TCC: Lincoln Continental May Return

[Perian]

Source: TCC Daily Email

Lincoln Plans Two D3 Sedans:

Lincoln’s future sedan plans could include two vehicles spun from the same D3
platform that has already bred the Ford Five Hundred/Freestyle/Montego trio.
Automotive News reports that Lincoln will follow its new Zephyr sedan due this
fall with a pair of upscale sedans based on the Volvo/Ford platform that has
spawned the Five Hundred sedan.

The new sedans would replace the LS rear-driver
with a new mid-size sedan from the new platform in 2007. A larger four-door
would bow in 2008 and may be dubbed the Continental. Both would be powered by a version of the Yamaha-built 4.4-liter V-8 recently introduced in the Volvo XC90
sedan. Both vehicles would be built in Atlanta alongside a new crossover vehicle coming for Lincoln.

[Perian]

Great news for Ford's Atlanta plant!

How about that - The Chicago triplets spawn the Atlanta triplets!

[plane]

Yamaha? What's the connection between Ford and Yamaha? The SHO had a Yamaha, but why go with a motor from an external supplier for a signature vehicle? That has "We can't do engines worth cr*p!" written all over it.

What is up with that?

[Hudson]

Originally Posted by plane

Yamaha? What's the connection between Ford and Yamaha? The SHO had a Yamaha, but why go with a motor from an external supplier for a signature vehicle? That has "We can't do engines worth cr*p!" written all over it.

What is up with that?

The Yamaha V8s are niche engines. They're not related to Ford's other V8s because they have a narrower bank angle. They're designed for smaller engine bays. The SHO engine and the Volvo V8 have the same 60-degree design (although Ford, Volvo, and Yamaha claim the two engines are not related). Ford's V8s are wider 90-degree designs, which are harder to package in a front-wheel drive application.

GM outsourced the Corvette's LT5 engine. GM outsourced the development of the "Ecotec" four-cylinder engines. I don't hear people complaining about these engines, do you?

[nadepalma]

Originally Posted by Hudson

GM outsourced the Corvette's LT5 engine. GM outsourced the development of the "Ecotec" four-cylinder engines. I don't hear people complaining about these engines, do you?

I knew that the LT5 was outsourced to Mercury Marine for the ZR-1 'Vette, but who were the Ecotec engines outsorced to? I always thought that they were designed by Adam Opel AG with the emphasis being on European standards and for European consumption.

I'm not complaining about Ford using the Yamaha engine. Obviously it would be better if they were using their own engine, and it would give critics one last thing to hammer them with if they did (you can see the articles now -- Ford had to go to a Japanese vendor to give them an engine this good since they couldn't do it themselves). But using this engine is a good move overall since it will enable them to create better economies of scale and help make each engine "cheaper" to buy than merely putting them in XC90s alone (though some have said that the next S80 will have it as well).

So good move by Ford -- hopefully this will allow them to put a competitive product to market sooner rather than later.

[mkwelbornjr]

So sad. Lincoln had its best product ever with the rear drive LS. They threw it all away.

[Cortazzo]

I was fearing this is what would become of Lincoln. I hope at the least that these new cars come standard with full time awd, not that fwd-based system used by the 500 and volvo that gives no real world handling benefits.

[Ming]

Both would be powered by a version of the Yamaha-built 4.4-liter V-8 recently introduced in the Volvo XC90
sedan.

Isn't Yamaha part owned by Toyota? Like 20% or something?

[nadepalma]

Originally Posted by Perian

Source: TCC Daily Email

Lincoln Plans Two D3 Sedans:

Lincoln’s future sedan plans could include two vehicles spun from the same D3 platform that has already bred the Ford Five Hundred/Freestyle/Montego trio. Automotive News reports that Lincoln will follow its new Zephyr sedan due this fall with a pair of upscale sedans based on the Volvo/Ford platform that has spawned the Five Hundred sedan.

The new sedans would replace the LS rear-driver with a new mid-size sedan from the new platform in 2007. A larger four-door would bow in 2008 and may be dubbed the Continental. Both would be powered by a version of the Yamaha-built 4.4-liter V-8 recently introduced in the Volvo XC90 sedan. Both vehicles would be built in Atlanta alongside a new crossover vehicle coming for Lincoln.

I think from a cost-cutting perspective, it's a good move by Ford to reuse the D3 platform since right now they only have three products coming off of it (the Five Hundred, Montego and Freestyle) in North America and adding two more models will only help them make more money on each one since they'll be able to spread out costs more evenly. Ford will reuse what has been deemed by the press as a good product, but will give it more power -- up til now that has been the only serious complaint about the D3 products.

Nevertheless, I'm wondering why Ford would do this rather than update the DEW-based LS platform and used a stretched version for the next Continental? Ford already has the LS plant up and running in Wixom and they've already got a supplier chain feeding it, so why start fresh? Wouldn't updating it and using a stretched platform for a larger offering be smarter? I've heard that the Wixom plant is underused anyway since outside of the LS, the only thing they build there is the Ford GT (it's the final assembly point for it) now that the Thunderbird is discontinued -- they could make better use of it it they threw the next Continental on that platform and build it there.

Still, the bigger question is if this is - Is this the start of Lincoln transforming into an "American Volvo" the way things are looking? I know Ford needs to save money and they need to make smart choices with platform/vehicle development -- no one would argue this cause they've got some financial trouble and need to turn the ship around. But taking what is essentially a Volvo-derived platform and using it for your two 'flagship' vehicles (and in your "flagship" division-that's what Lincoln originally was) leaves a bit of a bad taste in my mouth. Now, I'm not saying that cause it's a Sweedish dervied product with an Ameircan emblem on the front -- not at all, today no cars are 100% American/Sweedish/Italian or othewise. No, the reason I question it is cause then Lincoln will essentially abandon RWD with the excpetion of the nearly Livery-sales-only Lincoln TownCar. All they'll have left are FWD and AWD derived cars -- not a horrible thing if they get it right, but I can't see Lincoln really moving up in Luxury-car buyers' minds if they do this. In my mind, this will basically put Lincoln on the same footing as Acura, Saab, Volvo, some Audis instead of trying to compete with the Cadillacs and Lexus' of the world.

I know that Lincoln and Caddy haven't been on the same footing since at least the late 1990s, but to abandon it altogether just seems like the wrong move to me. Look at Caddy -- they abandoned RWD years ago, came back with new RWD offerings and nice styling and now they're on the same lists as folks who cross-shop Bimmers, Benzes, Lexus, etc. Caddy has a long way yet to go, but they've made that transition. If Lincoln goes in the other direction, how much longer before they're relegated to 2nd tier for good? Or is the idea that Ford doesn't need Lincoln to be it's "Cadillac Division" since it has Jaguar and Volvo now?

[ScottyFLM]

i hope they use styling que's from the continental concept from a couple years back, that car was bada$$

[HEVguy]

I guess I'll have to see the cars to understand their strategy. As nadepalma mentions, are they moving Lincoln back to 2nd tier (or more likely keeping it there for good) to compete with the likes of Buick and Chrysler? Or will these models models be luxurious, and sleek, sorta like the Zephyr, to compete better with the Caddy's, Bimmers, Mercedes, and... Jaguar. I guess the only image problem is that they won't be RWD, a hurtle that IMO can be overcome if EVERYTHING else was done right (+AWD).

Otherwise, I don't really like the idea of Lincoln using the Yamaha V-8. It seems to me that they should be keeping these core competencies in-house as much as possible. But times are-a-changin!

[GM_Fanatic]

Originally Posted by nadepalma

I always thought that they were designed by Adam Opel AG with the emphasis being on European standards and for European consumption.

Can anyone second this? I'm curious now.

[Maverick]

Originally Posted by Ming

Isn't Yamaha part owned by Toyota? Like 20% or something?

Toyota owns 4.45% of Yamaha Motor, and according to Wikipedia, Yamaha
Motor and Yamaha Corporation each own 500,000 shares of Toyota.

i hope they use styling que's from the continental concept from a couple years back, that car was bada$$

That'd be wishful thinking, but who wouldn't want a Continental if they made it like that?

[FoMoCo Fan]

The reason the LS is being phased out is that one model cannot support an entire vehicle architecture by itself. Jaguar has decided it no longer wants to share platforms with anyone else, so the LS was left stranded on DEW.

I think the future AWD Lincolns will be fine as D3 is one hell of a platform, with a V8 and AWD, and hopefully classic Lincoln styling, I don't see the problem. Unless you think every luxury car has to pretend to be a BMW.

[BigAls87Z28]

I can only assume that its possible that the Aviator will be built off the D3 chassis?