Lincoln L-Series | |
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1929 Lincoln L-series Sport Touring
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Overview | |
Manufacturer |
Lincoln Motor Company Lincoln (Ford) |
Production | 1917-1930 |
Assembly | Lincoln Assembly, Detroit, Michigan |
Designer | Angus Woodbridge Edsel Ford |
Body and chassis | |
Class | Luxury car |
Layout | FR layout |
Powertrain | |
Engine |
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Transmission | 3-speed manual |
Dimensions | |
Wheelbase |
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Chronology | |
Successor | Lincoln K-Series/Model K |
The Lincoln L-Series is the first automobile that was produced by the Lincoln Motor Company. Introduced in 1917, the L-Series would continue to be produced after the bankruptcy of Lincoln in 1922 and its purchase by Ford Motor Company.
During 1930, Lincoln would introduce the Model K as its replacement. It was an alternative to various top level luxury vehicles to include the Mercedes-Benz 630, Rolls-Royce Phantom I, Packard, and Cadillac Type 51.
Assembly of the L-Series took place in Detroit, Michigan.
After leaving the company over a dispute with William Durant over World War I production, Cadillac founder Henry Leland created a second automobile company, the Lincoln Motor Company. Although the company depended on production of Liberty V12 aircraft engines as its primary source of revenue, Lincoln created the first L-Series car in 1917.
The L-Series was designed by Angus Woodbridge, the son-in-law of Henry Leland; trained as a ladies hatmaker, the design of the L-Series was considered old-fashioned for the time. In the years following World War I, the Lincoln Motor Company struggled in the postwar recession with the loss of aircraft engine production.
In financial trouble, Leland sold the company to Henry Ford in 1922 for $8 million, the amount determined by the judge presiding over the receivership Arthur J. Tuttle. Henry Leland valued the company at over $16 million. After a few months, Ford got rid of the Lelands and had his son, Edsel Ford, design a new body for the L-series. Edsel became President and Ernest C. Kanzler General Manager. Under Ford, the L-series was a robust car. In the first year, hydraulic shock absorbers were added. Edsel and Kanzler implemented production economies, trimming manufacturing costs by about $1000 per car.