1941 Lincoln Zephyr on 2040-cars

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Ford and Lincoln design honcho leaves to head Nissan North America design

Last Friday, David Woodhouse suddenly resigned from his dual positions as Ford's director of global strategic design and director of Lincoln design. In a post not long after leaving, he praised the efforts of his former team over the past six years he headed design at Lincoln. Among other products, that crew gave us the redesigned Navigator, the Continental concept and production sedan, and the Aviator concept and production crossover. Car Design News reports Woodhouse traded Michigan for California, taking the role of VP at Nissan Design America in San Diego. He officially assumes the position July 1, and will also serve on the Japanese automaker's Global Nissan Design Management Committee. Woodhouse has spent more than 25 years in the design department, starting with BMW and work on the Mini and Range Rover brands, followed by a brief stint with Cadillac of Europe. For the past 20 years he's been with Ford, coming on board with the Ford's former luxury arm known as the Premier Automotive Group — Jaguar, Land Rover, Aston Martin, Volvo and Lincoln. He became Lincoln's design director in 2013, introducing the world to the design language labeled "quiet flight." He described the language's details as "anti-wedge body gestures, S-curves wherever possible, and an emphasis on horizontal lines at every opportunity to create leaner, longer, wider emphasis on the exteriors, and create equilibrium, balance, and calmness on the interiors." A much shorter way to describe it is: revitalized Lincolns. The U.S. luxury maker's new and overhauled products have been praised for their lines by critics and by paying customers. The brand's done so well it's hard to remember when the MKC concept was a revelation, and that goes on Woodhouse's resume, too. That's some special juju to take to Nissan, where Woodhouse will lead both Nissan and Infiniti design focused on the North American region. Nissan has a solid if uninspiring lineup that sells well here, while Infiniti, as the luxury brand, is the bigger issue. Infiniti sedans glide on the contrails of a design language more than 10 years old. The money-making crossovers and SUVs haven't made a splash in about the same time, since the long-ago FX45. Nissan's plan to update 70 percent of its lineup over the next few years and Infiniti's transition to an all-electric brand makes right now the perfect time to break into riveting designs for the street. Woodhouse replaces Taro Ueda, who moves into a global role with Nissan.

Lincoln MKC Concept shows real promise [w/video]

Ford's efforts to resuscitate its moribund Lincoln luxury brand began in earnest with the introduction of its 2014 MKZ sedan, a model many labeled as the marque's make-or-break offering. Of course, one model does not a comeback make, and with the MKZ just now starting to trickle into dealers, it will be some time before America's jury of consumers comes in with their judgment. More to the point, it's likely to take better than a decade's worth of products and sustained marketing effort to even begin to figure out whether Lincoln has a shot at redemption or if it will die of Mercury poisoning. After all, rival General Motors has been pouring resources into Cadillac since the late '90s, and if the sales charts are any guidance, it's still probably too early to declare its rebirth a success.
Certainly, a brand with Ford's resources, free of distractions (read: the now-defunct Premier Auto Group and various other side projects) should be able to successfully market a single luxury brand, particularly one with such a rich - if distant - history. Especially now with the Blue Oval enjoying more consumer goodwill than at any time in recent history. So let's all give Alan Mulally and friends a little room to work, eh?
We can start by focusing on the compact crossover seen before you, the Lincoln MKC Concept. Riding atop the same global C-platform that underpins the Ford C-Max, Escape and Focus, the MKC showcar here presages a production small CUV that will stick its distinctive nose into one of the auto industry's fastest-growing segments.

2024 Lincoln Aviator and 2024 Ford Explorer lose hybrid option

The 2024 Lincoln Aviator will not be available with a plug-in hybrid drivetrain, a spokesman for the brand confirmed. Lincoln dropped the gasoline-electric option to focus on more popular variants of the SUV, and it's making a handful of small changes for the new model year. "Given timing, the 2024 Aviator is a limited production run and as such, we are focusing on our most popular offering," a spokesman told Autoblog via email. While nothing is official yet, unverified reports suggest that the SUV will receive a major round of updates for 2025. In the meantime, the Aviator will enter the 2024 model year with a twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter V6 as its only engine option. The six-cylinder makes 400 horsepower and 415 pound-feet of torque, and it spins the rear wheels via a 10-speed automatic transmission. All-wheel-drive is offered at an extra cost, though keep in mind that Lincoln hasn't published the full list of changes it's making to the model for 2024 yet. Ditching the hybrid system means buyers now have three trims to choose from. Previously named Standard, the entry-level trim is called Premiere for 2024. The mid-range Reserve and the range-topping Black Label carry over. Pricing starts at $53,340 excluding destination. More details about the 2024 Lincoln Aviator should emerge in the coming weeks. Lincoln parent company Ford is axing the Explorer's available hybrid system in the civilian model as well. But the police version of the SUV is only available as a hybrid, and will continue to be. "To meet continued strong demand for the Ford Police Interceptor Utility hybrid and other Ford hybrid vehicles, the 2024-model-year Explorer will only be offered with the fuel-efficient 2.3-liter four-cylinder Ecoboost and the 3.0-liter EcoBoost V6. Those two engines account for the majority of Explorer sales," a spokesperson for the Blue Oval confirmed to Autoblog. There's no word on when or if the hybrid will return for civilian Explorers. Offered through 2023, the Explorer's optional gasoline-electric drivetrain was only available on the top-of-the-line Limited and Platinum variants. And, like the Aviator it's related to, the Explorer is expected to get a round of updates inside and out for the 2025 model year.