Keep it or sell it?

I just inherited my father's car and have no idea what to do with it.

It's a baby blue 1978 Lincoln Continental Mark 5. The car is remarkably original, including the paint, engine and interior, and it's in near-perfect condition (power antenna doesn't work).

I'm really torn about this one. The car is immaculate because he kept it that way for 32 years. He never really drove it all that much (54K miles in 32 years), but he did love that car. It's completely rust free and has been parked in a heated garage since new.

On the one hand, I want to keep it for sentimental reasons; I miss him terribly.

On the other, it doesn't fit in my garage, I'm not crazy about driving big, floaty, 5000lb cars, and, well, it really takes up a whole lot of real estate just to store it.

If my father had never owned it, I would have no interest in it whatsoever.

The wife says take a nice picture of it for the photo album, then hand select a buyer for it who will cherish it.

What do you guys think?

If you're on the fence, keep it until you really know what you want to do. You can always sell it later. The best time to sell it isn't right now, anyway.

Keep it for a year, and then see how you feel about it. My own .02.

Also, sorry to hear about your dad.
And pics or it isn't real.

Thanks mtn. I'll take some pics and put it up in reader's rides tomorrow.

Become a pimp, you already have the car.

Trade me for my Granfather's 88 Chevy 1/2-ton?

I don't know what to say, other than you have my sympathy & full understanding. At least my pickup gets used about 5k-annually. It's not a bad truck, it's just not the right truck for me. Still, it often sits unused for a month or two at a time.

Oh, and my parents had a '77 Continental - I miss that car...

Keep it. You will always regret selling it. Put it in dry, secure, indoor storage if you have to, but dont sell it. 5 years from now your attitude will change, and your dad would be happy to see you driving around in his car and enjoying every second.

Take the wife on a few road trips with it and I bet you would love it.

If you autocross it even once, you will be able to call up the Guinness people and claim a unique record for yourself, I bet.

Seriously, though, having dealt with my late father's passing, and his cars, I agree with those who say a quick decision is probably a decision you will regret. If storage etc. isn't an issue, just take some time. When there's been enough time (you'll know when that is), either you'll know what you want to do or you can follow your wife's excellent advice.

In reply to M030:

I agree with your wife. Some nice pictures, and sell it to a collector who will love it and cherish it.

Take your time to decide. You couldn't buy one for what it would sell for, then go with what FoxTrapper suggested.

Sorry for your loss.

Dan

I regret selling my dads Cadillac Fleetwood nearly every day. There was a reason HE kept it, I just never realized it.

Put it in storage somewhere so it doesn't deteriorate, take it out from time to time and use it. Give a year or so before making the decision. I would work on the assumption that you can't get it back if you sell it so if you can, keep it until you've fallen off the fence one way or the other.

Sorry for your loss. I had a breif love/hate relationship with a 73 (babe rally car sold with-in a year). If it is in good shape (mine wasn't) it will be much more fun then you think. Not is a sporty way but man that thing loved the highway and ate the miles like you would not believe. Add the emotional connection and I bet once the summer is around you'll find yourself glad you didn't sell it.

I had no ability to store it either (didn't fit in the garage etc)... I was going to buy a storage tent. Actually I will still be getting one but I will be storing my Wife's Father's 1966 International Harvester Pick up truck. So clearly My vote is keep and hold cars that were well loved.

Some info on Lincolns:

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/curbside-classics-lincoln-fest-doors-to-all-nine-parts-open-here/

I agree with taking pictures of it (with you and your family in the pictures, preferrably while washing it, not just statically standing in front of the thing) and then storing it for a year or so, then maybe take it from there.

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seriously though sorry for your loss

John Brown wrote: I regret selling my dads Cadillac Fleetwood nearly every day. There was a reason HE kept it, I just never realized it.

This.

Keep the car, at least a year. Every now and again, load up the family and drive down to Sonic for a Bananna Split. Take it to car shows. I bet someone will apprecaite it. Plus it s a good excuse to go look at other cool cars.

definatly keep it, My Grandfather's Caddy went to one of my cousins. He killed it in less than 6 months. People here still hate him for that.

And yes.. if you are on the fence about, it means you should not get rid of it. Not only is the family love connection, but you have a bonafide classic that is in wonderful shape.

Use it for going to church on sundays

I'd second finding a good way to store it, at least for a year or so, and considering your options (and driving it occasionally) before selling it. Maybe cruising around aimlessly with you wife next to you is all you'll ever do with it, and maybe that will grow on you enough to keep it.

It can be funny how much meaning gets attached to some objects, especially if they were near and dear to those who were near and dear to us.

Indulge me in a bit of a story to illustrate that point.

I never met my mom's father, Pat. He died several years before I was born. By all accounts, though, he was one of those guys they just don't make anymore. He got lost his left leg at the hip in WWII, came back to marry my grandmother, started an HVAC business and had a penchant for hiring guys who were social outcasts (including a guy he found sleeping in one of his work vans) and ex-cons. I have stories and pictures and this general mythology of Pat.

My most direct connection to him is through a few of his instruments, namely a couple guitars. One of those, a '48 Epiphone archtop, is the one that he'd leave leaning on the wall of the dining room, and pick up at the end of dinner to torture his family with the country songs he'd been learning. That one's now in my possession (I don't consider myself the 'owner,' it's still his as far as I'm concerned), and aside from my girlfriend, it's the most valuable thing in my house. It's not worth a whole lot as a collector's piece but it's literally priceless to me.

I'm far too much of a skeptic to be a spiritual guy, but sometimes when I play it, I have an overwhelming, unexplainable feeling of...Pat. He's with me. It's the end of a long day, he has his leg off and his cane leaning on the table, a bottle of Stag in hand, tapping his foot and singing along.

It's that feeling that makes his guitar mean so much to me.

I don't even have first hand memories of the guy, just the stories I've been told over the years. And yet I have this powerful connection to him through this guitar, because it was his.

Take that for what it's worth.

I have to say I agree with the others that say find some way of storing it (heck if you lived near me I would offer up garage space), if you just out right sell it while you are on the fence you are going to regret it.

Take it for a few drives, heck maybe take the family for a short road trip in it this summer or spring. See how it feels on the open road and try and find that spark that made your dad keep it with such care for all those years. If you still don't feel it after that and think you can let it go, find someone that you KNOW will take care of it. Nothing will break your heart more than to see the car you father cared for all those years destroyed by the neglect of someone you sold the car to.

My condolences on the loss of your dad.

Going through something similar right now, my dad had an '06 Grand Cherokee transportation appliance which I cordially detest, a fiberglass replica 1932 Ford and a Wellcraft boat (forerunner of the Scarab) with a 454 Chebby. None of us kids have any real way to store/use them so they are being sold. I particularly hate to see the '32 go, I remember using the tailpipe flamethrowers (!) on a bunch of RUBies one night. But it was his wish that they all be sold.

seriously whats not to love? :)

I lost my mom about 5 years ago... and have lots of trinkets that my wife wants me to junk... when she found they where gifts or just related stuff to mom she understood...

I agree keep it around for a while before you jump in on any decision.

Here she is:

http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/reader-rides/3253/

With pictures, as promised.

I really appreciate all of the advice, guys. The wife is sympathetic, so at least I'm not pressured to sell it. Still haven't decided yet, though...

really makes me want to cover the inside with crush velvet :)... awesome looking ride man... not my style but i'd sure roll it... untill I couldn't afford gas at least haha

I feel the same way about my dakota, without quite the same sentimental significance (although buying it was a personal milestone for me in a lot of ways - newly single and a whole lotta other silly personal E36 M3 I won't go into here). Rarely drive it, costs a fortune to run and haven't any room for it, but I know it would haunt me to sell the thing. So, it's on a tarp to protect the underside, and covered up. Once in a blue moon I put the Boyd Smoothies on it and take it for a ride... as soon as I turn the engine over and hear that spastic thumpy cam, I thank my lucky stars I didn't cave and sell it.