CHAPTER THREE

 

LINCOLN SURVIVES

    A Chrome Greyhound

        Leads The Way

 

    Edsel Bryant Ford was fifteen years old when he and his friends,

Charles Van Auken, William Theisen, and James Smith began research on

building an aero vehicle.  At a barn near Woodward Avenue in Detroit, they

constructed a single-place high-wing monoplane.  It was powered by, what

else, a twenty-eight horsepower Ford Model T engine.  Their airplane first

flew from what is now the sight of the Dearborn Country Club, and once

again from historic Old Fort Wayne.  It was damaged during a hard landing

on the second flight, and was not rebuilt.  Edsel never actually flew in

it.  As a teenager, Edsel Ford was encouraged by his father to tinker with

mechanical things.  At age sixteen, he built his first hot rod (then called

a "speedster")  from a Model T Ford.  The finished speedster looked a lot

like an early Stutz Bearcat, and was powered by a six-cylinder engine. 

Edsel lost a fingertip to a machine lathe during its construction.  Years

later, E.T. Gregorie designed two custom speedsters for Edsel, one of which

(the Model 40 Speedster) he kept for the rest of his life.

    In 1923, Edsel received a letter which read simply, "I should like a

thousand dollars, and I can only promise you one thing, you'll never see

the money again!"  It was signed William B. Stout, Inventor.  The Fords

received thousands of such requests, and rarely responded.  Edsel did

answer this letter and enclosed two one-thousand dollar checks, one each

from himself and his father.  Thus began Ford's association with W.

Bushnell "Jackknife" Stout and his all-metal airplane company.  Stout was

the grandson of David Bushnell who is credited with having perfected the

modern naval submarine.

    In 1927, three months before Charles A. Lindbergh flew nonstop from New

York to Paris, the first all-metal Ford Tri-Motor was completed.  Pilots

nicknamed it the "Tin Goose" because it boasted an all-metal construction

at a time when most aircraft were constructed of fabrics and woods, and

because of the "Tin Lizzie," a nickname given its distant cousin the Model

T Ford.  The Ford Tri-Motor was one of the most reliable and efficient

transport aircraft ever built.  It saw service throughout the world, and a

few are still flying even today.  The Ford Motor Company purchased the

Stout all-metal airplane company, and later built engines for the

deHaviland aircraft.  Technically, however, Woodward Avenue and Edsel's

monoplane would remain the first Ford aircraft facility.

                             NINETEEN-TWENTYTWO

    On June 10, 1922, the new president of Lincoln Motor Company was

twenty-eight-year-old Edsel Ford.  At twenty-one, he had become a director

and the treasurer of the Ford Motor Company.  After Henry Ford's scrape

with the stockholders in 1919, Edsel was elected to the Ford presidency. 

Henry still owned enough stock to remain firmly in control, and it was well

known that he still ran things.  The original Lincoln Motor Company was a

Delaware corporation.  After Judge Tuttle's ruling, Lincoln was

reincorporated as a Michigan corporation.  The officers of the new Michigan

company from February through June were Henry Leland as president, Wilford

Leland as vice-president and general manager, and Edsel Ford as second

vice-president.  William T. Nash was secretary-treasurer, and B.J. Craig

was the assistant secretary-treasurer.  Both represented the Fords'

interest.  In June, shortly after he became President of Lincoln, Edsel

selected Ernest C. Kanzler as his vice-president and general manager.  The

Lincoln Motor Company was discontinued as an operating corporation, and the

Ford management people moved in to handle all matters from purchasing of

parts to marketing and distribution.

    Production was at an all-time high.  Ford sent quality control

inspectors to work with Brunn Body Company in Buffalo, New York.  Brunn had

been commissioned earlier by Leland to improve the Lincoln's esthetic

appeal.  Edsel was very much interested in continuing along these lines. 

Model L Lincolns were shipped in enclosed railroad cars and wrapped in

protective paper.  Dealers were instructed to have at least seven men ready

to carefully unload and unpack each new automobile.  One hundred and fifty

Ford dealers were given immediate appointment as Lincoln dealers.  The Ford

Company subsequently restructured their dealership plan in the metropolitan

areas to create Lincoln only dealers.  This concept of organization remains

largely intact to this day, and in small towns Ford-Mercury-Lincoln

dealerships are still overseen by the regional Ford district office.

    The following story was related in Floyd Clymer's Motor Scrapbook. 

Seems an individual had purchased an early Leland Lincoln from a dealer in

Colorado.  The distributor in Denver become a Peerless dealer after the

Ford takeover of Lincoln.  In the meantime, this particular Model L

seven-passenger Touring developed problems with rear springs, and the

engine continually overheated.  Contacting the district manager of the

local Ford facility, the owner found them very willing to make good on any

defects in the car.  The manager suggested he bring the car into the nearby

Ford assembly plant as they would need to keep the car for several days to

make the necessary repairs.  After about three days, the owner decided to

see how the work was progressing.  When he looked in, there was his

Lincoln, jacked-up, with its engine out, and surrounded by about thirty

Model T Ford mechanics from various Colorado Ford agencies.  They were

being trained on the borrowed Model L.

    As mentioned before, the Ford Motor Company quickly dropped the price

of new Model L Lincolns.  The cylinder heads were redesigned for better

cooling, and cast-iron pistons replaced the aluminum ones.  By the end of

1922, the 136 inch wheelbase chassis became standard, as did Handaille

hydraulic double-action shock absorbers.  These shocks were commonly

referred to as "Ho-Dye."  An optional 4.90 to 1 rear axle ratio was

available, and was termed the "mountain rearend."  The engine was

officially rated as ninety horsepower at 2800 RPM.  The new radiator badge

reading FORD above the LINCOLN name and DETROIT below replaced the

LELAND-BUILT shield and cluster.  An optional Moto-Meter radiator cap,

which had also displayed the Leland logo on earlier models, was

discontinued.

    Most 1922 models were carry-overs from the 1921 models, and many were

assembled from parts already manufactured.  Twenty-five different body

styles were produced, but only about a dozen were built in any volume.  The

American Body Tourings and Phaetons were the most popular body styles, with

the Murray and Lang Sedans close behind.  Probably the two most

photographed Lincolns of this era were the 130 inch wheelbase five-window

coupe, with its large rear-seat passenger window, and the rather standard

Touring model.  The Phaeton is, for the most part, a deluxe version of the

Touring.  The original Lincoln sedans were about as close to a shoe box as

can be built, and still have an engine hood and wheels.  This style had

been the industry standard for some years, but newly designed less "boxy"

styles were beginning to appear on the market.

    The tire rims on the Model L unbolted at the outside edge of the

spokes, so the traditional rear mounted spares were hollow rims without

wheels.  The rear of the top on the open Touring sloped up and rearward,

giving the appearance of being nearly ready to collapse backwards at any

moment.  A large sideways V cutout in the top was beside the rear-seat

passengers, who rode uncomfortably above the rear axle.  The top required a

supporting post, an unattractive feature common to many period designs.

    The Brunn Cabriolet Town Car with an open chauffeur's compartment was

traditionally styled, but a nevertheless impressive automobile.  These body

styles were referred to by other designers as "Sedanca DeVille" which

translates into Sedan of Town.  Lincoln called them Town Cars.  The Sport

Roadster model utilized a sloping windshield and a California style top

with coach bars.  Its trunk was about as long as the hood, and slopes

sharply rearward housing a large rumble seat.  Dual rear-mounted spares

were optional.

    Walter M. Murphy of Pasadena, California, was one of the first

independent coachbuilders to recognize a golden opportunity for styling

improvements on the mechanically excellent Model L.  He advertised and

displayed a four-passenger Coupe with carriage roof, and a long-bodied

custom Sedan with dual side-mounted spare tires.  Murphy thought that

whitewall tires greatly improved the looks of the Model L, and he used them

extensively.  In early production when they were available, use of the

longer wheelbase chassis facilitated the rear seat being placed forward of

the rear axle.  This allowed a slightly more comfortable ride, and provided

more space for the traditional footlocker trunk or dual rear-mounted

spares.  External wind wing-windows began appearing on Tourings and

Roadsters.  The Phaetons had adopted the full body beltline mold which was

used on many popular models in the early 1920s.  It extended the hood mold

line through the cowl and around the body.  Metal disc wheels were another

popular new option.  Late in the model year, the Judkins Coupe was

introduced.

    During the 1922 model year, no major changes in design were made to the

Lincoln which continued to be referred to as the Model L.  The changes that

were made were logistical in nature, mainly directed toward more efficient

production.  The engine blocks, for example, were now cast at the Ford

facility in Rouge.  At serial number 6030, larger brake bands were

installed.  As always, an effort was made to make the new parts

interchangeable with the old ones.  Minor changes in block and cylinder

heads were made at serial number 7820, and a new quieter timing chain was

installed at serial number 8500.  Emphasis was placed on producing the

larger body styles like the seven-passenger Sedans and Limousines.  H.H.

Babcock Company was added to the list of custom coachbuilders.  The most

notable change in Model L marketing strategy was the August announcement of

an even lower price for the seven-passenger Touring.  Other

across-the-model-line price reductions followed.  Between February and

year-end, over five thousand new Model L Lincolns were produced.

    Leland's Lincoln was believed to have failed because of its pre-World

War I Cadillac styling, but the real problem was far more complex.  Sales

manager Getsinger's advice to Henry Leland to engage professional

coachbuilders to improve the styling on the Model L proved sound.  It later

made Lincoln an innovator in the coachbuilt field, and put them on the road

to better styling.  One British automobile journal ran a picture of a

Leland Lincoln Coupe with the caption, "Pleasantly Ugly!"  If the Leland

Lincoln was ugly, but mechanically superior, then for Edsel Ford it was a

marriage made in heaven.  Styling was what he wanted to do most, and he did

it in spades.

    Whether or not Lincoln had become the luxury car of the Ford line

because of the series of events between the two Henrys cannot be

determined.  One thing seems certain, however, had Edsel Ford never gained

control of Lincoln Motor Company, he would have surely started a luxury

motorcar line of his own.  The Lincoln was simply a good buy on a good

design.  Some months after the Ford takeover, Henry Leland was reported to

have asked Ford to allow him to repurchase Lincoln for the bankruptcy sale

price.  Henry Ford was said to have replied, "Not for ten times what I paid

for it!"  The Leland family's side of this story is chronicled in the book

Master of Precision by Mrs. Wilford C. Leland and Minnie Dubbs Millbrook.

                            NINETEEN-TWENTYTHREE

    The early 1923 model Lincolns had painted bell-shaped headlight and

taillight housings.  Earlier models had painted drum-type light

assemblies.  This was further confused by the fact that in April of 1923,

they returned to the chrome-plated drum type light assemblies and chrome

bells became optional.  The windshield frames were redesigned to reduce

vibration.  Because these parts were interchangeable from model year to

model year, they are of very little help in trying to identify a particular

vintage.

    Sixteen different body styles, Types 111 through 133, were now made

available.  These were produced by Lang, American, Judkins, Fleetwood,

Brunn, Anderson, and Towson.  The latter two companies were subsequently

merged into Murray Corporation of America.  Edsel Ford directed LeBaron of

New York to create a series of custom bodies for the Lincoln.  Edsel's

personal one-off turret body Coupe was built this year.  It had a

convertible cloth top with coach bars.  The Coupe's body resembled a

rocking chair, the trunk deck was low and flat.  Accessories included wire

wheels, rear-mounted spare, and whitewall tires.

    For the most part, Edsel had a free hand with styling design at

Lincoln.  Mechanical engineering design was primarily the responsibilities

of Charles Sorensen.  Edsel was, however, directly responsible for bringing

Clarence W. Avery to work for Ford at the Highland Park plant.  Avery had

been Edsel's manual training instructor at Detroit University, and

eventually masterminded many of Ford company's mass production concepts.

    Edsel Ford had a flair for styling and good taste.  Why not?  He was

raised in affluence, and had circulated with the creme de la creme of

society in the U.S. and abroad.  Edsel was to give Lincoln that touch of

class, conceive the original Continental, introduce the Mercury and

generally influence Ford styling for the next three decades.  Whenever

possible, he hung out with the styling design group at Ford. Unlike his

father, he was characterized as easygoing and diplomatic.

    The Lincoln legend would now grow and mature.  When viewing an old

Lincoln sedan, you may have overhead someone who did not even know the

make, refer to it as a "gangster car."  The Lincolns were popular among rum

runners and police squads alike, but Hollywood was largely responsible for

this image.  (Picture, if you will, the speeding black sedan with a guy

leaning out of the window, firing his pistol to the rear.  Close behind, in

hot pursuit, comes the law in an open Touring model with the officer in the

right seat firing away at the escaping sedan with his Thompson submachine

gun.)   This era for the Lincoln was right out of a Damon Runyon short

story.  One can almost imagine the "Three Wise Guys" speeding through the

Jersey countryside in a Model L sedan.  It may have been the gangster Al

Capone of whom it was related that, upon being involved in an accident in

his large sedan, paid the driver of the other vehicle for the damages on

the spot.  Bizarre, indeed, for a man who was a crook to pay an automobile

accident claim, but those were the times.

    According to a famous axiom, "the road to hell is paved with good

intentions," and is a good way of explaining the era into which the Lincoln

automobile was introduced.  From January, 1920 until 1933, when the

Eighteenth Amendment was repealed, the Volstead Act had fostered

Prohibition.  This was the golden age of crime in America.  Illegal booze

became the country's number one industry.  Without modern radio

communications and other law enforcement aids, it was easy for rum runners

to escape capture in high powered automobiles.

    The City of Detroit authorized its Police Patrol Squadron to upgrade

its motorcycles to some type of high performance automobiles so the police

could chase down affluent mobsters driving Packards and Lincolns.  The

police department staged a competition for prospective patrol cars.  There

were ten automobiles entered in the trial.  On the half-mile and two-mile

runs, the Lincoln bested all entries with an average top speed of eighty

miles per hour.  From a running quarter mile, the Lincoln finished second. 

Without exception, police test drivers selected the Lincoln for its

superior cornering ability.  The Lincoln became the official car of the

Detroit Police Department's Flying Squadron.  Lincoln engineers fine-tuned

the engine, and installed four-wheel brakes, but otherwise the cars were

stock.  Mostly, the Brunn designed Touring models were used for the Police

Flyers.  Front wheel brakes did not become standard on the Model L until

1927.   Upon delivery, the Police Flyers were equipped with a bulletproof

windshield, special spotlight, and gun rack.  These cars were renowned by

assailants and law officers nationwide.  This kicked off a sales and

marketing campaign by Lincoln based on its new found high-performance

reputation.

    The styling plan for 1923 was centered around dropping the less

attractive models, and developing those which showed promise.  The

seven-passenger, seven-window Sedan with sun visor and crank-out divided

windshield had triangle wing-windows ahead of the front doors.  The door

arrangement was of the unique front-front type.  Fancy double-rail bumpers,

lots of chrome, and a contrasting pinstripe accented this stately Sedan. 

The top on the Touring model was modified to break slightly in the middle,

eliminating the old leaning-back-look.  The support posts on the Phaeton

and some Tourings were moved rearward, forming an inverse V coach bar.

    The Sedans received larger windshields for better visibility, but

retained their crank-out ventilation feature.  A slimmer, more graceful

exterior sun visor was added.  Metal disc wheels were optional.  In

addition to their utility, they looked very good on certain models. 

Judkins had earlier introduced the Model 702 Sport Coupe, which was selling

well, and continued to do so through 1928.  They also introduced a Sedan

Cabriolet with a carriage-style padded roof over the rear compartment.  It

had wires, canvas covered dual sidemounts, and was nicknamed the Opera

Coach.  It was a "pumpkin coach" motorcar worthy of Cinderella.

    Guider-Sweetland custom coachbuilders of Detroit, Michigan, offered a

pillarless four-door Sedan with three rows of seating, much like a modern

Suburban or station wagon.  Omitting the pillar (center roof and door-frame

post) between the rear and front doors reflected this coach shop's work as

ambulance builders.  Many of their models were patterned after the work of

designer Lancia Augusta.

    Inventor Thomas A. Edison purchased a Model L Touring, and fitted it

with a special type of headlight that he felt worked better.  The Highland

Park Police Department had several long wheelbase chassis models built into

paddy wagons  Their front ends' back to the windshield were standard

Lincoln.  These wagons were equipped with dual sidemounts, and used the

traditional oval centered Lincoln front bumper.

                            NINETEEN-TWENTYFOUR

    For 1924, the bell or tea cup-shaped headlamp assembly was dropped in

favor of a nickel-plated drum style.  The radiator shell was raised

slightly, which tended to straighten out the hood and cowl lines.  This

greatly improved the looks of the Model L's front end.  (By comparison, it

is similar to the familiar change which occurred between the 1929 and 1930

Model A Ford's front ends.)  The new radiator shell was nickel-plated.  The

thermostatically controlled radiator shutters (louver veins) were

positioned vertically in the grill.  The new fenders were now full crown

and wider.  The molded border around the fenders was eliminated on all

models except the Judkins Coupe.  The familiar LINCOLN oval emblem replaced

the FORD-LINCOLN-DETROIT radiator badge.  Cowl lights were smaller than

earlier models, and painted.  Disc wheels, rear bumpers, Rudge-Whitworth

wire wheels, side-mounted spare tires, dual rear-mounted spare tires, spare

tire covers, and painted radiator shells were optional.  The wooden

artillery wheels were painted to match the body color with a contrasting

pinstripe.  Wood grain finish was optional.  Drivetrain improvements were

made to the camshaft, clutch, flywheel, and valves.  A timing mark was

added to the engine.

    Prices were slightly increased in July, and ranged from between

fifty-five hundred and eight thousand dollars per automobile.  It is

questionable whether Ford ever made money on the Lincoln.  The actual facts

are denied us because of the company's crude to nonexistent methods of cost

accounting.  On occasion, receipts were literally weighed on a scale to

determine the approximate cost of producing a given model.  Many man-hours

were spent finishing and testing the Lincolns.  Models were more likely to

have been priced rather arbitrarily by the market which Ford wished to

target, than by the actual cost of production.

    In November, the Prince of Wales came as a guest of the Fords to tour

the Highland Park facilities.  The chauffeur-driven Brunn seven-passenger

open Touring was pulled right up on the loading dock.  Ford czar Charles

Sorensen sat in the jump seat with Edsel, Henry and the Prince seated aft. 

It was an opulent day.  The escort caravan included a Fleetwood Town Car

and a Brougham Limousine.  Henry Ford always enjoyed hobnobbing with the

rich and famous.  One testament to this was the "Chuckwagon Cook Truck"

which Henry Ford had built on a 1921 Lincoln chassis.  President Warren G.

Harding, Harvey S. Firestone, Thomas A. Edison, John Burroughs, and Henry

Ford used it on many of their famous camping trips.  It now resides in the

Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan

    An untrue but humorous story about one of these trips is that, while

passing through a small town, Henry's Lincoln started running rough. 

Pulling into a local garage, he asked the mechanic to have a look at the

car.  As Henry Ford and his three famous friends looked on, the mechanic

indicated that it was mechanical trouble.  "I'm Henry Ford, and I build

these cars.  Its not mechanical trouble," explained Mr. Ford.  "Well," said

the mechanic, "I believe then, it must be an electrical problem."  "No,"

said Mr. Edison, "I am Thomas Edison, and it is not electrical in nature." 

The mechanic, a little confused at this point, said, "Let's have a look at

the tires."  "Not that," said Mr. Firestone, "I am Harvey Firestone, and my

company makes those tires."  The mechanic stepped back, removed his hat and

scratched his head.  "What are you waiting for," said Henry Ford, "fix the

car."  "Well," said the mechanic, "I was just waiting for one of you

fellers to tell me that gentleman over there is Santa Claus."  (Mr.

Burroughs, a naturalist, was known for his long white beard.)

    The first presidential Lincoln was also built in 1924.  It was a

LeBaron sedan Touring.  An order was placed with Ralph Roberts of LeBaron

for a design to be approved by Henry Ford.  President Calvin Coolidge, it

was said, was an admirer of Henry Ford.  Actually, the car's specifications

were approved for production by Edsel.  It was pretty much a standard

Lincoln Touring right down to the artillery wheels, but did have whitewall

tires.  The new Lincoln was delivered for service in December of 1923. 

David Lloyd George, then Prime Minister of Britain, was one of the first

dignitaries to ride in this Lincoln with President Coolidge.  Silent Cal

"Keep It Cool" Coolidge seldom allowed his driver to exceed eighteen miles

per hour.  The car remained at the White House when Herbert Hoover took

office, and thereafter became better known.  Lincoln became the Marque

motorcar of American presidents for the next six decades.

    The original California style Sport Roadster was advertised with disc

wheels, dual rear mounts, and a Moto-Meter.  Its low sloping enclosed trunk

in the rear made this Coupe resemble an animal weak in the flanks.  Styling

errors like these are surely what caused Edsel, a decade and a half later,

to insist on a high trunk line for the Continental.  The Judkins California

Coupe had not made this styling error.  It sat very high in the back end

and the top was chopped slightly, giving the whole car a more massive

appearance.  These features, combined with the newly restyled standard

Lincoln hood, made the Judkins two-passenger Convertible one of the early

style leaders.  Also offered was a five-window Coupe that resembled the

Sedan.  Many of the Lincoln body styles had triangle wing-windows, and most

had built-in exterior sun visor.

    Custom coachbuilder Guider-Sweetland produced a Phaeton with a hard

top, curved third window, small coach bars, oval rear window, and rear-seat

windshield.  It sported disc wheels, dual sidemounts, and snap-on canvas

wheel covers.  The Judkins Berline moved the entire rear passenger

compartment forward, leaving more space for an add-on trunk or dual

rearmounts.  It had a front-front door opening arrangement.

                            NINETEEN-TWENTYFIVE

    By 1925, coachbuilders like Brunn and Judkins soon learned that Edsel

Ford was both a generous and demanding client.  Edsel was at least honest

with himself about the fine-performing, quality-built, less-than-beautiful

Model L.  He took positive action early in 1925.  While visiting New York,

Edsel offered to relocate the entire LeBaron carrossiers to Detroit.  The

company did not accept, but their top designer Raymond H. Dietrich did. 

Dietrich referred to himself as an automotive architect.  Ford set Dietrich

up in business, and later gave him a contract to build Lincoln bodies.  In

Dietrich's own words, "It was like receiving a bouquet and the vase to put

them in."  The addition of Dietrich and Holbrook brought to seven the

number of authorized coachbuilders designing bodies for the Model L.  

(Carrossier was the European name used for custom coach body houses, and it

was posh to use this name in referring to early U.S. coachbuilders.)

    Edsel was now firmly in control of the Lincoln Motor Company.  Until

now, the standard Lincoln bodies was being contract-built by Murray,

American, and Babcock.  The Murray Corporation of America would remain as

the prime Lincoln body builder for ten more years until outside

coachbuilding was discontinued completely.  Lincoln opened their own fine

custom coach facility in 1925, but not because Edsel was less than

satisfied with the contract builders. Indeed, the Lincoln chassis had

become the first choice in America for custom fitting.  The old-line custom

houses had lofty standards, and considered artistry their primary

function.  They had not yet grasped Edsel's perceptive view of the coming

importance of styling.  The new popularity of the Lincoln increased demand

for delivery which the coachbuilders were simply not equipped to meet. 

But, the Ford industrial complex was so equipped, very few industries

matched their capability in mass production.  Additionally, Ford management

supported the concept of more in-house control over body manufacturing.

    The first Lincoln factory-built, a Type 152 Sedan, was introduced in

1925.  It was soon followed by the Type 156 Coupe.  The new Lincoln bodies

used only number-one-grade select hardwoods in their framework.  Parts were

cut from a single piece of wood, not steam formed or joined.  Body panels

were hand-hammered aluminum, and bronze or aluminum-cast body fittings were

used.  Die-cast iron or steel fittings were not used due to rusting. 

Interior trim wood was often meticulously inlaid with diamond patterns.  To

keep pace with a growing production schedule, the Lincoln factory and plant

facilities were increased in size, and improvements were made to the

assembly areas.

    This year saw the introduction of the famous Gorham designed chrome

greyhound radiator cap ornament.  Edsel felt that the greyhound represented

speed, grace, beauty, and endurance.  He selected the Gorham Company of

Providence, Rhode Island, to produce the new mascot.  At first, the

greyhound ornament was to have been only an option, but it quickly became

standard on all Lincolns.  It even became common to see replicas of the

Lincoln greyhound on Fords, which people called, "Baby Lincolns."  Auto

accessory suppliers made cheaper versions of the chrome greyhound that

could be bolted onto the hoods of almost every make of automobile built. 

(Hood ornaments today are carry-overs from these old decorative radiator

caps.)

    Mechanical changes implemented in 1925, included a smoother emergency

brake with longer handle, and a 12.6 to 1 steering ratio which replaced the

15 to 1.  Front and rear bumpers became standard, and 7.00x21 balloon tires

were now optional.  Standard wheels were 6.00x21 with an overall dimensions

of 33x5.  The absence of cowl lights helps to distinguish this year's

models.  Padded roofs and coach bars on hard top sedans were carried over

from carriage styles.  There were other options and trends which came in

style for the same reason.  Fold down center door pillars were one such

example.  With door windows rolled down and pillars folded out of sight, a

sedan provided the same open-air feeling of a Phaeton with a hardtop

installed.

    Production included a 150 inch wheelbase chassis, referred to as the

Type 150A.  Nine of these were used in the assembly of burial coaches. 

Type 150B chassis were used for commercial delivery vehicles.  Other models

produced were the Locke Type 151 Roadster with auxiliary seats, the Type

157 Berline Landaulet six-passenger by Willoughby, the Holbrook and LeBaron

Cabriolets, and a gross of factory-built five-passenger Sedans Type 152.  A

dozen different custom coach styles were built by LeBaron, and about the

same number by all other custom builders combined.  American Body Company

produced a little over one hundred Type 123D Tourings, and were the last of

the ABC coaches.  Holbrook introduced a Cabriolet that not only provided

for the usual chauffeur's all-weather top but also had a partially

collapsible rear coach top for the passenger compartment like a Landaulet. 

California independent coachbuilder, Walter Murphy offered the first

can-you-top-this carriage look-alikes.  On this design, the driver's

compartment was an open buggy seat with lantern style coach lamps mounted

on either side.

    LeBaron built a custom body Lincoln this year which was to become one

of the rarest and most distinctive of all the Model L Lincolns.  Its hood

mold line continued unbroken the full length of the car body.  This was a

styling concept used in Europe, but not yet adopted in America.  Piano

hinges were secured to the hood with exposed polished rivets, a method

often used by Rolls-Royce coachbuilders.  The low profile of this LeBaron

was made possible by tunneling the drive shaft through the car, allowing

for a step-down rear seat, a method used later on modern cars.  Only two

were ever built, and they are prized collector cars.  These automobiles are

benchmark examples of this period's fine coach work.

    Ray Dietrich described Edsel Ford as, "A generous and sensitive man

whose grasp of styling and understanding of the creative mind made him a

genius of the automotive art."  Ford designer Walter Teague, came to know

Edsel well and further expanded on this by saying that, "Edsel was a great

soul.  He was wise, generous, strong and simple, a combination of qualities

that mark the greatest of men.  In him an extreme sensitiveness was united

with a unselfconscious modesty that left no need for the kind of

compensations publicity has to offer."  Teague continues, "By choice, Edsel

worked behind the scenes where public eyes could not follow.  Few except

those privileged to work with him knew that among his many superb

qualities, Edsel was also a great designer."  Ralph Roberts of LeBaron

claimed that during work sessions with Edsel, a coach design was sometimes

firmed up in a single afternoon.  With other custom coach clients, this

might take days or weeks of meetings.  Referring to Edsel, Roberts said,

"He never interjected alien preferences of his own, but could put his

finger on key elements of a design, and point out what did not seem to

fit.  The design would improve and grow in these sessions, and at the end

the designer would feel assisted by a master and not criticized."

                             NINETEEN-TWENTYSIX

    The year 1926 would prove to be the best of all production years for

the Model L and Model K Lincolns.  The preceding year had been very good,

and during this year the Lincoln motorcar had come of age.  LeBaron, Locke,

and Willoughby were added to the approved Lincoln custom builders roster. 

Several of these coachbuilders had begun by outfitting custom order Fords

with special interiors.  Except for an occasional one-off and custom built,

these were the last of the coachbuilders to furnish bodies for the Model L.

    Ray Dietrich had left LeBaron, and was now heading Dietrich Custom Body

Company of Detroit.  In the beginning, Dietrich was more of a creative

designer than a coachbuilder for the parent company, Murray Corporation of

America.  Murray, of course, had built Model L bodies from the outset. 

Edsel asked Dietrich to enter a design in the Concours d'Elegance for the

1927 Paris competition.  This Concours traditionally made awards for all

types of creative designs from jewelry to architecture.  Dietrich entered a

Convertible Coupe with dicky, and it was awarded a gold medal for

excellence.  At Milan, in competition with seventy-two other designs, the

Dietrich Lincoln received the top award, "The World's Best Design."  In

Monte Carlo, it took another gold medal, and in Dietrich's words, "A loving

cup big enough to swim in."

    In 1926, exterior changes were nonexistent.  Several interior changes

and engine modifications were made.  The eighteen-inch tilt steering wheel

was replaced with a nineteen-inch diameter wheel which had finger grips,

and no longer tilted.  These changes made the Model L slightly easier to

steer, even when stopped.  The high beam tilt lever was no longer located

just below the horn button, and the steering wheel itself was black walnut.

    The easier steering characteristics and the new practice by Lincoln of

picturing women behind the wheel in their advertisements was a strong

indication of their growing awareness of the influence of the woman buyer

in the automobile marketplace.  After all, these were the Roaring Twenties

and some women were even beginning to smoke in public as well as drive

themselves about.  Heretofore, Lincoln had mostly pushed their

chauffeur-driven Town Cars and Cabriolets indirectly at the female market,

suggesting that a successful man's lady was driven around in luxury.  Now,

not only a few successful women like movie stars were buying and driving

their own automobiles, lots of women were doing so.  The Judkins

two-passenger Coupe was pictured in the Salon Catalogue with disc wheels,

two-tone paint, and a woman in a mans-style tailored suit and hat behind

the wheel.  Advertising in 1926 continued mostly along the society theme,

using pastel watercolor drawings of various body styles in austere prestige

settings.

    A new, more efficient, centrifugal-type air cleaner was installed under

the hood.  For better high-speed performance, a flapper valve was provide

to bypass air to the carburetor.  Modifications to the distributor cam

slightly improved the Lincoln's performance.  The optional wire wheels were

now produced by Buffalo, replacing those made by Rudge-Whitworths.  Balloon

tires and black walnut wheels became standard.  The factory-built coach

bodies quickly gained a reputation as being even sturdier than those of

many coachbuilders.  It became increasingly difficult for the Lincoln

coachworks and all of the coachbuilders together to keep up with the public

demand for these fine motorcars.

    In all, Lincoln Model L coaches were built under fifteen different

names and by a dozen different companies.  The Lincoln Catalogue was a

commercial work of art in itself, and read like a Who's Who of

coachbuilders.  Lincoln coachbuilders as we refer to them here, were those

commissioned by the Lincoln factory to build bodies.  Additionally, there

were other custom coach shops building one-off custom bodies for Lincolns. 

Shops like Walter P. Murphey in California, continued to do beautiful

modification work and to build custom coach bodies for the Lincoln. 

Guider-Sweetland built limousines and ambulances on the Lincoln chassis. 

The early Model L chassis were used to construct tow trucks as well as

being popular chassis for commercial delivery vehicles and ambulances.

    Edsel Ford perfected the "Custom Body Catalogue" concept from which a

prospective Lincoln buyer could select a design.  The Lincoln factory then

subcontracted these bodies to be built in lots of ten or more, thus

creating volume buying power for the custom coach automobile purchaser. 

This practice also had the beneficial effect of preserving many unique body

designs, unlike other manufacturers whose one-of-a-kind designs have been

lost forever.  It often guaranteed that a hundred or more of a given style

would be built.  This was especially true if a particular design happened

to personally appeal to Edsel who would simply place an order for an even

hundred.

    The Ford people were beginning development work on the new Model A

Ford, and were now thinking of phasing out the Model T.  The beautiful,

ageless styling of the Model A can be directly attributed to Edsel Ford and

his coachbuilder associates.  The styling design influence of Raymond

Dietrich is very evident in the classic lines of the Model A Ford.  (In

terms of styling, the Model A body was the Ford Mustang of its time.  It

reflected the downsizing of the classic styling trends of that period.) 

The 1930 Model A Ford Roadster bears a strong resemblance to the Lincoln

Sport Roadster by Locke.

    LeBaron introduced a Dual-Cowl Touring on which the rear cowl closed

over the back doors, placing the windshield tightly in front of the rear

seat passengers.  The term Dual-Cowl is slightly misused here, as this open

sedan was technically a Phaeton with tonneau cowl and rear windshield.  The

LeBaron design was less classic in style than the Dietrich Phaeton

introduced later in the year.  Both, however, were impressive automobiles. 

Prices for the Model L Lincoln began at $4,500 with various custom bodies

ranging upward to double that amount.  Thirty-two different options ranged

in price from $500 for a monogram to a $4,000 on the tonneau cowl and

windshield option.  To put this in prospective, one could purchase a new

Model T Tourer for under five hundred dollars at this time.

                            NINETEEN-TWENTYSEVEN

    In the year 1927, Babe Ruth hit sixty home runs for the Yankees, the

best selling book was The Bridge at San Luis Rey, Al Jolson was starring in

a new talking movie The Jazz Singer, and the automobile was beginning to be

thought of as a dependable means of transportation.  Motor oil was selling

for twenty cents a quart, so Pennzoil sponsored a transcontinental run from

New York to California and back.  The best time to date had been just under

168 hours.  The distance was 6,721 miles, and was accomplished at an

average speed of 40 MPH with no major breakdowns.  Model L Lincolns were

still popularly referred to as "Leland Lincolns."  However, this was the

year that Ford engineers began increasing the number of minor changes.

    Edsel, unlike Henry, was no local country boy.  He had traveled Europe,

and owned cars like Hispano-Suizas, Bugattis, and Rolls-Royces.  He knew

the features he wanted designed into a motorcar.  (Even today in Detroit, a

manufacturer will go out and purchase a competitor's car in order to study

what might give their competition more market appeal.)  Edsel had mastered

the art of recognizing the best qualities of other designs, and was now

attempting to incorporate them into the Lincoln.

    Chief engineer for Lincoln, Thomas J. Little, Jr., was responsible for

much of the forward looking mechanical design work which went into the

Lincoln.  Little had also been at Cadillac with Leland, and had taken over

as Lincoln's chief engineer after Frank Johnson left the first time in

1922.  Little held more than three hundred patents on inventions.  He left

Ford in 1927 to become head of engineering for Marmon.  For the Model L,

the major mechanical news this year was the installation of front wheel

brakes as standard equipment.  The new four-wheel brakes could be

retrofitted onto the earlier models.  This had been the practice on most

Lincoln factory improvements to date.  The implication here was that the

Lincoln was so well designed that it needed only minor updating, and even

then your older model was not obsolete.  Until now, a Lincoln owner could

purchase a factory-exchange engine for $100 plus installation labor.  A

statement by the Lincoln Motor Company claimed, "There are no yearly

models.  The Lincoln has reached a stage of development where changes are

neither necessary or desirable.  Whenever it is possible to achieve an

improvement, it is made interchangeable with the previous design.  This

protects the Lincoln owner against artificial depreciation resulting from

the announcement of new models."

    The installation of front wheel brakes as standard equipment was

promoted by Lincoln as the "Six-Brake-System."  The new large front brake

drums can be seen through the wire wheels in many Lincoln photographs of

this year.  Some coachbuilt bodies listed as 1927 models will still not

have them as chassis were shipped earlier to the coachbuilders.  The six

brake system meant that the internal brakes were now on all four wheels,

plus an extra pair of rear brakes.  The hand brake operated independently

of the foot pedal brakes, controlling external contracting or band-type

brakes.  The hand lever also actuated the rear drum brakes.  The brake

system, however, remained mechanical rather than hydraulic.  Most Model L

Lincoln owners reported very satisfactory braking from the mechanical

system.  The new front wheel brakes had been perfected during their use on

the Police Flyers, and had been a special order option since 1923. 

Hydraulic brakes were sometimes referred to as airplane brakes due to their

early use on aircraft.  (They were also referred to as Lockheeds, probably

for the same reason people use to refer to a refrigerator as the

Frigidaire.)  Hydraulic brakes had been used by car makers like Isotta as

early as 1910, but Henry Ford mistrusted them.  It was not until the late

1930s that Ford products would make the changeover.

    An improvement to the drivetrain was a smaller, lighter-weight,

clutch.  This modification reduced the inertia when the clutch was

disengaged, and resulted in smoother gear meshing.  (The 1928 Cadillac

introduced Synchromesh, which was not adopted by Lincoln until 1931.)  The

Lincoln version of the famous Ford ignition and steering lock was installed

this year.  Called the "Coincidental Lock," it was intended as a theft

deterrent device.  The idea behind steering wheel locks was the known fact

that most ignition and starter systems of this era were very easily wired

around.

    Another change for this year was a new instrument panel, which grouped

gauges and dials into a single oval cluster.  The speedometer and clock

were separated, and the clock was increased in size.

    The appearance and operation of the headlights and taillights were

modified.  The headlight bulbs now had dual filaments for high and low

beam, replacing the mechanical lamp tilt arrangement.  The headlight

control remained on the steering wheel hub.  The taillights had three

lenses and bulbs.  They were red for rear illumination, amber for brake

warning, and clear for backup.  A more conical-shaped lamp housing replaced

the bell-style, and the smaller cowl lamps were shaped to match.  The

linoleum used on the running board was replaced with molded black ribbed

rubber.  The linoleum had always tended to curl after extended exposure to

hot and cold weather.  Fenders were formed with a one-inch deeper crown. 

This change had the effect of making the fenders more solid and less

susceptible to vibration.

    The Electro-Fog generator was discontinued late in the model year.  The

whole car sat a little lower this year due to the changeover to 32x6.75

tires, and a half-inch reduction in the spring camber.  As Lincoln

professed no model-year changes, many of the late 1927 cars incorporated

engine and accessory modifications generally associated with the 1928

models.  Lincoln sales were beginning to lag, and factory production rates

were declining sharply.  Prices were cut several hundred dollars in an

effort to attract marginal buyers.

    By midyear, new emphasis was placed on interior coordination. 

Lincoln's strong affiliation with the custom coachbuilders made this a

logical evolution in styling.  Until now, traditionally closed and formal

body types had been upholstered in neutral colors like gray and taupe.  An

open Roadster or Touring usually got a black or dark brown leather

upholstery.  These new custom interiors were magnificently finished, but

still without regard to the exterior scheme.  The vogue period of

transportation decor had come and gone with the luxury ocean liner and the

railway passenger car, but it was alive and well in the coachbuilt

automobile.  (Infatuation with decor and motifs is so much with us today

that it seems inconceivable it did not always exist.)

                            NINETEEN-TWENTYEIGHT

    In 1928, the first major changes to the Leland V-8 engine

specifications were made.  Whether or not the return of Frank Johnson as

chief engineer from Cadillac had any bearing on this is only speculation. 

(Johnson is not to be confused with Carl Edward Johansson, inventor of the

Jo-Block gauges who came to work at Lincoln after Ford's acquisition of

Johansson's New Jersey company.  Johannson remained on the Ford payroll at

the Rouge plant in Dearborn until his retirement.)  The original Leland

engine was specified as an eight cylinders, 60-degree V-opposition, L-head,

with cast iron block.  It had a 3.375 (3-3/8) inch bore, 5.0 inch stroke,

357.8 cubic inch displacement, and a 4.8 to 1 compression ratio.  It

developed 90 brake horsepower at 2800 RPM, a taxable horsepower of 39.2. 

The engine had three main bearings, mechanical valve lifters, and a

Stromberg 03 updraft carburetor.

    The displacement of the new engine was increased to 384.8 cubic inches

(6.3 liters).  This was accomplished by increasing the bore to 3.5 inches. 

The compression ratio was increased slightly to 4.81 to 1.  Intake valve

diameter was increased from 1.75 inches to 1.875 (1 7/8) inches.  The

combustion dome was reshaped for a more even burn.  Lincoln claimed no

increase in the rated 90 horsepower, but clearly these changes increased

the performance of the engine.  Unofficially, the modified engine produced

about five more horsepower.  A few months after the engine was introduced,

conical valve springs were installed for more uniform tension.  Operators

who were familiar with the old engine, however, complained that the new

engine ran rougher.  Lincoln mechanics felt that greater wear was now

occurring on the crankshaft and other mechanical parts.  Within a few

months, counterweights were added to the crank to dampen the vibration.  An

oil filter became standard equipment.  The Model L had a top speed of 90

miles per hour even though the speedometer only registered up to 80 MPH.

    In April, a new muffler system was introduced.  It was considered so

superior to the old system that component parts were made available for

dealer retrofits, particularly on those cars experiencing exhaust system

problems.  Exhaust pipes had been enameled for some time.  Engine heat on

the front seat occupants had long been a problem, so a new laminated wood

firewall insulator panel was installed.  A new, lighter axle with one less

grease fitting was now being used.  Oil-less bearings replaced the

old-style tube bearings in the steering assembly to reduce the rattling

noise.  The wheelbase remained at 136 inches, and the tread at 60 inches.

    Styling on the Lincoln was becoming a little more progressive,

influenced by the many one-off customs.  The exterior was dressed up with

chrome plated bumpers, front and rear.  New standard wire wheels had chrome

hubcaps, and the hubs were of the five stud type.  The wheels were "drop

center," meaning that the outside rim no longer bolted onto the hub. 

Lincoln was one of the early, if not the first, American manufacturers to

go to this type of wheel.  The spokes on the new wheels were welded in

place.  These were superior in strength to the threaded-in spoke wheels

which had been known to collapse during a hard turn.  Lincoln promoted this

change by pitching, "The safety of steel from toe to wheel."  The new

wheels were size 7.00x20, and the tire size was now 32x6.75.  Artillery and

disc wheels remained options.  Cowl lights were installed again this year

on most body styles.  Headlights, cowl lights, and taillight assemblies all

matched and had returned to the semi-acorn shape.  They were all chrome

plated.  Certain features had become Lincoln hallmarks, such as the round

clutch and brake pedals, steering wheel lock, a tall emergency brake lever,

windshield sun visor, and a large flattened oval front bumper

configuration.

    Time has borne out that the most popular of the collector cars among

the Model L Lincolns would be the 1928 through 1930 models.  By 1928, most

of the horizontal, two-piece, middle-opening windshields had given way to

one-piece, straight, slightly rearward-sloping ones.  If they opened at

all, it was from the bottom with a screw lock on either side.  Notable

exceptions were the Willoughby seven-passenger three-window and two-window

Limousines.  On these models, the windshield came to a V-shape in the

middle.  On each side of the windshield was a half-diamond window, forward

of the front door where the old-style triangle windows had been located,

and were referred to as "obtuse angle windshields."  The doors on these

models were the front-front arrangement.  These models were produced in

fair numbers through 1930.  Using a similar design was the Judkins

two-window Landau Berline Sedan. Being listed in the Lincoln Salon

Catalogue did not ensure any given number of models being produced.  The

term "production model" had a very general meaning in Lincoln's case.  It

indicated those designs which could be repeatedly delivered during a model

year.  As a rule, these were the rather average-looking Sedans and Coupes

in the lower price range.  (This holds true, even today.)  The balance of

the cars sold were made up of custom and semi-custom cars from the Salon

Catalogue.  Some semi-custom and one-off body styles never appeared in any

catalog.  This may be confusing until one considers that the average annual

production of Lincolns was only a little over six thousand cars.  In late

1928, two new models were introduced at the New York Auto Show, Ray

Dietrich's new Lincoln and the all new Model A Ford.

    Starting in late 1927, artistic bird ads ran in popular magazines like

Country Life and Home and Garden.  Lincoln had typically used black and

white or color ads with serious and mundane aspects.  Thus, the colorful

Audubon series by artist Stark Davis was a major departure for Lincoln

advertisements.  The "Lincoln Bird" series was discontinued by 1929.  One

of the most beautiful of these famous ads was of a peacock with the LeBaron

five-window Coupe in the foreground.  There was also an ad displaying a

crane in flight behind a Willoughby Semi-Collapsible Cabriolet which had a

landau leather top and, although not shown, armchair occasional seats.  A

pair of black faced gulls framed the ad for the Locke Sport Phaeton.

    In other ads of this series, a LeBaron Town Car called an All-Weather

Cabriolet was pictured in front of a colorful condor on a tree branch.  A

giant red stork with black wing tips flies through green foliage behind a

Dietrich Convertible Sedan. This Lincoln was a progressively modern,

five-window Sedan with a rear-rear door combination, it was the ultimate

Touring.  The front brakes are visible through the red wires.  This

new-style Sedan Convertible used a glass window insert between the front

and rear roll-up door windows.  It sported dual sidemounts, vertical

windshield, pull door handles, and roof coach bars.

    The Lincoln Club Roadster Model 165, was dominated over by a golden

bird perched amid violet foliage.  This two-passenger Roadster sported disk

wheels, rear-mounted spare, coach bars, and a two-passenger rumble seat.  A

distinctive feature was the decorative fashion in which the cowl and lower

mold lines met, then curved upward just forward of the front doors.  This

body style was a continuation of the popular Locke Type 151 Roadster and

the Dietrich Type 154 Coupe Roadster.

    A wide-eyed red bird of paradise, provided the background for the Brunn

All-Weather Brougham whose features included a removable panel above the

driver with slide-up side windows, pull door handles, dual sidemounts, and

a rear-front door arrangement.  This seven-window Town Sedan also showed

its front wheel brakes through the wires, and had a Gorham Greyhound on the

hood.  Using the same bird of paradise, but this time in turquoise, was an

ad for a Limousine by Dietrich.  It was a large five-window Sedan featuring

forward triangle windows, a roll-down glass partition, and two fold away

cushioned axillary seats.

    The Lincoln coach works five-passenger Sedan is featured in BRG with

black accent.  The car is parked below a long-beaked green bird with royal

blue wings.  The ad copy promoted, "Compact 60 degree V-type motor, long

chassis, Lincoln craftsmanship and service."  A companion seven-passenger

Sedan in royal blue sits below a perturbed peacock.  Its ad copy states,

"The distinguished Lincoln clientele includes many who prefer the popular

Sedan body type so admirably adapted to family use."

    A departure from the bird theme, but in exactly the same colorful Stark

Davis style, was a blue butterfly ad.  It promoted the seven-passenger

Sport Touring by Locke in black with red wheels and a red mold line

accent.  "Long, Low and Graceful," was the slogan.  Its interior was saddle

tan.  The custom sales features that promoted this aluminum-bodied Locke

Touring were:  "Hand crushed Moroccan leather; sport top of finest Burbank

cloth, mahogany finished bows, nickel trimmed hardware; folding trunk rack

and six wire wheels, spares at the side or rear optional."

                            NINETEEN-TWENTYNINE

    Officially announced on New Year's Day, 1929, were the new models with

which Lincoln would finish their first decade.  This year, Lincoln Division

would report earnings of over two million dollars.  Sales would now rebound

slightly after a steady two-year decline.  The exterior changes to this

year's Lincoln were centered around a new sturdier grille, and a radiator

shell which was higher and narrower.  The number of cowl louvers was

increased from twenty-six to forty-two on each side (twenty-six had been

the standard number of vent louvers since the first Leland Lincolns.)  The

radiator filler neck was now threaded on the outside, and the cap was

larger around with a lower profile.  The contour of the hood intersected

the new squared-off radiator shell so as to carry through the body's molded

beltline.  Later in the year, the front fenders were shortened slightly and

followed the curve of the wheel line a little less.  Almost all models went

to the dual side-mounted spare tire arrangement.  Options were few, and

consisted of spare tire covers, monogram, tonneau cowl, and rear

windscreen.  Popular accessories were the rearview mirrors which strapped

onto the dual sidemounts.  Large wing-windows were often added to the front

and rear windshields on the Touring and Phaeton.  Four-wheel brakes and

welded steel wheels were brought about by a growing interest in automobile

safety.  Another factor getting considerable attention by conscientious

motorists was driver visibility.  This had a noticeable effect on many body

styles.  Windshield posts and door pillars were made stronger and

narrower.  Safety glass was provided on all windows of the Lincoln.  Many

earlier cars had safety glass installed on the windshields only, and still

earlier models did not use it at all.  "Triplex," as it was called,

consisted of a plastic film laminated between two glass panes which

prevented shattering.  It derived its name from the words triple and

plexius.  All models now had twin windshield wipers.  Many body styles had

gotten rid of the traditional windshield visor altogether or replaced the

leather-covered ones with a dark green glass.  The instrument panel was

modified to include an engine oil temperature gauge.  The cigar lighter was

relocated from the dashboard to the instrument panel.  Old-style lighters

were the type in which the cigar was inserted into the hole and a pull-down

switch turned the heat coil on (not like modern pullout cigarette

lighters).  An electric clock replaced the old spring wound one.  However,

many coachbuilders had earlier installed electric clocks.  The beveled dial

speedometer was now supplied by a different vendor.

    Still chasing that elusive vibration problem, Lincoln engineers

installed rubberized motor mounts this year.  A crankshaft damper had been

added earlier with minimal results.  The engine oil pressure pump now

produced 50 psi, an increase of 20 psi, and provided much better

engine-parts lubrication at higher speeds.  Some minor relocating of engine

components was done so as to allow easier servicing.  An improved starter

generator had shown up late in the year.  Brake shoes were now

graphite-impregnated to reduce squeaking.  The parking brake linkage

between the rear wheels of the foot brake pedal was eliminated.

    In this era of the Ford Tri-Motor and the knee-high hemline skirts,

something impressive was needed in the way of automotive styling.  Such a

coach was provided by LeBaron.  A one-off custom called the Aero Phaeton

was constructed and shown at the New York Salon.  It caused a sensation. 

The body was polished aluminum.  Its dual-cowl cockpits had padded and

combed upholstery like an open cockpit airplane.  The windshields folded

forward like a British racing sports car.  The instrument panel had a

built-in altimeter, tachometer, and compass.  There was a small rudder fin

attached to the rear of the car.  Fenders were more open and

straight-lined, simulating wings.  Parking lights were styled to look like

navigation lights and were located on the fenders.  Cowl louvers were

horizontal instead of vertical.  This custom body creation sold for a

little over ten thousand dollars.

    A new model of note was the Dietrich Victoria Convertible Coupe which

eliminated the sun visor completely.  Another desirable collector Lincoln

of this year was the Locke Touring, last of the big Sport Phaetons.  White

leather upholstery was a popular selection on many of these cars.  Locke

was still using aluminum-skin bodies, but many builders were now switching

to steel, and some were experimenting with all-metal construction.  The

Lincoln factory coachworks was now producing the Phaeton, Model 176.  This

open car was very reasonably priced in comparison to the more expensive

Cabriolets and Broughams.  There was one Sedan Convertible body style by

Dietrich that, like a few other designs, had removable windows between the

door windows.  As far as window pattern count, this window should be

ignored as in the case of the forward triangle window configurations. 

These body types were rare, to say the least.  This was the last year in

which the Type 702 Judkins Coupe and the Type 151 Locke Roadster were

built.  In fact, it was the last year for all of the 150 Series and many of

the early 160 Series.  The Dietrich Type 171 was fitted with forward

opening doors and a sloping windshield to return as the Type 181. 

Approximately seventy one-off customs were produced (this in contrast to

the fact that none at all would be built in 1930.)

    Behind the scenes, change was in the air.  Most of the original design

work for the Model L had been accomplished in 1919.  As superior and

well-engineered as it was, Ford people were now making plans to design a

new V-8 engine and develop a more modern chassis.  The new chassis would

adapt itself to all metal coach work, and provide a longer wheelbase on

which to install larger custom bodies.

    The October issue of the British magazine Autocar said of the Lincoln,

"Such a superb motorcar that it is difficult to realize that Henry Ford is

associated with it.  The new style of coachwork is extremely smart in

appearance, but has simple businesslike lines.  The Weymann Salon, built by

the British Bodyworks sells for about fifty thousand pounds sterling."  The

following year, Autocar tested a Lincoln five-passenger Limousine and

reported, "A ten to thirty miles per hour time of 5.2 seconds and fuel

consumption of twelve miles to the imperial gallon.  The Lincoln makes an

interesting comparison to the Hollywood glamour cars like the

Isotta-Fraschini."

    Cadillac and Packard proponents are quick to point out that both were

outselling the Lincoln by the end of this decade.  Lincoln, however, was

only competing at the upper end of the fine car market.  This year, for

example, Packard produced four times as many cars as Lincoln, but eighty

percent of them were sold below the Lincoln's price range.  The Cadillac

LaSalle was targeted at a market even lower than Packard's market.  Thus

the Lincoln had reasonably maintained its relative position in the luxury

car market.

                              NINETEEN-THIRTY

    In 1930, Lincoln had the lowest production run of any year other than

the first year Lincolns were produced.  The new body styles offered were

Types 185 thru 191.  As mentioned earlier, if Edsel liked a design he would

order an even hundred.  This was exactly the number of LeBaron (Detroit)

Type 185 Convertible Roadsters produced.  The same was true of the Judkins

Type 186 Berlines and Sedans.  The remaining coach orders were sparsely

divided among Willoughby Broughams, Derham Phaetons (one was a Roadster),

Judkins Coupes, and Locke Sports Roadsters.  Some of the Willoughby Sedans

were called Landaulets.  There was at least one Holbrook Type 550 Cabriolet

built.  The balance, and by far the bulk, of the year's production were

carry-over designs from the previous year.  The Model L Series ended after

a total of 65,149 automobiles were produced.  These Lincolns represent as

diverse and interesting a collection of coachbuilt bodies produced anywhere

in the world, and are a tribute to the automotive engineering and

coachbuilders' craft of this era.

    Until now, unless the customer had them refinished, Lincoln fenders

were always painted black.  For the first time, matching or contrasting

fender colors were available.  The trend early in this year was to use

natural-colored canvas top covers on closed models with matching canvas

spare tire covers.  Black leather tops and leather spare tire covers were

also popular options on closed models.  Pinstriping was used extensively

for decoration.  There was no real standard for paint striping.  It

generally followed the mold line or fender lines of the car.  Component

body structures of metal formed over a wood frame still comprised the bulk

of coach construction, but all-metal units were becoming more and more

commonplace.

    Mechanical changes were headed up by a new "Free-Wheeling" unit added

to the drivetrain.  Great volumes have been written on the dubious

advantages of this mechanism which was offered on a variety of makes during

this era.  The graphite brake shoe inserts were dropped.  The change from a

roller-type steering gear to a worm-type was heralded as a great

improvement.  It also reduced the tendency of the Lincoln's front end to

shimmy slightly as wear occurred.

    By 1930, the embittered Lelands had lost all their court cases and

appeals against Ford.  Leland's reputation was fading into automotive

history.  Edsel Ford and the Lincoln people had turned the ugly duckling

into a swan.  The Lincoln motorcar was now respected on its own merits.  If

the "L" had originally stood for Leland, it now clearly stood for luxury. 

The Roaring Twenties were over, a more austere mood had fallen over the

land.  The Model L would take its final curtain call this year.  There were

still holdouts in the Leland camp who felt that Henry Ford had deliberately

set out to cheat Leland and his original stockholders out of the Lincoln

Motor Company, but two points help to prove that this was not true.  First,

Henry Ford did not need to hire the Lelands when he purchased the Company

from bankruptcy.  Second, the Lelands' claims were based on alleged verbal

promises between the two Henrys, i.e., that Lincoln would not become part

of Ford Motor Company, and that the original stockholders would be

reimbursed for their lost investments.  Henry Ford was often a poor

communicator and sometimes a vindictive man, but dishonesty was not

inherent to his nature.  Obviously, each man felt he had made a different

agreement.  Henry Ford was powerful and rich enough to make his viewpoint

prevail, and Henry Leland was no longer the automotive giant he once was.

    As a result of Ford Motor Company stockholder demands, Henry Ford

withdrew as president of his own company, but he still very much controlled

things.  This new decade would belong to other men of vision.  By far the

greatest tribute to Henry M. Leland is the long time his automotive design

endured, and the decision by Ford not to tamper with the basic design until

it was well established in the marketplace.

    It was now the height of America's great economic depression, but

through it all the Lincoln motorcar endured as a symbol of prestige and

luxury.  The Lincoln Motor Company goal stated that, "The ideal Lincoln

owner is a man of means who enjoys economics.  The Lincoln owner usually

has both town and country homes, moving conveniently among them.  The

Lincoln owner considers the world his playground and his base of

operations.  His Lincoln carries him far, swiftly, and luxuriously.  The

ideal Lincoln owner has exceedingly high standards of taste.  He enjoys the

faultless upholstery, fittings, furnishings, and finishings.  An owner does

not have to be an engineer to appreciate his Lincoln, although such

authorities throughout the world proclaim the Lincoln as fine a motorcar as

it is possible to produce."

    Lincoln achieved its goal of becoming a fine American motorcar, and

this was effectively carried out by the same company which gave us the

Model T Ford.  Lincoln historians A.T. Heinsbergen and T.L. Powels observed

that, "We cannot help but look back at the great Model L, it was the car

that became the prestige car of America to discriminating European buyers. 

It was the car whose bodies were designed by the most talented men in a

very talented time.  It is the Lincoln which is most often found still in

the hands of the original owner, perhaps on blocks in his garage. 

Explained simply by, it's been part of my life."

    Those who are Lincoln motorcar enthusiasts are much like train buffs,

airport bums, or antique collectors.  They may not own their original

Lincoln, but may now own that Lincoln they could not afford in their youth

and always wanted.  Whether original owners, collectors, restorers,

historians, or just plain Lincoln watchers, that favorite model is still up

on blocks in the garage of their memory and imagination.