Here’s famed sports announcer Chris Schenkel to call the action in this dealer introduction to the 1969 Lincoln Continental Mark III.
The play-by-play on this dealer presentation for the 1969 Continental Mark III is done by none other than Chris Schenkel, one of the most familiar voices in America in the sixties for his work on ABC’s Wide World of Sports, watched by all. However, there’s an interesting little glitch in the voiceover script at the opening, which almost seems to suggest that there was a 1968 Mark III. That happens to be a rather common myth about the Mark III, for while Lincoln’s new personal luxury entry was announced in February of 1968 and the dealer introduction came in April, all the cars produced in 1968 were 1969 models.
Either way, the Mark III was a triumph for the Lincoln division and for Ford product vice president Lee Iacocca, who actually had a direct hand in the styling. Working with lead stylist L. David Ash, Iacocca added the classic stand-up grille and faux spare tire bump, the two features that, in a major way, defined the look that sold the car. Finally, here was a Lincoln that could compete head-on with Cadillac in an important market segment, personal luxury coupes, where the Mark III matched (in 1969) and then passed (in 1970) Cadillac’s Eldorado in sales volume.
Iacocca also shrewdly based the Mark III on the four-door Ford Thunderbird platform, greatly reducing the tooling and manuacturing costs. According to Dearborn nsiders, the Mark III allowed the division to turn a proit for the first time since 1922 when Henry Ford purchased the Lincoln Motor Company from the Lelands. (See our more complete Mark III feature here.)
There’s nothing n the way of technical detail in this presentation, for example the new 460 cubic-inch V8 or even the lavishly appointed interior. Instead, here the focus is on the Mark III’s pitch-perfect exterior design and instant prestige. Shenkel delivers a list of superlatives: “Incomparable.” “Has no peer.” “America’s most prestigious automobile.” Video below.
A case of parallel development since the much further downmarket Chevy Monte Carlo also used an existing coupe body lined up around the rear wheelwells with an existing, longer 4-door chassis, those being from the Chevelle. In both cases the four-doors’ stretch for rear legroom was reallocated to hood length. (The Pontiac Grand Prix had its’ own wheelbase shared with no other GM A-body, making for four total – 112″ for the standard 2-doors, 116″ for the 4-doors, standard wagons, El Camino and Monte Carlo, 118″ for the GP and a full-size 121″ for the Olds Vista-Cruiser and Buick Sportwagon.
The 70-72 Monte Carlos made pretty good entry level oval-track race cars due to that fact as it had the engine well back from the front wheels. Good weight distribution. Almost won my first feature event driving a friends car.