Lincoln : Mark Series Cartier

For Sale: 1978 Continental Mark V. Carter Designer Edition

WHY COLLECT A 1978 CONTINENTAL MARK V?

The 1978 Mark V has the best combination of looks. size. smooth ride that only comes with its weight of almost 5000 pounds. quiet ride that results from a special Ford Motor Company engineering effort to produce the quietest car in history. vast number of modern comfort and convenience options. and reliability.

The Looks. Just take one look at the styling. This car stands out in a crowd. It is long and low. In fact. at 19 feet. it is one of the longest cars ever made. even longer than the 1959 Cadillac. Unlike the many plain. boring cars on the road today. which look like they were made by a five and dime store. the Mark V has chromed metal bumpers and grill. When I drive a Mark V. most people flash the thumbs up sign and wave.

The size. Only a car of this size has such a commanding presence and stature. And what an extreme pleasure to sit in the Continental Mark V and have enough space to be able to stretch out your arms and legs as far as you wish. Space is the biggest luxury there is. You won't find it in any new cars.

The weight. At almost 5000 pounds. the Mark V has the fantastic smooth Lincoln ride that a heavy car and only a heavy car can give you. By way of comparison. other cars will bounce you around like you are a dribbled basketball.

Legendary super quiet Lincoln ride. The ride is so quiet that you sometimes have to quickly hit and release the accelerator pedal just to know if the engine is running.

It's just so comfortable to drive. There is nothing like it. Trips that seem to take hours in other cars seem to take minutes in the Continental Mark V.

It is a super safe car to drive. It has real metal bumpers. Anything else is not a bumper and won't protect you in a crash. And the full almost 5000 pound weight of the car is on your side.

Of the three years that the Mark V was produced. 1977. 1978. and 1979. the best year by far is 1978. That is because in 1979. the fantastic 460 engine. which is the engine in the car for sale here was not available and in 1977. many of the best comfort and convenience options were also not yet available. such as the power vent windows.

Other collectible cars. such as Rolls Royce. Duesenberg. Packard. Cord. Mercedes. etc. all have problems not shared by the Mark V. Either they are unreliable. lack modern comfort and convenience options. are noisy. or if new models are still being made then they are too small and cramped and no longer have very distinctive looks.

What is special about this particular Continental Mark V:

 This Mark V is in better condition than about 99% of all other Mark Vs.

 It is the highly desirable and rare Cartier Designer Edition.

$4000 wet-sand paint job in correct. original factory color

$3500 in upholstery work: all upholstery replaced with original. factory correct velour material done in original factory correct style. You cannot tell the upholstery was not done by the Lincoln factory.

The paint and upholstery are about 90% of what you see and in this car. they are like brand new.

Over $1500 of preventative maintenance work performed during the last three years. even though none of the items replaced were giving problems. Did this to make this Mark V even that much better than any other one now for sale on Ebay:

carburetor rebuilt

new starter motor

most engine seals/gaskets replaced

new engine timing gear/chain set

rebuilt distributor

new water pump

new fuel pump

new battery

new plugs

new plug wires

new high current cables for starter. alternator. starter solenoid. and engine ground

new heater hoses

new radiator hoses

new fuel hoses

new belts

new thermostat

new fan clutch

new radiator cap.

No rust ever: Texas car. never in snow. always garaged. hardly ever driven in rain.

Since the Fall of 1986. this Mark V has been stored indoors and only driven back and forth about 10 feet once every two months to prevent damage that can happen from letting a car sit unused too long.

No crashes

Frame never bent

Original radio. original wheels. original power antenna

No smokers or pets have been inside this car

Doesn't burn oil

Loaded with original factory options:

 460 engine

 power moon roof

 power vent windows

 cruise control

 tilt wheel

 dual 6 way power seats

 Reclining passenger seat

 power door locks

 power trunk lock

 remote controlled passenger door mirror

 am/fm/8 track radio

 interval windshield wipers

 illuminated entry system

 rear window electric defroster

 heated driver door mirror

 individual map lights

 space saving original mini spare tire

 lighted sun visor vanity mirrors

All Steel factory original wheels with an upgrade to the wire wheel hubcaps

List of just some of thee standard Mark V features on this car:

Automatic transmission

Air conditioner

Power windows

4 wheel disc brakes

Power brakes

Power antenna

Automatic parking brake release that releases parking brake when gear selector is put into any forward or reverse gear

Headlights concealed behind automatically opening/closing headlight doors

Remote controlled driver door mirror

 

How Did This Continental Mark V Receive Such Special Treatment and Protection?

 

I collect only the 1978 Mark V and so this car has gotten the special care and protection that only a car owned by a dedicated Mark V collector gets.

I erected a building just to store my Mark V collection indoors.

The Mark V being sold here was one of my spare Mark Vs. Except for starting it up and driving it back and forth about 5 feet every month. which I do to stop seals from drying out. this car has not been driven since 1986!

The 1986-1987 inspection sticker is still on the windshield (see the photos).

As a spare. this Mark V would have only been used if the Mark V that I drove was stolen. wrecked in an accident. or otherwise lost. Nothing bad ever happened to that Mark V and so the spare being sold here was never used.

 

History of This Car:

 

In 1986. I traveled to Dallas. TX. where the cars are rust free. to locate and buy a 1978 Mark V in close to new condition. I do not have to work and so I was able to stay until I found a Mark V that met my high standards.

After rejecting over 15 Mark Vs during a three week period. I located and purchased the car that is for sale here at a used car dealer.

I located and spoke with the previous two owners. They said the car was never crashed. was a Texas car all its life. was always garaged. was never driven in road salt or snow and hardly ever in rain. nobody ever smoked in the car. and they never had any problems with the car.

I test drove the car and inspected it inside and out. top and bottom. including while I had it up on a lift.

I then purchased it and personally drove it home to MA. The car ran great without any problems.

In order to give the car a longer lasting test. I registered it in MA and drove it a few hundred miles from September through November 1986. It ran perfectly. like a new car. I then took it off the road in November 1986. and stored it indoors in the building a constructed just for my Mark V collection.

The MA state inspection sticker from 1986-1987 is still on the windshield (see the photos).

When I bought this Continental Mark V in 1986. it had 75. 00 miles on it. It now has 78. 00 miles on it. The added mileage was from driving this car from TX to MA and driving it locally in MA for 3 months in 1986.

 

Why This Mark V Is a Tremendous Value:

The engine starts up quickly and easily and runs and idles smoothly and evenly. The transmission shifts when it is supposed to and does so quickly and smoothly. The car drives smoothly and quietly and does not wander. The exhaust is quiet and has no leaks. The power windows and power antenna do not stick like they do on many cars. The power brakes effortlessly and quickly stop the car. There are no noises or vibrations that should not be there when you drive the car. The vinyl roof has no rips. cuts. or discolorations.

I have put about $9000 into this car to bring it to near-new condition for sale and there is so little left that I know of that needs to be done:

The air conditioner system needs a new charge. Because some people prefer R-134 coolant but others prefer R-12. I am going to leave re-charging the system up to the next owner. The clock does not work. There are a few dings on some of the exterior moldings. The passenger door power lock does not work. The brake rotors work fine. but slightly chatter when the brakes are applied – they simply need to be turned at a machine shop. These few items are a small price to pay to get the benefit of the $9000 in improvements I have made to this car.

 

My Ebay seller rating is a perfect 100% so you can be sure that you are going to love this car and will not be disappointed.

CHECK OUT THE LARGE NUMBER OF PHOTOS. THEY INCLUDE THE FLOORBOARDS. BOTTOMS OF THE DOORS. DOOR JAMBS. ROCKER PANELS. AND THE UNDERSIDE OF THE TRUNK LID EDGES SO YOU CAN SEE HOW RUST FREE THIS CAR IS.

THERE ARE 93 PHOTOS. SO BE SURE TO SCROLL THROUGH ALL OF THEM. THERE MAY BE TWO SEPARATE SCROLL BARS ON THE RIGHT AND YOU MAY HAVE TO USE BOTH OF THEM TO SCROLL THROUGH ALL PHOTOS.

I'M HAVING TROUBLE GETTING THE PHOTOS TO DISPLAY HERE. HOPE TO HAVE THEM WORKING SOON. IN THE INTERIM. CONTACT ME AT 78MARKV AT G9MAIL (REMOVE THE "9") DOTCOM AND I'LL SEND LINKS TO THE PHOTOS TO YOU.

On Nov-10-14 at 18:53:32 PST. seller added the following information:

TEST

On Nov-10-14 at 19:16:12 PST. seller added the following information:

On Nov-10-14 at 19:19:31 PST. seller added the following information:

Photo Gallery - click to enlarge 

On Nov-10-14 at 19:25:55 PST. seller added the following information:

On Nov-10-14 at 20:59:55 PST. seller added the following information:

Photo Gallery - click to enlarge  Photo Gallery - click to enlarge 

On Nov-10-14 at 21:13:50 PST. seller added the following information:

FINALLY GOT THE PHOTOS TO WORK!!!

THERE ARE TWO SEPARATE PHOTO GALLERIES DIRECTLY ABOVE. ONE ON TOP OF THE OTHER. THE TOP GALLERY SHOULD HAVE 50 PHOTOS AND THE BOTTOM GALLERY SHOULD HAVE 43 PHOTOS.

CLICK ON ANY PHOTO IN THE TOP GALLERY AND YOU WILL BE TAKEN TO THE HOSTING WEBSITE WHERE YOU CAN VIEW MUCH LARGER VERSIONS OF THE PHOTOS.
WHEN YOU FINISH LOOKING AT THOSE PHOTOS. THE 50 PHOTOS OF THE TOP GALLERY. GO BACK TO THE EBAY LISTING AND CLICK ON A THUMBNAIL PHOTO IN THE LOWER GALLERY.

NOW YOU CAN LOOK AT LARGER VERSIONS OF THOSE 43 PHOTOS AND WILL THEN HAVE SEEN ALL 93 PHOTOS.

FORGET ABOUT ANYTHING I SAID EARLIER ABOUT HAVING TO USE SCROLL BARS TO VIEW THE PHOTOS. JUST FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS RIGHT HERE AND YOU WILL SEE ALL THE PHOTOS.

On Nov-10-14 at 21:49:58 PST. seller added the following information:

 Here are some photos that should have been in the above 2 galleries but for reasons known only to some computer somewhere were not included as they should have been. This is gallery 3 of 3.


Photo Gallery - click to enlarge 

On Nov-10-14 at 21:55:29 PST. seller added the following information:

Here are the missing photos. Ignore gallery directly above. it is a duplicate. Ebay won't let me do full edits to delete problems because someone has already made a bid otherwise I would have removed these foulups. Photo Gallery - click to enlarge 

On Nov-11-14 at 18:06:05 PST. seller added the following information:

Forgot to mention:

Car has the standard Mark V power steering.

Preventative maintenance also included installing a brand new engine flywheel just to be sure the teeth on it that engage the starter motor were brand new.

Also published at eBay.ca

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