Lincoln Concept
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Not sure what the actual name is, I hear D3, but who knows…
It looks great no matter what they call it. And it does look smaller than what I thought.
It doesn’t look to be the Town Car replacement, but more the size of the LS.
And I have no idea what it is based on.
The next “big” Lincoln is supposed to be based on the Ford 500, but this seems a bit small for that…
What do you think?
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very attractive for a lincoln. looks like it has a euro/japanese profile from what i can see. would love to see the back end. if it were full size would be a nice replacement for the town car.
D3 is not the name of the car, it’s the name of the platform that Ford is basing this car off of. Ford’s D3 platform is what the Mercury Montego and Ford FiveHundred are based off of. The platform was developed from the Volvo P2 platform that underpins the S80 and XC90. Since Volvo is part of the family, Ford took the basica architecture and updated it while also making it “cheaper” by using stamped steel instead of more expensive alloys and materials.
Ford’s plans are to create two vehicles off this D3 platform for Lincoln — One will be the replacement for the LS and the other a range-topping vehicle to replace the old Continental. Chances are that the LS replacement will be called either Sentinel or Cosmopolitan (two names from Lincolns past that they are possibly resurrecting since they are this nostalgic kick with new vehicles like the Zephyr) and be based on the same length platform as the Montego and FiveHundred. A larger version of the D3 platform will be the new Continental but will have a longer wheelbase, etc. Both of the cars will come standard with all-wheel drive and offer a Yamaha built V8 based on the one in the XC90 (used for transverse applications).
A lot of peopel aren’t happy that Ford is going in this direction for Lincoln instead of creating new RWD offerings, but honestly Ford is bleeding money and using common componentry with AWD standard might go a long way towards creating huge savings in the company while offering competitive vehicles. I just hope they execute it properly.
Hey Vince!
This is what the Zephyr shoulda looked like. Simply add the coach/suicide doors, then institute a small medium and large versions of this look (just like Mercedes does)and Lincoln has world calss style again.
i think this is very nice it looks more of a 5 series e class competitor, and judging by lincolns latest creations it will have a beautiful interior, if the driving dynamics and power are there they should have an excellent vehicle
get these cars out now Ford!
if ford can make lincolns look like this, why cant they desighn a jaguar that is exciting and appealing. and has anyone seen the new ford mondeo?
It certainly looks like an LS replacement to me. The design looks great, but isn’t jawbone dropping (at least from these pics) Still it is a VERY long step in the right direction. Assuming they don’t screw it up going to production.
considering how badly the Zephyer went from Concept to Production, I’m not crossing my fingers on this concept.
Thanks to Mr. (or Mrs) Anonymous for all the D3 explainations.
I have nothing against FWD. But if these cars all have V8s, I guess they have to offer AWD.
But the core market of the Town Car (limousines etc…) will probably have a problem with a more complicated AWD system.
lincolns are just overpriced fords.. whos going to by a LS for 40k
Just like Lexus is an overpriced Toyota, and Infiniti an over priced Nissan, and Audi an overpriced Volkswagen, and Mecedies an Overpriced Dodge… eh?
Its better than the last thing they made, and better than it had to be for its current market.
Wouldn’t it just be better to build the Continental Concept from a few years ago? Now THAT was a good looking Lincoln.
-Phafanapolis
at least lexus, infiniti, etc make higher grade cars that are realibe and have good resale value… lincolns are just crap… but i must admit.. it does look good
that bucktooth cheesegrater grill doesn’t look too good, but overall a pleasing design. Nice use of Acura TL headlights as well.
MR. ANONYMOUS to VINCE — You’re welcome for the very long D3 explanation…always glad to help out buddy!
As for the limo services and complicated AWD systems, worry not! The larger of the two new D3 cars that Lincoln will get WILL NOT replace the Town Car. In fact the Town Car has a renewed lease on life til at least 2010. Ford’s suppliers let it leak out that they have confirmed committments for the car til at least ’10, but also that Ford is planning on a small investment to update the Panther platform in which the Town Car, Crown Victoria and Grand Marquis are based off of.
Why would the do this, you may ask? Well Ford makes a great deal of money on every Panther car it makes — the margins are quite good, even if they are discounted. On top of which, Ford doesn’t want to make the exact same mistake that GM did when they abandoned the full-sized/RWD market — Ford picked up the slack in this segment (a fact GM is probably kicking themselves for), but it also allowed them to corner the market for police cruisers, livery cars/limos and taxis. They won’t just walk away from it.
Getting back to the Town Car though, Ford basically has a strategy shaping up that will parallel Cadillac. That is that just as Caddy has the STS and is loosely planning a range topping ULS/XLS sedan to be the new flagship, it will not abandon the DTS or its buyers. Despite the new and (very good) products that Caddy is now offering, the DTS is still the elemental Cadillac that attracts a large number of traditional buyers. Caddy doesn’t want to let those customers go. So they will continue to offer the DTS alongside the current STS and whatever range-topping vehicle they come up with in the next few years. Ford is going to mimic this approach and keep the Town Car in the lineup to address the livery services/limo companies as well as the old school Lincoln buyers, while getting a new Continental to customers via a stretched D3…
Not that bad of a strategy if you ask me cause you get to keep the best of both worlds.
Great.
Very smart to keep the Panther going indeed.
I still think they could use a redesign. But that would be to expensive.
GM did a great job updating the DTS.
I would hope Ford could to the same with the Town Car…
“Vince Burlapp said…
Great.
Very smart to keep the Panther going indeed.
I still think they could use a redesign. But that would be to expensive.
GM did a great job updating the DTS.
I would hope Ford could to the same with the Town Car…”
Thanks for the thumbs up on my last post Vince. Yes, I agree, I think it’s a smart move by Ford as well in updating the Panther platform. A full redesign would be terrific, but you know it won’t happen. Instead if they can give it some meaningful updates while offering good value, then it should work out okay for Ford. Remember Ford makes tons of money on these things, in part cause all the tooling for them was paid off during the Carter administration. Now granted that would send up red-flags and demand a full redesign, but when you consider how popular they’ve remained over the years and how much financial difficulty Ford has had, I don’t see them shelling anything out for a new RWD platform that incorportes Body-on-Frame design — not likely to happen.
I don’t know how extensive it will be, but if they can come close to what GM did with the DTS and still bring it to market with decent value, then I think it wil be sucessful.
But if it were me, I would wonder if some name changes would be in order for the three of these Panther offerings? Would it be in Fords best interest to rename the Crown Vic? In light of their new “we name everying we have with either and “F” for a sedan and an “E” for an SUV” — would the Crown Vic name survive? Could Ford dust off an old “F” name from the past to take its place? What about Mecury? Mercury has the same strategy only with an “M” right? So would they rename the Grand Marquis just the “Marquis”? Or perhaps dust off an old name from the past like “Monarch”? Would that help to change perceptions while adding a new aura to the lineup?
The Town Car can stay the Town Car I suppose (unless they are looking to really shake things up) partially cause it has brand value and because Lincoln isn’t on the same renaming kick that Ford and Mercury are on.
Just my thoughts on this.
Anonymous said: “…because
Lincoln isn’t on the same renaming kick that Ford and Mercury are on….” . . . Oh yeah? (X MarKS the Spot) . . . . re: the panther names – the ‘Tiara Hapsburg’ (sorry) I mean the ‘Crown Victoria’ needs to be renamed the “Galaxie” … when they finally significatly update it. . Yes ‘Marquis’ by itself is a fine name . . tho there may be a reason to have both a ‘Marquis’ and a ‘Grand Marquis’ soon. . . also someday it’d be cool if the top of the line Lincoln panther was called the “PANTHER”
Does anyone else think this is what the Zephyr should have looked like , with the 3.5L?