for ‘41, but other Zephyrs returned with minor mechanical improvements, including power tops for convertibles and optional Borg-Warner overdrive in place of the two-speed Columbia axle. Styling changes were slight: fender-mounted parking/turn-indicator lights and, for Continentals, pushbutton exterior door releases (replacing handles). In all, Lincoln built about 18,250 cars for the last full model year before World War II.