Now It Is TTAC's Turn To Recommend An Auction…
It’s the height of hypocrisy: calling Autoblog out for a questionable piece of auction-related salesmanship and then recommending, no, BEGGING that you check out an auction in this article. Don’t worry: like all hypocrites, we have our excuses lined up…
Excuse the auction has already ended. We can’t claim to have no interest in this auction: we had plenty of interest. But we don’t know the seller and, regrettably, don’t know the buyer. So that’s covered.
Excuse as Lincoln prepares to reinvent itself on smooth-rumped Fusion variants and a laser-like focus on a limited number of customers, we think it’s time for everyone to remember what a Lincoln used to be: a big-ass, bad-assed sedan which announced its presence on the street a mile away and couldn’t be mistaken for anything else on the road. (Except, just maybe, a Grand Marquis. Or a New Yorker. Or an Imperial. But you get the idea.)
Perhaps you aren’t convinced by this butter-smooth big coupe. Perhaps you need to twist that cool knob up a bit. Well, here you go:
This auction is still going. But consider this: Why would rappers worry for a single moment about Maybach’s demise when they can roll in this kind of steel? No tarted-up Benz taxi has ever had this kind of presence. Hell, a Phantom barely has it covered, and the Continental has genuine menace the Phantom will never possess. Forty years ago, these cars were driven by men who would slit a competitor’s throat without blinking… and we aren’t talking about some pansy-assed business metaphor.
Don’t get me wrong. I personally like the Lincoln MKS, and I’m a happy owner of a 2009 Town Car… but it doesn’t take more than a few glances at that ’72 to see that the menace, the stance, the magic has been lost. Bring it back, fellows. We shouldn’t need eBay to tell us “what a luxury car should be.”
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For any of the '70s tuna boats, you have to figure into the total price replacing the brakes with discs all around. As has been pointed out, these cars were big and heavy, and the typical 15"/16" wheels didn't allow for very big drums. The wallow everyone remembers from the back seat could be tightened considerably by a suspension shop that knows what it's doing, too. I'd recommend both for any '70s Lincoln. That doesn't obviate Jack's recommended driving style. Remember, these are stately beasts meant to be observed with awe by passersby, in a slow motion processional. You should drive one like you're in no hurry, above all common concerns, and leave the double-time marches to the rat race afflicted.
Jack, I stand in awe of your layered writing; it took me hours to realize you had included carefully concealed criticism of George Lucas in this article, and shortly before the release of his latest motion picture. After all, it is true very few take the Phantom Menace seriously.