1977 Lincoln Continental Mark V (outstanding Condition) on 2040-cars

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Lincoln Anniversary Concept is the future looking at the past

Remember the Audi SkySphere concept the German automaker revealed on August 10? The long, low, meaty two-door designed in Malibu, California that previewed elements of Audi's coming design language? This is not that car. This is the Lincoln Anniversary concept, a long, low, meaty two-door designed at the ArtCenter College of Design — about an hour away from Malibu — as a potential preview of Lincoln design elements. There's clearly something in the waters of the communal car design trend pool, and we dig it. A few months ago, Lincoln announced it had partnered with the ArtCenter, inviting students to create four concepts that they'd showcase as integral parts of meaningful stories about people. The transportation students worked with classmates in other disciplines like film and animation to imagine what Lincolns might be like in 2040 and beyond, and create short films to put the concepts and stories in motion inside future worlds. One concept needed to hold two people, one to hold four, another would hold four at elevated ride height, and the largest would be a six-passenger vehicle. All of them had to deliver on Lincoln's promise of Quiet Flight driving and a theme called C.A.S.E., for connected, autonomous, shared and electric.  This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Lincoln x ArtCenter College of Design | Quiet Flight 2040 The Glider concept served two people in sedan form, inspired by the Zephyrs and Continentals of yore. As the star of the short "Now You Drive," a son picks up his wheelchair-bound father in the Glider and puts his father in the driver's seat, placing the wheelchair in the back. The father takes the wheel and drives for the first time in years, while the autonomously-capable sedan retracts the throttle and brake pedals and manages speed on its own. Designer Jin Kim posted detailed breakdown of his development work on the Glider, as well as the short film. The page is well worth a visit.       A four-seater SUV concept in the short "Amongst the Stars" features touch-screen windows and an augmented reality panoramic roof. The protagonist gets her first taste of a wide starry night during a family trip to White Sands National Park looking through the glass, the roof aiding her curiosity with displays like highlighting and naming constellations.

What will the next Presidential limo look like?

With recent news that the Secret Service has begun soliciting proposals for a new armored limousine, we've been wondering what the next presidential limo might look like. The current machine, nicknamed "The Beast", has a design based on a car that's no longer sold: the Cadillac DTS. If General Motors gets the job again, which wouldn't be a surprise considering the government still owns a chunk of the company, the next limo's shape would likely resemble the new XTS (below, left). But Cadillac hasn't always been the go-to car company for presidential whips.
Lincoln has actually provided far more presidential limousines throughout history than Cadillac. In fact, the first car modified for Commander-in-Chief-carrying duty was a 1939 Lincoln K-Series called "Sunshine Special" used by Franklin D. Roosevelt, and the last Lincoln used by a president was a 1989 Town Car ordered for George H.W. Bush. If President Obama wanted a Lincoln today, it would likely be an amalgam of the MKS sedan and MKT crossover, as illustrated above.
And what about Chrysler? The only record we could find of a President favoring the Pentastar is Nixon, who reportedly ordered two limos from the company during his administration in the '70s, and then another one, known today as the "K-Car limo," in the '80s after he left office. Obama, however, has a personal - if modest - connection to Chryslers, having owned a 300 himself before he took office. A 300-based Beast (above, right) would certainly earn the U.S. some style points.

Chevy, Lincoln dealers say they still want sedans

Detroit automakers have famously turned their backs on sedans as they make the strategic bet to double down on money-making trucks and SUVs, but dealers for at least two American brands are giving the companies contrary signals. In separate recent interviews with leading national dealer councils for Chevrolet and Lincoln, Automotive News reports that both brands’ dealers still see a need for cars. The publication published a Q&A interview with Mike Bowsher, chairman of the Chevrolet National Dealer Council, who said Chevy dealers managed to hold onto market share last year despite the phase-out of the Cruze compact sedan and hatchback, thanks to products like the Spark and Sonic subcompacts and the Trax and Equinox crossovers. But, he acknowledged, “We do feel like we could use a car, especially in the low-MSRP range.” The comments follow similar recent comments from Tom Lynch, who chairs the Lincoln National Dealer Council. He told AN, “If weÂ’re not in segments where there is still a good amount of business, I think the company and the dealers lose out.” The Cruze was one of the victims of GMÂ’s November 2018 announcement of plant closures, with production having ceased with the closure of GMÂ’s Lordstown, Ohio assembly plant last year. GM sold 47,975 Cruzes in 2019 but a healthy 142,617 in 2018. At Lincoln, Lynch said the council has been telling the company it needs to stick with the sedan segment, despite plans to kill the MKZ sedan in the coming months and unconfirmed reports that the Continental isnÂ’t long for this world, either, despite the buzz of the suicide-door Coach Door Edition, shown in the photo above. Lincoln sold 17,725 MKZs and 6,586 Continental sedans in 2019, down a combined 15%, but still good for almost 22% of overall Lincoln sales. It's worth noting that Lincoln competes in a luxury segment that still expresses allegiance to four- and two-door cars. Even Cadillac, its cross-town rival, is staying active with the upcoming CT5 and CT4 sedans. Lynch pointed to Tesla as evidence that strong sedan products can resonate with consumers, though he conceded that “What that looks like for Lincoln going forward, IÂ’m not sure of.” For now, anyway, Chevy still offers the Sonic and Spark subcompacts, the latter of which saw sales climb 32.5% in 2019 to 31,281 (Sonic sales fell nearly as steeply).