Sunday 4 October 2009

1956 Continental Mark II



"Obviously, the Continental Mark II can be made only in limited numbers. But, whether you hope to own one or not, we believe you will share the sincere feeling of the Ford Motor Company that the Continental Mark II is the finest car not only in America, but in the world."

When we found the rural version of the Continental Mark II, we couldn't imagine yet to see another one on cuban streets. Well, miracles happen, and today we can show you a Continental Mark II in it's very original shape. Fifty years after its presentation, the clean and elegant lines of this automotive classic are still breathtaking. Ford deliberately stepped out of the "chrome-and-glamour" trend of the mid-50s, and styled its flagship with european taste in mind. The 1956 Continental Mark II received a lot of attention during its presentation, but obviously the design couldn't make points against the "loud" and flashy appearance of the Cadillacs, Oldsmobiles and Buicks, and the self-assured price-tag of nearly 10,000$ didn't help to attract enough customers. After two years, the experiment was stopped, and the Continentals became flashy and cheaper again.

Enjoy some more catalog-quotes: "It is a car designed and built with a particular person in mind: the man of inherent good taste and judgement. It is aristocratic, but in a quietly modern way. it is elegant, but in a simple and uncomplicated way. It is conservative, but in a distinctive and exiting way. It is a car in which quality has always been considered first."

1 Kommentare:

Anonymous said...

The original owner must have been a VIP. My parents fled Cuba in 1960 and told me has saw many gull-wing Mercedes and Even a some Ferrari's and Maserati's in pre-Castro Havana. A shame all these pictures show a once promising and now demolished country.

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