It’s So Dreamy ~~ The 1953 Lincoln XL-500

It’s the Chicago Auto Show in 1953, the dream car Lincoln XL-500 is presented for the first time.

Advanced sports car styling is combined with practicability and dignity In Ford Motor Company’s experimental design model – the XL-500. Newest in the continuous flow of models constantly being developed by the Company’s engineer staff, the XL-500 offers a glimpse of what is ahead in automotive styling and mechanical features. First public appearance of the model will be in the Lincoln-Mercury exhibit at the Chicago Automobile Show, March 14 – 22.

Lincoln-Mercury News Bureau Press Release, March 12, 1953

Designed to fit comfortably four adult passengers, the XL-500 has a scarlet fiberglass body and all-glass roof. (March 1953 Press Release)

1953 Lincoln XL-500

Less than 57 inches high, it has arched rear fenders which permit the frame to ride closer to the road. (March 1953 Press Release)

1953 Lincoln XL-500 – (Side-view)

The XL-500 had push-button transmission in the steering wheel.

LINCOLN XL-500 – Push-Button Transmission On Steering Wheel.

The XL-500 also featured a radio telephone and dictaphone, an electronic calendar, and a power-operated hood and decklid.

1953 XL-500 – Telephone and Dictaphone

Three separate bumpers protect the rear section…(t)he main rear bumper protrudes from the body deck, the two other vertical bumpers integrated from each of the tail light assemblies.
(March 1953 Press Release)

1953 LINCOLN XL-500 Rear Bumper

Scarlet fiberglass body with scarlet and white leather seats: The Lincoln-Mercury exhibit at the Chicago Automobile Show, March 14 – 22, 1953:

Scarlet fiberglass body with scarlet and white leather seats.

1953 Lincoln XL-500 with Benson Ford and William Clay Ford, and XL-100 with Henry Ford II

Black and white photos via Chuck’s Toyland. Color photos via Kustom Kingdom.