There’s something about seeing a suicide-door Lincoln convertible with the doors open that inevitably gives a bit of a jolt, no matter that you’ve seen it many times before. It’s just not…normal. Between the four doors and the rear-hinged rear door, it’s like a clam shell opening up. The fully hidden top just adds to that.
It’s a bit surreal. In a good way. And it’s nice to see that this one has found an adoring audience in Budapest, Hungary. Roshake 77 took the shots.
But then these Contis give me a bit of a tingle regardless of whether it’s a convertible or sedan. What a superb design, one that rocked the world in 1961, blowing the Chrysler-GM jet-pod fin-flash cars out of the water, making them instantly obsolete. It’s hard for me to pinpoint another American car that reflected such a drastic change and was so influential.
I will admit to not being quite so fond of the tail end as the front end. The “decor” in that inset trim panel is too fussy for the rest of the car. They should have just skipped it and rolled the trunk lid edge down to the bumper, like they mostly did in 1964. It was obviously the weak spot in this superb design.
That says it all.
And I said it all in my tribute to the 1961-1966 Continentals here, titled “The Last Great American Luxury Car”.
Perry Mason, episode 248 “The Case of the Hasty Honeymooners” 24 December 1965, show William Burr driving a gorgeous White 1963 Lincoln Continental Convertible with the top down. It is said that this vehicle was used in that episode…
( https://www.hemmings.com/stories/2018/08/26/hemmings-find-of-the-day-1963-lincoln-continental-2 )
Raymond Burr was Perry Mason.
Why do people put black seats in convertibles?
Considering I didn’t mention the radio series actor’s who played Perry Mason (Bartlett Robinson or John Larkin) that only left William Burr as the only TV actor who played the role…
Excellent photography. Blue car under a blue sky.
OT = OldTimer? Seems to be the standard Euro term for antique cars, even though it’s not used that way in America.
In Nevada, a vehicle over 45 years old can receive an “Old Timer” license plate.
In Virginia it’s only after 25 years…
Nevada calls a vehicle 25-44 years old a “Classic Vehicle”.
Your car only needs to be 20 years old in Maryland to get “Historic” plates.
Only 5 model years to go now for my Mustang!!! (6 years if you go by the calendar, which I am quite sure the MVA will do.)
I think we also have another level that I have seen here in Maryland when your car reaches 50 years old, but I cannot recall the verbiage on the plate. “50 Year Historic” maybe? I’ll have to look that up unless another Curbsider here knows…
Yeah that’s crazy here. A 2001 Camry is “historic” here in MD.
In Hungary certified vintage cars can get these plates, provided they are
a) older than 30 years,
b) close to factory stock, or have been modified with period correct accessories.
The funny thing about the latter part is that I have seen plenty of customised cars from the USA getting OT plates, meanwhile the committee seems to be more strict with European and Comecon cars.
The benefit of having a certified vintage car is the lack of tax on them and the less strict environmental rules, but on the other hand you cannot use them for gainful purposes.
Weird / interesting to see an American car over the pond but I guest the owner is very rich !? as these on the best day just get 8 mpg’s & with gas always high over there & now CA. is up to $7 in some places how bad can it be over there ? but its just nice to see vintage cars preserved anywhere ! thanks to owner
Probably more of a status symbol, then actual wealth. Must have been a bitch to have it recertified to be allowed to run in their respective country, which don’t share the same safety standards as those in the United States…
$7 per gallon is still reasonable we pay $2.38 per litre x 4.5 for an old fashioned gallon in local dollars and thats for 91 regular 98 is more, dont see a lot of old 8mpg US cars as daily drives these days.
I got 15 mpg driving my old and worn 1962 across the country, and the odometer was accurate. I tended to go a steady 65-70 mph to save gas. It was wearing radial tires.
I was never bold enough to check city mileage.
This 1963 has the very different from original 1964 wheel covers because they switched to the 1″ taller later rims. I didn’t like those, so when I switched I got some 1970’s wheel covers and removed the black plastic bit so they looked similar to the earlier ones. Then I got the tallest proportion widest narrow stripe whitewalls I could find, and the speedo and odometer were nearly exactly correct.
You do see a lot of 1957-63 cars riding too low on radial tires.
The rear “grill” of the 1961 has a little cleaner design, and the trunk lid has a smooth slope down to the grill. (the 1963 having the trunk height increased, with the chamfer, to increase the trunk volume). My 1961 convertible. I prefer the 1961, with the Thunderbird type of front grill – looks more custom and shows off the side “blades” more, as well as being less generic, for the time period.
Every yearly update made them a little worse. The 1964 stretch with different shape and flat windows and roofline was the worst, although it made the trunk about twice as big and more practically shaped and added rear legroom. It was the first car to move the fuel tank from flat under the trunk space to behind the rear axle, also necessitating a fuel door in the middle of the flattish plain expanse of rear fender.
Corporate must have ordered the more normal grille and bumper change immediately after the 1961 came out due to potential conservative customers saying the original was too weird since it was gone for 1962. The backward step 1964 flat windows, also appearing on the new Thunderbird, were I think due to air or water leaking complaints. My ancient ’62 didn’t leak anything though.
After not seeing any of these for years I came across a perfect looking black ’61 with red leather/wood interior about a year ago parked at a closed for the night Brooklyn gas station. The black color obscures the vertical shut lines on the sides nicely. I don’t know why I didn’t take a photo – it’s certainly seared into my brain. Yeah, I’m kind of a fan.
You are correct about the 1961 being the prettier of the three models 1961 through 1963. The front grill the Back Grill the antenna in the rear and the sloped trunk I’ll make the car look the best of those three years. Just sold my 63 after 40 years.
These cars still to this day make my private parts tingle.
The rear grille never bothered me. It is, to be sure, a late ’50s to early ’60s fad, but it comes across as a nice period touch to me. It’s actually the front I find a bit too busy for the rest of the car. Anyway, this car is all about the side view. Has their ever been a three-year period where the prevailing aesthetic changed as much, as 1958 to 1961?
1932 to 1935 comes to mind. I wouldn’t insist on it.
The Studebaker GT Hawk had a rear grille, eliminated for MY 1964. I think it looked better with the grille.
The ’62 Stude GT Hawk was maybe the first car obviously influenced by the ’61 Continental. The rear grille was really there to hide the ribbing in the metal which was had been there since 1956 and now looked dated, but along with new taillights, a thin chrome strip running front to back at fendertop height, and of course the new roofline, all these elements were similar to the Continental’s. They combined to give the car what now was established as the ’60s look, not bad for a car that was still mostly a 1953 design.
I think these look better in pictures than in person. In person, their bulk is a bit overwhelming. They look too “heavy”.
Pshaw.
On the other hand, they ARE heavy. Also almost exactly the length of the last Crown Vic – only wider, several inches lower and about half a ton heavier.
It’s amazing that as huge as this car looks today, it was almost 15 inches shorter than the 1960 model
The 1964-65 do look larger in person than in pictures. However, the 1961-63 looks about the same in person as in pictures. Shorter, less wide at the roof, smaller wheels. Enough to make a difference in person.
I agree Jonathan. I was bitterly disappointed when I first saw my childhood icon in the flesh in Aotearoa New Zealand. It seemed ridiculously low and spindly. Not a luxury car at all.
I think that the reason, or advertised reason, for the flat glass on the 1964 – was to provide additional head room at the side windows and maybe make the interior look more spacious.
There were a lot of cool looking, and elegant looking, and nicely designed cars in the 20th century, but I always come back to this one as being the best designed car. Exudes elegance and class! This picture really show off the car in the yellow color under the lights.
Stunning is the understatement of the century, when my 1961 sedan or convertible are under the lights at night of a porta cochere at a country club or upscale hotel.
That grille design got carried over very closely to the 1964 Comet. Very good looking. Too bad the U.S. Meteor didn’t get some Lincoln cues. Meteor could have been more of a smaller version of Lincoln, I think without taking away many sales. LM had Comet as an economy car. Was just thinking how great Meteor would have looked with the real wood interior trim as shown on this Continental. My brother had a ’63 Continental sedan when he was in the service and left it for me to take care of during his tour in Vietnam. Didn’t drive it much.
How are they to drive? Later Lincolns had numb, over-assisted steering that I did not find pleasant or easy to aim, though people must have become accustomed to it.
I’m curious as to what makes them so heavy. Did the flat panels require thicker steel to be strong enough?
Long time ago. Drove a ’61 in the late 60’s and the ’63 in the early ’70’s. These like to go with 430 C.I.D. Practically no engine braking and a light and low wide brake pedal. Steering is light. Numb and over-assisted would be accurate for both. Big boats. Not what I am used to. Typical for a large car then, only more so. My father’s friend was a maitre’d who left his car with us while he took his new wife to France and Hungary on honeymoon. He had family in both places. Always bought smaller cars with manual transmissions. Yes, they need premium gasoline and plenty of it. The fun part is they were quite impressive.
One of these Lincolns lived nearby me in Napier pale yellow with a white top stock standard too, but it was a slab sided tank close up and in colour hardly a luxurious look to me skinny little wheels overwhelmed by a body too large for the frame.
I got to drive my Dad’s 63 sedan back in the early ’70s. It was still a great looking car.