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Lincoln's L100 teases luxurious autonomy with crazy-long doors

Lincoln chose Pebble Beach (not to mention its brand centennial) to show its new autonomous coupe concept. This unconventional 2+2 has everything you expect from a classic Lincoln luxury car — an extravagant presence, over-the-top appointments and, most importantly, the most ridiculous suicide doors we've ever seen. It may not seem obvious in photos, but the L100 is truly massive. It's longer than a Navigator (Lincoln's words) and arguably has a far more impressive aura. The wheels are tucked beneath the L100's body work to make the car more slippery; the slick impressions adorning the bodywork are lined with LEDs, allowing for a customizable movement "signature."  And then there are the doors. The L100's massive portals are mounted on hinges the likes of which you've never seen, which is appropriate given the scale of this massive coupe. The doors open rearward, then outward imbuing the works with look akin to that of a mechanized insect startled by an intruder. The angle can be customized, Lincoln says, and the ingress/egress points are lined with LEDs that allow for custom lighting effects, including an illuminated "red carpet" that makes puddle lamps look like weak party tricks.  Lincoln Model L100 Concept Exterior 7 View 13 Photos "We are at a special moment in our history. Over the last 100 years, Lincoln has pioneered multiple innovations and pushed the boundaries of design that have come to define our brand as we know and love it today," says Joy Falotico, president, Lincoln. "With the Model L100 Concept, we reimagine what the Lincoln sanctuary might look like for our clients of tomorrow moving us forward to define the next chapter of the Lincoln story." Lincoln was light on the L100's technical details, suggesting only that it utilizes next-gen (solid state) battery tech and a wheel-in-motor configuration to maximize available interior space. The stylized "wheel" panels eliminate turbulence and are sculpted outward from the car's centerline to maximize space for the actual wheels and tires hidden beneath them. Lincoln's designers say it was surprisingly easy to assure clearance for the front wheels to pivot with steering inputs, but despite the L100's size, it's hard not to fixate on how narrow that front track must be. Lincoln's idea of the next chapter is one where people still own their own cars even if they don't drive them. This is in contrast to Cadillac's InnerSpace concept, which is otherwise very similar in both concept and execution.

Ford faces class-action lawsuit for selling vehicles without brake override systems

A total of 20 Ford customers are suing the automaker in a class-action lawsuit for selling vehicles "vulnerable to unintended acceleration." According to Reuters, the suit names 30 models built between 2002 and 2010 with electronic throttle control systems but without a brake override system. Those include the 2004-2012 F-Series pickups and the 2005-2009 Lincoln Town Car. Adam Levitt, a partner with the law firm of Grant & Eisenhofer says the plaintiffs in the case want "to be compensated for their economic losses by having overpaid for cars that contained defects." Levitt contends that the plaintiffs would not have bought their vehicles or paid less for them had they known there was no brake override system in place.
Ford began installing brake override systems in its vehicles beginning in 2010. In response to the lawsuit, Ford has pointed to research by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that indicated that unintended acceleration is mostly caused by driver error, saying in a statement that, "NHTSA's work is far more scientific and trustworthy than work done by personal injury lawyers and their paid experts."
Belville et al v. Ford Motor Co. will be heard in US District Court in the Southern District of West Virginia.

2016 Lincoln MKX spied in production form

We're getting our first quality look at the next-generation Lincoln MKX in production guise thanks to these fresh spy shots, and they suggest styling that hews very closely to the concept from earlier this year. Compared to the showcar, the headlights aren't quite as well integrated into the grille, but these LED units still attempt to nicely wrap the split-wing grille across the entire face of the vehicle. Beyond that, the two vehicles quite similar, though. The shape of the lower air dam is practically identical – just with some extra plastic for the production version. The hint of a character line running down the side also makes the resemblance easy to spot, despite this tester's polka-dot camouflage. At the rear, the taillights stretch across the hatch with integrated exhaust outlets below. Even the twin-spoke wheels are comparable to the concept. Also, look carefully at these spy shots, and you can notice Lincoln apparently testing two different trims. One has LED headlights with front and rear parking sensors (pictured above), and the other shows projector lights with the sensors only at the rear. The next-gen MKX will launch in 2015 and will be the first model in Lincoln's lineup to benefit from the deal with Harman to use its high-end Revel audio system. Check out the gallery to get a mildly camouflaged sneak preview of the company's future luxury crossover.