1939 Lincoln
edited by David Barth, 30 January 2009.
Courtesy The Crawford Auto-Aviation Museum in Cleveland, Ohio, USA.
Photos were taken in January 2009.
While the Lincoln's engineering was first-rate, the styling was extremely stodgy, and sales plummeted. Henry Leland
turned to Henry Ford for help, and in 1923, Ford bought Lincoln. Leland soon left when it became clear that Lincoln
was Ford's company, not his anymore. Ford kept the Lincoln name, and the reputation for quality, but he put the
company under his son Edsel's direction. Edsel remade the Lincoln's style, seeking out the best custom coach-making
shops to produce bodies for the new and improved Lincoln.
Combined with the Ford Company's efficient assembly line techniques, sales of the new Lincoln increased dramatically
in the 1920s, and Lincoln became known as one of America's finest and most luxurious car lines. Lincoln introduced the
new Zephyr in December 1935, the lowest-priced V-12 car in the country, and on of the most gorgeous. Sales took off,
with Lincoln selling more than 14,000 Zephyrs that year. In 1935, before the Zephyr was introduced, Lincoln only
produced 1,411 cars. Zephyr sales continued to do well, doubling in 1937. The car was slightly redesigned in 1938,
causing sales to fall a little, but Zephyr led the pack for all Lincoln models and sales even rose in 1939. In that year,
the Zephyr was modified in very minor ways. A new technical addition was hydraulic brakes. Lincoln built only 640 Zephyr
convertibles in 1939, out of a total of 21,000 Zephyrs built that model year.
This Zephyr was owned by the late Ernest C. "Ernie" Sassano of Gates Mills, Ohio. Mr. Sassano acquired the car in 1994 at
the Spring Kruse Auction in Atlanta, Georgia. From 1994 to 1996, the car underwent a complete frame-up restoration. The
car, with a black exterior and red interior, has been kept in a heated garage and under a car cover since its restoration,
only brought out for car shows and the occasional pleasure drive by Mr. Sassano. Since the restoration work was completed
in 1996, the car has been entered in numerous competitions and has won several "Best of Show" and "Best of Class" awards
at venues across the country.
Model: H-76 Zephyr
Body Style: 2-door convertible coup
Original Factory Price: $1,700
Brake Horsepower: 110 hp at 3,900 rpm
Displacement: 267.3 cubic inches
Bore: 2 3/4 inches
Stroke: 3 3/4 inches
Cylinders: V-12
Wheelbase: 125 inches
Manufacturer: Lincoln Division, Ford Motor Company
Location: Dearborn, Michigan, USA
Donor: The Estate of Ernest C. Sassano
