for sale 1979 Lincoln Town Car Williamsburg Edition *SOLD*

[Matt Harwood]

 

*SOLD* 54,622 original miles. Loaded with every option except moonroof. Everything works: ice cold A/C (with new compressor), windows, locks, seats, antenna, headlights, even the clock and CB radio! Handsome color combination (Williamsburg Editions were the only ones that got the two-tone paint) with beautiful burgundy leather interior. Light comfort marks on the driver's seat, other seats almost completely untouched. No cracked plastic or vinyl on doors or dash. Fully finished trunk with original spare and jack. 400 cubic inch V8 was the only choice, but it's reasonably smooth and torquey and runs great. Quick starts, smooth idle, very quiet with no smoke. A little grimy underneath but exactly zero rust--this car is so clean, I believe it's still running its original exhaust system. Brakes recently serviced, suspension quiet and unbelievably smooth, newer whitewall radials with simple hubcaps. A great choice for HPOF judging or just cruising because there's just nothing else like a '70s American luxury car. We had guys fighting over the last one we had, and this one is probably nicer. Likely the most sheetmetal you can buy for only $15,900. Egad, this is a BIG car!

 

   

 

   

 

   

 

   

 

 

Edited July 30, 2018 by Matt Harwood
SOLD (for real this time) (see edit history)

[Matt Harwood]

Video here (I don't know why it isn't linking properly): https://youtu.be/utE2m0Bh6vc

 

 

 

 

Edited June 27, 2018 by Matt Harwood (see edit history)

[trimacar]

Well, as Uncle Tom Mc.  would say, "will get down the pike like a vaselined arrow, and with no more effort than skipping off a cliff" and the AC is "cold enough to blue the lips of an Eskimo blubber collector parked inside a blast furnace."

 

I normally lose interest in cars after about 1973, but that big beast has a panache all it's own.....I like it!  Cheaper than a Camry and three times the metal!

[Ben Bruce aka First Born]

I always liked that series styling.  Had to have one. So I did in about '97.  Good car. Rode good. Handled good. Nothing I could complain about.  The next car I had, a '77  Cadillac was SO much better. 

 

  Good luck with the sale. 

 

  Ben

[Matt Harwood]

Thanks for the kind words guys. I still find it hard to wrap my head around the size of this thing (and this is coming from a guy who drives a '41 Buick limousine every day). But I have to admit that when it's gliding along, there's just no other feeling like it. It feels like there's a foot of foam insulation between you and the road and it's still the quietest car I've ever driven, new or old. Not fast, not agile, but if you aim it at the horizon and set the cruise control at 75 MPH, it really is first-class travel.

[Daves1940Buick56S]

Gorrr-jusss!!!

[danleblanc]

Wow.  Wow.  Wow.

 

If I had a buyer lined up for my 70 deVille convertible, you'd be my next phone call.  Unfortunately, by the time I list it, sell it, and get paid, this car will be LOOOOONG gone.

[danleblanc]

That doesn't surprise me.  That was a lot of car for the money.

[Matt Harwood]

Still available. Big talker who wasted a ton of my time telling me what a big player he was has disappeared when it came time to send the money. So this awesome Town Car is still available. Ready to enjoy, no issues. All I ask is that you can afford it before you start trying to buy it.

Thanks!

[danleblanc]

Matt, if I had a $ for each time I've looked at this car here and on your website, I'd have a tank of gas.  Just listed my 70 deVille convertible and hoping it sells so I can talk to you about this car.  I'm positively swooning over it.

[Matt Harwood]

I'm so sorry, Dan, but I just took a deposit on it 10 minutes ago. I'll let you know if it falls through, but this one doesn't seem like a BS talker. 

I'm also certain I'll have another one sometime. They seem to come out of the woodwork when you have one.

[Dynaflash8]

Congratulations on the sale Matt................that helps keep that beautiful 41 Buick rolling on down the road.

[Steve-V]

Nice Job Matt, Awesome Car!

[John_S_in_Penna]

On 7/30/2018 at 11:58 AM, danleblanc said:

... Just listed my 70 deVille convertible and hoping it sells so I can talk to you about this car.  I'm positively swooning over it.

 

Dan, I don't see the "Williamsburg" paint schemes very often,

but they are out there.  However, if you want a 1977-79 Lincoln

sedan or Town Car, you should be aware that they are among

the most common 1970's cars available.   You have your choice

of colors and can surely find one you like.  Low-mileage examples

are readily found.

 

Since Lincoln was the last of the car makes to scale down their

big 1970's cars, many, many Lincolns were saved as the "last of

the luxury cars."  They are like 1976 Cadillac Eldorado convertibles

in that respect.

 

Hope you find one you like.  Be patient and you'll get one!

[Matt Harwood]

46 minutes ago, John_S_in_Penna said:

 

Dan, I don't see the "Williamsburg" paint schemes very often,

but they are out there.  However, if you want a 1977-79 Lincoln

sedan or Town Car, you should be aware that they are among

the most common 1970's cars available.   You have your choice

of colors and can surely find one you like.  Low-mileage examples

are readily found.

 

Since Lincoln was the last of the car makes to scale down their

big 1970's cars, many, many Lincolns were saved as the "last of

the luxury cars."  They are like 1976 Cadillac Eldorado convertibles

in that respect.

 

Hope you find one you like.  Be patient and you'll get one!

 

Yes, they're pretty readily available, although condition is all over the map even on the low-mileage cars. Maintenance has been indifferent on them simply because they're durable and don't get driven much. A majority have broken stuff, most commonly the A/C, which we've fixed on every single 1970s Lincoln we've ever had. In fact, almost every car with A/C comes into our shop with it inop--people don't seem to care if the car they OWN has broken A/C, but the car they are BUYING had better have it working! Dr. Francini has gotten very good at fixing A/C units and converting them to R134a. A bigger problem with most '70s cars are the colors--browns, greens, off-white, light blue, rusty reds. Ugh. Finding gray or black or dark blue cars is a real challenge and those are the ones with value. I was offered a low-mileage '78 Town Car with a 460 and about 32,000 original miles, but it's cream with a brown interior. Probably available for less than $10,000. I passed--very hard to sell at any price.

[Restorer32]

"Comfort marks" ?  Gotta love it!

[John_S_in_Penna]

Matt, thanks for the insights on color popularity.

I agree that I wouldn't want a cream-colored big sedan

with a brown interior.  Some of the other "undesirable"

colors you mention, though, I might accept.  To me,

gray is the most boring color possible, because so many

of today's cars are in some shade of gray.  For most later

collectible cars I wouldn't want black either--another color

seen all the time on modern cars--but those Town Cars

and Town Coupes look beautifully long and formal in black.

To each his own, I suppose.

 

Lincoln offered at least 20 different paint colors,

and with matching or contrasting vinyl roofs, the

possibilities are vast.

Edited August 2, 2018 by John_S_in_Penna (see edit history)

[danleblanc]

My current project car is actually a 77 Continental in Town Car trim finished in black diamond fire. And yes, I would like to have more than one. 

 

This is the car being sold to make room for something else. I'm finding out the hard way that I'm a closed car person. 

 

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.com%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F132724058559

[John_S_in_Penna]

9 hours ago, Matt Harwood said:

A bigger problem with most '70s cars are the colors--browns, greens, off-white, light blue, rusty reds. Ugh. Finding gray or black or dark blue cars is a real challenge and those are the ones with value... 

 

In 1977, a friend of my parents bought a new 1977 Lincoln

Town Car.  He had first wanted a black one, but the dealer

talked him out of it, saying that it would be difficult to sell

as a used car:  Only a funeral home would want it.

He bought a dark maroon Town Car instead.

 

In 1973, one of our club members bought a 1973 Pontiac

Grand Ville convertible.  He got a black one with a red interior.

It was the only black car the dealership had sold for several years.

 

Black paint was definitely not in style then! 

[danleblanc]

I wouldn't hesitate to take a brown with tan guts or vice versa if it was an exceptional example, even though I'm more drawn to the dark blue, black diamond fire, maroon, black, and two tone grey cars.  Those were the colours of the era - a time when harvest gold, almond, and green appliances reigned supreme.

[John_S_in_Penna]

I think this green Town Coupe looks great, and

the green plush interior looks so inviting!  These pictures

I copied from some for-sale ad several years ago:

 

 

[danleblanc]

Now that, to me, is stunning. 

[Matt Harwood]

I obviously like green cars myself and in my personal collection green cars are very welcome. 

 

Professionally? Green cars are completely sales-proof. I don't know why, but nobody will touch green cars. Almost every green car I've ever had, regardless of quality or desirability, has been a challenge to sell. 

 

I even had trouble selling this gorgeous '41 Buick Limited because the interior had green in it (in fact a member of this very message board wanted the car quite badly but just couldn't get past the green interior trim). 

 

 

 

Here are a few others that I specifically recall being tough to sell, and many of these I've had multiples to sell--everything other than the green car sells first. I think many or even most of them are quite attractive, but most don't like the green. I had that '64 Impala for two and a half years, the '35 Ford for almost three years, the green '53 Chevy for almost FIVE. Even the Packard 120, on which I think green is very appropriate, took nearly a year to sell. That green '41 Buick Super convertible that I loved so much, I ended up buying that for myself to keep until finally, after two years, someone made me an offer in the range of realistic. I regret selling it now but only one other guy in the world wanted it (it's on its way to Norway) and was willing to pay.

While "price was too high" is a convenient excuse, it's only valid when the car is green. Two otherwise identical cars priced alike, one green and one black, the black car will sell very quickly and the green car will take far longer and will ultimately require a discount. I don't know why, I think they're all attractive, but most guys don't want to own a green car for some reason. I don't get it and I don't have an explanation, but it's 100% true. I struggled to sell every one of these cars and often turned one or two similar cars in other colors in the time it took to sell the green one.

 

[Pluto]

With most of those cars, the color wasn't right for the car.

 

The '53 Chevy; the color was OK, but it was just another Chevy convertible.

The Triumph was the expected dark green color, but it was just another British car.

Chargers aren't supposed to be green, although a kid in my town had a green Hemi Charger, so what do I know.

Pea green on that truck is a poor choice, should be blue/white, red/white or black.

The open Ford should be grey, black, or ideally, Tucson Tan.

Who ever heard of a green Mercedes.

Wrong shade of mustard green on the Olds, looks pukey.

Lime metallic on a Jag? Seriously?
Right colors on the Cad, but it just doesn't pop. Maybe reverse the colors.

The '64 Chevy should be white and a 409.

A GREEN Cobra, really?

I don't mind the green over tan Vette, but I'm a slender market.

The purist in me demands a blue Packard.

The Duster; well I guess there's a butt for every seat. Not mine though. 

 

In sum, green can work well, but only on a very few cars.

 

 

[John_S_in_Penna]

I agree that many of Matt's former green cars don't

look their best in the shades chosen--especially the Jaguar.

 

However, here's a 1979 Buick Electra I bought BECAUSE

of its green color.  This color was offered only one year,

and the light yellow-green roof compliments the paint.

The pinstripe is a pale yellow shade, tying the colors together.

If you park this car in the middle of a green lawn, you

could almost lose sight of it!

 

To each his own, as they say.

 

 

Edited August 4, 2018 by John_S_in_Penna (see edit history)

[Matt Harwood]

Please don't get me wrong--I think your Electra is a great-looking car. My '29 Cadillac is green and as I said, I bought that green '41 Super convertible because I thought it was gorgeous. I'm just saying I can't sell them for reasons I don't really understand. No matter how good the car, green is a deal depressant. If you're buying a green car, just be aware that you'll have a tough time selling it and you probably won't get your number when a buyer shows up. That's all I'm saying.

[STEVE POLLARD]

Interesting topic regarding green color autos / trucks. I purchased my 1969 Impala off of ebay 14 years ago. The auction ran twice for the duration and it did not sell. I ended up contacting the seller after the auction completed , made an offer and was accepted... ended up with an original Impala with 4900 miles. Same deal with my 1969 C-20 pick up truck, it was listed on Hemming web site for a long time, called up, made an offer and was accepted. 

Something about those light color greens that I just really like... 

 

 

[John_S_in_Penna]

8 hours ago, Matt Harwood said:

 ...I'm just saying I can't sell them for reasons I don't really understand. No matter how good the car, green is a deal depressant. ...

 

I don't see your forthright comments on green as

insulting, at all.  They're interesting and probably helpful

to all of us with green cars.

 

I have perhaps one insight as to why green doesn't sell well:

At the current time, it's off the beaten path.  I have that green 1979 Buick,

and another car in coral color, and another in wisteria (light purple).

They make good conversation pieces at car shows, especially with the

general public accustomed to limited color choices.  However,

one green car is probably enough;  one coral car is enough.

 

Bright or unusual colors make good accents--such as when your

wife is decorating the living room, she may use neutral colors overall

but scatter some colorful accents about.  However, you wouldn't want

your whole environment screaming in a bright green, or purple, or pink.

Similarly, in a collection of some size, a few unusual colors give some interest,

but I wouldn't want a whole garage filled with pink or purple or green cars.

It would be too overwhelming.  

Edited August 4, 2018 by John_S_in_Penna (see edit history)

[Matt Harwood]

On 8/3/2018 at 7:54 AM, danleblanc said:

I wouldn't hesitate to take a brown with tan guts or vice versa if it was an exceptional example, even though I'm more drawn to the dark blue, black diamond fire, maroon, black, and two tone grey cars.  Those were the colours of the era - a time when harvest gold, almond, and green appliances reigned supreme.

 

This showed up in my driveway 10 minutes ago. Can be had for $5000, maybe less. 1977 Town Car, 460 V8, 5 nice alloy wheels, 62,000 miles, known history. Obviously needs some TLC such as headlights, maybe A/C, some light bulbs are out, one of the power windows doesn't work, one repaint in decent shape although it was quite dirty, top is nice, chrome decent survivor grade. I didn't see any fatal rust and the engine bay and interior are nice. Tires still have plenty of life left in them, appears to have a new battery and service items under the hood (the old fellow who owns it is a retired mechanic). Driver's carpet is a little chewed under the floor mat where the heel pad gave up. I turned it away but I remembered that you guys expressed interest in cars with period colors and interiors. Seems to run and drive well; the guy came from about 30 miles away in it without issue. 

 

It's not for me, but maybe you guys looking for one of these could make it work. At $5000 I think you have another $3-4000 to work with before you're even close to being upside-down. I don't think it needs anywhere near that much  work.

 

I'm not selling this car for anyone, I'm not vouching for it, I'm not warrantying it, and I'm not giving anyone a refund if it turns out to be a turd, just passing it on since there was some interest. It's probably not a bad car, but the color and the list of needs, plus the expected market price, puts it out of contention for my business. For a hobbyist who doesn't mind a little sweat equity, it could be a win.

 

You now know all I know about it. Send me a PM if you want the owner's name and phone number--there's nothing in it for me, but if it goes to a good home, that's enough.

 

   

 

   

[danleblanc]

I can see the potential in this one.  Understood why you passed on it as it doesn't fit the business model for the class of car you offer.  A good detailing would go a long way on this car.  It's a buy it, enjoy it for the rest of the summer, spiffy it up over the winter, and reveal her makeover in the spring kind of car.