Editing Lincoln Motor Company (section)

====Continental Division (1956–1959)====
{{main|Continental Mark II}}
[[File:1956_Continental_Mark_II_-_midnight_blue_-_fvr.jpg|thumb|1956 Continental Mark II]]
For the 1956 model year, Ford Motor Company created the Continental Division, slotted above Lincoln as the flagship marque of Ford Motor Company. At its launch, Continental introduced the Continental Mark II as its model line, intended as a successor to the 1940–1948 Lincoln Continental personal luxury car. Offered as a two-door hardtop coupe, the Mark II broke from a number of American styling precedents of the time. While fitted with whitewall tires, the exterior was fitted with minimal chrome trim on the body sides; tailfins were left off of the body completely. In place of the bumper-mounted spare tire of the original Lincoln Continental, the trunk lid of the Mark II showcased the design element, with a large imitation spare tire bulge (which fit over the actual spare tire inside the trunk). The Mark II was largely hand-built, with extensive quality testing done on each engine and transmission before leaving the factory.

In place of establishing a separate sales and service network for Continental, the Mark II was marketed through Lincoln (the Mark II used a Lincoln engine and transmission). At $10,000 in 1956 (equivalent to ${{formatnum:{{inflation|US|10,000|1956}}}} in {{inflation-year|US}}{{inflation-fn|US}}), the Mark II was the most expensive car produced by an American automaker at the time, rivaling the [[Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud]] in price.

On July 18, 1956, the Continental Division was integrated into Lincoln which continued to manage the Continental brand as a separate marque.<ref name="dammann4"/>{{rp|281}} During the 1957 model year, the Mark II was withdrawn, largely as a consequence of its hand-built construction; each unit was sold at a loss of over $1,000. Subsequently, the 1957 [[Cadillac Eldorado#Third generation (1957–1958)|Cadillac Eldorado Brougham]] overtook the Mark II as the most expensive American-produced vehicle.

For 1958, as part of a mandated $4000 reduction in price (${{formatnum:{{Inflation|US|4000|1958}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars {{inflation-fn|US}}), Continental adopted the body of Lincoln, expanding into multiple body styles for the Mark III (the nomenclature indicating the transition). Adding a feature of the [[Mercury Turnpike Cruiser]], Continental adopted a retractable rear window across every body style (including convertibles) with a reverse-slant rear roofline. For 1959, the Mark III was renamed the Mark IV, becoming the Mark V for 1960.<ref name="dammann4"/>{{rp|331,337,414, 582–583}}

In 1959, the Continental marque was formally brought to an end within Lincoln; for 1960, the Mark V was brought to production as the ''Lincoln Continental Mark V'', ending the model cycle alongside the standard Lincoln model line.