Lincoln Motor Company
The Lincoln Motor Company was founded in August 1917 by Henry Leland and his son Wilfred. Among the founders of Cadillac, Leland had sold the company to General Motors in 1909, remaining on as an executive until 1917, when he left over a dispute with GM President William Durant. Naming Lincoln Motor Company after Abraham Lincoln, the first President for whom he ever voted (1864), Leland financed the company by securing a $10 million contract to build Liberty V12 aircraft engines, breaking ground on the Lincoln Motor Company Plant. To build the Liberty engines, Lincoln sourced parts from other manufacturers; along with cylinders produced by Ford, other parts were sourced from Buick, Cadillac, Marmon, and Packard. In total, 6,500 Liberty V12 engines were produced by Lincoln before the end of World War I ceased wartime production.
Lincoln Motor Company
Following the introduction of Edsel Ford to Lincoln management, the fortunes of Lincoln began to quickly improve. For 1923, the Lincoln Model L underwent extensive changes. While the chassis and drivetrain (including an L-head 60-degree V8) were largely left alone, several new bodystyles were introduced. In line with a Duesenberg or a Rolls-Royce, customers could also purchase a Model L with coachbuilt bodywork. For 1923, Lincoln produced 7,875 cars (nearly 45% higher than 1922), operating at a profit by the end of the year.
During the early 1920s, Lincoln steered away from the common American automotive industry practice of yearly model changes. While used to market fresh designs to customers, Lincoln found that its customers had begun to purchase multiple Lincolns (or other luxury vehicles) in different bodystyles; yearly styling changes would not properly accommodate its customer base. Following the 1930 model year, however, Lincoln chose to withdraw the Model L in favor of a more modern vehicle. For 1931, the Lincoln Model K was introduced as a competitor to the Cadillac 355 Chrysler Imperial, Duesenberg Model J, and Packard Eight.