Midnight Spell
1978 Lincoln Continental Mark V
A haunting connection
In 2019, after twelve years, Micheal Rodelas, bought back his 1978 Lincoln Continental Mark V. To his surprise, the title was still under his name. Some might call it destiny, others might joke that lowriders never bother transferring titles—but Mike saw it as a sign. This car was always meant to be his.
To understand the connection between them, we have to go to the beginning. As a chavalito, he grew up in the lowrider scene. His dad, Gilbert Rodelas Sr., is the founder of Majesty Car Club in El Paso.
Senior owned a 1974 Lincoln Continental, to this day it’s one of Mike’s favorite cars. Lowriding and cruising was a family affair. He vividly remembers cruising around Montana and Alameda into the night. “At the end of the day,” Mike recalls, “I don’t know if it was the radio or a bad ground, but the music would fade out, leaving a soft hum from the speakers that always put me right to sleep.”
His own lowrider journey started with a Cutlass Supreme. He went old school on it, dropping it by pulling the springs, throwing a set of Luxor wire wheels, and installing a killer sound system. It was short lived. One day after work, he walked out to the employee parking lot and the Cutty was gone. “Man, that one hurt,” he admits. “I’d put everything I had into that car.”
It was a devastating hit that took a long time to recover from. After that, life happened and priorities shifted to raising a family. He picked up a Caddy, but his heart wasn’t in it, so he traded it for a Lincoln Mark V, Midnight Spell, but he didn’t know it yet. He cruised the Lincoln for a while, redid the interior and other personal touches, then sold it to his older brother, Gilbert Jr.
You might think—well, his brother owned it, that’s why the title stayed in his name—but you’d be wrong. Gilbert sold the car, then that person sold it, and it changed hands a couple more times after that. It just so happened that the last owner was a friend of his. Mike made him an offer, and just like that, the Lincoln was back—original title and all. Like she never really left.
The build took time and sacrifice, still a family man, he had to manage his finances right. Lowrider builds can easily turn into a money pit. Still, he had a vision—one heavily influenced by his dad’s 74 and the movie Excalibur. “The knights and the honor,” he explained, “is really appealing to me.”
The number one priority was the engine. “I wanted to be able to get on the freeway and hit whatever car show I wanted.” After a few failed attempts to get the engine road-worthy, he realized there were no shortcuts left—it had to come out. He stuck to a 460 big block instead of going the small block Chevy route. His proudest moment was taking her out on a drive after a long day of wrenching on her. “It was late, I was tired, but it was worth it.
The visuals for Midnight Spell came together seamlessly with Mike’s vision. The shaved doors make the Lincoln look longer when it’s laid low—no breaks, just body flowing front to back. This lends itself beautifully for the deep blue metallic paint that his brother Gilbert sprayed at SGT’s Automotive. Of course, after Mike had gone through and massaged all the panels into a straight surface.
The vinyl top was replaced by Gerardo at GBJ Dashcovers who had previously done the interior. In place of the black vinyl a light blue canvas was installed to give it a subtle contrast.
Expert pinstriping by Ortiz, a well-known El Paso artist, accents the candy-like paint. But, the centerpiece of it all is the hauntingly beautiful witch mural that was airbrushed on by Little Puppet at Side Show Studios. Her ethereal expression casts a spell, like she’s been waiting under the paint all these years—Little Puppet just brought her to the surface.
The mural perfectly embodies Midnight Spell’s personality. She is a jealous one. If anyone other than Mike, his wife or their two girl gets in it, she’ll act up. “It’ll stop, it’ll be some random thing that’s never given me problems before.”
“She demands blood!” Mike explains, “every time I work on her, I get cut, and I don’t even realize it.”
The name? Like most of the build, it just fell into place. It came to Mike’s wife as the family talked about the car.
Reflecting on his journey, from the early days in his dad’s 74 to now, cruising with his family in the 78, he has no regrets. “She made me earn her,” he says. “Lowriding’s come a long way—it’s a good thing for the kids, keeps them out of trouble. I wouldn’t trade growing up in this scene for anything.”
The connection between Mike and Midnight Spell is undeniable. It explains why there were so many changes in ownership over twelve years and not a single time the title was changed over—they were just taking care of her for him.
Credits: Story and Photos by J. Orozco, Model: Abeni