The Mark 3 was a beautiful car , but I was partial to the Mark 5, 3 of my best friends in school parents had Town Cars Tony’s step mom drove Lincoln Mark’s , her Mark 5 was silver on silver I loved that car and Jimmy’s dad gave him a 83 Cadillac coupe Deville in copper penny and maroon for graduation damn what a beautiful car.
@@mikemcnabb1582 Our Mark5 was silver/maroon interior, very nice however a large bottle of Aramis cologne leaked out in the car and forever became the code name for the car. We all got looks from waitress and neighbors, "windows up the church is in sight".
@@markloren2133 LOL O Lord that’s funny, the late 70’s early 80’s were fun, Luxury cars today or nice but not like the panache they had back then, I was thinking after sending my tex out earlier Tony’s dad had a lime green and hunter green interior and vinyl roof Cadillac Seville, my lord you couldn’t have sold that color on any other automobiles
Both my parents worked for Ford. I grew up in Lincolns & T-birds - '57 - '72 models. The Marks, '69 and up were just dressed up T-birds, unlike those in the '50s.
Yeah, I noticed that he vastly upgraded his home a few months ago and I say good for Adam!!!!! Look at all of the vids he posts! This guy is a workaholic and he has worked hard for what he has.
My Dad had the 69 Mark three. Great car. The cruise control on the dash turned it on when you would get to the cruise speed you desired. The button on the turn signal was an interrupter. You would be going at speed , come to a car in front of you , push the button and it would disengage the speed control. My Dad fell asleep at the wheel after working twenty hours , broad sided two parked cars ( station wagon and a VW ) and totaled them. It didn’t even put a dent in the Mark three. It’s a tank. Thanks for the memories.
I love these videos because this makes understand what artistry, styling and engineering was all about in the 60' and 70's. I'm also a big fan of the care you take on explaining the various gadgetry and the thinking behind it.
FORD did some weird and cool stuff. My 70 Mercury Cougar also had vacuum headlights. The 460 cu in. in this giant tank is barely enough to get it down the road. My buddy had one and you could floor the gas and the car barely lurched at any speed.
Beautiful car! Im old enough to remember new cars such as this being built with individualism and styling. Chrome bumpers, Huge bench seats, Doors that weigh 200 pounds and trunks you could live in.
Your not kidding about the doors as l had to hire the strongest dude in my neighborhood to hold up one end of the door while l one handed bolted them on. A gunniness world record could be awarded to Ford.
A great video featuring some of the unique and quality features of this car. One thing to note: that switch on the dash for the rear vents is actually a vacuum valve which operates two doors under the inside rear grille. There are also two drain tubes inside the trunk on either side of the car that allow water to escape. They often get clogged with debris, allowing water to pool inside the plenum.
What I don't understand is why they need a separate control. Most cars with any kind of fresh air ventilation (except maybe a few early AC systems that required the rear windows to be ajar) have to have some kind of exhaust ports in the rear and I've always assumed most of them had one-way flaps to keep cold air or exhaust from coming in. Was there any practical advantage to an active, rather than passive damper for these ports?
@@pcno2832 These cars have an external grille (as shown in the video) to exhaust the air,at the base of the rear window. To use this system most efficiently, the driver would open the lower cowl air vents and the rear vent. This would allow fresh air to circulate throughout the interior, draft free and quietly, in case the user did not wish to run the AC (or if the car was not so equipped -- AC and ATC were optional on these cars). It's important also to remember that a lot of folks smoked during this time period, so use of the system would allow the stale smoke to be exhausted quietly. On the Lincolns of this era equipped with Automatic Temperature Control, the AC compressor runs all the time, so use of this system was another way to save a bit of wear and tear. In '67 and "68, Mercury touted 4 different types of ventilation systems on the big Mercurys, this Flow-Through Ventilation being one of them.
@@DSP1968 That makes perfect sense, but I still don't get why a one-way damper wouldn't have been just as effective as a manually opened one, with the force of the air holding it open if either the flow-through ventilation or AC were in use. Maybe there was a patent conflict over that design.
@@pcno2832 I don't know for certain, but this was probably just another way to provide an additional selling feature to increase comfort. And to increase elaborateness and uniqueness. If you ever have the opportunity to drive or ride in one of these cars, you'll experience a very unique level of comfort, quality, and power. I owned one for about 12 years and it never failed to provide a very enjoyable experience.
My best friends big brother had a '71 Mark III, Black with the Red Leather Interior similar to yours. I remember being allowed to ride back with them at the end of summer 1975. Cruising home from the Cape with the A/C on, AM Top-40 playing on the Stereo. 11 year old me and him in the back with his sister sitting between us, I felt like a King back there...
I owned a 1970 mark III.I did not know about these features.(THANK YOU!) it also had a vanity mirror in the glove box( probably not on used cars) and an indicator light(fiber optic) on the rear window shelf.telling you if the lights were burned out. the distributor had a shear pin that would break every now and then. It was one of my favorite cars..
About a week ago, I was about to enter a local drugstore when what should meet my wonders wonderstruck eyes but one of these: a (1971) Lincoln Continental Mark III coupe! I yelled out to the owner, who was at the other end of the parking lot, but still not far away from where I was, and I walked over and we began to talk and I asked him about his lovely car, a car I personally believe to be one of the most beautiful, aesthetically perfect cars to ever be produced, and thus one of my personal favorites, along with may others. Anyway, it was very great seeing one and being able to chat with the owner for a short while about it. (I can't say that I've seen that many Mark IIIs in my time. The Mark IVs and Vs are far more common where I live, yet even these are comparatively rare around here.)
Such a cool car. My retired-military neighbor had one (dark brown ext, white int) back in the late 1970s when I was a kid. I saw him driving it only on Sundays with his wife to and from church. He told me before we moved away that his Mark III was older than I was and that he had bought it new. I don't think it had more than 10K miles on it back then because years later (early 1990s) I went back to visit old friends and look around; he still had this car and the mileage was about 18K! He did not want to sell it at that time, lol. Thanks for posting this video.
The regional manager of the discount department store chain where I worked drove one of these. I was a part of the utility crew that unloaded trucks and did odd-jobs during my late high school years at the regional manager's favorite store in Levittown, Pennsylvania. One day Mr. R asked the fellows on the crew to install a CB radio and antenna in the Mark III. What an honor to be a part of that. I installed two whip antennas, one on either side of the really massive trunk opening close to the base of the rear window. Then we ran the coaxial cable to a combination connector that screwed into the back of the CB radio. I think now that the radio was a Realistic 23 Channel model that was available back in '73-'74. The installation was as clean as it could be made for the time with the mounting bracket base under the carpet. A fellow named Ron from the Automotive Department handled the radio mounting part of the installation. Those tall, white whip antennas really set Mr. R's maroon(ish) Mark III apart from every other vehicle coming down the road.
I remember these cars when they were closer to new. I was 3 years old in '69, but remember a few of these around town in the '70s. And, thanks for making me think about a few old Ford things that I haven't had to think of for quite a while!
I remember that flow-through ventilation . In 1966 my Dad bought a new Ford Galaxie 500 hardtop with that feature and it really worked nicely. Then around the mid-seventies I can remember looking at a used 1971 Mark III and I considered purchasing it because it was such a beautiful car...I can remember it quite clearly, as it was in what I would call a dark turquoise with a black top and interior. I ultimately didn't end up buying it, but looking back now, I sure wish I would have!
- Yes, this car also aroused great interest in me. It was a beautiful car with blue upholstery. Dla mieszkańca Polski takie auto w latach 70-tych to cud motoryzacji😲.
My 1971 galaxie is all turquoise inside and out, besides the black vinyl top of course. It’s a kind of blue that you just can’t forget, unfortunately. People will never know the glory of imperfections and oddities that cars had in the “land yacht” years. They were just things that fit that era so perfectly.
@@RareClassicCars I had an expensive refrigerator in storage for 8 years. My dad said throw it away. I got it out of storage and plugged it in. Works fine. Right again dad. My 70 Eldo is running on the original Frigidaire with R 12 although it has been serviced as it has a new drier on it.
I always wondered why Ford Thunderbird had the speed control switches on the steering wheel, and also had the tilt-away wheel but the Mark III didn't. They were essentially the same car.
I will never understand the Mickey Mouse CC on the 69. Inagine trading in your 66 Thunderbird for this car & seeing that cruise system with its FAT turn signal?
@@oscarprendergast7295 Ya, well the 70 & 71 then did have the SAME cruise control put on it as the Mark III and T-Bird both came down the SAME assembly line. You take off the dash facade on this car & you can't tell the difference from the Bird! Most of the wiring, the open-close rear vent, the window buttons etc etc etc were the SAME. SAME hydralic wipers. It goes on & on & on. Haha ...
@@andrewsommers2823 They are soooo similiar. Ive driven both & you can barley tell the difference except for sheet medal and sound deadening. Every control & system on this car was on my 70 Bird. Cracks me up when people scream "its not the same!!!" Oh ya & the 72 Bird & Mark had no similarities either. LOL
I love the weird features ideas. I grew up with old cars and I always have to explain why a new car feature is actually a 50 year old feature from another car that was forgottenabout
Great video. Having owned my 70 Mark lll since 1985 I can attest to and relate to everything that you’ve mentioned. Years ago when I daily drove mine I did the same thing with the AC compressor. In the winter I disconnected the compressor As I saw no real need when it was 40 degrees out to have it cycling. It did help dehumidify the interior 24/7. That was its main purpose.
That must work much better in some places than others. I wouldn't try it here in New England; too many clammy spells, even sometimes in mid-winter, when you need (or at least very much want) the dehumidification to clear the fog.
If the wire is removed the ATC doesn’t energize the magnetic clutch and therefore the compressor will not engage, correct ? So you’re playing semantics !!!. Saying the compressor is disconnected is the same thing as saying you removed the wire that feeds the magnetic clutch which engages the compressor simpler was of saying the same thing
I am calm. You should reference that to the person whom made that argumentative statement! I was just clarifying that by removing a single wire the AC system no longer works from a dehumidifying perspective. no compressor engaging. That was my point. But thanks I am and always will be calm! My pressure is consistently 108/65 + / - 5 points on each
That takes me back. I started my career as a mechanic at a Lincoln Mercury Dealership in 1977. One of my customers was a Lincoln collector and his Mk III had a fire under the hood and I had the task of restoring it. They don't make em like that anymore! Very nice car BTW!
When I was a young boy my friends Father bought this same exact car in this color and I thought it was the coolest car I’ve ever seen. It was also the first car I rode in that had air conditioning and the a/c felt so good on that hot July day in Brooklyn. I will never forget that day and that beautiful car.
I worked at a garage in the summer of 1969 and had to drive one of these back to the owner’s office. In the process, I out ran a 383 road runner from a stoplight to about 70 mph before I had to slow down. It might be a wive’s tale, but I thought that the purpose for having the air conditioner run year round was to lubricate the seals; I also found defrosting was far superior with the air on. Keep showing us car options! My 1971 Chrysler T&C was loaded with them. Thanks again for this video!!!
Climate control comes to mind as my Late uncle pointed out as he owned several Lincolns . It blended the heat and AC automatically which I thought was neat.
My ex had one of these. One night, she and our three daughters were coming over a pass in Colorado when, I think, she lost coolant. Blown hose? She went many miles before reaching some oasis and safety. Granted it was all down hill, low power requirement, but that giant block took all the heat w/o coolant just fine. Our precious cargo, safe. Thank you Lincoln!
When I had a mechanic shop and when people would bring any car that had a 460 in it, one of the problems was always that the engine was running hot. My solution was to replace the clutch fan with a flex fan. That always cured the problem. It worked on other car makes with big engines. I always had flex fans on stock . LOL
I always liked the styling of these cars as a kid when they were new but never knew anything more about them. Now I want one! And it's easy to imagine yours is brand new!
This was the car that was a central part of the plot line in the movie "The French Connection". Gene Hackman famously said "what the hell are rocker panels?" (That's where they hid the heroin).
Recently discovered your channel and am greatly enjoying your thoroughly detailed videos, Adam. I'm not sure you need to disconnect the AC compressor wire. That should be the clutch on the pulley. As long as the HVAC system is not calling for AC, the clutch will be disengaged and the compressor itself will not be turning. I think it's actually good to cycle it in the winter, for example when defogging using AC + reheat, to keep the seals exercised.
@@barrygordon1173 When it comes to commenting, you don't know what you're doing. Your comment is not constructive and adds nothing to the conversation. Better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to speak and remove all doubt.
Great video and a fantastic car. A beautiful restoration. I had a '69 Continental - the four door sedan often erroneously referred to as the Town Car. It had many of the same quirky features. My car was only 7 years old when I got it in 1976. Many of those features didn't age well and even at 7, things had started to go wrong. The wipers - a marvel of hydraulic engineering - were impressive when they worked properly. The dashboard switch, which I presume had the same functions as yours, included a push/pull cable that as you turned the knob would actuate a valve controlling the wiper motor. It also had an electrical component to engage the windshield wash sprayer and a vacuum component for the mist wipe or wash and wipe. In my car, the wipers had a most annoying quirk that when the knob was pushed in (rather than turned) for a mist wipe or pushed all the way for a spray of fluid, they would not turn off. Often I had to actually pull over to the shoulder and turn off the car to make the wipers cease their rapid and noisy trek across the windscreen. It took many a long effort to track down the culprit in the system. The vacuum control in the dash knob worked on a diaphragm that pulled open the hydraulic valve that was normally controlled by the push/pull cable. It was supposed to release the diaphragm after two or three wipes returning to off. How this was accomplished was via a small fitting in the vacuum hose that had a felt cover. this was supposed to allow a leak down of the vacuum pressure in the system but in my car, the felt was dirty. It wouldn't allow the vacuum to bleed off. Once found, it took just minutes to remove the felt and tap the dried dirt and mud from it and return it to its place restoring proper function once more. The wiper blades themselves were another quirky feature. Unlike today when blades are available in just about every length imaginable, in the 70's the selection was much more limited. The 21" blades on the Continental were only available by special order through the dealer. You also mentioned the window switches. These were problematic in my car as well. Their failure often seemed to coincide with the climate control defaulting to hot as mentioned in some of your other comments. I did find that the switches could be removed and disassembled. Unlike most modern stuff that is throw-away, I could remove the spring clips that held the two halves of the switch body together and access the rocker points inside the switch. A quick polish with a bit of emery paper and I was good to go for another year or so (I owned the car for 13 years and put 100,000 miles on it). The power steering pump in its unique location on the front end of the crank shaft provide a good volume of flow for the various hydraulic systems but when it needed servicing, which was unfortunately quite frequently, It involved a serious amount of work to access the bottom front of the engine and the use of a puller to remove the harmonic balancer to access the pump. It made an awful buzzing noise - more than a regular belt driven pump - when it was failing. The climate control system was another, over-engineered feature, that didn't age well. It was prone to vacuum leaks as the rubber hoses dried out and became brittle. There were more vacuum relays and servos in that control box than what you might find in a 747 - or so it seemed. It was an awesome car though and I dispute one of the other commenters below who described it as being slow. The stock 460 cid engine in 1969 produced over 365 hp and 525 ftlbs of torque. for a car that was one of the heaviest non-commercial vehicles on the road (6600lbs. curb weight) it was plenty quick hitting close to 110mph in an unofficial 1/4 mile and giving cars like a '67 Dodge Charger with the 383 Magnum twin 4 bbl and Hurst 4 speed a run for their money (well we didn't race for money but he couldn't get away from me.) Those were the days...
I love the old Lincoln cars, Big and large, Especially Lincoln's of late 1968 through 1970 with the 460 v,8 motor,And al the Lincoln mark 5 and town cars 1976 through 1979 , what area of fine big Lincoln cars ever made, Sincerely Richard Dodds
One quirky thing you failed to mention is the little light box on the parcel shelf. It's an interior turn indicator light, so if you can't hear that your turn signal is on, you can see it in the rear view mirror. What a fantastic car! It's easy to see how they outsold the Eldorado in year 1 of production.
My '69 MK III overcharged too. I kept looking for the voltage regulator. An experienced parts guy at a NAPA in SF found it for me. The previous owner put in a Pioneer AM-FM Single Disc CD player that fit in the same space as the original radio. It had a removable face. The sound was amazing. Once I retracted the rear windows back and had to use rubber tipped forceps while pressing the switch to pull them back into position. Never moved them that far again. It's a beautiful car.
I remember trying to roll down the rear window on one of those at a premier collector's indoor car lot. I thought I broke it, and couldn't get out of there fast enough!
The Autronic Eye killing the coefficient of drag. "...someone told me about the external voltage regulator...", I assumed that you have a library of vintage Chilton's shop books. Ever think of bringing back your old intros - "Today on Rare Classic Cars...." and "Strangest Features, next on ..." fade to title card. That was good.
Back around 84 I was taking my dash apart to repair my clock in my 69 III and had turned on the wipers while taking the knob off and was surprised to have my wipers move when I turned the wheel. That’s how I figured out that they were operated by the power steering pump. The clock was another curious item, anyone who ever spent time in one of these cars in quiet conditions would have heard a clicking or pop sound every 90 seconds or so, this was an actual set of electric contact points with a spring return that would in essence wind the clock, the points would drive the clock until they closed and they would spark and open back up and the clock would run on. The old clocks were an easy fix once you got to them, just simply u stick the burnt points and lightly sand them clean and the clock would work again. I had a couple mark III’s as well as a couple 69 t-birds and the clock worked in every one while I had them. They were such powerful and nice riding cars. I used to offer to race any car in town the conditions were we cruise the highway side by side until we reach 100 mph then the race begins. Beautiful car you have there I miss having one.
My mom had a 73 lincon I got to drive it as a teen. Man they were something. The side view mirror adjustment tech always blew my mind. so simple it was elegant.
I remember half a century ago I was delighted with this car when I saw it in the showroom. There were also beautiful, colorful brochures of this car that I had at home for many years👍.
I bought a beautiful example from the Love Field Antique Mall in May, 1967, maroon with a white top and maroon interior. Showed 17K miles and it was believable. It drove like a dream and I loved the flow-through ventilation system--had to replace one of the drains in the trunk while I had it. Every once in awhile the horn would blow when I turned left, didn't think much about it. Two years later I sold it to a friend. Within six months, the steering column caught fire and he was not hurt. Had to replace the whole thing and it was a massive expense, was glad it didn't happen while I had it. Had a '72 Mark IV with only 44K miles on it and it always had electrical problems in the steering column, smoke started coming out one day. A short started one night and blew the horns until one burned out while sitting under my carport while I was out of town--my neighbor went down and disconnected the battery. I loved them, but I'm not having any more of them!
There are two "fail safe" items on the Mark. One is the spring as you mentioned on the headlight door vacuum motors. It is designed to fail in the open position so your headlights will work. The other is the HVAC. If it fails, it goes to heat so you don't freeze in the winter. Of course it can be horrendous if it is summer as it will scorch your feet after a while. One more odd thing that my 70 had was the drivers side floor vent. Who knew it was there? The sliding control that opens and closes the floor vent is hidden at the bottom of the dash just above your left ankle.
IMO they did it the wrong way. If the headlight system failed, it should have failed in the closed position, and there should have been a way to manually open the headlight doors. They got the heat and A/C wrong too. I live near Phoenix, AZ, where it can hit 115 degrees or more in the long summer. You really don't need heat here. If it is uncomfortably cold, just put on a jacket. You can die from heatstroke here in the summer without A/C. The "blend door actuator" on my 2006 Town Car failed. It's just a really flimsy plastic box with really flimsy plastic gears and a small 12V motor in it. Literally designed to fail. The gears stripped. It has an "automatic" climate control system, and the blend door actuator operates a hinged door in the ductwork which mixes hot and cold air, depending on what temperature you have it set on. It failed in full on heat mode. It is impossible to replace without ripping out the entire dash. I was able to remove the passenger airbag and glove box, and reach it through the airbag opening with a long rod, and break off the plastic arm that connects to the blend door, then jam a piece of wood behind the door to hold it in the full A/C position. I have no heat, but that has not been a problem for me during the past three years. A simple lever and cable would have been a lot less failure prone.
WELL THAT'S ABOUT AS FAR AS THEY SEEMINGLY WISHED TO PUT INTO IT, DOLLAR WISE I PRESUME AS THE $ WENT INTO OTHER FEATURES MY AMERICAN MADE CAR LOVER BROTHERS AND FRIENDS!! WE NEED TO RE-INITIATE OUR OLDER CARS AGAIN ONLY WITH FAR GREATER MILEAGE! I RECALL A BUDDY WHOSE NEIGHBORS, BOUGHT A GM VEHICLE RIGHT?! HE'D TAKEN IT IN TO BE SERVICED ONLY TO HAVE MANAGEMENT ASK TO HAVE OR, PURCHASE IT BACK??! TURNED OUT IT ACTUALLY WAS LOADED ON THE DELIVERY TRUCK 🚚 BY MISTAKE AND BELONGED TO ONE OF MANY GM ENGINEERS TEAMS AND HAD A SPECIAL CARBURETOR INSTALLED AND THE NEW OWNER, WAS GETTING NEARLY, 100 MPG!!! TRUE STORY SO HE SAID THANX BUT NO!! TOOK IT HOME ONLY TO BE CALLED, KNOCKS AT FOOR ET CETERA AS GM REALIZED THEY'D MESSED UP! HE NEVER DID GIVE IN N I CAN'T RECALL AFTER THAT BUT, THEY'VE THE CAPACITY TO GET FAR BETTER MPG BUT IT GOES AGAINST SCEEWING AMERICAN CITIZENS & WORLD CITIZENS!$!$!$...
@@geraldscott4302 it makes no sense to have the failsafe be on a/c. I can assure you that having your air conditioning not work in 115 isn't as dangerous as having no heat at -30. You might not be comfortable, but if you roll the windows down and shut the climate control off, you'll live.
@@geraldscott4302 I live in Maine and drive a 98 F150 and the "fail safe" heat mode is annoying even up here! It's also about a 10 hour job for an experienced person to get to the actuator motor! The ENTIRE dash needs to come out! I just use hose crimp off vise grips in summer. Works great when they don't get stuck under the throttle controls and it get stuck in W.O.T.!
I took my drivers test on my Dad's pale yellow '71 after practicing on a Pinto. That one, I believe had a passenger side outside mirror.. The switch was last minute because the mechanic at Midas didn't tighten the lug nuts on the Pinto a week before and a front wheel fell off!!. Nice video. Good memories. Thanks.
Nice video - beautiful car too. One more item - the heads up lights in the roof line is operated by fiber optics - which was industry leading for its time. You'll see the fiber optic cables in the rear trunk going to the tail lights.
I had a Chevy Vega that had a bright beam headlight indicator that lit by a fiber optic cable running to a little boot on the glass nib on the back of the driver side single headlight.
Absolutely stunning! My next door neighbor I had out in California had Mark III in this same color in the early to mid 80’s. He showed his in the 90’s at various car shows and he would win awards. I don’t think I’ve seen another since. Not sure what sure where that car ended up as he passed several years ago.
What a beautiful car! I can just imagine the feeling the original owner had driving that off the lot and parking it in their driveway. It had to feel like, "I've arrived." Great video!
My first car in high school was a 1978 Thunderbird and I didn’t know it had tilt steering until I noticed the wheel was pointing up after a makeout session with my girlfriend.Love your videos,Mike the Greek
Really impressed by the condition your Lincoln is in. I'm more of a mark IV and V fan but it's obvious as you mentioned the quality of your 69 is way better, along with the impeccable condition. I have a 76 Continental that's pretty decent but not quite to the standard yours sets.
On some year models of the Mark the safety release for the hood latch was missing from the factory making it possible for a poorly latched hood to blow open while driving damaging the rear corners of the hood. And, how would I know this?
I had a 1969 Connie, one of the features I liked and you didn't show, in the center of the back package shelf is a little protrusion sticking up.That item tells the driver when they have their turn indicators on, or when the brake lights light up when you press the brake pedal. It as well lets the owner know by the absence of one of the lights, that light bulb is out for some reason.
My first car... a 1969 Lincoln Mark III... The drive in movie love shack! It went from 0 to 60 in about 3 minutes - but then 60 to 150 in about a flash of your eye. Once you got that 6000 pound monster rolling it had lots of giddy up and go with the 460 Semi Hemi. The old Muscle Cars used to get me out of the hole - but I caught and passed them eventually! haha. Long live the Mark III.
I like how they had carpet at the bottom of the door panels. My newer vehicle is just the molded plastic and it shows the scuff marks from the times they get hit by your shoe. I love that flow though air feature too.
Just recently gave my DAD'S MarkIII, 60 plus thousand miles runs and looks like new. It still has the new car smell. I was offered double what my Dad paid for it a couple of years ago. I gave it to my youngest daughter who said she would never sale it.
That PS pump driven direct off the crankshaft was a great feature. I had a '68 T-bird and when driving thru a puddle water would splash on the PS drive belt and the wipers would stop because the belt would slip. That won't happen with the direct drive PS pump.
My old 63 Lincoln Continental sedan had the same power steering pump, wipers and bypass switch. Great wipers, infinitely variable, and that window switch came in handy at times too.
Having grown up in CT in the 60's and 70's, I can appreciate the original license plates on that car. I still remember my parents' license plate numbers, but the ones on my current cars, not so much.
A beautiful piece of motor history, thanks for your very clear voice and quality video! these features just left today's cars in shame. And these features definitly will make you smile all the way, and fun to show off ya friends
Friend in high school back in the late 80's had me teach him how to hotwire his parent's Dodge van that didn't have a locking steering column. He messed up and got caught by staying out too long while they were gone. At least they figured it was him that stole their van and didn't call the police. I hope you have trackers on those nice cars you have Adam.
Great video. My mom fell in love with the Mark III when it came out. My dad preferred the Eldorado but it was her decision. She bought a ‘70 triple-black Mark III off the Pasadena Lincoln-Mercury showroom floor. She had it for 9-years before trading it in for a triple black ‘79 Mark V. She never fell in completely in love with the Mark V like her Mark III.
Great video Adam. You forgot one unique feature, the Sure Track anti-lock brake system which was standard on all 69 Lincolns. Thunderbird also used the hydraulic wipers through 71.
IIRC, the ABS was based on a needle valve that briefly (and repeatedly) released the brakes when needed. It also cycled upon engine start, to ensure that it did not become stuck closed due to disuse.
Yes, I liked this Strangest Features video, and I would enjoy more of them. I'm from Connecticut, and I'd say that your front license plate is the original issue to this car. I believe that Connecticut began the two-alphabet letter plates in 1960, with AA. Your car having KW seems to match up for 1969 based with plates I remember having in the 1970s.
They never required replacements until they came up with the "save the sound" plates in the early 2000's. My grandparents had their plates from about 1955-2005!
I had a 72 Gran Torino with the rear side window that retracted into the C pillar. They were manual, not power, but I always thought that was cool. The only design flaw I see in these Lincolns is the transmission gear indicator glued on the steering column. Better if they had built in into the instrument cluster.
Adam unplugging the ac compressor cold weather does nothing. It just disconnected the clutch, adusting the controls to a warm/warmer does the same thing. Love your content ! Can't get enough of the cars I grew up with! Keep up the good work 👏 you will soon have the title of "car Jesus " (reference to Ian at forgotten weapons)
Hi from Russia. This is one of my favorite models of classic cars. Another one is Eldorado. This one is stylish and quiet up-to-date at the moment of production. The car is in working state and fine condition. Seems, You can easily use it every weekend. This makes idea that having moving car gives more fun and is not the same as to have a museum item with 100% original details, but with no chance to drive it. I'm deeply pleased that Your review is accurate and informative. It makes each of us do believe to have feeling of possession of the car, 50 years of age. Good job!
Unfortunately, in former Soviet countries, including Russia, the idea of full-size cars have never been very popular. Only few men were able to drive smth like classic American cars. And finally the idea to have such type of a car became strange for Russians. And it's not only economic reasons. It's lack of taste. The biggest country in the world by territory has no fun in driving powerfull full-size cars. We use small and mid-size German and Japan cars with high sound engines instead. Unfortunately, the culture of "cruising", heavy and safe vehicles is already not much spread in the world. And even became obsolete for US. This was a great period of cars history. And these were great cars!
Old Lincolns seem to be very masculine and this one is no exception. Very square and broad shouldered.
The worst thing about THAT particular car, is the fact that I don't own it!😁
It's absolutely beautiful and incredible.
exactly
I grew up around Lincolns, had a mark 5 ,loved the style and all the options, but the Mark 3 was the most beautiful of the bunch.
The Mark 3 was a beautiful car , but I was partial to the Mark 5, 3 of my best friends in school parents had Town Cars Tony’s step mom drove Lincoln Mark’s , her Mark 5 was silver on silver I loved that car and Jimmy’s dad gave him a 83 Cadillac coupe Deville in copper penny and maroon for graduation damn what a beautiful car.
@@mikemcnabb1582 Our Mark5 was silver/maroon interior, very nice however a large bottle of Aramis cologne leaked out in the car and forever became the code name for the car. We all got looks from waitress and neighbors, "windows up the church is in sight".
@@markloren2133 LOL O Lord that’s funny, the late 70’s early 80’s were fun, Luxury cars today or nice but not like the panache they had back then, I was thinking after sending my tex out earlier Tony’s dad had a lime green and hunter green interior and vinyl roof Cadillac Seville, my lord you couldn’t have sold that color on any other automobiles
It was. My Dad and his brother only drove Lincolns.
Both my parents worked for Ford. I grew up in Lincolns & T-birds - '57 - '72 models. The Marks, '69 and up were just dressed up T-birds, unlike those in the '50s.
Arguably in the top three best looking Lincolns ever made. By far the best looking of the 70s Mark series.
Absolutely agree.
I’d say the ‘72 mark is the best looking mark. All in the front end of that car
@@ce5243 I concur. I especially liked the redesign of the tail-lights on the 72.
My top Lincoln will forever be the Mk II, this one is probably top 5, but I happen to like the late Mk III and early Town Cars more
Glad to see your old mid 20th century neighborhood again.
Yes with its reasonable sized homes, and calm aesthetics. I’d rather live there than in tacky mini mansions with rooms that want to be filled.
Yeah, I noticed that he vastly upgraded his home a few months ago and I say good for Adam!!!!! Look at all of the vids he posts! This guy is a workaholic and he has worked hard for what he has.
- Agreed, his collection generally all fit really well into that setting.
Maybe this is an old video he got around to posting.
@@bennyhill3076 - the house/garage at this location might belong to a relative/sibling/parent?
My Dad had the 69 Mark three. Great car. The cruise control on the dash turned it on when you would get to the cruise speed you desired. The button on the turn signal was an interrupter. You would be going at speed , come to a car in front of you , push the button and it would disengage the speed control. My Dad fell asleep at the wheel after working twenty hours , broad sided two parked cars ( station wagon and a VW ) and totaled them. It didn’t even put a dent in the Mark three. It’s a tank. Thanks for the memories.
What a beauty!
Thanks for a great run down on this classic Lincoln.
Such a cool car. My neighbor had one of these in 69 when I was 7 years old. I thought was cool back then, even cooler now. Enjoy it, real beauty!
I love these videos because this makes understand what artistry, styling and engineering was all about in the 60' and 70's. I'm also a big fan of the care you take on explaining the various gadgetry and the thinking behind it.
FORD did some weird and cool stuff. My 70 Mercury Cougar also had vacuum headlights.
The 460 cu in. in this giant tank is barely enough to get it down the road. My buddy had one and you could floor
the gas and the car barely lurched at any speed.
Beautiful car! Im old enough to remember new cars such as this being built with individualism and styling. Chrome bumpers, Huge bench seats, Doors that weigh 200 pounds and trunks you could live in.
Your not kidding about the doors as l had to hire the strongest dude in my neighborhood to hold up one end of the door while l one handed bolted them on. A gunniness world record could be awarded to Ford.
12 highway 10 city
A great video featuring some of the unique and quality features of this car. One thing to note: that switch on the dash for the rear vents is actually a vacuum valve which operates two doors under the inside rear grille. There are also two drain tubes inside the trunk on either side of the car that allow water to escape. They often get clogged with debris, allowing water to pool inside the plenum.
and leak in the trunk...
What I don't understand is why they need a separate control. Most cars with any kind of fresh air ventilation (except maybe a few early AC systems that required the rear windows to be ajar) have to have some kind of exhaust ports in the rear and I've always assumed most of them had one-way flaps to keep cold air or exhaust from coming in. Was there any practical advantage to an active, rather than passive damper for these ports?
@@pcno2832 These cars have an external grille (as shown in the video) to exhaust the air,at the base of the rear window. To use this system most efficiently, the driver would open the lower cowl air vents and the rear vent. This would allow fresh air to circulate throughout the interior, draft free and quietly, in case the user did not wish to run the AC (or if the car was not so equipped -- AC and ATC were optional on these cars). It's important also to remember that a lot of folks smoked during this time period, so use of the system would allow the stale smoke to be exhausted quietly. On the Lincolns of this era equipped with Automatic Temperature Control, the AC compressor runs all the time, so use of this system was another way to save a bit of wear and tear. In '67 and "68, Mercury touted 4 different types of ventilation systems on the big Mercurys, this Flow-Through Ventilation being one of them.
@@DSP1968 That makes perfect sense, but I still don't get why a one-way damper wouldn't have been just as effective as a manually opened one, with the force of the air holding it open if either the flow-through ventilation or AC were in use. Maybe there was a patent conflict over that design.
@@pcno2832 I don't know for certain, but this was probably just another way to provide an additional selling feature to increase comfort. And to increase elaborateness and uniqueness. If you ever have the opportunity to drive or ride in one of these cars, you'll experience a very unique level of comfort, quality, and power. I owned one for about 12 years and it never failed to provide a very enjoyable experience.
Beautiful car with tons of character ❤.... thanks for sharing this little tour of your land yacht.
My best friends big brother had a '71 Mark III, Black with the Red Leather Interior similar to yours. I remember being allowed to ride back with them at the end of summer 1975. Cruising home from the Cape with the A/C on, AM Top-40 playing on the Stereo. 11 year old me and him in the back with his sister sitting between us, I felt like a King back there...
They do have AM stereo now tho l don't think many stations broadcast that way.
@@rollowarlin8450
You're probably right, Mono out two speakers? I was 11...
I owned a 1970 mark III.I did not know about these features.(THANK YOU!) it also had a vanity mirror in the glove box( probably not on used cars) and an indicator light(fiber optic) on the rear window shelf.telling you if the lights were burned out. the distributor had a shear pin that would break every now and then. It was one of my favorite cars..
Adam, everytime you open the door on your Mark III that stunning interior is a true delight. What a Great American Automobile!
About a week ago, I was about to enter a local drugstore when what should meet my wonders wonderstruck eyes but one of these: a (1971) Lincoln Continental Mark III coupe! I yelled out to the owner, who was at the other end of the parking lot, but still not far away from where I was, and I walked over and we began to talk and I asked him about his lovely car, a car I personally believe to be one of the most beautiful, aesthetically perfect cars to ever be produced, and thus one of my personal favorites, along with may others. Anyway, it was very great seeing one and being able to chat with the owner for a short while about it. (I can't say that I've seen that many Mark IIIs in my time. The Mark IVs and Vs are far more common where I live, yet even these are comparatively rare around here.)
Such a cool car. My retired-military neighbor had one (dark brown ext, white int) back in the late 1970s when I was a kid. I saw him driving it only on Sundays with his wife to and from church. He told me before we moved away that his Mark III was older than I was and that he had bought it new. I don't think it had more than 10K miles on it back then because years later (early 1990s) I went back to visit old friends and look around; he still had this car and the mileage was about 18K! He did not want to sell it at that time, lol. Thanks for posting this video.
I love the way those rear windows slide back like that, I've never seen that before
The 1968 Cadillac Eldorado did likewise.
thanks so much for the interesting education lesson on these unique and beautiful Lincolns.
The regional manager of the discount department store chain where I worked drove one of these. I was a part of the utility crew that unloaded trucks and did odd-jobs during my late high school years at the regional manager's favorite store in Levittown, Pennsylvania. One day Mr. R asked the fellows on the crew to install a CB radio and antenna in the Mark III. What an honor to be a part of that. I installed two whip antennas, one on either side of the really massive trunk opening close to the base of the rear window. Then we ran the coaxial cable to a combination connector that screwed into the back of the CB radio. I think now that the radio was a Realistic 23 Channel model that was available back in '73-'74. The installation was as clean as it could be made for the time with the mounting bracket base under the carpet. A fellow named Ron from the Automotive Department handled the radio mounting part of the installation. Those tall, white whip antennas really set Mr. R's maroon(ish) Mark III apart from every other vehicle coming down the road.
This design has held up extremely well throughout the years.
She is a beautiful machine , a well cared for and loved time capsule. Love the color. I owned a black Mk3 back in the day. Very nice example.
I’ve had a few of these. They took a nosedive in many ways in 72
So did the rest of the Ford cars. Hummm ? Let's see Deuce how can we make them cheaper ?
I remember these cars when they were closer to new. I was 3 years old in '69, but remember a few of these around town in the '70s. And, thanks for making me think about a few old Ford things that I haven't had to think of for quite a while!
I remember that flow-through ventilation . In 1966 my Dad bought a new Ford Galaxie 500 hardtop with that feature and it really worked nicely. Then around the mid-seventies I can remember looking at a used 1971 Mark III and I considered purchasing it because it was such a beautiful car...I can remember it quite clearly, as it was in what I would call a dark turquoise with a black top and interior. I ultimately didn't end up buying it, but looking back now, I sure wish I would have!
- Yes, this car also aroused great interest in me. It was a beautiful car with blue upholstery. Dla mieszkańca Polski takie auto w latach 70-tych to cud motoryzacji😲.
My 1971 galaxie is all turquoise inside and out, besides the black vinyl top of course. It’s a kind of blue that you just can’t forget, unfortunately. People will never know the glory of imperfections and oddities that cars had in the “land yacht” years. They were just things that fit that era so perfectly.
Modern cars use the AC for defrost. They usually say you should run the compressor every once in a while to keep it oiled.
was going to point this out, the o-rings will rot if not oiled every few weeks at least.
This car sat for 20 years before I bought it. It took one can of R12 to recharge it 10 years ago and the car sits most of the time. It’ll be fine
@@RareClassicCars I had an expensive refrigerator in storage for 8 years. My dad said throw it away. I got it out of storage and plugged it in. Works fine. Right again dad. My 70 Eldo is running on the original Frigidaire with R 12 although it has been serviced as it has a new drier on it.
Tell me how to fix the Eldos air compressor for the rear shocks.
I always wondered why Ford Thunderbird had the speed control switches on the steering wheel, and also had the tilt-away wheel but the Mark III didn't. They were essentially the same car.
Not really the same “so over it”
The mark 4 and T BIRD more so- the “III” was in and of itself... totally independent
@@oscarprendergast7295 The mark 3 was built on the Thunderbird chasis and all but the headlight eye were also on the Thunderbird first.
I will never understand the Mickey Mouse CC on the 69. Inagine trading in your 66 Thunderbird for this car & seeing that cruise system with its FAT turn signal?
@@oscarprendergast7295
Ya, well the 70 & 71 then did have the SAME cruise control put on it as the Mark III and T-Bird both came down the SAME assembly line.
You take off the dash facade on this car & you can't tell the difference from the Bird! Most of the wiring, the open-close rear vent, the window buttons etc etc etc were the SAME.
SAME hydralic wipers.
It goes on & on & on.
Haha ...
@@andrewsommers2823
They are soooo similiar.
Ive driven both & you can barley tell the difference except for sheet medal and sound deadening. Every control & system on this car was on my 70 Bird. Cracks me up when people scream "its not the same!!!"
Oh ya & the 72 Bird & Mark had no similarities either.
LOL
I love the weird features ideas. I grew up with old cars and I always have to explain why a new car feature is actually a 50 year old feature from another car that was forgottenabout
Great video. Having owned my 70 Mark lll since 1985 I can attest to and relate to everything that you’ve mentioned. Years ago when I daily drove mine I did the same thing with the AC compressor. In the winter I disconnected the compressor
As I saw no real need when it was 40 degrees out to have it cycling. It did help dehumidify the interior 24/7. That was its main purpose.
That must work much better in some places than others. I wouldn't try it here in New England; too many clammy spells, even sometimes in mid-winter, when you need (or at least very much want) the dehumidification to clear the fog.
You are NOT disconnecting the compressor, you are disconnecting the clutch to the compressor which leaves the compressor off when not called for.
If the wire is removed the ATC doesn’t energize the magnetic clutch and therefore the compressor will not engage, correct ? So you’re playing semantics !!!. Saying the compressor is disconnected is the same thing as saying you removed the wire that feeds the magnetic clutch which engages the compressor simpler was of saying the same thing
@@jakereal3604
Calm down, Jake. No biggy.
I am calm. You should reference that to the person whom made that argumentative statement! I was just clarifying that by removing a single wire the AC system no longer works from a dehumidifying perspective. no compressor engaging. That was my point. But thanks I am and always will be calm! My pressure is consistently 108/65 + / - 5 points on each
That takes me back. I started my career as a mechanic at a Lincoln Mercury Dealership in 1977. One of my customers was a Lincoln collector and his Mk III had a fire under the hood and I had the task of restoring it. They don't make em like that anymore! Very nice car BTW!
When I was a young boy my friends Father bought this same exact car in this color and I thought it was the coolest car I’ve ever seen. It was also the first car I rode in that had air conditioning and the a/c felt so good on that hot July day in Brooklyn. I will never forget that day and that beautiful car.
Oh man, what a beautiful car. Thanks for sharing that. I had a 68 mercury cougar with those vacuum headlights. What a pita to find parts for.
I worked at a garage in the summer of 1969 and had to drive one of these back to the owner’s office.
In the process, I out ran a 383 road runner from a stoplight to about 70 mph before I had to slow down.
It might be a wive’s tale, but I thought that the purpose for having the air conditioner run year round was to lubricate the seals; I also found defrosting was far superior with the air on.
Keep showing us car options!
My 1971 Chrysler T&C was loaded with them.
Thanks again for this video!!!
All car's with AC the manufactures advise you to run the AC once every two weeks or so durning the winter.
Climate control comes to mind as my Late uncle pointed out as he owned several Lincolns . It blended the heat and AC automatically which I thought was neat.
My ex had one of these. One night, she and our three daughters were coming over a pass in Colorado when, I think, she lost coolant. Blown hose? She went many miles before reaching some oasis and safety. Granted it was all down hill, low power requirement, but that giant block took all the heat w/o coolant just fine. Our precious cargo, safe. Thank you Lincoln!
When I had a mechanic shop and when people would bring any car that had a 460 in it, one of the problems was always that the engine was running hot. My solution was to replace the clutch fan with a flex fan. That always cured the problem. It worked on other car makes with big engines. I always had flex fans on stock . LOL
TRULY ELEGANT... Please note: curb light on passenger side not working... Thanks for sharing this beauty!
Love this piece of automotive art.
I always liked the styling of these cars as a kid when they were new but never knew anything more about them. Now I want one! And it's easy to imagine yours is brand new!
This was the car that was a central part of the plot line in the movie "The French Connection". Gene Hackman famously said "what the hell are rocker panels?" (That's where they hid the heroin).
This Lincoln is gorgeous. I like the pillarless look it has with the side windows down and the rear windows retracted into the sail panel.
Recently discovered your channel and am greatly enjoying your thoroughly detailed videos, Adam. I'm not sure you need to disconnect the AC compressor wire. That should be the clutch on the pulley. As long as the HVAC system is not calling for AC, the clutch will be disengaged and the compressor itself will not be turning. I think it's actually good to cycle it in the winter, for example when defogging using AC + reheat, to keep the seals exercised.
Yeah he don't know what he is doing
That car has some issue....power steering wipers...yeah something note right
@@barrygordon1173 When it comes to commenting, you don't know what you're doing. Your comment is not constructive and adds nothing to the conversation. Better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to speak and remove all doubt.
@Azzy's Design Works AC would run in defroster mode, winter or not.
I bet those high compression 460s were awesome!
l have one and they require high octane leaded (or add some) gas.
What an amazing car and you went back in time to film it at your previous home!
Outstanding video! Definitely reminded me of why my dad was a Ford guy in 60's & 70's. Lincoln Continentals were top notch luxury cars in their day.
Classy and well-built machine! Colour matched interiors are SOOO much nicer than today's boring black and gray blandness.
Couldn’t agree more. I also hate how exterior colors these days are mostly some shade of gray, black, or white
Great video and a fantastic car. A beautiful restoration.
I had a '69 Continental - the four door sedan often erroneously referred to as the Town Car. It had many of the same quirky features. My car was only 7 years old when I got it in 1976. Many of those features didn't age well and even at 7, things had started to go wrong. The wipers - a marvel of hydraulic engineering - were impressive when they worked properly. The dashboard switch, which I presume had the same functions as yours, included a push/pull cable that as you turned the knob would actuate a valve controlling the wiper motor. It also had an electrical component to engage the windshield wash sprayer and a vacuum component for the mist wipe or wash and wipe.
In my car, the wipers had a most annoying quirk that when the knob was pushed in (rather than turned) for a mist wipe or pushed all the way for a spray of fluid, they would not turn off. Often I had to actually pull over to the shoulder and turn off the car to make the wipers cease their rapid and noisy trek across the windscreen. It took many a long effort to track down the culprit in the system. The vacuum control in the dash knob worked on a diaphragm that pulled open the hydraulic valve that was normally controlled by the push/pull cable. It was supposed to release the diaphragm after two or three wipes returning to off. How this was accomplished was via a small fitting in the vacuum hose that had a felt cover. this was supposed to allow a leak down of the vacuum pressure in the system but in my car, the felt was dirty. It wouldn't allow the vacuum to bleed off. Once found, it took just minutes to remove the felt and tap the dried dirt and mud from it and return it to its place restoring proper function once more. The wiper blades themselves were another quirky feature. Unlike today when blades are available in just about every length imaginable, in the 70's the selection was much more limited. The 21" blades on the Continental were only available by special order through the dealer.
You also mentioned the window switches. These were problematic in my car as well. Their failure often seemed to coincide with the climate control defaulting to hot as mentioned in some of your other comments. I did find that the switches could be removed and disassembled. Unlike most modern stuff that is throw-away, I could remove the spring clips that held the two halves of the switch body together and access the rocker points inside the switch. A quick polish with a bit of emery paper and I was good to go for another year or so (I owned the car for 13 years and put 100,000 miles on it).
The power steering pump in its unique location on the front end of the crank shaft provide a good volume of flow for the various hydraulic systems but when it needed servicing, which was unfortunately quite frequently, It involved a serious amount of work to access the bottom front of the engine and the use of a puller to remove the harmonic balancer to access the pump. It made an awful buzzing noise - more than a regular belt driven pump - when it was failing.
The climate control system was another, over-engineered feature, that didn't age well. It was prone to vacuum leaks as the rubber hoses dried out and became brittle. There were more vacuum relays and servos in that control box than what you might find in a 747 - or so it seemed.
It was an awesome car though and I dispute one of the other commenters below who described it as being slow. The stock 460 cid engine in 1969 produced over 365 hp and 525 ftlbs of torque. for a car that was one of the heaviest non-commercial vehicles on the road (6600lbs. curb weight) it was plenty quick hitting close to 110mph in an unofficial 1/4 mile and giving cars like a '67 Dodge Charger with the 383 Magnum twin 4 bbl and Hurst 4 speed a run for their money (well we didn't race for money but he couldn't get away from me.)
Those were the days...
Thx. Not restored. Original.
Very interesting ! I had no idea that these vehicles had so many quirky functions! Fascinating.
I love the old Lincoln cars, Big and large, Especially Lincoln's of late 1968 through 1970 with the 460 v,8 motor,And al the Lincoln mark 5 and town cars 1976 through 1979 , what area of fine big Lincoln cars ever made, Sincerely Richard Dodds
One quirky thing you failed to mention is the little light box on the parcel shelf. It's an interior turn indicator light, so if you can't hear that your turn signal is on, you can see it in the rear view mirror. What a fantastic car! It's easy to see how they outsold the Eldorado in year 1 of production.
My '69 MK III overcharged too. I kept looking for the voltage regulator. An experienced parts guy at a NAPA in SF found it for me.
The previous owner put in a Pioneer AM-FM Single Disc CD player that fit in the same space as the original radio. It had a removable face. The sound was amazing.
Once I retracted the rear windows back and had to use rubber tipped forceps while pressing the switch to pull them back into position. Never moved them that far again.
It's a beautiful car.
I remember trying to roll down the rear window on one of those at a premier collector's indoor car lot. I thought I broke it, and couldn't get out of there fast enough!
@@kellybanning2013 Nearest exit time 😁
The Autronic Eye killing the coefficient of drag.
"...someone told me about the external voltage regulator...", I assumed that you have a library of vintage Chilton's shop books.
Ever think of bringing back your old intros - "Today on Rare Classic Cars...." and "Strangest Features, next on ..." fade to title card. That was good.
We have the same taste in cars. Thanks for you're videos. You do a great job. -Ed from Philly.
Now THIS is style. This car is so mint in general nevermind how old it is, what a great example of a classic Lincoln.
Back around 84 I was taking my dash apart to repair my clock in my 69 III and had turned on the wipers while taking the knob off and was surprised to have my wipers move when I turned the wheel. That’s how I figured out that they were operated by the power steering pump. The clock was another curious item, anyone who ever spent time in one of these cars in quiet conditions would have heard a clicking or pop sound every 90 seconds or so, this was an actual set of electric contact points with a spring return that would in essence wind the clock, the points would drive the clock until they closed and they would spark and open back up and the clock would run on. The old clocks were an easy fix once you got to them, just simply u stick the burnt points and lightly sand them clean and the clock would work again. I had a couple mark III’s as well as a couple 69 t-birds and the clock worked in every one while I had them. They were such powerful and nice riding cars. I used to offer to race any car in town the conditions were we cruise the highway side by side until we reach 100 mph then the race begins. Beautiful car you have there I miss having one.
Thanks for the info as the Cartiar clock in mine's still not working.
I just love this car!❤️ I have seen it at Pasteiner's, just beautiful!!!
So great to see the subs climbing. You’re really doing something on UA-cam that no one else is covering. 👍
My mom had a 73 lincon I got to drive it as a teen. Man they were something. The side view mirror adjustment tech always blew my mind. so simple it was elegant.
I remember half a century ago I was delighted with this car when I saw it in the showroom. There were also beautiful, colorful brochures of this car that I had at home for many years👍.
I bought a beautiful example from the Love Field Antique Mall in May, 1967, maroon with a white top and maroon interior. Showed 17K miles and it was believable. It drove like a dream and I loved the flow-through ventilation system--had to replace one of the drains in the trunk while I had it. Every once in awhile the horn would blow when I turned left, didn't think much about it. Two years later I sold it to a friend. Within six months, the steering column caught fire and he was not hurt. Had to replace the whole thing and it was a massive expense, was glad it didn't happen while I had it. Had a '72 Mark IV with only 44K miles on it and it always had electrical problems in the steering column, smoke started coming out one day. A short started one night and blew the horns until one burned out while sitting under my carport while I was out of town--my neighbor went down and disconnected the battery. I loved them, but I'm not having any more of them!
That Lincoln is gorgeous. It is definitely a survivor
I was also just plain enjoying the color scheme put on this vehicle, the paint is a great shad e and kudos for the polished care.
There are two "fail safe" items on the Mark. One is the spring as you mentioned on the headlight door vacuum motors. It is designed to fail in the open position so your headlights will work. The other is the HVAC. If it fails, it goes to heat so you don't freeze in the winter. Of course it can be horrendous if it is summer as it will scorch your feet after a while. One more odd thing that my 70 had was the drivers side floor vent. Who knew it was there? The sliding control that opens and closes the floor vent is hidden at the bottom of the dash just above your left ankle.
IMO they did it the wrong way. If the headlight system failed, it should have failed in the closed position, and there should have been a way to manually open the headlight doors. They got the heat and A/C wrong too. I live near Phoenix, AZ, where it can hit 115 degrees or more in the long summer. You really don't need heat here. If it is uncomfortably cold, just put on a jacket. You can die from heatstroke here in the summer without A/C. The "blend door actuator" on my 2006 Town Car failed. It's just a really flimsy plastic box with really flimsy plastic gears and a small 12V motor in it. Literally designed to fail. The gears stripped. It has an "automatic" climate control system, and the blend door actuator operates a hinged door in the ductwork which mixes hot and cold air, depending on what temperature you have it set on. It failed in full on heat mode. It is impossible to replace without ripping out the entire dash. I was able to remove the passenger airbag and glove box, and reach it through the airbag opening with a long rod, and break off the plastic arm that connects to the blend door, then jam a piece of wood behind the door to hold it in the full A/C position. I have no heat, but that has not been a problem for me during the past three years. A simple lever and cable would have been a lot less failure prone.
WELL THAT'S ABOUT AS FAR AS THEY SEEMINGLY WISHED TO PUT INTO IT, DOLLAR WISE I PRESUME AS THE $ WENT INTO OTHER FEATURES MY AMERICAN MADE CAR LOVER BROTHERS AND FRIENDS!! WE NEED TO RE-INITIATE OUR OLDER CARS AGAIN ONLY WITH FAR GREATER MILEAGE! I RECALL A BUDDY WHOSE NEIGHBORS, BOUGHT A GM VEHICLE RIGHT?! HE'D TAKEN IT IN TO BE SERVICED ONLY TO HAVE MANAGEMENT ASK TO HAVE OR, PURCHASE IT BACK??! TURNED OUT IT ACTUALLY WAS LOADED ON THE DELIVERY TRUCK 🚚 BY MISTAKE AND BELONGED TO ONE OF MANY GM ENGINEERS TEAMS AND HAD A SPECIAL CARBURETOR INSTALLED AND THE NEW OWNER, WAS GETTING NEARLY, 100 MPG!!! TRUE STORY SO HE SAID THANX BUT NO!! TOOK IT HOME ONLY TO BE CALLED, KNOCKS AT FOOR ET CETERA AS GM REALIZED THEY'D MESSED UP! HE NEVER DID GIVE IN N I CAN'T RECALL AFTER THAT BUT, THEY'VE THE CAPACITY TO GET FAR BETTER MPG BUT IT GOES AGAINST SCEEWING AMERICAN CITIZENS & WORLD CITIZENS!$!$!$...
@@geraldscott4302 it makes no sense to have the failsafe be on a/c. I can assure you that having your air conditioning not work in 115 isn't as dangerous as having no heat at -30. You might not be comfortable, but if you roll the windows down and shut the climate control off, you'll live.
I liked the fact the power steering pump was crank driven no belt
@@geraldscott4302 I live in Maine and drive a 98 F150 and the "fail safe" heat mode is annoying even up here! It's also about a 10 hour job for an experienced person to get to the actuator motor! The ENTIRE dash needs to come out! I just use hose crimp off vise grips in summer. Works great when they don't get stuck under the throttle controls and it get stuck in W.O.T.!
Grew up with a 67 Lincoln 2 door with the 462 engine; sweet rides. It also had the Window "Bypass" feature.
I was 12 y.o. when this car was available I fell in love and still think it's a beautiful car. This color would have been my pick.
I took my drivers test on my Dad's pale yellow '71 after practicing on a Pinto. That one, I believe had a passenger side outside mirror.. The switch was last minute because the mechanic at Midas didn't tighten the lug nuts on the Pinto a week before and a front wheel fell off!!. Nice video. Good memories. Thanks.
Nice video - beautiful car too. One more item - the heads up lights in the roof line is operated by fiber optics - which was industry leading for its time. You'll see the fiber optic cables in the rear trunk going to the tail lights.
I had a Chevy Vega that had a bright beam headlight indicator that lit by a fiber optic cable running to a little boot on the glass nib on the back of the driver side single headlight.
Absolutely stunning! My next door neighbor I had out in California had Mark III in this same color in the early to mid 80’s. He showed his in the 90’s at various car shows and he would win awards. I don’t think I’ve seen another since. Not sure what sure where that car ended up as he passed several years ago.
What a beautiful car! I can just imagine the feeling the original owner had driving that off the lot and parking it in their driveway. It had to feel like, "I've arrived." Great video!
Some innovative stuff for its time. A very nice car, those golden years of car design long gone..
Beautiful car Adam. I enjoyed seeing those quirky features
My first car in high school was a 1978 Thunderbird and I didn’t know it had tilt steering until I noticed the wheel was pointing up after a makeout session with my girlfriend.Love your videos,Mike the Greek
Really impressed by the condition your Lincoln is in. I'm more of a mark IV and V fan but it's obvious as you mentioned the quality of your 69 is way better, along with the impeccable condition. I have a 76 Continental that's pretty decent but not quite to the standard yours sets.
I absolutely love the lines on the III’s!
Thanks for posting up!
Cheers
Doc
On some year models of the Mark the safety release for the hood latch was missing from the factory making it possible for a poorly latched hood to blow open while driving damaging the rear corners of the hood. And, how would I know this?
Also never leave your mark running in park as they can slip into reverse. l head the new Lincolns are doing the same.
I had a 1969 Connie, one of the features I liked and you didn't show, in the center of the back package shelf is a little protrusion sticking up.That item tells the driver when they have their turn indicators on, or when the brake lights light up when you press the brake pedal. It as well lets the owner know by the absence of one of the lights, that light bulb is out for some reason.
Much respect for those. Loved the interiors, but never got a crush on one like I did my throngs of other land-based yachts.
My first car... a 1969 Lincoln Mark III... The drive in movie love shack! It went from 0 to 60 in about 3 minutes - but then 60 to 150 in about a flash of your eye. Once you got that 6000 pound monster rolling it had lots of giddy up and go with the 460 Semi Hemi. The old Muscle Cars used to get me out of the hole - but I caught and passed them eventually! haha. Long live the Mark III.
I like how they had carpet at the bottom of the door panels. My newer vehicle is just the molded plastic and it shows the scuff marks from the times they get hit by your shoe. I love that flow though air feature too.
Beautiful car, thanks for showing it to us.
I had an early (1972) Mk IV, which had some of the same features
Just recently gave my DAD'S MarkIII, 60 plus thousand miles runs and looks like new. It still has the new car smell. I was offered double what my Dad paid for it a couple of years ago. I gave it to my youngest daughter who said she would never sale it.
One of my favorite cars of all time. Saw one for sale on a consignment lot a few years ago with 6000 miles on it! It was just beautiful.
Thanks Adam. Thank you for sharing these interesting points. And particularly your BEAUTIFUL car! These cars really were premium.
That PS pump driven direct off the crankshaft was a great feature. I had a '68 T-bird and when driving thru a puddle water would splash on the PS drive belt and the wipers would stop because the belt would slip. That won't happen with the direct drive PS pump.
My old 63 Lincoln Continental sedan had the same power steering pump, wipers and bypass switch. Great wipers, infinitely variable, and that window switch came in handy at times too.
A beautiful, classic, elegant automobile and a fine example, thank you for a great video!
The cruise control on those cars is powered by vacuum.
Just LOVE the fact that a luxury car came with an AM radio in '69. My, how times have changed. Beautiful car!
Having grown up in CT in the 60's and 70's, I can appreciate the original license plates on that car. I still remember my parents' license plate numbers, but the ones on my current cars, not so much.
A beautiful piece of motor history, thanks for your very clear voice and quality video! these features just left today's cars in shame. And these features definitly will make you smile all the way, and fun to show off ya friends
Friend in high school back in the late 80's had me teach him how to hotwire his parent's Dodge van that didn't have a locking steering column. He messed up and got caught by staying out too long while they were gone. At least they figured it was him that stole their van and didn't call the police.
I hope you have trackers on those nice cars you have Adam.
Absolutely gorgeous looking car. I’d just love to own that motor. Just beautiful.
Great video. My mom fell in love with the Mark III when it came out. My dad preferred the Eldorado but it was her decision. She bought a ‘70 triple-black Mark III off the Pasadena Lincoln-Mercury showroom floor. She had it for 9-years before trading it in for a triple black ‘79 Mark V. She never fell in completely in love with the Mark V like her Mark III.
Beautiful Mark III and agreed some of its' design features were rather strange. Thanks for pointing them out !
Great video Adam. You forgot one unique feature, the Sure Track anti-lock brake system which was standard on all 69 Lincolns. Thunderbird also used the hydraulic wipers through 71.
Buddy had a '70 and I found a Bendix module under the dash for that feature. Very cool.
IIRC, the ABS was based on a needle valve that briefly (and repeatedly) released the brakes when needed. It also cycled upon engine start, to ensure that it did not become stuck closed due to disuse.
@@lorenzoboyd6889 So it lived on or close to the master cylinder? That would make sense.
What an absolutely beautiful old boat!!!
Yes, I liked this Strangest Features video, and I would enjoy more of them.
I'm from Connecticut, and I'd say that your front license plate is the original issue to this car. I believe that Connecticut began the two-alphabet letter plates in 1960, with AA. Your car having KW seems to match up for 1969 based with plates I remember having in the 1970s.
My Connecticut plate starts with YT, and I got it in 1980…..
They never required replacements until they came up with the "save the sound" plates in the early 2000's. My grandparents had their plates from about 1955-2005!
I had a 72 Gran Torino with the rear side window that retracted into the C pillar. They were manual, not power, but I always thought that was cool. The only design flaw I see in these Lincolns is the transmission gear indicator glued on the steering column. Better if they had built in into the instrument cluster.
Adam unplugging the ac compressor cold weather does nothing.
It just disconnected the clutch, adusting the controls to a warm/warmer does the same thing.
Love your content ! Can't get enough of the cars I grew up with! Keep up the good work 👏 you will soon have the title of "car Jesus " (reference to Ian at forgotten weapons)
AC always runs on these unless the temp is below about 40F
@@RareClassicCars what happens when you turn up the heat?
Car Jesus. Ian would probably dig that. ..we have to make a meme of Adam as car Jesus. Lol
@@danscott3880 truly a must.
@@RareClassicCars must be a dehumidification feature to keep windows from fogging inside.
Hi from Russia. This is one of my favorite models of classic cars. Another one is Eldorado. This one is stylish and quiet up-to-date at the moment of production. The car is in working state and fine condition. Seems, You can easily use it every weekend. This makes idea that having moving car gives more fun and is not the same as to have a museum item with 100% original details, but with no chance to drive it.
I'm deeply pleased that Your review is accurate and informative. It makes each of us do believe to have feeling of possession of the car, 50 years of age. Good job!
Unfortunately, in former Soviet countries, including Russia, the idea of full-size cars have never been very popular. Only few men were able to drive smth like classic American cars. And finally the idea to have such type of a car became strange for Russians. And it's not only economic reasons. It's lack of taste.
The biggest country in the world by territory has no fun in driving powerfull full-size cars.
We use small and mid-size German and Japan cars with high sound engines instead.
Unfortunately, the culture of "cruising", heavy and safe vehicles is already not much spread in the world. And even became obsolete for US.
This was a great period of cars history. And these were great cars!
Makes me think of "The French Connection". View it if you want to see one chopped apart by the police.
Then Police Squad made a hilarious parody with a Continental later.
@@curtcollett2893 Have'nt seen that one.
@@rogersmith7396 Type in Police Squad French Connection and it should appear as the top selection. Cheers!
Adam your Mark III is an absolutely beautiful car and in excellent condition.