Keith L.

Phil, sorry you were outbid on the heater couplings. I was watching and root'in for you. Also, to Rolf: I use to shop at your store in Burbank, corner of California St? Bought some "T" stuff from you. Years later, My Art Studio was right up the street at 2722 Burbank. Have a great weekend. Keith

Rolf, The standard 15" tire for the '42 LZ was 700-15 which Firestone sells has a diameter of 29.30. I put Coker classics on which are cheaper, have a wider footprint and are 29.29 in Diameter. Other than wider, I thought they matched up pretty well. Being wider, the spair now does not fit in the wheel well in the trunk AND I can't put balance weights on the inside because the tie rod to spindle knock them off. As you know,the original 16" rim for the 41 took a 700-16 tire. New Firestones for that size measure 30.39 in diameter. Different '42 spindles might make a little difference. Your thoughts. P.S. Did you ever live in Burbank, CA? I was born in Glendale and lived in Burbank for 47 years.

Rolf, What type of shop rebuilds springs and what do they do when they "rebuild"? I need to drop the car about 1 1/2 inches. Do I just take the whole spring to them, without "unloading it"("dangerous")? Thanks for your help.

Saw your picture of your "41 club Coupe. I too have a '41. The engine in mine was switch years ago to a Cad engine. (I've asked several questions to you before about the conversion) Since the Cad engine is lighter than the original, the body sits a little higher. It also has 15" wheels with wide whites. I would like to lower it to it's orginal height. Did you encounter this with your "41. Should I get longer shackles? Remove a leaf? Tourch the spring? Also, my car does not have wraped springs (wraped in tin for dust. etc.) as my '41 Ford did. Should they be. Thanks for any help.

Question: Are the shock absorbers for '41 Zephyr the same as Ford, esp. the '39 or 40 Ford or are the shocks bigger for the Lincolns. Need to know before I buy Ford shocks. And why are they so expensive to rebuild, and is there any test to see how bad they are? How does one know? Any knowledge on shocks would be helpfull, Thanks.

What'd' I say, David. But I disagree with you. They didn't "almost" get it right. This car doesn't belong in a garage, It belongs in a vomitorium. Check out the bad, really bad headliner sewing. Phil, how do you feel about the guy,I think down in Forida who's cutting up a beautiful '38 or '39 Zephyr convertible for a Retro Rad Rod? What's next? How about Edsel's personal '39 Continental "Rad" rod monster truck! Yeah, that's it.

I suppose the problem I have with resto rods is very seldom are they done nicely, The new electric buttons , air condition units, bucket seats etc. never seen quite belong with the style of the time the car was made. Its just to easy to use the big black plastic air vents that come with the air conditioning unit than to fabricate nice art deco vents for the dash. Plus now the restro rod is stuck in a "time warp" of 2004, kinda like the resto rods of a few years back with quad headlights, only now we have 17' rims. Yikes! I think the ratio to rods vs. original is about 99% to 1%. Maybe even less. That $400,000 carrot is just too tempting. It's gonna take a good cheap donor Zephyr sedan, plus lots of moola to bring this baby back to life.

Phil, I agree with you about E. T. Gregorie. Under the guidence of Edsel the designs of the late 30's were the pettiest of the mass produced cars,esp. the convertibles. Also the entire design team get kudos for their beautiful design of the lesser known parts on the cars, the dash, knobs, taillights etc. I have gone to many car shows and concours. As a small test I've asked many early Ford owners who designed their cars. I am amazed at how many do not know, yet they own that particular car because of its looks. I hate to say this but...most of these people are owners with retro engines under the hood. Also I have yet to ask a Zephyr or Lincoln Continental owner who didn't answer with Bob Gregoie. If I own a piece of art I want to know the artist who created it. Is an automobile any less than a piece of rolling art. By the way, Bill Mitchell designed the Series 60 Special.

More thoughts. Ettore Bugatti for his type 51, 57. Battist Pininfarino for his beautiful Ferraris. Dutch Darrin for his Parkard. Also, how about C. G. Roebling. for perhaps the most sought after classic, the Mercer Raceabout.

Well, I would definitely put Gordon Buehrig on the short list. The 810 alone should place him there. In his later years he went to work for Ford helping design the '51 Vicky and the Continental.

At the risk of being yelled at here's my two cents. The automoble industry has changed, it's international now, not just dominated by Detroit. They put out units, GREAT units, safer, better ride etc. But individual. no. Does this new Zephyr lead the pack in anything? Style? Grace? In the middle of Zephyrdom in 1938-39, a person could spot a Lincoln by its art deco style from across a parking lot. And most upper priced cars durring that time had destictive styling. During the 50's was the highth of styling. One could really see a difference in design with all the car companies, not just the big three Then came the 70's when nobody wanted to take a chance and end up with a looser. Almost every unit looked like a Mercedes-Benz.(ei. the Ford Granada). Today, most cars just fill a price need with pretty much bland styling. However there is a trend toward large, intimidating cars, the Hummer, Big SUVs. "Don't get in my way, 'cause I'm important" cars. Back to the new Zephyr now that my third cup of coffee has worn off. Why does the public need a new Zephyr. Why not cash in on another name, with another also-ran. You already blew that name in the 80s. End. Your turn.

Attached is a scanned lube chart from my '41 Zephyr handbook. It's blown up and only shows the front and center section of the chassis. I scanned it for my mechanic so he could get all the points around the trans. when my car was up in the air. I don't know about Jensen-Zephyr but perhaps this will work.

Phil, I was going to ask how you bolted up a 57 lincoln rearend to the original trans, but your photo essay answered that question. 368 cu inch Lincoln. So, here's another. What did you do about the rear spring? transverse original? Coil or longitudial (sp)? Also, nice photo montage. Thanks for sharing.

Re. the 16 to 15" wheels. I have a '41 Zephyr coupe with '42-48 rims. Actually don't know if their '48. I think '42. They have Clips (riveted} and take the original hubcaps. It's true you need a spacer for the drums AND on the passengers side rim you can't put the balance weights on the inside of the rim because the spindle arm is now so close to the rim it will knock them off. So any lead weights must be glued to the back or placed on the front. Also because the new 15" tires are generally fatter (better ride) the spare tire now will not fit into the wheel well in the trunk, plus the wooden lid won't lie down flat anymore.

Wow. deja vue all over again. Only on mine, the butcher cut the inside passenger fender to accomodate the 12 v battery. Fairly rare car. Short production year 'cause of the war ( the one in all the papers) How many 3 window coupes did they make that year? Do you have the opional jump seats, or the large packing shelf.? Would like to see other photos if possible.

Rolf, thanks for the tip. Just in time, I was going to buy some at the large vintage Ford site when I read your post. Went to a vintage VW site got a brand name then to J.C. Whitney. Don't know the size they sell but it looks pretty good. Four colors. Empi Fender Beading, 25 ft. for $6.95. I know its not for the purist, but hey, my car will never be in the winners circle, but it will look good from 10 feet away. Make that 25.

Ricko, Cad engine huh? I too have a Cad engine in my '41. A year ago I put the questiion about so many conversions to Cad engines to this forum and Rolf gave me some interesting history. Someday I too hope to convert back, but for now the wallets a little thin. Looking forward to your posts.

Bill, Thanks. Found them though Google. Looks like they have everything I need.

Does anyone have a source for the soft rubber wire connectors used in all the wiring. I have found a source for the cloth covered 10-16 guage wiring, but I would like to also replace many of the original connectors. ( ie. the brake light in the trunk lid) I have a '41. I don't need to replace the complete wire looms, just sections. Thanks.

Springer, Took apart my coupe windows to do the same. Here's what your looking at. I found it easier if the window frame comes out first, than the vent window from the frame. Unscrew all the screws holding the frame, unscrew the door lock push-down, take off the vent window crank handle and eschion (spelling?). Two screws hold the window crank handle base to the window crank regulator ( a forked unit). Now the whole frame is loose and should be able to be pulled straight up. Maybe a little wiggeling. The vent window shaft will now be exposed and you should be able to figure it out from here. A screw holds the vent window shaft to its fork, rivets hold of the rubber to the frame. With the frame off you now can take off the two door pull chrome bases. The window regulator is riveted to the frame so you may have to leave them on when you wood grain. A hint: If your window gears in the crank mechanism are chewed up now is the time to change them. About $35.00 each. OR here is what cheap me did. The gears are the same for both sides, of the car and the chewed up threads are most likely at the front of the gear where it got the most wear. If you swap gears with the other door you put the bad threads on the back side of the travel ( vent window all the way open). Now the vent window now will be nice and tight again. Good luck

Thank you Pete and Phil for your links to your photos. As a seldom contributer to this web site, a quiet observer from the sidelines, I just want to say how much your photos and captions are appreciated, especially the before and after shots. I followed all your links, looked at all your photos. I realize the time you have put into documenting your efforts and than finding the time to make them available on the web. They are an inspiration and great resource material for the task that sits in my garage.

I hope I've got the question right. The paw you speak of fits into a unit that keeps the steering wheel from moving left or right, locking the wheels. Sort of a anti thieft device. When you first place the key into the lock the wheel is locked, after you turn the key 180 the steering wheel unlocks, then if you would like to ignite the engine, you can pull out the chrome ignition knob making that posible. As you turn off the engine and rotate the key to take it out, it locks the steering again. Its kinda tricky to fit that paw into the catch on the column. Good luck.

Thanks for getting back to me so soon. Bob Boos is quite elusive for me, not been able to contect in the past, but will keep trying. Will check your nut source. Thanks

Looking for a source for the chrome hex nut on the fender skirts for my '41. Mine are pretty banged up. Thanks........Sure am glad I stayed out of the ebay ruckus. Oh, another thing, Rolf, does your rubber source also sell the pad for a '41 brakelight / lic. plate chrome piece?

Rolf, I see now you are correct reguarding the length of the trunk lids of the two body style. I thought they were different sizes because when I checked the ebay photo with my '41 3 window. I found that the underside skin was different ( Fewer holes and fewer hinge holes) I guess its just how the two are attached to the body that's different. I checked back on the auction and the lid sold for $35. One bidder. Not a bad price if you are in need of the decent lid and can drive to pick it up. What would be the approx.cost to send it from GA to CA? Hummmm?