Could the Lincoln Versailles Make a Crazy Comeback?

Back in the 1970s, the Lincoln Versailles sedan was the epitome of what is referred to as the ‘malaise era ‘. A “luxury” sedan with a 135HP 5.8 Liter V8… The original Versailles was Lincoln‘s cheap attempt to compete with the popular Cadillac Seville. And yet, with Ford’s new Universal EV Platform, a new Lincoln sedan could make a comeback. The platform is already scheduled to host at least 8 new models, including the upcoming Ford Fathom pickup. A small B-segment car was also mentioned as well as a commerical van. The craziest idea would be a second generation Lincoln Versailles.

Lincoln could choose from many names of past models, like Continental or Town Car. But the goofiest of all was “Versailles”. Naming a car after a world-famous historical royal palace in France takes some guts. Especially since the original Versailles was just a glorified, cheesier Ford Granada.

The original Lincoln Versailles from the 1970s was Ford’s attempt to compete with the super-popular Cadillac Seville, and it came out in 1977. While the Cadillac was very different from other cheaper GM models (Even if it used a similar platform), Lincoln chose to save a few bucks and just revised the front and rear ends of their popular Ford Granada to come up with their new, smaller Lincoln. It didn’t really fool many, with sales of only around 15,000 the first year and dropping to under 9000 in 1978.

For 1979, Ford decided to spend a bit more to make the Versailles look more like a Lincoln, and it worked, with sales jumping to 21,000 units. But dropping to under 5000 for its last year, 1980. While the Cadillac Seville was selling over 53,000 units in 1979.

The Versailles was abandoned after just 4 years, and there was no second generation. Although a 2nd generation was indeed considered, a few prototypes were built. Even with pretty low sales, the Versailles had made money for Ford. However, the company thought the “small luxury car” market was not a good bet after 1980.

I think such an old-fashioned and cheesy name as Versailles on a very modern Lincoln EV sedan based on Ford’s new Universal EV Platform would be fun. Since it’s not a Town Car or Continental, it wouldn’t have to be a huge car. Something to go up against the BMW i5 or upcoming Mercedes E-class EV.

Something to think about…