1958 Lincoln Continental 7.0L V8 3AT RWD (315 HP)

Vehicle Overview

The 1958 Continental Mark III was the heaviest car in the U.S. market and tried to compete with the flamboyant Cadillac Eldorado in every way, but it didn’t win that battle.

Ford tried a different strategy when it launched the 1958 Continental. While a hidden label on the bodywork said that Lincoln built the car, it didn’t have any single badge from that American luxury automaker. Furthermore, Ford tried to promote the Continental as a stand-alone brand. However, it soon abandoned the idea, so the largest sedan ever made by the blue-oval automaker (without enlarged bumpers from the late ‘70s) became known as a Lincoln. The automaker sold the car until 1961 under three versions, known as the Mark III, IV, and V, and produced it in four shapes, including a four-door hard-top, a coupe, and a convertible.

At the front, the 1958 Lincoln Continental boasted oblique-mounted round headlights, a first for the brand. In some states, these were forbidden, so Ford had to delete one of them to make the car compliant. Its massive chromed grille sported a mesh sporting a squared pattern. At the same time, the lower bumper featured conical-shaped elements resembling bullets, which were known as Dagmars and were deleted for the 1959 model year.

From its profile, the 1958 Lincoln Continental boasted the longest wheelbase for a car in Ford’s history. It took decades for the automaker to match that distance between the axles on the third generation of the Lincoln Navigator LWB SUV. At the same time, the automaker made the unibody Continental (called uni-frame body by the automaker) with slightly curved, almost vertical side panels. One of the most intriguing parts of the car was found behind the greenhouse, where the automaker installed a slanted-rearward breezeway window. It was rare, and customers believed it helped them cool the cabin faster. At the back, the massive quarter panels featured skirts for the 14-inch rear wheels featuring turbine-styled chromed caps. In addition, Lincoln added fins on top of the fenders, although not as big as those from the Eldorado. Furthermore, a mesh-like grille that echoed the one from the front adorned the rear panel and sported the taillights, featuring three individual lamps on each side.

Thanks to the huge distance between the axles and the large greenhouse, the 1958 Lincoln Continental offered a spacious cabin. At the front, the automaker installed a power bench seat where three occupants could comfortably sit. In addition, the gear selector was mounted on the steering column. However, the transmission case took some legroom. Furthermore, the automaker installed a radio there. It was the first Ford-produced vehicle available with an FM radio, which was just introduced on the market. The driver fronted an instrument panel where the speedometer, styled like a half-moon, took center stage. There were several other gauges and dials for the fuel level, coolant temperature, ammeter, oil temperature, and a clock. The heating control dial was on the left side of the speedometer, so only the driver could access it. Besides the regular controls for the power windows, the vehicle also offered power front vents and breezeway.

Under the hood, Ford installed a newly developed seven-liter V8 engine from the MEL family. It had a 90-degree angle between the cylinder banks and offered an impressive, for those times, power of 375 hp (380 PS). However, those were measured using the old standards without accessories. It was paired with a three-speed automatic gearbox that sent all the oomph to the rear wheels.