This nameplate began as a low-slung personal luxury car introduced for 1939, created under Edsel Ford’s direction and immediately recognized for its elegant, restrained styling. The original run lasted through the postwar years, ending in 1948, and established the car as one of the defining American luxury designs of its era. Lincoln then brought the name back for 1961 on a dramatically different full-size flagship, best remembered for its clean proportions and rear-hinged coach doors. That second era lasted for decades and evolved through multiple generations while remaining a symbol of Lincoln’s top-tier passenger cars.
After the nameplate disappeared from regular production in the early 2000s, Lincoln revived it again for 2017 as a modern full-size sedan positioned as the brand’s flagship. The final generation carried the classic name into the late 2010s and ended after the 2020 model year, when Lincoln removed it from the lineup. Across all of its lives, the Continental stood for formal American luxury, quiet styling, and a strong link to Lincoln’s design heritage. It is also widely associated with presidential use, landmark styling themes, and a long legacy of coach-door elegance that made it one of the brand’s most recognizable nameplates.