This is an original “Givenchy Edition” 1976 Lincoln Continental Mark IV, just 1,573 were made and only a small fraction of that number are thought to have survived to the modern day.
As part of the Designer Series (which also included the Cartier Edition, Pucci Edition, and the Bill Blass Edition), the Givenchy Edition had a distinct colorway and a series of interior and exterior touches designed to elevate it well above the already high-end Mark IV Continental.
Fast Facts: The “Givenchy Edition” Mark IV
- The Givenchy Edition was one of four Designer Series packages introduced for the 1976 Continental Mark IV, alongside the Cartier, Bill Blass, and Pucci Editions. Each carried exclusive color combinations, designer signatures on the opera windows, and 22 karat gold-plated dashboard nameplates.
- Just 1,573 Givenchy Editions were produced out of approximately 56,110 Mark IVs built for 1976, according to the Deluxe Marti Report accompanying this car. The Designer Series program proved popular enough to continue through the Mark V and Mark VI into the 1980s.
- The Givenchy’s exclusive colorway consisted of Aqua Blue Diamond Fire metallic paint, a White Normande Landau vinyl roof, black and white pinstripes, and a matching aqua leather or velour interior with light birch-toned simulated woodgrain trim unique to this edition.
- All 1976 Mark IVs were powered by a 460 cubic inch Ford V8 rated at 202 bhp and 352 lb ft of torque, paired with a C-6 3-speed automatic transmission.
History Speedrun: The Lincoln Continental Mark IV
By the mid-1970s, the Continental Mark IV had spent half a decade establishing itself as one of the most recognizable locally-built luxury cars on American roads. Big, brash, and unapologetically palatial, it was the kind of car you bought to announce that you had arrived, and in its final year of production, Lincoln somehow found a way to make that statement a little louder.
Each Designer Series car had an exclusive, individually coordinated exterior and interior color combination unavailable on any other Mark IV, and each was designed to further elevate a car that was already dripping with standard luxury equipment, into something approaching wearable couture on wheels. Perhaps a little gaudy in retrospect, but undeniably cool by mid-70s standards. Image courtesy of Ford.
For 1976, the division introduced the Designer Series, this was a quartet of appearance packages developed in collaboration with fashion designers Bill Blass, Emilio Pucci, and Hubert de Givenchy, along with the famed jeweler Cartier.
Each carried an exclusive, individually coordinated exterior and interior color combination unavailable on any other Mark IV, and each was designed to further elevate a car that was already dripping with standard luxury equipment, into something approaching wearable couture on wheels. Perhaps a little gaudy in retrospect, but undeniably cool by mid-70s standards.
The Givenchy Edition
The Givenchy Edition was, in Lincoln’s own period-PR speak, meant to evoke “the sparkling turquoise of the Mediterranean Sea.” Its Aqua Blue Diamond Fire metallic paint was paired with a White Normande Landau vinyl roof and accented by black and white pinstripes that ran the length of the body – a color combination that worked surprisingly well, and was exclusive to the Givenchy package.
Inside, matching aqua upholstery was available in either leather or velour (it was the age of disco after all), set against light birch-toned “simulated woodgrain” instrument panel trim that was unique to the Givenchy among the four Designer Series offerings.
All Designer Series Mark IVs came standard with forged aluminum wheels and color-keyed luggage compartment carpeting, helping to further distinguish them from both the standard Mark IV and the already well-appointed Luxury Group models.
The Designer Series cars had the corresponding designer’s signature etched into the opera window glass, in this case of course it was Givenchy’s. The dashboard had a 22 karat gold-plated nameplate that could be engraved with the original owner’s name, a nice personal touch considering it was a factory option rather than a dealer add-on.
For 1976, the division introduced the Designer Series, this was a quartet of appearance packages developed in collaboration with fashion designers Bill Blass, Emilio Pucci, and Hubert de Givenchy, along with the famed jeweler Cartier. Image courtesy of Ford.
A matching Givenchy nameplate also appeared on the instrument panel. These details were impossible to replicate by simply ordering a standard Mark IV in similar colors, which is exactly what Lincoln intended – perhaps a little snob appeal for the country club valet line.
The Designer Series program proved instantly popular in its inaugural year – total Mark IV production for 1976 was approximately 56,110 cars, and according to the Deluxe Marti Report accompanying the car shown in this article, just 1,573 of those were Givenchy Editions – making it one of the more limited offerings within the Designer Series and a genuinely rare car today due to the low number that have survived.
The whole concept was successful enough that Lincoln carried the Designer Series forward into the Mark V for 1977 and continued it through the Mark VI, establishing a new luxury branding tradition that lasted well into the 1980s.
1976 Continental Mark IV Specifications
Underneath the designer trim, the Givenchy was mechanically identical to every other 1976 Continental Mark IV. That meant a 460 cubic inch Ford V8 fitted with a four-barrel carburetor and rated at 202 bhp at 3,800 rpm and 352 lb ft of torque at 1,600 rpm – a relatively low horsepower figure for the displacement, and a sign of the impact of progressively tighter emissions standards over the Mark IV’s five-year run, down from the 224 bhp the 460 had carried at the model’s 1972 launch.
Power was sent to the rear wheels through a C-6 3-speed automatic transmission, this was marketed by Lincoln at the time as the “Select-Shift.” The Mark IV wasn’t a car built for speed, but for a more soothing kind of floating forward motion – and at 5,264 lbs, it needed every one of those cubic inches to simply move itself off from a standstill with a little grace.
The Mark IV shared its basic platform with the Ford Thunderbird, though the Mark IV received its own unique bodywork. Assembly took place at Ford’s Wixom plant in Michigan, alongside the Thunderbird and the four-door Lincoln Continental.
This is an original “Givenchy Edition” 1976 Lincoln Continental Mark IV, just 1,573 were made and only a small fraction of that number are thought to have survived to the modern day.
Standard equipment across the range was lavish by any measure – with power-assisted four-wheel disc brakes, power steering, power windows, automatic climate control, and six-way power-adjustable Twin Comfort Lounge front seats all included in the base price of $11,060 USD, this was before any options or Designer Series packages were added.
The base Mark IV also had vacuum-operated hidden headlamp covers, oval opera windows, and the signature Continental spare tire hump on the trunk lid, design cues that had been carefully included to tie the car visually to the long-running Mark lineage that dated back decades to just before the United States had joined WWII.
The 1976 Continental Mark IV Givenchy Edition Shown Here
The Givenchy Edition Continental Mark IV you see here has just 38,000 miles on the odometer and it’s accompanied by a Deluxe Marti Report, service records, and the original manufacturer’s literature.
The listing explains that the car has been refinished in its original Aqua Blue Diamond Fire – the current paint is a respray rather than the original factory finish.
As part of the Designer Series which also included the Cartier Edition, Pucci Edition, and the Bill Blass Edition, the Givenchy Edition had a distinct colorway and a series of interior and exterior touches designed to elevate it above the already high-end Mark IV Continental.
The service history includes a replacement air conditioning compressor and conversion from R-12 to R-134a refrigerant in 2021, a water pump replacement the same year, and a left window motor gear kit replacement in 2025.
The car has a clean Arizona title and it’s now being sold out of Scottsdale, Arizona on Bring a Trailer by the selling dealer. If you’d like to read more about it or register to bid you can visit the listing here.
Images courtesy of Bring a Trailer
Articles that Ben Branch has written have been covered on CNN, Popular Mechanics, Smithsonian Magazine, Road & Track Magazine, the official Pinterest blog, the official eBay Motors blog, BuzzFeed, Autoweek Magazine, Wired Magazine, Autoblog, Gear Patrol, Jalopnik, The Verge, and many more.
Silodrome was founded by Ben back in 2010, in the years since the site has grown to become a world leader in the alternative and vintage motoring sector, with well over a million monthly readers from around the world and many hundreds of thousands of followers on social media.
