On a warm July day in 1996, I was riding with a friend, Dale, along a gravel road just outside of West Des Moines. We had just delivered a refinished piece of furniture to a customer of his and were headed back home when I spotted a small garage sized building just ahead. Protruding from the far side was the front 12 inches of what was unmistakably a 1966 or 1967 Lincoln.
Even though I was not looking for a car, least of all a car to restore, I had to stop. As we pulled up to the garage I began telling Dale that just after high school I had owned a 1966 Lincoln Continental Coupe. A friend's father had passed away and his Mom sold me the Lincoln for $200 saying she really didn't like to drive it herself because it was too big. Looking back, I realize she gave me the car; charging me just enough to make me think I was paying for it. She knew I was broke and struggling to find my way and neither of us ever thought that the car would be a classic one-day.
I got out of Dale's truck and headed for the nose of the Lincoln, my anticipation mounting. As I rounded the building and looked across the dusty dark green hood, I saw a small piece of notebook paper on the dash, with the magical words 'for sale'. I wrote down the phone number, then started to walk around the car and look at it…suicide doors! I always thought they were cool! A few small dents, a little rust just behind the wheels…nothing I couldn't live with. Besides, it was better looking than what I drove everyday!
I got back in the truck and we drove home, where I said to my wife "guess what I just saw?" where upon I'm sure she thought to herself "what are we buying now?" I explained to her that I had no intention of buying anything, but it would be fun to look at and take it for a drive, for old times sake.
I called the number and made arrangements to "look" at the car. When I met the owner, he explained that he had driven it back from Arizona with intentions to restore it, but he already had five other cars to finish first (sure we've all heard that before!). He gave me the keys; it started right up but with an awful banging noise. The owner explained as being the exhaust system vibrating against the body and he only wanted $800.00 for it. After a few minutes of smoozing and talking him down to $600.00 the car was actually mine.
Arriving home with my 'new' car I was so excited! I couldn't understand why my wife wasn't. I tried convincing her it was a 'family' car, it didn't need anything but some exhaust work, and we could use it to take the kids out for ice cream and do other family joy rides. However, she just rolled her eyes and said something I couldn't quite hear.
After getting the car licensed, titled, changing the filters, oil, plugs and such, a test drive was in order. About ¼ mile from home the banging became unbearable, not to mention it was barely running. After several days of diagnosing the problem, I determined that it was not just an exhaust pipe, but something inside the engine was doing the banging. I decided the best plan of action was to pull the engine, and have it overhauled.
After asking around, I was referred to Doug, who liked to do this kind of work on the side. He told me it would cost about $600.00 in labor, if I got the parts and paid for the machine work. Not knowing how much that would be, I guessed another $800 would get it done, the car would run great, and be a blast to drive.
So began the "project". The engine was pulled out and sent to Doug where he discovered the source of my noise was a broken piston skirt. Figuring if one had to be replaced, best replace them all since the engine was already torn apart. I ordered a complete engine rebuild kit from Egge, which included pistons, valves, guides, water diverters, and the whole works. All this meant extensive machine work as well; re-bore for new pistons, hardened seats, headwork, etc.
One day Doug called and it seemed that both of my exhaust manifolds had cracks in them. A quick Internet search told me this was a common problem. Unfortunately replacements are hard to find and very expensive. Being resourceful I was able to find Williams Cylinder Head, which had a method of heating up the manifolds and welding them. I dropped the exhaust manifolds off and a couple of weeks later picked them up all fixed. The cost was significantly less than what the usual suspects get for replacement parts.
Well, the engine was finally complete and involved more money than I anticipated so, to save a few dollars, I decide to reinstall the engine myself. Simple enough, until the hoist slips at the last moment slamming the engine into the transmission. Time to flatbed the car off to the tranny shop for a complete rebuild of that as well.
At this point I realize that this was not the $600 ice cream car I originally thought but my wife already knew that. It was turning into a full-fledged 'frame-on restoration' (as a friend called it after learning that it had no 'frame'). Deciding that since I had come this far I might as well finish the job the right way. It would be a 'pay as you go' project meaning that if I didn't have the cash, the car would wait.
Over the next four years I worked on rebuilds to various parts of the car. It saw some brake work and an almost complete interior (new carpet, headliner, rear seat, package tray) along with a new vinyl roof. My wife was learning upholstery at DMACC (a local community college) and they needed a car to work on. She volunteered the use of my car as a teaching tool. She made sure the class did a great job while saving me hundreds of dollars. Unfortunately the class ended before the seats were done, so my wife agreed to do that project at home.
Now that the car ran and had a partial interior, in 2001 it was time to have it media blasted down to the bare metal so we could get a better idea what was underneath. After numerous phone calls to body shops, I found myself trailering the car 70 miles north to Elmer's Auto Body in Webster City. I left it with him to work on between other projects, as it was not going to be a quick job. Robert (Elmer) and his crew hammered, cut, and welded body pieces, removing all rust and dents from the body. They smoothed and blocked each quarter panel till perfect before moving on to the next panel. Over the next 3 months they worked their way around the car. Robert mentioned one day that the body panels, hood and trunk were so big that he felt like they had been working on the Queen Mary! This is where I finally settled on her name - the Land Yacht.
At the end of October, the bodywork and paint was complete and I trailered the car back to Des Moines and into the garage. I now had the job of reinstalling all exterior trim and molding, front grill, lights, bumpers, weather stripping, etc. I worked on this over the winter and into the spring of 2002.
As I started installing the door panels I realized this was the perfect opportunity to pull out all window hardware and clean the old dried grease from the tracks, so that became the next project.
All of this complete, I finally had a drivable car, and it looked great! August 2002 we took our first road trip to the LCOC Mid America Meet in Red Wing, Minnesota. Never being at a meet before, I only showed the car as exhibition, and had a blast. It was great to see other cars of similar make and vintage, learning volumes from other owners as well.
The next couple of years I mostly cruised around town and to local cruise nights. The brakes just didn't feel right but I couldn't put my finger on exactly what was wrong. A close inspection revealed weld marks on one of the brake lines so I decided to replace all the lines and hoses with new stainless steel lines. The car again went into the garage and up on jacks as I began this project. Since I couldn't drive the car anyway, I pulled the front seat and placed it strategically in my wife's upholstery room for her to finish the remaining seat. I am confident that she will want it done and back in the car for spring when it is time for our "Land Yacht" to begin cruising the streets again.
This past winter I have added tail light sequencers and am currently adding a hidden AM/FM/CD player. I have now resolved myself to what my wife already knew that first day back in 1996, the car will never be done because there will always be something to replace, fix, or add. Besides, if I ever finish this car then I will have to run out and get something else… maybe a nice '67 Continental convertible?
Owning a Classic Lincoln is not about "investing
for the future" as some classic car owners' claim, it is about "investing
in the past". It doesn't matter that it is worth half of what we have
into the car, or that it only gets 12 mpg. The car is paid for, fun to drive,
and always gets attention at cruise nights. The car inspires memories from
some who just have to relay their story about a Lincoln in their past, or
a memory about the day JFK was shot. And every once in a while a young car
enthusiast who is still paying off his loan of thousands for a tricked-out,
sooped up Ford Escort or Nissan ask the question "How hard was it to
make those doors work backward?"
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