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HomeThomas E. Bonsall

Thomas E. Bonsall

1979 Lincoln Continental Mark V Bill Blass Edition ad
History

Defective 1977-79 Continental Mark V showed how Lincoln lost its way

July 21, 2025 Steve 19

(EXPANDED FROM 4/5/2023) Some buyers of the 1977-79 Lincoln Mark V waited up to eight weeks to receive exclusive designer-series models . . . that turned out to have defective paint. At least that was […]

1965 Studebaker Lark 4-door sedan
Fake Design

Brooks Stevens’s 1965 Studebaker Lark concept: Almost a baby Continental

June 6, 2025 Steve 5

(EXPANDED FROM 12/10/2021) Brooks Stevens apparently was convinced that he could come up with a new-generation Studebaker Lark design that would top the work of Raymond Loewy’s team, which was then working on an Avanti-inspired […]

1958 Edsel Citation 4-door hardtop
Quotes

Should the Ford Motor Company have kept the Edsel alive?

April 26, 2025 Steve 9

Automotive historian Thomas E. Bonsall argued that the 1958 Edsel wasn’t a flop. Indeed, he insisted that the Ford Motor Company shouldn’t have given up on the brand so quickly. The “real failure in the […]

1972 Lincoln Continental Mark IV
Links

Knudsen’s favored 1972 Mark IV design borrowed from the Eldorado

April 16, 2025 Steve 10

(EXPANDED FROM 8/5/2022) A few years ago Dean’s Garage posted a fascinating story about the battle over the 1972 Lincoln Continental Mark IV’s styling. Jim and Cheryl Farrell (2022) described how a design proposal championed […]

1963 Lincoln Continental convertible
Data Dive

What if Robert McNamara had killed the Lincoln brand?

February 12, 2025 Steve 18

(EXPANDED FROM 6/16/2023) A few years ago Jim and Cheryl Farrell’s articles about the 1961 Continental’s development got me thinking about what might have happened if Robert McNamara had succeeded in killing the Lincoln brand. […]

1963 Studebaker Avanti
Fake Design

Was the 1963-64 Studebaker Avanti a fatal mistake?

January 31, 2025 Steve 36

(EXPANDED FROM 4/22/2022) The 1963-64 Studebaker Avanti has been described by historian Patrick Foster as “one of the most beautiful automobiles ever to grace the road” (2008, p. 138). Even so, the premium-priced sporty coupe […]

1964 Lincoln Continental
Design Notes

The 1964-65 Lincoln Continental was a step backward rather than forward

January 13, 2025 Steve 5

(EXPANDED FROM 4/13/2022) A brochure for the 1964 Lincoln Continental was almost apologetic in describing “significant improvements” to the car. “You will appreciate greater leg room, knee room and head room. In the rear compartment, […]

History

Lincoln-Zephyr was a first step in Ford surpassing Chrysler

August 30, 2024 Steve 9

(EXPANDED FROM 4/11/2022) The 1936-42 Lincoln-Zephyr is a more important car than is commonly assumed. Not only did it offer notably advanced styling and engineering, but it also represented the Ford Motor Company’s first meaningful […]

1963 Cadillac Coupe de Ville
Design Notes

1963 Cadillac: The car that mainstreamed the brougham look

August 23, 2024 Steve 16

(EXPANDED FROM 12/16/2022) Pointing to the exact moment that the brougham look gained traction in the U.S. is an inexact science. For one thing, this design approach, which mimicked the classic look of luxury cars […]

1970 Lincoln Continental
Fake Design

What if the 1970 Lincoln Continental hadn’t slavishly copied Cadillac?

April 19, 2024 Steve 48

J. P. Cavanaugh’s (2024) recent ode to the 1969 Lincoln Continental got me thinking: What if the 1970 redesign returned to the more compact size of the groundbreaking 1961-63 models? What might that have looked […]

Posts pagination

« 1 2 3 … 5 »
  • 2006-7 Dodge Charger
    2006-2010 Dodge Charger: A cartoonish attempt at rip-roaring nostalgia
    June 5, 2026 5
  • 1950 Nash Rambler hood ornament
    Speedreaders.info is a rare source of book reviews, but quality varies
    June 3, 2026 0
  • 1958 Lincoln
    1958-60 Lincoln: Failing to beat GM at its own game
    June 2, 2026 15
  • 1957 Nash Ambassador
    Three videos: The death of car culture, rich people’s cars and the 1957 Nash
    May 29, 2026 6
  • 1963 Mercury Marauder
    1963 Mercury Marauder: Ford tries to do a premium-priced car on the cheap
    May 27, 2026 11
  • Did 1964 Ramblers share more parts between size classes than competitors?
    May 26, 2026 1
  • Patrick Foster shows how International Harvester failed to adapt
    May 13, 2026 5
  • Internet problems reminded me of U.S. automakers in the 1970s
    May 2, 2026 1
  • 1956 Buick hood scoop
    Readers brainstorm ideas for future Indie Auto stories
    October 14, 2022 141
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