Lincoln KB Town Car, 1933

Location: Santa Monica, California

$96,250 USD | Sold

Addendum

Please note the drivers side window for this vehicle was broken in transit. The seller will repair at his cost for the buyer.

With the introduction of Cadillac’s V-16 in 1930 and the V-12 in 1931, followed by the Pierce-Arrow V-12 in 1931 and both Marmon’s Sixteen and Packard’s all-new Twin Six in 1932, the debut of Lincoln’s all new V-12 in 1932 was no surprise. Neither was the quality of its engineering; with its seven main bearings, fork-and-blade connecting rods and separate cylinder blocks, the new engine was certainly an engineering tour de force. The only problem with it was the prohibitive cost of manufacture – it was in fact so expensive to build that it was replaced in just two years by a more conventional design, making 1933 the last year for the ultimate Lincoln of the Classic Era.

The KB, as the “ultimate” Lincoln, could be bought as a chassis for custom coachwork, but many clients took advantage of the “semi-custom” offerings that were produced for Lincoln by the East Coast’s finest coachbuilders. Finished to the exacting specifications of each individual customer, these bodies offered an unbeatable combination of quality, style, and individuality.

The KB offered has a stately coachbuilt town car body by Brunn & Company. Hermann A. Brunn’s coachworks, established in 1908, received Lincoln as its first corporate customer. Brunn, who was already well versed in Fords, was ideally situated to continue with Lincoln upon Ford’s takeover. Heads of state from Franklin D. Roosevelt to Reza Shah rode in cars bodied by Brunn & Company.

Lincoln’s 1933 catalog contained 26 body styles for the large 12-cylinder KB model, including 17 from custom coachbuilders, however, only 533 cars were delivered due to the difficult economic conditions of the period. According to the Classic Car Club of America, only 18 of the 533 cars survive today.

This Brunn & Company bodied KB Town Car, body 259B, was ordered new by Newcomb Carlton, President of Western Union, at a substantial cost of $6,900. Only eight KBs were special ordered with this body and even fewer remain today.

Today, the car is in show ready condition and has had several concours wins since its comprehensive restoration by Bill Moses. In 2007, it received Best in Show at the Lincoln Owners Club Annual Meet, Best in Class at the Glenmoor Gathering of Significant Automobiles, and First Place at the Cincinnati Concours. It is being offered from a large Southern California collection of important pre-war automobiles and is ready to enjoy.

https://rmsothebys.com/auctions/ca15/lots/r0088-1933-lincoln-kb-town-car/