Last 1965 Convertible?

[herbscar]

New to the forum and have searched but haven"t found an answer. My brothers and I have recently resurrected our Dad's beloved 1965 convertible that has been in storage at the family farm and had not run in 18 years. AFB rebuild,waterpump,ignition and the 430 purrs like a kitten. Will address all the systems but she went on a 1.5 hour 100mile drive without a hiccup. Love this amazing car. Dad bought the car off a used car lot in suburban Detroit in 1968.
Vin # is 5Y86N440149, build date 12G ( july 12) 1965 Wixom assembly, med Ivy gold metallic. Other available information claims end of production for 1965 was July 9th, so this is 3 days later. Total 1965 production is claimed to be 40180 vehicles , so this car appears to be 31 cars from the last. Total convertibles 3356.
Question: Does anyone have or know of a later convertible Vin than 40149? Can any Lincoln historians here shed any light on the final production prior to model change over? Thanks in advance for any help or reference to further resources to investigate.

[mge825y]

Herb - You can try checking here to learn more about other cars and where yours falls in the production order

http://www.thelincolnregistry.com/

[frasern]

Also, go to the marti reports site and read their description. The serial numbers are not sequential and the actual production dates can vary from the data plate, so it is possible for your car to have been built on the 9th. Sadly, the actual date is not available for '65 but my 67 was built 38 days after the date on the data plate.
Great car to revive, with a great back story. And welcome aboard

[herbscar]

Thanks guys. I just registered the car at the Lincoln registry. there are 2 cars with higher numbers, 40229 and 40342 without production date info. There is car 40144 that has the same production date as our car July 12 1965. I will go to the marti reports site as well. Thanks again.

[herbscar]

Is the often quoted 40180 total production number correct if there are serial number 40229 and 40342?

[frasern]

I am not an expert, but my thinking is that an order could be cancelled after the serial number was assigned, but before the car was built, so there may be some unused numbers in the sequence.

[Lee]

I looked at some old LCOC directories, and I see the N440229 convertible, but also N465606 and N605214 which I have to assume are typos, but the same numbers appear in multiple LCOC editions.

[herbscar]

Fraser and Lee, That makes sense that numbers may have been deleted prior to production. Attached is a picture of the Vin plate

[frasern]

If you haven't already, compare the serial number on the fender apron, to confirm a match, it is stamped upside down under the washer bag.
I once got a Kijiji seller very upset when I told him a 67 parts car was a 66, it had a 66 dash, seats door panel, and steering wheel visible in one picture, and in another, the drivers door was a different colour, but he had a 67 data plate on that door, and nobody was going to change his mind!

[TonyC]

Herb,

Per your question, it is very possible you may never get a definitive answer. Unfortunately, record-keeping at Ford was not the greatest back then, and some of those records had been lost in a fire or just by random purging to make space. However, it would not surprise me if your heirloom was in fact the last 'vert made for that year, given its VIN sequence and its birthday. It certainly is one of the last; and if it isn't the last 'vert made for that year but is the last surviving example made, that's something to boast about at meets. In any case, welcome aboard.

When you do the cross-reference with the actual VIN in the engine bay, keep in mind it may be hard to read. The stampings of the digits sometimes were not done perfectly, so some letters or numbers may look different from what they actually are. But, if the VIN matches the number on the door plate, then use the door plate to report the VIN to DMV and insurance.

Normally I don't reach out to newbies-with-'verts, but those who inherit one from their family are an exception. Glad to have you in the Forum. I'm sure many of us will be glad to help you out with the things you will inevitably have to face. That year has numerous issues that were not really issues when their warranties were still active (well, save for at least one, but I'm presuming that was remedied by the time your dad acquired it), but they became issues as time wore on. We here know them all and how to engineer out all the flaws without re-inventing the whole car.

---Tony

[herbscar]

Hey guys,
This is the right fender apron vin# that matches. Been great fun getting her running with my brothers. Fascinating crankshaft driven power steering pump, hydraulic windshield wipers, triple thermostats, relays and vacuum lines everywhere. Amazing car for it's time and ever more so today.
We've been using Dad's original 1965 factory shop manual with all his writings, notations and grease marks. It's like he is there with us. He kept up on maintenance and we've discovered many new parts Dad installed just prior to when he stopped driving it. Falling in love with this car just like he did.
What would be the best archived resources , books, etc. to obtain or read about the history of these vehicles? Thanks for the responses

[bd94s10]

Welcome to the TLF. Great info already provided above. If you get a chance checkout Lincoln Addict on YouTube and Lincoln Addict Podcast (both free).

https://www.youtube.com/@lincolnaddict

https://lincolnaddict.podbean.com

Definitely buy a shop manual if you don't have one. Dan also has access to files I believe that he will provide with a donation to the forum. There are other resources such as top diagnostics

https://www.ebay.com/itm/404150097662?h ... R9SH9eqbYg

https://www.ebay.com/itm/354863879484?h ... R_7F_uqbYg

Thanks,
Jason B. aka ODB The Lincoln Addict

[herbscar]

Thanks Jason, I'll go to those links and resources.

[Lee]

What would be the best archived resources , books, etc. to obtain or read about the history of these vehicles? Thanks for the responses

Herb, both of these books are good resources. The Brooklands book concentrates on the 61-69 era with contemporary articles and road tests, and the Bonsall book gives you a broader background of the origins of Lincoln and Henry Leland, and then speaks specifically of each model year up until the modern era. Not sure either is still in print, though. I’ve had these for many years.

[Mike]

What would be the best archived resources , books, etc. to obtain or read about the history of these vehicles? Thanks for the responses

Herb, both of these books are good resources. The Brooklands book concentrates on the 61-69 era with contemporary articles and road tests, and the Bonsall book gives you a broader background of the origins of Lincoln and Henry Leland, and then speaks specifically of each model year up until the modern era. Not sure either is still in print, though. I’ve had these for many years.

The second book the 61-69 is still in print.
It's pretty much a collection of the various articles written about the cars when they were new. I have several books from that series and liked reading them.