I need help. I went to look at a 47 lincoln zephyr 4 door sedan today. It is all original and was driven into the barn around 1979. The car looks like a typical used car and really hasn't deteriorated much since going in the barn. However, A large tree fell on the barn and severely crushed in the top. It damaged on door frame top as well. Pretty sure to save this car it would need a new top grafted on. It's in otherwise great condition and has the v12 that is tight but not locked up. The upholstery is ok, the steering wheel is in great condition. Floors are solid and there is no rust. Overall this would've been a great survivor if it hadn't gotten crushed by the tree. It was too dark to take any pictures. Based on my description, what does it sound like this car might be worth?
How much would a parts car of this description be worth? I know nothing about them. I just know I'd like to have the V12 and see what I could do with the remainder of the car.
Did you see these when you were searching online? Here's one ad for parts car that was online $1200 http://classicautoresto.com/listings/1947-lincoln-zephyr/ Here's a really nice running driving '46 in LA for $11k http://losangeles.craigslist.org/sfv/cto/5837199148.html Wow, that's pretty slick Another running and driving survivor for $15k http://buffyscars.com/1947-lincoln-zephyr-v-12-engine/ Then of course they go anywhere from there into the stratosphere. Owner has to give a significant discount for roof and side smashed in, I would think Then there are Zephyr motors/drivetrains from $800 to $5000 and up http://www.shoppok.com/kpr/a,43,72498,Lincoln-v12-flathead----650--Pasco-.htm http://www.used.forsale/lincoln-v12 You could make an offer and reference these ads to the seller. Hard to say, depends on the seller's viewpoint. Parting it out on Ebay would probably bring the most for the seller, but that would be a lot of work. If they aren't willing to do the work, then they just deserve bottom dollar. Follow up and let us know
What do you mean the engine is tight but not locked up? Does it turn over or not? Depending on that, and needing way more details on condition (pics would be best, how's the chrome?) I'd say between $1000 and $2000. If the engine turns over and would run without a rebuild, that's obviously a huge thing, and I assume the trans is the one with the good gears that everyone wants for a '39 toploader. The brakes are desirable too. But the rest of the car is going to be a parts car, and you'll do best on it if you are the one who takes it apart and sells off all of the pieces. No one is going to fix an engineless '47 4 door Lincoln with a smashed in roof.
Yes. It turns over. By tight I mean that I was trying to move it via turning the fan with my hands. It wasn't super easy but it wasn't impossible. Out of curiosity, does the lincoln front clip and the rear fenders bolt onto a Ford body?
Sadly, those cars are not very desirable. I suggest not to buy it, especially with the crushed roof, unless you are in love with 4 doors.
Depending on the price, it might be a good deal. If you could find a coupe or convertible, almost everything from the 4 door will swap over, with the exception of the doors, trunk lid, top, and maybe the rear seat. The Lincoln axles have a wider track than the Fords, about 2" I think. I own a 47 coupe, and there are a lot of parts in demand, good grills, bumpers, light assembles, hydraulic power window stuff, interior parts, etc. If everything is in that great of shape, you could swap on a new top with a bit of a chop, or cut it off completely and make a phantom tub out of it with a lift off Carson style top. For sure, it's a dare to be different car to build, lots of hard to find parts, but they make nice rides when done right.
I made the deal. I'm looking forward to building something around the v12. It won't be coming home til spring. The road going to it is already soupy. Won't dry out for awhile. Ended up getting a 4 door 65? Corvair in the deal. It was hit too but it's minor damage. I have to tarp them. I'll try to get pics when I get back there.
It might be possible to straighten out the roof. I mean good enough that the doors open and close normally and the top smoothed out with filler. Not a 100 point restoration, but a good driver. I'm thinking, remove the seats and push the roof out little by little with jacks and wood blocks starting from the edges of the damaged area and working inwards. The idea is to push out the dents in reverse order to how they were put in. Another possibility might be to rework the back of the body into a station wagon.
Or a roadster pickup version. Prices are low on those, especially the fourdoors. there has been several on craigslist for some time. even the Continental versions are much lower in price than they used to be.
V12 Caddy sounds impressive till you pull the head and see that the pistons are only about 3" Dia. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Back when they were used cars a lot of Lincoln V12s got replaced by flathead Mercury V8s which had nearly as much displacement and horsepower. With a cam, twin carbs and high compression heads they could be more powerful than the V12. It was nearly a bolt in swap.
see if it has a big handle under the dash.....might say "Columbia".....if it has that two speed rear end....$$$$$$$$$
The 12's weren't really for power, but more firing pulses per revolution to smooth out the engine because they were for luxury cars. My flathead came out of a '41 Lincoln that was getting restored to stock. There would be a push/pull cable to activate the overdrive on the transmission, the Columbia rears were earlier. The above mentioned '41 getting restored had factory overdrive. Also I always wondered what the body designers were thinking for the Lincoln's aesthetics post WWII
Corvairs had flat sixes. I like the idea of a faux 4 door convertible. If everything else is a s good as you say and the price is even close to right, I'd be on that like a rat on a Cheeto.
I realise that is an ancient post, but I ran across it just now. Any idea if this Lincoln truck has any history back to Charleston SC in the early '60's? I owned it's twin there and then, but the Navy told me I had to go to important places right away (Damn Commies in Cuba) and I had to leave it at the shop I hung out at, promising to return. That didn't happen for a few years and when I did, all was gone, shop and all. I checked with most of the scrapyards in the area, but no one had any memory of it coming thru. I always felt it was unique enough to not be scrapped and some gearhead would have it. Main identifiers would be that it was set up for a Buick 322/Auto (at that time) and the box was from a '51 Ford pickup. I still have the Ford title, but I no longer remember if it was a Linc body put on the Ford frame, or Ford box put on the Linc chassis. It had a busted 322 Buick in it when I got it and I had just bough a rear-ended '56 Roadmaster for the driveline before I was shipped out. This is obviously grasping at straws, but this is the only one like this I have ever seen (since mine), and I am still involved with the Custom/Rod hobby to this day. (jetfire.com)
First the Las year of ZEPHYR IS 1942 46 47 48 ARE CLUB COUPES OR SEDAN NOW THEYS POSTWAR LINCOLN THE VALUE WENT DOWNHILL I HAVE SEEN CONTINENTALS AND CABRIOLETS IN NICE SHAPE READY TO DRIVE UNDER $28K .POSTWAR SEDANS DONT HAVE ANY MAJOR VALUE UNLESS IS SOMEONE'S DREAM CAR IMO.
Here in Merced, CA., there was a small group of enthusiasts (rodders?) that built some cars, two '32s (1 channeled roadster and a channeled 5 window coupe; The third being a channeled '30 'A' coupe) but what made them 'unique?' was that they all had Lincoln Zephyr front axles! Lincoln axles are somewhere near 54" ! eye-to-eye. Yuck. We did it the old fashioned way in the Bay Area...LOL 48"
Technically, you are correct. After WWII, Lincoln no longer called them Zephyrs, probably because anything sounding German was looked down on still, even though the sheet metal is exactly the same. Studebaker did the same thing when it dropped the Dictator nameplate. Basically the only difference in 1942 and 1946-1948 is the front grille sections and some trim pieces. The general public still called them Zephyrs though, so the name stayed with them.
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