2017 Lincoln Continental Reserve on 2040-cars

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The 1965 Ford Mustang could have looked a lot different

The 1965 Ford Mustang is unquestionably an automotive design icon, and nearly every generation of Mustang has some connection to that original car. Because it's such a universally-known vehicle, we were amazed to see all the different designs that were being considered. Head of Ford's archives Ted Ryan recently shared photos of design proposals for the original Mustang on Twitter that he and Jamie Myler found, and we reached out to them to find out more. As Ryan initially noted, the photos were taken on August 19, 1962, and they are proposals for the Ford Mustang. Apparently Ford had committed to doing a Falcon-based youth-oriented car at this point, and it did have plans to launch the car in 1964 for the 1965 model year. But after having little success with early design proposals, the company asked all of its design studios — the Advanced Studio, Lincoln-Mercury Studio and Ford Studio — to submit proposals. With only about two years before the planned launch, Ford was understandably short on time, and it's believed that the studios only had a month to create and present these designs. Lincoln-Mercury design proposal View 8 Photos The majority of the designs, a total of five, came from the Advanced Studio, and part of this was because they already had a couple of concept designs in reserve it could present. Two other models representing three design possibilities came from Lincoln-Mercury, and just one model with two options came from Ford. The Advanced Studio proposals are shown in the gallery at the very top of this article, and the Lincoln-Mercury and Ford proposals are in the gallery directly above this paragraph. The Advanced Studio's most radical design is the one that was clearly related to the Mustang I concept that would be shown later that year with huge wraparound rear glass, turbine-inspired bumpers and enormous side scoops. The other proposals from the studio were more conservative, featuring simple lines, grilles reminiscent of the Falcon, and one even borrowing the jet-thruster-style taillights made famous on the Thunderbird. Lincoln-Mercury had some impressively bold designs, particularly its fastback that had buttresses to extend the shape all the way to the tail. This car had two different side trim possibilities. The other Lincoln-Mercury design was toned down a bit, but had two interesting possibilities for side detailing, as well as some crisp, low-profile tail fins.

2015 Lincoln Navigator

Typically, when I approach a new vehicle launch, it's with a degree of optimism. Nowadays, we just expect that every new vehicle will pose a legitimate challenge to segment leaders. Mid-cycle refreshes, meanwhile, have taken on a greater degree of importance, as customers' preferences for the freshest vehicles remains strong and automakers rush to keep the latest tech in their offerings.
Conversely, I admit to not being terribly optimistic hopping into the 2015 Lincoln Navigator. I was the first person from Autoblog to see the new model in the metal, way back in January ahead of its Chicago Auto Show debut, and my initial reaction was far from positive. But, as I'd been the one that initially tested the new Cadillac Escalade and had just finished a week in the long-wheelbase version of General Motors' most premium SUV, I was a natural candidate to head down to Louisville, KY - home of Navigator production - to sample the brand's latest.
Lincoln's attempt at freshening the old Navigator's bling-bling face is pretty typical of today's more thorough mid-cycle refreshes, with dramatically new front and rear clips. The addition of standard 20-inch wheels or optional 22s - in place of standard 18s and optional 20s - goes a long way towards modernizing the Navigator's staid exterior. The cabin, meanwhile, is home to finer leather, which covers most of the dash as well as the steering wheel and seats. Warm Ziricote wood would prove to be a particular highlight on the top-flight Reserve model that I drove (the only trim available for us to test).

2022 Lincoln Aviator MSRP discounted from $5 to $1,085

Price changes continue apace over at Lincoln. The 2022 Navigator received price boosts from the single figure to four figures, the 2022 Corsair came down in price by anywhere from three to four figures. The penultimate crossover in the four-strong lineup, the Aviator, gets one price increase of $105 to go along with discounts ranging from $105 to almost $1,100. As with the Navigator and Corsair, though, the Aviator's destination price is up by $100, from $1,095 to $1,195, trimming those discounts slightly. Prices for the new Aviator and the changes from the last 2021 pricing are: RWD Standard: $52,660 ($5 less) Reserve: $58,550 ($130 less) AWD Standard: $55,160 ($5 less) Reserve: $61,080 ($110 less) Grand Touring: $69.555 ($1.085 less) Black Label: $80,545 ($105) Black Label Grand Touring: $89,100 ($980 less) Another pricing quirk is that AWD has got more expensive on the Reserve trim. Sending power to the front wheels cost $2,510 in 2021, now it costs $2,530.  The Aviator doesn't appear to pair the price drops with punishments. The only big change for the 2022 model is former Monochromatic Package being given even more black-out trim and a name change to the Jet Package. The Monochromatic Package left bits of chrome on the car, such as the grille surround, fender badges, and window surrounds. The Jet Package abolishes those shiny bits in favor of gloss black trim. The body-colored mirrors also go black, as do the grille centers and the 22-inch wheels. It's meant to be available early this year, but at the time of writing, it's still not on the Lincoln configurator. When it does arrive, it can be optioned with the exterior colors Infinite Black, Pristine White, Silver Radiance, and Burgundy Velvet. The Monochromatic Package cost $2,000, the Jet Package will likely push that number up a bit. Ford Authority reports that Ford engineers have also reduced the latest Aviator's tow rating from 6,700 pounds with the Class IV Trailer Tow Package to 5,600 pounds. That package is standard on the Black Label Grand Touring trim, a cost option on other trims. The 2022 model isn't long for this world, GMA saying the 2023 enters production on May 30th.  Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.