1956 Continental Mark II

488/650hp

Photo:Mecum

Nearly every part on this 1956 Continental Mark II is custom machined, chromed or polished. The underside is painted and is as clean as the topside; everything is finished, including the welds being sanded to a smooth finish. Craftsmanship throughout is to the utmost highest level and is displayed with every component of this gorgeous Lincoln.

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Found stock in West Covina, a suburb of Los Angeles. This custom project started with new underpinnings (steering and suspension) and an updated engine while keeping much of the exterior stock. Development on the 126-inch wheelbase chassis began with the installation of a Kugel Komponents 4.11:1 independent rear suspension system. The chassis had to be reworked out back to accept this rear end, and A-arms had to be fabricated for the front to complete the custom IFS setup.

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Rack-and-pinion steering also went in, along with Wilwood disc brakes for each corner of the car. In keeping with the look of the original, 52-spoke, 17-inch, Tru-Spoke chrome wire spoke wheels were wrapped with a new set of white walls.The Mark IIs were originally equipped with the 368 Lincoln Y-block, which just wasn’t enough for this build, so the stock engine was replaced with a Pro-built 427 FE from Robert Pond Motorsports.

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Robert Pond began casting his own version of the Ford FE engine block a number of years back and, from the outside, it looks original, (except Pond’s is all aluminum), but internally he improved on the design. Bored and stroked to 482 cubes, the big V-8 was assembled with a set of SCAT crank and rods, and uses a COMP Cams camshaft and CP pistons. The water pump and aluminum heads came from Edelbrock, and ignition is delivered via MSD controls. The polished stainless steel headers and exhaust for this Continental were also custom fabricated, hand-made by Ronnie Koonce.Robert Pond Motorsports assembled the all-aluminum motor with their aftermarket FE block, boring and stroking to get the required cubes. SCAT performance crank and rods were used, with a set of aluminum Edelbrock heads and a Dynatek injection system (the IDAs are throttle bodies).

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The V8 is mated to a 4L80E transmission with an adaptor and shifts with a Compushift computer-controlled system from Phoenix Transmission in Weatherford, TX. For fuel delivery, it utilizes a Dynatek classic fuel injection system with eight stacks feeding four Weber IDA-style throttle bodies. At about 4,800 pounds, a low-ratio gear was selected to complement the 4L80E transmission that was hooked up to the FE.

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The powerplant produced a staggering 642hp on the dyno before being installed. That’s 482 cubic-inches of big block FE performance!Not cutting any corners, the body was chemically stripped and each of the the original body seams and joints were painstakingly re-leaded and sculpted to an absolutely smooth finish. The entire body was then electro-plated for corrosion resistance prior to Dan Stacey and Brian Hatton completing the bodywork. The car’s body has custom smooth floorpans, in addition, custom inner fender wells were designed and fabricated to help conceal the car’s wiring. (The custom fuel tank is also concealed, along with its wiring and lines).

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Once the body was complete, Hatton masterfully sprayed the car in its flawless black DuPont paint. The team then polished every inch of this masterpiece to a gleaming shine.Inside the car, the master power brake cylinder and booster were hidden under the dash in order to clean up the clutter. Although power brakes were in 98 percent of the Mark IIs built in 1956, they didn’t have what was added here: a power-activated emergency brake.

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A custom sculpted metal center-console, (to accommodate the floor shift), and custom dash update the interior without making it look too new. Bucket seats from a Mark VIII Continental were covered in red leather by Sandra Gregory and Chuck Bennett and the same material was used on the dash, headliner, and the custom rear buckets. Classic Instrument gauges are fitted neatly in front of a Billet Specialties steering wheel, and the hand-finished leather dash flows to the console just below the Kenwood head unit. Other accoutrements include; Power activated emergency brake, power windows, power vent windows, power door locks, and upgraded power brakes and steering systems, – no expense spared.

HIGHLIGHTS

– $500,000 invested in build
– Aluminum 488/650 HP engine
– Moore Brothers chassis
– Air conditioning

Photo:Mecum