1961 Continental Owner Review: What’s it like to own a 60 yr old car? Should you BUY one?

[@emjayay]

That is NOT a heater vent in the center of the dashboard. It is the air conditioning vent. The heating and AC systems are entirely separate although controlled by one knob. This car is NOT "Deco" (Art Deco) design, which refers to modern design between WWI and WWII only (or of course later design using retro Deco themes). It could properly be called Mid Century Modern, which is very different. It does NOT weigh 6500 pounds (easy to look up in a few seconds) but just over 5000 with air conditioning. The "big" steering wheel was actually small for the time. The 430 will get about 15 mpg on the highway (I got 15.5 driving across the US on 15" radials), not 8 mpg which is about the city gas mileage. The same engine was increased to 468 cubic inches a few years later, and this could be the later engine, not an actually bored out 430. Most of these have wood veneer panels where this one has brushed stainless on the doors and dashboard, but the stainless was an option, usually if not always with a perforated flat vinyl head liner with stainless bows (a very sporty look for a luxury car then) rather than the traditional stretched fuzzy cloth one. Often but not always the convertibles have stainless, but it was available on sedans.

[@Peter78730]

I owned one and would like to mention a few items. The fold-down vent in the dash center is not heat, it's air conditioning . The heat came in across the floor. The windshield wipers on my Lincoln and my parents' 1966 were powered by hydraulics off the power steering pump. The rear package shelf was stainless steel covered in leather. Neither mine or my parents' Lincoln ever got more than 10mpg! Presently I own a 2020 Hyundai Sonata. My fourth. Four cylinder, which would run circles around those Lincolns. And gets phenomenal gas mileage (close to 40mpg on then highway) They rode like stagecoaches. This was the days before radial tires, so you could expect about 15,000 miles on a set of tires.........at the most. But in my eye, the 1961 was the most beautiful car ever produced. I believe Ford called it the Executive Compact.

[@emjayay]

They do NOT ride "like stagecoaches". They ride like you would expect a 5000 pound car with a 123" wheel base and fairly soft (but not as soft as a Cadillac or Buick) springs to ride - very smoothly on the highway. Ford never called them a "compact" anything, although a 1960 (but not a '61) Galaxie is actually an inch longer.

[@richardmorris7063]

The 61 was my favorite too

[@emjayay]

The wheels may be very expensive and unique but are also gross and tacky. Original wheels are 14". In order to put 15" radials on my 1962 (radials ride lower, lower the car, and result in higher rpm) I found early 70's Lincoln wheel covers and removed the black plastic center disks which were just held on with the screwed on gold Continental insignias. They then looked a lot like the originals. I put the tallest narrowest profile 15" white wall tires available in the 90's on it and the speedometer and odometer were exactly correct. Narrow (but not very narrow) whitewalls came out in 1962 and they could have either narrow or wide that year.

[@JackF99]

What a beauty! Thanks to George for having the good taste to resist the restomod route.

[@richardmorris7063]

Every edge trimmed in chrome or stainless.Most beautiful 4dr sedan ever produced.

[@paulpeterson4311]

Those wheels are disgusting. That poor car.

[@zsavage1820]

This guy has class... too bad it's all 3rd.. those wheels make it look like it came from down town Detroit and needs to go back there.. I owned a 65,66,69 and they all looked 100x better than this 61.. and I didn't put getto wheels on mine... all stock

[@glennellis1584]

~ This is the only year the car had a Thunderbird front grille. Many have been converted to 1962 0r 1963 grilles from a front end crash. 1961 Thunderbird style grilles were in short supply.

[@THEDRIVERDOWNLOAD]

Thank you for your that information! Please give the video a LIKE 👍🙏 and SUBSCRIBE to the channel 😀🙏

[@sooverit5529]

He says it's got a heater vent that pulls down out of the dash... wrong! That's actually the air conditioning vent. The heaters - these cars have two - have vents in the kick panels and also through the front door panels venting to the rear seats.

[@THEDRIVERDOWNLOAD]

Thank you for the clarification! Please give the video a LIKE and SUBSCRIBE to the channel! 👍🙏😀

[@doug9066]

This is a beautiful Lincoln Continental especially black on black, I love my 2017 Lincoln Continental Reserve but this one is a true American Beauty!

[@sprague49]

I've loved these since I was a kid and actually owned the 1964 version with the straight, not curved side windows and 15" not 14" wheels. Speaking of which, the original 61-63 Continentals came with 950 x 14 bias ply tires which were the widest on any car in production at the time.

[@stickshiftdriver1832]

The most balsiest beautiful designed car made in 1961

[@THEDRIVERDOWNLOAD]

I agree! Please give the video a LIKE and SUBSCRIBE to the channel 🙏👍😀

[@NoosaHeads]

Totally agree. Wish I could time travel back to 1961 - with a lot of money.

[@ProudQLD]

I like the car because JFK rode in one. Hard to find it in Midnight Blue.

[@man_on_wheelz]

This is my dream classic car, particularly the 4-door convertible, same year. Though I feel like unless I'm rolling in money, I should probably not "meet my hero" in this case. Sounds like I'd be in a world of financial hurt and spend very little time actually driving the thing.

[@THEDRIVERDOWNLOAD]

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[@daboi6714]

It’s my dream classic car. This is the closest to get the same car as jfk’s limousine

[@emjayay]

The famous black JFK parade car went to be stretched as a 1961 and came back with 1962 style updates like the grille/bumper. The Kennedys also had other Lincolns as did Johnson. It had 1956 Lincoln wheel covers because it used 15" wheels instead of the stock 14".

[@JxT1957]

these are my favorite lincolns '61 to '69 with the gangster doors. i owned a '67 gangster door lincoln back in the 70s

[@whoisharo4689]

The wheels... meh

[@kalanikaau1]

absolutely stunning survivor, however the wheels and tires cheapen it 10 fold...

[@basspig]

I had a Lincoln just like this one only the seats were white trim around the edges with black fabric in the centers. I'period I found that it handled very well cornering on back roads especially winding roads and I was driving at pet speeds that I would not drive my modern Ford S UV at on the same roads.

[@emjayay]

The front suspension, like all cars then, does not have as good geometry for handling as a modern car. The rear is of course a solid axle with differential and leaf springs, like a later pickup truck (or any town Car, except they have coils). But the cars are so wide and low they end up handling not badly within their limits, particularly if converted to radial tires.

[@mr.lincoln5154]

Love these Lincolns. 62 is my fav.

[@tinahenderson2595]

Phenomenal❤❤❤

[@THEDRIVERDOWNLOAD]

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[@sooverit5529]

6500 lbs? Nope, these weigh around 5000 lbs. Convertibles weigh around 5300 lbs.

[@dennymayerchak8121]

Lovely classic Continental. Great video!

[@THEDRIVERDOWNLOAD]

Thank you!

[@randybock82]

Perfect

[@asa1973100]

It’s fabulous

[@tomjones5079]

Wow; so many factual errors!

[@canadianthistle3915]

Take it to james

[@dmac5497]

Those wheels 🤮🤮🤮🤮

[@THEDRIVERDOWNLOAD]

I take it you're not a fan! Please give the video a LIKE and SUBSCRIBE to the channel 👍🙏🙏😀

[@dmac5497]

@@THEDRIVERDOWNLOAD Love the early to mid sixtys Continentals, but those wheels... they draw the eye completely away from the beautiful lines and styling straight to those oversized pep boys gangbanger specials.

[@THEDRIVERDOWNLOAD]

👍

[@mrpicky1868]

how do you poor 100k into old lincoln lol?

[@Peter78730]

"pour"

[@emjayay]

Yes, that's a bit ridiculous unless there was a whole lot of updating like disc brakes and maybe a modern engine and transmission (which would be great). A lot of labor could go into the heater/AC system but most won't touch it because they don't understand it and its miles of vacuum lines. But the guy was wrong about everything else also.