1961 Continental hardtop

[LithiumCobalt]

Not a ton of information, but interesting read, nonetheless.

https://www.macsmotorcitygarage.com/the ... tid=Zxz2cZ

“Prices, features, and specificatios are subject to change without notice.” We’ve all seen that curt disclaimer in the fine print of the carmakers’ advertisiing materials. And here at Mac’s Motor City Garage, we’ve reported a few of the times when, at some point between introduction and serious production, the manufacturers decided to make significant changes: For example the 1955 Ford Thunderbird, the 1933 Willys, and even the familiar 1957 Chevrolet. We can add to the list the 1961 Lincoln Continental—the hardtop that, in reality, wasn’t really offered as a hardtop.

Ford’s Lincoln-Mercury division faced a number of technical challenges when it drastically downsized the Lincoln platform for 1961, chopping eight inches out of the wheelbase and more than a foot from its overall length. To provide more comfortable entry and exit for the rear seat passengers with the smaller package, the rear doors were engineered to open at the front—“suicide doors” in the popular venacular.

Meanwhile, it was also decided that a four-door convertible would be part of the product line, a body style where a fixed B pillar between the front and rear window openings would not be appropriate. So instead, the body engineers devised a somewhat complicated setup in which the rear side glass seal slipped in behind the front glass, with an automatic drop-down feature that made the rear glass drop down out of the way when the door was opened.

Originally, all this complicated wiring and hardware in the rear doors was to be included on a version of the fixed-roof Continental as well, which would make it a pillarless hardtop. Reportedly, around 10 early–production cars were built this way, and at least one of them was used to shoot the company’s promotional photos for the Continental introduction. The body style was listed in the Lincoln parts catalog, too.

But at some point not long into the production process, the decision was made to not use all the tricky door-and-window hardware on the sedan. Instead, all would include a fixed pillar between the front and rear glass. The slim B post didn’t add much in the way of structural rigidity, but it did provide a better seal between the front and rear side glass, with much less wear and damage to the weatherstripping. And it also reduced the component count and simplified production. When an automaker can improve the product and reduce cost at the same time, that’s an easy call to make.

What became of the handful of pillarless hardtops isn’t entirely known, but it seems that none of them survive today. At least none have turned up anywhere in enthusiast circles, apparently, though a few customizers have used the convertible hardware to convert their sedans to the pillarless look. Ultimately, the presence of a B pillar (below) had no discernible effect on the public’s reception of the ’61 Continental or its place in automotive history. Sedan or convertible, it’s still one of the most striking luxury cars the Motor City has ever produced.

[Mike]

Funny that so much of that matches the recent discussion here

It's always nice to see write ups about them none the less.

[TonyC]

My info stated that only four of those cars were built for that model year, and that was the end of the clap-door hardtop.

I do have to say, the sedan treatment does appear to have better sealing capacity against air and water leaks than the hardtop treatment. I can't help but wonder why the other high-end marques and even some medium marques did not for the most part adopt that sooner, like, before Ralph Nader made his noise and effectively mandated it on all closed vehicles (and for a little while all but banned production of open vehicles).

---Tony