Ford-Lincoln 1930’s K-Series V12 Fine Luxury Automobiles

The Lincoln K-Series V12, often referred to simply as “Ford’s K Series”, was a line of high-end luxury automobiles built by the Lincoln Division of Ford Motor Company during the economic depression of the 1930s. Lincoln’s K-series were built between 1932 and 1939. They were an ultra-luxury premium product that was delivered and marketed to the automotive market at the wrong time. Perhaps one could say that “there are always people with money” and it is important to have a flagship for your brand – in this case the competition was against Cadillac V12 road cars – yet Ford and its Lincoln division fought valiantly to maintain the sale price under the $4,000 mark.

The history of the Lincoln K-Series V12 model line is like this. Mr. Henry Leland had resigned from Cadillac in 1917, just after World War I ended, and developed a new car for 1921 which he called the “Lincoln”. Lincoln was not yet part of the Ford empire, it was its own entity. This time period in terms of the auto industry in the US and around the world was one of “consolidation” where smaller, more entrepreneurial auto manufacturing companies were swallowed up by larger companies with more financial resources, of marketing and sales. Lincoln was one such entity acquired by Ford in 1922.

Mr. Henry Ford himself was happy to allow his company’s Lincoln division to continue manufacturing small exclusive numbers for over ten years before the first “Ford-Lincoln” (the Zephyr) was designed. The new management continued to build “Lincoln V8s” for ten years, but in 1932 they announced the splendid and rather exclusive K-Series cars, one of which (specifically the KB model) had a 7.3-litre V12 engine.

These cars were beautifully made and downright impressive rather than just attractive to look at and admire as roadside fixtures. Their precision-engineered quantity production was obvious, but they were merely one of seven “V12s” on the US automobile market in 1932. Sales numbers were therefore low. Just over 2,000 were sold in the automotive sales and marketing year of 1933. Although the KA, which had a V8 engine, gained a smaller edition 6.2-liter V12 in 1933, it only had a retail price of $2,700, which put it at the luxury end of the car market out of reach for what it was. then considered “rich” (but impoverished) Americans. Even so, there was a lot of interest in the technical details in general.

The chassis and suspension were completely conventional, but the engine was a mix of old and new. Among its technical details were a 65 degree angle between banks (60 degrees was then the norm and would have provided perfect balance), side valves and removable cylinder blocks in a light alloy crankcase. There was synchronization on the gearbox (all of America was following GM’s lead in 1928) and a freewheel feature in the setup. Surprisingly, the brakes were mechanically actuated, but had a vacuum “servo” to assist the driver or chauffeur.

In 1934 a new Lincoln model was announced to replace the original KA and KB; this had a slightly smaller 6.8-liter (414 cu in) engine, aluminum cylinder heads, and a top speed of 100 miles per hour mph. There was still a major redesign a year or two later. However, sales continued to decline and shrink with the last K-series Lincoln V12 being built and rolled out of the Ford-Lincoln production facility in 1939.

However, the Lincoln name and exclusive marquee had been established for this product. The Ford-designed Lincoln-Zephyr, bearing this prestigious brand name that was a lightning-fast vehicle and filled a niche of lower-priced car markets on the highways. It began to be sold as if it were the Ford Mustang of its time. So while the Ford-Lincoln K-Series V12 was a case of a terrific product that emerged in the face of stiff competition and a higher price than most potential customers in its market could afford. However, the Ford-Lincoln K12 V12 laid the foundation for the founding and success of the Lincoln division of the giant Ford Motor Company, serving as Ford’s high-end prestige premium faceplate.