Me & My Car: East Bay man gave son family’s ’76 Lincoln Continental

The Lincoln Continental was developed largely because Edsel Ford wanted a unique personal car.

In 1938, Edsel Ford, vacationed in Europe and was impressed with some of the European styling, including cars with a rear-mounted spare tire. He commissioned Eugene “Bob” Gregorie to build a convertible. Gregorie started with the blueprints of the modern and popular Lincoln-Zephyr and is said to have completed the initial sketch for the car in about an hour.

Running boards were removed...