Friday Fun Thread: Lovely Lincolns

Going down the list of offerings from the Big Three for my Friday Fun Top Ten list, I see that we are down to one marque each from all three. I'm saving Cadillac for the last slot (hey, I am Italian after all...), and the last of the Big Three to be covered was Chrysler, so today's list centers on the Top Ten Lincolns. Yes, it's another paean to the American luxo-barge, cars that were roughly large enough to land a helicopter on the roof or hold a formal dance inside...

So here goes!

1. 1938 Zephyr. The pre-war, Art Deco styling emanating from every pore, the Zephyr was originally positioned to become its own line between Ford and Lincoln, but was left as the entry level Lincoln model due to low sales. Oh, and it had a V12 under the hood.

2. 1955 Futura. Yes, I know, the Futura was only a concept car, and I've typically eschewed the concept cars. But it was the inspiration for the '60s TV Batmobile - there's no way it wasn't going to make the list! There's simply no way you can look at the Futura and not see the Batmobile, complete with Adam West and Burt Ward in their pajamas...

3. 1969 Mark III. The late 1960s/early 1970s Continental Mark IIIs are some of my very favorite large luxo-coupes, right up there with the Cadillac Coupe de Ville. They're large, have ridiculously large engines under the hood, and are unabashed symbols of American automotive excess. I want two at least.

4. 1951 Cosmopolitan. With the last vestigal remnants of the Art Deco styling still evident, the Cosmopolitan was a definite signal of Lincoln's transition to the excesses of the 1950s. Wide whitewall tires, miles of chrome trim, and gleaming chrome bumpers meshed with tailfin-free rear fenders and giant hood ornaments as the pre-war styling gave way to post-war.

5. 1959 Continental. The 1958 Continental was the largest Lincoln ever produced (non-limosine, of course) and stood out as one of the premiere luxury cars on the roadway. They were excessive even in the decade of excess, and continued the rivalry between the luxury divisions of General Motors and Ford Motor Company.

6. 1978 Town Car. Be the first on your block to have a car the size of your block. Pretty much sums up the Town car option of the Continental in the late 1970s - these cars were truly massive metal monstrosities in an age where gas shortages and pollution controls became the norm rather than the exception.

7. 1937 K Series. Evocative of the Duesenberg and Cadillac Phaeton models of the Roaring 20s, the K series was Lincoln's Depression-era holdover that signaled the end of the excesses of the earlier good times. The extravagant styling remained through WWII, but the brand was phased out in favor of more economical models.

8. 1998 Mark VIII. This is a personal favorite, as an old boss of mine had one of these and frequently loaned it to me for jaunts between our location and the corporate headquarters. The Mark VIII LSC had a 290 horsepower 4.6L V8 that really moved it down the road, and in comfort that felt like a decadent leather sofa...

9. 1967 Continental. Allusions to Dallas 1963 notwithstanding, the Continental convertibles always stood out from the crowd. Most manufacturers stopped making four door convertibles in the 1920s and '30s, leaving only Lincoln as a factory maker of parade-worthy cars off the showroom floor.

10. 2002 Town Car. Really, the latest iteration just strikes me as an elegant car in very understated trim. It's almost as if Lincoln is finally comfortable with its place as one of the two premiere American marques and no longer feels the need to one-up Caddy. The clean, smooth lines of the current model Town Car just look great.

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So there's my list of Top Ten Lincolns. This list, unlike many others, contains several recent automobiles - Lincoln remains a current favorite with large, luxurious cars and creature comforts. The older cars had style and grace (and enough horsepower to tow a small village), and they didn't let that heritage go completely to waste, bringing design cues from the many decades of Lincoln's past into even the newest models.

What Lincolns would you have on your list?

That is all.