AUTO MUSEUM ONLINE ,classic cars,classic trucks

The 1969 Land Rover Series IIa / Photos, Specifications, Model History

Our featured classic vehicle is a beautiful 1969 Land Rover Series IIa. The Land Rover is a British Off-Road vehicle launched in 1948 and in addition to civilian buyers was used extensively by the British military. Among the owners of the Land Rover over the years were BMW (2000), Ford Motor Company (2005), and from 2008 to the present time Land Rover is owned by the Indian company, Tata Motors.

The Early Land Rover

The Land Rover was introduced during post World War Two as the British answer to America’s Willys Jeep. The British Land Rover, most would say, was Britain’s reply to the go anywhere U.S Army World War II vehicle fondly called the Jeep. In fact, the British Land Rover adopted most of it’s traits directly from the Jeep. Just like the Jeep, the Land-Rover was built for tough off road work. It was a vehicle that was built to do the tasks other vehicles of the time could not.

While the Willys Jeep was the first of such a vehicle, it actually was the British who carried the concept even further. The first British Land Rover model (see specs below) was very similar to the Jeep. If you didn’t see the nameplate of the first Land Rover model you may have easily mistaken it for a Willys Jeep. While the first Land Rover mimicked the Jeep in so many ways, there were notable differences. These included fully enclosed front wheels, sharper angular fenders, and head lights mounted behind mesh grille guards.

The early Land-Rover was a four wheel drive “go anywhere” vehicle. Series I through III were produced from 1948 to 1980. The Series II which is our featured vehicle was produced from 1968 to 1971. There was a Series IIA which was built beginning in 1961 and is basically a hybride between a Series II and Series III.

Later models of the British Land Rover Series II came with a variety of options. The Series II pretty much represented the classic Land Rover. Two or four wheel drive and gasoline or diesel engines. In 1970, Land-Rover introduced the more rider friendly Range Rover which had a variety of creature comforts not found in the earlier Land-Rovers. The Range Rover meant to be a more luxurious vehicle. Ruggedness and comfort was the aim and the Range Rover was essentially like many of today’s SUV’s.

The Land Rover Series II and IIa / Engines and Differences

Introduced in 1958, ten years after the Series I, the Land Rover Series II was the model’s first update. Restyling was necessary to make room for the improvements that had been made underneath that sporty aluminum body.

After the Series II which was produced from 1958 to 1961 came the Series IIa. The Land Rover Series IIA was available as a two door, two door pickup, and a four door. Two items of significance regarding the II1 was that the axles were changed and gave the Series IIa a wider track of 4’3½”. Also, the Series IIa had a 2.25 liter diesel engine as opposed to the prior 2.0 liter diesel.

Other changes from the Series II to the Series IIa’s included headlights which were now flush with the grille, and a new air vent lever.

1969 Land Rover Specifications

Power plant is a 139 cubic inch straight four diesel delivering 66 HP.

Gear box is a four speed manual.

Brakes are four wheel hydraulic drums.

Suspension are semi elliptic leaf springs.

Dimensions include 88.0 inch wheelbase, 142.5 inch outside length, 66.0 inch width.

Total Land Rover Series IIa production for 1969 was 50,550 units. These included IIa’s with 88 and 109 and 110 inch wheelbases. The Late Series IIA’s saw Land Rover starting to limit what was available in the U.S. market. The Series IIa is the vast majority of Land Rover models seen today in the U.S.

The 1941 Lincoln Custom Limousine / Photos, Specifications, Model History

Our featured vehicle is a beautifully restored 1941 Lincoln Limousine. This is a very rare Lincoln model with only 295 built. This model debuted after Lincoln’s big Model K was discontinued in 1940. The Model K with it’s V-8 engine first came out in 1931 with luxurious styling. The Lincoln Custom Limousine catered to a small group of wealthy buyers required large, comfortable and luxurious chauffeur driven automobiles. This model was Lincoln’s very low production flagship automobile.

The Limousine

Many people are fascinated with stretch limousines and often curious as to the people who ride in them. The first limousine was built in 1902 and provided a partition between the driver and passengers for the purpose of privacy. What we refer to as a stretch limousine ( longer than a standard automobile) actually was built in 1928 by a Fort Smith, Arkansas by a firm named Armbruster Coach Company.

lincoln limousine — 1941 Lincoln Custom Limousine

Ford Buys Lincoln

Lincoln was formed in 1917 by Henry Leland. The company made a lot of money building airplane engines during World War One. After the war, Lincoln began building luxury automobiles. The automobile business faltered and Lincoln ended up in receivership. It was 1922 when Henry Ford took over Lincoln from receivership for $8 million and the rest is history.

1941 Lincoln Limousine Styling

The styling for the 1941 Lincoln Limousine goes to Eugene T. (Bob) Gregorie of the Ford Motor Company and was based on the Zephyr Limousines and Town Cars. Seating eight passengers, the automobile offered jump seats and a window behind the drivers seat.

The Lincoln Zephyr has the distinction of being the first streamlined automobile put into production. The Zephyr was intended to give Lincoln a lower priced entry vehicle much like the LaSalle was a lower priced entry vehicle for Cadillac. In fact, the lower priced Zephyr model debuting during the Great Depression went a long way in saving the Lincoln brand.

The Zephyr had all steel unibody construction molded into a aerodynamic design. The streamlined teardrop design was credited to Briggs Manufacturing which was a major body supplier to Ford. The front end of this design was then reworked by Edsel Ford and Ford designer Bob Gregorie.

Where the 1941 Lincoln Limousine was an expensive luxury automobile, the Lincoln Zephyr touted luxury but at a significantly lower price. Original new car price for the eight passenger 1941 Lincoln Limousine came in at about $3,000. The 1941 Lincoln Zephyr Sedan had a new car price of $1,500 before options.

1941 Lincoln Limousine Specifications

The 1941 Lincoln Limousine was built with a 292 cubic inch L-Head V-12 engine delivering 120 HP. The 292 cubic inch L-Head V-12’s that came out in 1940 were discontinued in 1948 and replaced with eight cylinder engines.

Transmission is a three speed manual with overdrive.

Brakes are four wheel hydraulic drums.

Suspension consists of solid front and live rear axles with transverse leaf springs.

As mentioned there were only 295 1941 Lincoln Limousines produced and this is out of a total 1941 Lincoln production of 17,700 vehicles.

Related Auto Museum Online articles you may find interesting include…

The 1941 Lincoln Continental

The 1941 Cadillac Convertible Coupe

Reference materials for this article include..Lincoln and Continental Classic Motorcars The Early Years by author Marvin Arnold…The Lincoln Continental Story From Zephyr to Mark II by Tim Howley… Stretching It: The Story of the Limousine by Michael L. Bromley.

The 1941 Lincoln Custom Limousine Collector Car

With only 295 examples of the 1941 Lincoln Custom Limousines produced, this model is obviously quite rare. The number of these models that exist today and in this type of fully restored condition are certainly even more rare.

As a side note, the 1941 Lincoln Custom Limousine model with it’s unique and luxurious styling was used in the Francis Ford Coppola movie The Godfather.

Available recent auction sale prices for the 1941 Lincoln Custom Limousine have ranged from $70,000-$80,000.

(Article and photos copyright Auto Museum Online)

1962 Chevy Bel Air Bubble Top / Photos, Specs, Styling, Engines

The 1962 Chevrolet Bel Air Bubble Top featured here is a beautifully designed classic car. The 1962 Bel Air was of the third generation.

chevy bubble top — 1962 Chevrolet Bel Air Bubble Top

The Chevrolet Impala Bel Air is a full size Chevrolet and was the Chevy Division’s most costly passenger vehicle at the time during the early 1960’s. It was also the best selling full size passenger car in America. It held that position for about a decade.

Chevy’s Bubble Top

Chevrolet produced two door bubble top styling from 1959 through 1962. Some might say it was really 61-62 but nevertheless the Chevy Bubble Top was unique. Chevrolet’s official name for the Bubble Top was a Sport Coupe. While the Bubble Top was available on all Impala’s for the 1961 model year, the Bubble Top was only available in 1962 on the upscale Bel Air’s. The Bubble Top never was designed to be a full clear bubble roof primarily due to the heat issue that would be caused by a clear roof. The total bubble design was just not practical.

The Chevrolet Impala Bubble Top has one of the most iconic roof lines in automotive history. Remember decades ago when you could see a new car with unique styling straight from the factory. You’d be hard pressed to find one today. Back in those days you’d see a good amount of chrome and chances are you’d be able to identify the model and the year just by looking at the grille. Not like today where almost every automobile looks fairly similar. Car designs in the 1950’s and 1960’s were indeed special and the Chevy Bubble Tops are just one example of the creative and unique styling from that era.

From a side view. it is just perfect: a thin, sweeping A-pillar followed by no B-pillar whatsoever, then an equally lean C-pillar that blends in with that iconic rounded rear glass. the closest thing to a full bubble-top roof ever put on a production car. It’s not a total bubble since there is a metal roof section at the top.

1962 Chevrolet Styling

The 1962 Chevy Impala styling is timeless. The Chevrolet Impala changed up its style each year from 1961–64. Prominent styling changes for the 1962 Impala included a new ‘C’ pillar design on all body styles except the four-door hardtop. The previous ‘overhang’ roof style of the sedans was replaced by a wider ‘C’ pillar with a forward tiling, wraparound rear window. 1962 was the final year for the 235 cubic inch Stovebolt inline-6 and the small-block 283 engine

62’s were offered in solid color only. 61 grilles were silver, 62’s were flat black (a select few were anodized gold). 61’s had chrome cove surround and 62’s had none. 61’s had cove spears and name plate and 62’s had a chrome insert and cross flags on the fenders.

Chevrolet kicked-off the ’60s with one of its most-evocative body designs of the era, ditching the horizontal tailfins of the two previous years in favor of a gracefully fresh look.

1962 Chevy Bel Air Specifications

There was plenty of power available with the 1962 Chevrolet Bel Air. Several engines were available. These included a 235 cubic inch straight six, a 283 cubic inch V-8, a 327 cubic inch V-8 in several configurations and the powerful 409 cubic inch V-8. Horsepower ranged from 135 with the straight sixes to 409. The 1962 409 V-8 delivered 280 HP with a single four barrel carburetor and 409 HP equipped with a double four barrel carburetor. The Chevy Big Block 409 was produced for five years from 1961 through 1965.

Transmissions for the 62 Chevy Bel Air included both three and four speed manuals and a two speed Powerglide automatic.

Brakes are four wheel power assisted drums.

Dimensions for the 1962 Chevrolet Bel Air include a wheelbase of 119.0 inches, overall outside length 209.6 inches, width 79.0 inches, height 55.5 inches.

Chevrolet produced over one million full size automobiles for the 1962 model year. Out of that number there were only about 5,900 Bell Air Bubble Tops built. For the 1961 model year there were about 13,295 Bubble Tops produced. This of course makes the Bubble Top a pretty rare model.

See these related Auto Museum Online articles…

The 1961 Chevy Impala Hardtop

The 1958 Chevy Impala

The 1963 Chevy Impala Convertible

Reference material for this article includes…Chevrolet: The Complete History by the editors of Consumer Guide…100 Years of Chevrolet by Ralph Kramer and Jerry Burton…The Complete History of the Chevrolet Impala by Tony Markovich…General Motors Archives.

The Chevrolet Bubble Top…A Rare Collector Car

As noted in this article the Chevrolet Bubble Tops (officially Chevy’s Sport Coupes) are very rare collector cars. Less than 20,000 built over the 1961 and 1962 model years. These classic automobiles ate great representations from the time when car styling was king.

Auction and retail sales prices for the 1962 Chevrolet Bel Air Bubble Top in excellent condition both mechanically and body wise run in a general range from $75,000 to $100,000 with some sales above this range.