Tips on buying a '61-'63 Lincoln Continental

A friend of mine is considering obtaining an early '60s Lincoln Continental at some point; while a convertible would be nice, a hardtop would be fine; the styling of the front grille, etc. on the '62-'63 models is preferred.

Of course, some of the basics apply to prospecting for any old car, such as checking the frame, overall maintenance and history, etc. Just wanted to know if there are some areas that particular concern needs to be paid attention to. All input is welcome, and thanks!

The convertibles are beautiful but be warned the convertible top mechanism is extremely complicated and can be troublesome. Had a '64 and spent months sorting it out and then it required ocausional tweaking. Lots of relays and switches! The sedans were faily trouble free however the extreme 7 deg engine mount angle did cause some issues with the double U-joint and contributed to some unusual engine bearing wear. The exhaust manifolds were extemely thin and they would warp and crack. The radiator fill tank would spring a leak at the solder joint every once in a while. I owned a '61,'64, 65 and '67 and loved them all as they were unique and elegant machines.

Thanks for the information! Is (are) there some good resources available so that I may do some more "homework", if you will? I love all old cars, like I say, if I was Jay Leno, I'd have one of everything, but my "expertise" is admittedly with Oldsmobiles and '50s/'60s GM full-size cars. Agree that the Lincolns you referred to are elegant and classy, in fact, those same words are those of the person in particular considering one!

The '61-'62 Lincolns have the 430 engine with a 2bbl carb. The '63 was the first year of the 4bbl carb. All are great driving cars. Good luck on finding one.

You might visit the LCOC site as that forum is really into these cars. phpBB thelincolnforum.net

I have registered--looks like a wealth of information, and nice pictures, too! Like the fact they have things divided into different eras/models; my personal favorite would be a '60 Continental, myself.

Guess I should also add that, as my handle implies, I am a big fan of one Mr. Presley; he, too, was a big Lincoln lover, as evidenced by the cover of his album "A Date With Elvis", released when he was in the Army in 1959; features EP in uniform seated behind the wheel in a red '58 convertible!

THANKS again for the info--keep it coming!

The '61-'62 Lincolns have the 430 engine with a 2bbl carb. The '63 was the first year of the 4bbl carb. All are great driving cars. Good luck on finding one.

Nope, the first years a 4bbl carburetor was put on a 430 was 1958 and also the 1959 engines. '60 through '63 cars all had 2 barrel carbs. In '64 the 4 barrel returned. For reference, the '64 and up MEL block 4 barrel intakes will not work on previous 430s as the intake ports are of a different size. Takes heads and Intake to convert a '60-'63 430 to a 4 barrel if using '64 and later MEL block components.

Well almost right. The intake manifolds for the '61 to 'early '68 were kinda "dished" down into the valley between the cylinder heads to provide hood clearance for the carbs starting in 1961. The 1960 thru 1962 lincoln's had 2 barrel carbs and the '62's featured a water heated choke. Starting in 1963 they used a 4 barrel carb and it was off set to the rear so as to maintain clearance. The ports were changed a bit but the later 4 barrel manifold could be swapped out on the '61 and 62. I did this swap using a new '63 manifold and new '64 carburetor on my '61. I used the '64 carb because it went back to the old heat tube style choke that was used on the earlier 430's.

1962 was my favorite year for this body style. The trunk lid on the 1963 was raised a bit for additional trunk space, but the 1962 model was more sleek looking. I also liked the curved side windows of the 1961-63 models better than the 1964-67s.

At one time, we owned five 1962 Lincolns (Two convertibles and three hard tops). We also owned a 1964 sedan and convertible, a 1965 sedan, and a 1967 convertible, plus several parts cars.

A Webshots photo album of our 1962 Lincoln Convertible sedan can be viewed at:

http://community.webshots.com/album/579480920AtNfMG