1940 Lincoln-Zephyr Continental Cabriolet

1940 Lincoln-Zephyr Continental Cabriolet
Chassis no. H 96690

•Iconic design
•One only 350 1940-model cabriolets
•Formerly part of the Jerry Capizzi Collection
•An older restoration
•CCCA 'Full Classic'

'The outstanding nature of the Lincoln-Zephyr's styling was further demonstrated by its transformation into one of America's most beautiful classics, the Continental.' – 'Standard Catalog of American Cars 1805-1942'.

The Continental was Edsel Ford's idea: 'long, low, and rakish', it was designed by styling maestro Eugene 'Bob' Gregorie and based on the Lincoln-Zephyr. The lower-price companion to Ford's flagship Lincoln marque, Lincoln-Zephyr had made its debut in November 1935 as a three-model range powered by a new 4.8-litre V12 engine. As such, it was unique in its class, all the opposition having eight-cylinder engines.

Together with Mercury, introduced in 1939, Lincoln-Zephyr bridged the gap between the affordable Ford V8 and the expensive Lincoln K Series. Conceived by Edsel Ford and overseen by Gregorie, the Lincoln-Zephyr well deserved the description 'revolutionary'; its advanced unitary body/chassis - designed by Tom Tjaarda and built by Briggs Manufacturing - being a first for the Ford Motor Company.

A typically imaginative design, Gregorie's Continental featured a lowered bonnet line with extended front wings, full spats at the rear, folding convertible top featuring formal Victoria-style blind quarters, and the signature 'Continental' spare tyre kit at the tail.

Within six months the prototype had been completed, just in time for Edsel Ford's winter vacation in Florida where the rakish soft-top caused a sensation. The Continental entered production as a 1940 model and was by some considerable margin the most expensive model in the Lincoln-Zephyr range.

Only 404 examples of these mostly hand-assembled cars were completed in the first year of production: 350 cabriolets and 54 coupés, compared with 1,250 in 1941. Today the Lincoln-Zephyr Continental is recognised as a 'Full Classic' by the Classic Car Club of America, and is one of the first automobiles acknowledged as more than a merely utilitarian machine by the New York Museum of Modern Art.

Previously forming part of the famed Jerry Capizzi collection, the Lincoln-Zephyr Continental Cabriolet offered here was acquired by the immediately preceding owner - a Ford and Lincoln collector - in 2006.

The current vendor purchased the Continental at an auction in Hershey, Pennsylvania in October 2010, since when it has been kept as part of a museum collection in Turkey. At time of purchase the car was described as having 'received a full restoration some time ago with a more recent freshening'.

Noteworthy features include a Haartz convertible hood, driver's side spotlight, original radio, and a clock. Accompanying documentation consists of a copy of an old State of Louisiana Certificate of Title and a valid technical inspection document.

The exclusive preserve of society's elite when new, the magnificent Lincoln-Zephyr Continental remains one of the most sought-after of American classics today.