Lincoln

It’s been quite some time since a random passerby would stare in awe at the beauty of a Lincoln. Maybe 40 years since the fifth generation Continental? Sure, we all know they’ve been trying like hell to change that, and to an extent they’ve been succeeding. But they’re still trying to compete with the likes of Cadillac with the innovation of Buick.

The tenth generation Continental seeks to change everything, however. Lincoln’s head of design, David Woodhouse, says “[there’s] more attention than you get on any other car.” Quite a bold statement, but quite believable; take a look at the profile of the Conti. What’s missing? Rather, what are those wings coming from the beltline? Lincoln’s new “E-latch” system that has a push button underneath each wing. It not only keeps from distracting attention from the beautiful profile, but it’s apparently elegant to use as well.

Lincoln employs some pretty cool light tricks as well. Take the “approach sequence” for instance. As you near the Continental, the Lincoln star in the maw of a grille lights, then does the light bar in the headlight housing and foglights simultaneously, followed by the first two LED “Ice Cubes” (that are shaped like little Lincoln stars) from the center, rounded off by the last three cubes on each side igniting, quadrant by quadrant.

Take the full width tail lamps too (for which Lincoln is apparently known for. Who knew…?). Woodhouse says, “The center read tail lamp is this infinity light. If you look into it, it kind of goes forever.” I guess you’d have to see it in person to believe it. Or understand it.

Sure, the Conti has a sunroof. But it goes a step (or two) further, using electrochromic glazed glass. Meaning (like a Boeing 787) it can let in more or less sunlight with the press of a button with no mechanical bits.

Unlike a forty year old Continental (and for the sake of argument), there is a replacement for displacement. FoMoCo says that the Continental will debut a new V-6 3.0 EcoBoost (essentially a slightly larger version of the Nano), exclusive to Lincoln. Though, there’s no word yet on power, torque, or MPGs.

You won’t be disappointed once you step through the (nearly) 90° opening doors, either. The color scheme is a Rhapsody Blue (to match the exterior) and black. The driver and shotgun rider are enveloped by 30 -way (!!) seats that are not only heated and cooled, but have 11 separate air bladders to help with body cradling and massaging. The bottoms are also split to allow for independent thigh support.

By the looks of it, the rear passenger won’t be neglected either, with the same control units present on the rear doors as well; and of course a champaign cooler hidden in the rear center console with two specifically designed flutes. For the extra fussy rear passengers, there’s a button that will release a touchscreen that controls the infotainment and climate control, as well as watching movies.

Whether the audio from said movies will be pushed from the main audio system isn’t known, but if it is they’re in for a treat. Since Lincoln recently signed a 10 year exclusivity contract with Revel audio, you’re going to be hearing quite a bit more of them. The Continental features a 19-speaker setup, putting out an unspecified amount of power. They’re beautiful though, the speakers can be seen if you look deep into the cross-drilled metal covers.

Whether the Continental will be as big of a hit as Lincoln (and myself, honestly) is hoping for is yet to be decided. But if the coverage of the production-ready concept is any indication, Cadillac’s CT6 better be scared.

Image Courtesy: Lincoln Motor Company and Car & Driver

What was it?

1966…. What a year. It brought us Patrick Dempsey, the Miranda Rights, Medicare, but (possibly) the most important being the Ford GT40. The GT40 was the culmination of one man’s inflated ego and hatred of Enzo Ferrari (that man being Henry Ford II). HF2 made his intentions of creating a Ferrari beater in Le Mans clear in the early ‘60s. As Ford’s first interest in Le Mans, few took him seriously; but a deal with Eric Broadley (from Lola Cars) was finally cut to develop one of the most historic vehicles in Ford’s history.

From 1966 through 1969, the GT40 swept the races finishing first the four consecutive years; with Ford himself in attendance to personally gloat to Enzo. Along with the first place finishes at Le Mans, the GT40 also won numerous other awards including the 1966 & ’67 International Championship for Sports Cars.

What is it?

Some 33 years later, Ford dropped the curtain on the GT40 Concept at the 2002 Detroit Auto Show; the GT40 Concept stole the show, as it was nearly visually identical to the original. It was however, longer, wider, and most importantly, 3” taller; because of the extra height, it was to be called the GT43, but the numerals were dropped altogether. Production began two short years later, with former Microsoft exec. Jon Shirley the first to take delivery in August; it was reported that he won it at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance auction for $557,000.

The Ford GT numbers were nothing but impressive: 3.5 seconds to 60, 7.4 seconds to 100, and 16.9 to 150 mph. The mid-placed supercharged 5.4 V8 sent out 550 hp and 500 lb. ft. of torque to the rear wheels via a Ricardo six-speed shift-it-yourselfer. Heavily modified iterations were used for racing, but didn’t have near the success of it’s predecessor.

What can it be?

So why am I telling you all of this? After a nine year hiatus, the Ford GT may return. The mathematician in you may say “That makes 50 years since the original!” And to that I say, yes; that’s what makes all of this so tangible. So will it pay homage to the original, an all out track star? Or will it just be another supercar?

As it turns out, both (potentially)… A rep. from the Blue Oval was reported to have been at a meeting between GTE (Grand Touring Endurance) constructors, discussing 2016 regulations. This basically means that Ford may have more interest in Le Mans than anyone thought. Jamie Allison (Ford Racing boss) was asked about the plans. He replied,

“We really have our near-term lenses on our participating in the sport and that’s really the scope that we are focused on. Anything beyond that would be strictly endeavoring into… just propagating something that is not within the scope of what we focus on. In our realm and in the world of sports-car racing, [we’re] really focused on our EcoBoost-powered DP and focusing on the season here as it comes to an exciting end at Petit Le Mans.”

Speaking of EcoBoost, Ford recently started shipping out 3.5L EcoBoost engines to power cars in the Tudor series; while seven months ago, a souped-up 600hp version won the 12 Hours of Sebring. During later product development of the original EcoBoost power plant (the 3.5L), many engineers were adamant that the engine could handle MUCH more power while still being reliable. Coincidence? Me thinks not.

So for all us plebeians, the important question here is, “How badly does Ford still hate Ferrari?” Because if we’re also getting a street-legal version, that should give us a rough estimate of how much power the new GT will receive, and ultimately what engine. The 458 Speciale cranks out 597 horses and 398 torques out of it’s 4.5-liter V8, just for reference. Ford potentially has a couple of options here, they could drop in the 600+ EcoBoost; but then again, who wants a V6 mid-engined supercar, that isn’t hybridized at least? They could use the uprated 5.2 Coyote that’s planned for the Mustang GT350, no word yet on the power figures for that though.

Now comes the issue of green. No, not eco-hugging environmentalists, but money. It’s no surprise that quite a bit of money has been funneled into Lincoln (sorry, Lincoln Motor Company) lately, and it still needs A LOT more. They need a new platform for the Explorer/Navigator twins, a new MKS, MKX, and MK-whatever. Which is a bigger priority to FoMoCo, restoring a decrepit flagship brand, or celebrating an icon’s birthday? Who knows, maybe they can choose both.

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