It looks like CC’s own Jim Brophy is not the only Tokyo inhabitant to have a thing for these gigantic beasts. This one has had a lot of “work” done, but it could be much worse on that score. And the timeless Continental design, even lowered and chopped to within an inch of insanity, makes for a compelling subject to photograph.
But (and that there is quite a butt!) one wonders how drivable this Continental could ever be in this context. It’s a lot wider than almost anything else on the streets of Tokyo and it’s about a foot longer than a new Toyota Century, so one would think the challenge to already be pretty daunting.
However, not content with being unable to park it in 90% of places, the owner of this car thought: “I don’t need all that ride height and wheel travel. Just wasteful. All I need is a couple inches of ground clearance. What could go wrong?”
The interior matches the exterior: all decked out in black, with a bunch of odd mods. That row of mystery chrome switches under the dash looks positively threatening, compounded by the slightly creepy rosary on the radio dial. Felix the Cat takes some of the edge off a bit, thankfully.
So onwards to the eternal debate: what’s the best/worst variation of the 1961-69 Continental theme? Even squashed down like that, with its muffler plowing the road and its roof so low that kei trucks seem to tower over it, this Lincoln was a joy to behold. As to the front end, I for one would like to nominate the 1966-67 grille as the cleanest-looking of the bunch by a mile.
The rear end, for its part, is also pretty remarkably clean. The 1966-67 tail design is certainly unique, in that it’s the only one that puts virtually all of its lights horizontally on the bottom of the bumper, save for the reflectors. Very nice, but I still prefer the 1961-63 design from this angle.
Jim Brophy made the case for the 1966-69 Continental’s “much sleeker shape” in his words, thanks to the smoother Coke bottle-ish beltline and a somewhat less slab-sided overall design. There’s no question it’s sleeker, but it’s also far less iconic than the earlier cars’ ice-cool tiny beltline bump. And then there is the fact that this two-door variant necessarily negates another vital design gimmick that screams ‘60s Lincoln – namely, the rear suicide doors.
Without suicide doors but with a smoothed-down beltline and, as demonstrated by Paul in this compelling post, a rather Riviera-like C-pillar, the 1966 Coupé lost some of what made the 1961-65 four-door Continentals such a stand-alone style statement. It was already pointing towards the unfortunate shape of things to come – for Lincoln in particular and for American full-sizers in general. But that’s only seen in hindsight. Or maybe through crosshairs.
Nevertheless, this was the first two-door Continental of this generation I’d seen in the metal and it was certainly superlative. Longer, lower, wider indeed! I remember taking a good look at a friend’s ’68 Eldorado a few years back and being enthralled by it (save the colour – a very wrong shade of red, but I digress). Faced with an early FWD Eldorado and a ’66-’67 Continental coupé, I now know I wouldn’t be able to pick. Perhaps a two-door 1967 Imperial could break the tie?
Related posts:
Car Show Classic – 1966 Lincoln Continental Coupe – Where Have You Been?!, by Tom Klockau
Cohort Pic(k) of the Day: 1966 Lincoln Continental Coupe – With A Little Help From My (GM) Friends, by PN
COAL: 1967 Lincoln Continental Coupe – Black on Top, Unfortunately Brown on the Bottom, by Jim Brophy
The more you look at it, the more you realize how overall length was wasted on front and rear.
Oh come on; those overhangs were absolutely essential…for the look.
I imagine the switches are for the hydraulic/pneumatic controls for the suspension. I’m not sure what to think about the 2-door Contis of the 60s. They’re not “personal” enough to be a PLC, and they give away the party trick that was the suicide doors of the sedan.
As was theorized in a CC a while ago, the Continental coupe was Ford’s PLC-on-the-cheap answer to the Riviera. All they did was glue the roof of the Buick onto a Continental, slap a few Riviera-like creases onto body (mainly the rear) and, voilà, instant Ford Riviera.
Unfortunately, Continental coupe’s styling made it look way too big for a PLC and sales didn’t really pan-out until the long hood, short deck (i.e., Mark III) showed up for 1969.
The irony is how Ford, the originator of that look with the Mustang, took so long to figure out how to apply it to big cars, when GM had been doing it since 1966 with the Olds Toronado.
One assumes it has to be ‘raise-able’, similar to this creation I came across last month.
Nice find. I owned a 67 Coupe ( virtually identical to the 66 ) for 13 years. I’d hope this car has adjustable air suspension as it’s a horrible choice for a harsh riding steel spring lowering set up. They’re unit body, but pretty flimsy due the their considerable length and the fact there’s not much structure between the axles.
I think this chassis was engineered to survive with the factory soft suspension but a lowered set up? I can see the chassis flexing itself to the point of fatigue over time.
If it had adjustable suspension was my first thought. Otherwise…..?
Still a pretty kool looking car.
This guy must be Very rich as can you imagine the price of gas there ?? and these are lucky on a good day to get 6 miles to the gal. in city & maybe 10-12 on a long steady highway trip ! but these are rare in a 2 dr ! but mechanically caddys are better ! just my opinion
The 1966-67 version’s were my favorites, I thought that was the best looking of the 1960’s Lincoln’s, especially for the coupe version’s.
If this were a Mark VIII instead of a ’60s Continental, this stance would look totally normal…
Given the black color scheme and the rear plate, I’d suggest that some deviltry may be afoot!
Yeah, the license plate is probably meant to conjure evil portent, but maybe it’s a coincidence and it’s just referring to this being the sixth year for the new-style Lincolns with the 66 model;) Is that a real license plate? What does the rest of it say?
The title on this one belongs in the top tier of CC titles! Nicely done. The car itself looks like it’s designed for Halloween. Do they celebrate that in Japan?
As mentioned, the 66 Lincoln’s clean styling is very well suited to this absurd car. Between the chopping and the suspension, the profile is so low the roof could almost do double duty as an end table. As others have pointed out, these cars generally have manually adjustable hydraulic springs because you just couldn’t drive a car that low, their presence confirmed by the (surprisingly well-matched) control box under the dash.
Wouldn’t those hydraulic switches impale your knees in a crash?
Yes. But the car’s a deathtrap (or, worse, a maimtrap) in so many ways that does adding one more way to the list really matter…?
And being a deathtrap rather fits with the image of this custom. If it was any lower, it would be underground.
Surely this is for the Sunday morning convoy from Kamakura to Enoshima? Those switches make the air suspension dance? And the number of the beast is 6.66.
Do like, in its own way…
Nice to see an appearance from Felix The Cat. Don’t see him around much these days.
Can’t imagine what those black pine tree air fresheners smell like. Whatever fragrance it is, it’s got to be strong with four of them stacked one on the other.
Wow, great find. I’ve seen a couple four-door 66-69 Continentals here but never a two door like my old one.
The hood ornament photo shows pretty rough “orange peel” of the spray paint. Almost as if it’s intentional “textured” paint.
‘Chari-Yacht’…lol.
I’d never thought of it before, so I googled it. Only two things come up – this post, and a 68 foot power yacht in Delaware, called ‘Mon Chari’. 🙂
That’s one Big Bad Ass Gangster Mobile. The 66-6 license plate ends any debate. Drive this beast around the roughest part of any American city and you get instant street cred and respect.
What is that silver vehicle in the fifth pic that looks about halfway between a Scion XB and a minivan, with some Fiat 500L thrown in?
It’s a gen1 Suzuki Spacia (aka Mazda Flair Wagon). A few have found their way here to NZ.