Lincoln

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2012 Current Models

Mid-Size Luxury Sedan

MKZ

Full-Size Luxury & Sports Sedan

MKS

Full-Size Luxury Sedan

Town Car

Mid-Size Luxury Crossover

MKX

Full-Size Luxury Crossover

MKT

Full-Size Luxury SUV

Navigator

Lincoln is an American luxury automobile brand, operated under the Ford Motor Company.

History

1931 Lincoln with greyhound hood-ornament

30s Lincoln front half detail

1937 Lincoln Zephyr

2000 Lincoln Town Car

The company was founded in 1917 by Henry M. Leland. Leland, one of the founders of Cadillac, left the Cadillac division of General Motors during World War I and formed the Lincoln Motor Company to build Liberty aircraft engines. After the war, the company's factories were retooled to manufacture luxury automobiles.

The company encountered severe financial troubles during the transition, and was consequently bought by Ford Motor Company in 1922, who still owns and manufactures cars under the Lincoln marque in its Lincoln-Mercury division. The purchase of Lincoln was a personal triumph for Ford who had been forced out of his second company by a group of investors led by Leland. Ironically that company was later renamed Cadillac. Lincoln quickly became one of America's top selling luxury brands alongside Cadillac and Duesenberg. In 1927, Lincoln adopted the greyhound as their emblem, which was later replaced with diamond that is currently in use.

With the 1936 model year, Lincoln introduced the Lincoln Zephyr, which was a sportier design. Zephyr was almost a distinct brand name, rather than just a model. It was produced from 1936 until WWII stopped production in early 1942. From the 1939 Zephyr, Edsel Ford began his efforts to create the Lincoln Continental, which eventually became the most important car made by Lincoln. It began as a one-off project car for Edsel Ford to drive around on vacations in Florida. Edsel wanted a European-style car unlike the boxier designs his father's company produced. The Continental proved popular and plans were made to sell it.

The Continental Mark II was a revival of the concept. It was produced by the short-lived Continental division from April 1955 to July 1956 before it was returned to the Lincoln marque. The Mark II had a basic list price of $10,000, $70,000 considering inflation, the same price as a Rolls-Royce that year. The Edsel division was merged with the Lincoln-Mercury division in January 1958 to form the Mercury-Edsel-Lincoln division until the Edsel was discontinued in 1960.

The Lincoln Continental became Lincoln's flagship model until 1981 when the Lincoln Town Car, previously the top-of-the-line trim level on Continental, became its own model and took over as Lincoln flagship model.

As recently as 1998 Lincoln was the best-selling luxury brand in the United States, helped by the massive success of the Navigator SUV, and a redesign of the Town Car as well as the Continental. The company was also part of the Premier Automotive Group from 1998 to 2002, but was pulled out due to Ford's new marketing strategy to separate its "import" brands from its domestic marques. In recent years, however, the company has fallen behind Japanese, European, and American competitors for a lack of new models. The company is working to remedy this, however, and is sharing parts and platforms with other Ford divisions worldwide in an attempt to bring more new models to market faster. The company promises five new models in the four years 2004-2008, and has already begun with the new 2006 Mark LT pickup and Zephyr.

Presidential cars

Lincoln Limousine used by President Calvin Coolidge, c. 1924

Leland named the brand after his longtime hero Abraham Lincoln, for whom he had voted in 1860 in the first presidential elections he was eligible for.

Lincoln had a long history of providing limousines for the U.S. President. The first car specially built for Presidential use was the 1939 Lincoln V12 convertible called the "Sunshine Special" used by Franklin D. Roosevelt. It remained in use until 1950. A 1950 Lincoln Cosmopolitan called the "Bubble Top" was used by Presidents Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy and once by Johnson. It was retired in 1965. The Kennedy car was a 1961 Lincoln Continental convertible. It was in use from 1961 to 1977, having undergone extensive alterations which made it an armor-plated sedan after Kennedy's assassination. A 1969 Lincoln was used by Nixon and a 1972 Lincoln used by Presidents Ford, Carter, Reagan and Bush. A 1989 Lincoln was the last Presidential Lincoln as of 2004. Cadillac supplied Presidential limousines in 1983, 1993, 2001, and 2004.

Lincoln automobiles

2006 Lincoln Model Line-up
Model	Type	Price Range
Town Car	Flagship	$42,875 - $56,745
Navigator	Full-size SUV	$50,140 - $67,645
LS V8	Sport Sedan	$39,285 - $48,405
Mark LT	Pick-up	$38,680 - $47,220
Zephyr	Entry-level	$28,995 - $35,240
2007 Lincoln Model Line-up
Model	Type	Price Range
Town Car	Flagship	$42,875 - $56,745
Navigator	Full-size SUV	$52,990 - $66,545
MKX	Crossover SUV	$34,495 - $44,885
Mark LT	Pick-up	$38,680 - $47,220
MKZ	Entry-level	$28,995 - $35,240

Current and near future models

Lincoln is currently switching to a new naming system based around the "Mark" name used since the 1950s. Most Lincoln models will be given a three-letter name starting "MK" (originally standing for "Mark," but now simply pronounced em-kay) starting in 2007. The Navigator and Town Car name will remain, but all other models are expected to use this convention by the end of the decade.

• Lincoln Mark LT (2005–)
• Lincoln MKS (2008–)
• Lincoln MKX (2007–)
• Lincoln MKZ (2007–)
• Lincoln Navigator (1998–)
• Lincoln Town Car (1981–)
• Lincoln Zephyr/MKZ (2006–)

Recent models

• Lincoln LS (2000–2006)
• Lincoln Aviator (2003–2005)
• Lincoln Blackwood (2002)
• Lincoln Continental (1961–2002)
• Lincoln Mark Series (1956–1998)

Historical

The 1970 Lincoln Mark III, along with others in the series, used a rounded "Continental"-style trunk lid, designed to suggest that the spare tire was stored there

• Lincoln L-series (1920–1930)
• Lincoln K-series (1931–1939)
• Lincoln Zephyr (1936–1942), a car line priced between Ford and Lincoln
• Lincoln-Zephyr Continental (1940–1942, 1946–1948), later Lincoln Continental
• Lincoln Custom (1941–1942)
• Lincoln (no other name) (1946–1951)
• Lincoln Sport (1949–1951)
• Lincoln Cosmopolitan (1949–1954)
• Lincoln Lido (1950–1951)
• Lincoln Custom (1955)
• Lincoln Capri (1952–1959)
• Lincoln Premiere (1956–1960)
• Lincoln Versailles (1976–1980)

Recent Lincoln models timeline

Lincoln Timeline

Model

1970s

1980s

1990s

2000s

'70

'71

'72

'73

'74

'75

'76

'77

'78

'79

'80

'81

'82

'83

'84

'85

'86

'87

'88

'89

'90

'91

'92

'93

'94

'95

'96

'97

'98

'99

'00

'01

'02

'03

'04

'05

'06

Flagship

Continental

Town Car

Mid-level

Versailles

Continental

LS

Entry-level

LS

Zephyr

Personal Luxury

Mark series

Mid-Size SUV

Aviator

Large SUV

Navigator

Pick-up truck

Blackwood

Mark LT

External links and references

• Official Website
• Heritage page at Lincoln.com
• Lincoln vs Cadillac A site dedicated to the Lincoln Mark VIII and other Lincoln Automobiles and a good source for repair and modification information
• Lincolns of Distinction- Lincoln Automobile History and information
• http://www.classiclincolns.com/
• Lincoln Owners- Website with live community, pictures and technical information for owners and enthusiasts of Lincoln luxury automobiles

Ford Motor Company

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