Sometimes, you just have to wait for the good things in life. Just ask Rick Romero, an operations supervisor from Fairfield, California. Rick first spotted this '78 Lincoln Town Coupe back in the early 1980s when it belonged to a high school teacher. He asked the owner to contact him if he ever wanted to sell it. Well, 21 years later in 2001, the owner called to see if Rick was still interested in buying it, and Rick jumped at the chance to add the luxurious Lincoln to his long line of lowriders.
"My daughter Jessica was nine years old when I got the Lincoln and she told me that the car was hers since I had built an '84 Olds Cutlass for my son Johnny and a '63 Chevy Impala for myself," Rick relates. "The moonroof, murals, gold plating, TV and DVD player were Jessica's ideas. She's now 12 years old and has been to just about every show at which the car is entered, including the last three Super Shows in Las Vegas."
"Slamn '78" hasn't disappointed either little Jessica or her father, having accumulated quite a collection of trophies at the shows and rarely coming home without at least a First or Second Place award. Rick thanks his family, especially his wife, Suzanne, for their support, as well his fellow members of Low Conspiracy Car Club, Pablo Contreras, "Big Uce" Kita and the others listed in the Tech Specs section who helped him bring down this Lincoln.Techspecs
Slamn '78Owner: Rick Romero
Vehicle: '78 Lincoln Town Coupe
City/State: Fairfield, California
Club: Low Conspiracy C.C.
Engine/Drivetrain: Rick loaded up the stock Ford 400-c.i.d. V-8 with an Edelbrock intake and carburetor, and other chrome- and gold-plated parts, and mated it to a Turbo 400 transmission.
Body/Paint: House of Kolor candy brandywine was sprayed over a gray basecoat by Harold James of Fairfield. The car was then handed over to PeeWee Designs in Oroville, California, for some of "PeeWee's" patented pinstriping. The murals of "girls with a city background" were laid down by Freddy Alfaro of Salinas, California. Rudy Pena engraved the grille and the wire wheel knockoffs. The owner did his own gold plating, while the chrome plating chores were farmed out to Electroforming Corp. of Richmond, California.
Interior: Plushed out in burgundy velour, thanks to Frank Lucero of Lucero's Upholstery in Winters, California, the interior also sports gold-plated trim and a custom steering wheel.
Sound System: Autohaus of Hayward, California, went the extra mile on Rick's Lincoln by installing a Kenwood head unit with an array of Audiobahn amps and speakers, plus a Zapco equalizer and Blaupunkt in-dash TV, CD and DVD player.
Suspension: The "Slamn" action is provided by an airbag setup featuring two Viair 100-percent duty compressors, "slammy" bags, fast valves and 10 switches, all installed by Bill Poisner at Dynasty Coach Works in Vallejo, California.
Tires: P155/80-R13 Remington
Wheels: 13x7 reverse 72-spoke cross-laced Zenith wires with engraved gold straight-bar knockoffs