Tag Archives: lincoln

How Lincoln Got Its Luxury Back

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I think Lincoln is going to be just fine. That’s the lesson I learned this morning, at least. As I was doing last night’s dishes, I listened to the latest Planet Money podcast (which is great, by the way, if you’re like me and want to know more about the economy without earning a PhD in economics). Episode 377, entitled “Can Lincoln Be Cool Again?”, centered on, well, that very question.

To be honest, I didn’t really think Lincoln was in trouble to begin with, but the episode made some compelling cases.

First, a thought experiment: name the ‘top’ luxury automakers. Lexus, Mercedes, BMW, etc. Lincoln does not necessarily come to mind first. But it doesn’t come to mind first, either. Ford (Lincoln’s parent company) is looking to change that with its new flagship release, the Lincoln MKZ.

2013 Lincoln MKZ

Wow, now that is a luxury automobile. It looks like something out of the newest Star Trek film – futuristic yet classic.

Not only does the new Lincoln MKZ look luxururious, but its accoutrement are top notch, as well. According to the AutoBlog,

We’re all in agreement, however, about the improved interior design, especially the Push Button Shift gear selector that makes for a smooth, uncluttered center console. The MKZ will of course be available with SYNC and MyLincoln Touch, which are complemented by a large 10.1-inch LCD instrument cluster and 8-inch center touchscreen. The interior is covered wall-to-wall in leather, real wood trim and metal accents, and Active Noise Control, which cancels out offending audibles, is standard equipment. Optional is a unique 15.2-foot Retractable Panoramic Roof that takes sunroofs to the extreme.

Not only that, but the Lincoln MKZ will stands to be a powerful vehicle, with a turbocharged 2-liter engine standard, pumping out 240 horsepower and 270 lb-ft. of torque. There will also be 3.7-liter and hybrid models available, so if you want more power or more efficiency, Lincoln’s got you covered.

So what do you think? Does the new Lincoln MKZ have what it takes to get you in the mood for luxury? Ford and Lincoln are banking on it. According to Planet Money, the luxury line of an automaker’s fleet can make up as little as 10% of overall sales while accounting for upwards of 60% of its profits. More Lincoln sales means more American profit means more American jobs and so on. I for one can’t wait to get behind the wheel of a new MKZ.

Musicians Have The Coolest Cars

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There were a couple news stories this week about some cool new musicians’s cars. That got me thinking – musicians have the best cars, don’t they? It stands to reason, since they make heaps of money for being talented (or good looking or lucky), but still – if I had a ton of cash I’d probably still be driving the same — albeit slightly newer — model.

As you’ll see below – having an awesome car is awesome up until the point where you crash your Ferrari/Maybach/Corvette/Bentley doing 120 MPH. Or, maybe you end up, er, lighting your own music memorabilia on fire.

Anyway, here are two new (and two older) cool musicians’s cars to gaze upon during this hot early summer day.

Steven Tyler’s $11 Million Hennessey Venom GT Spyder

Stephen Tyler's Hennessey Spyder GT

Of the five Venom GTs built last year, Steven Tyler’s is the only convertible. Since that added some weight, Hennessey bumped up the horsepower to 1,244 – a logical choice, for sure.

The aged Aerosmith rocker will be able to hit 200 MPH in 15.9 seconds, and should definitely beef up his auto insurance plan. [Via Jalopnik]

Eric Clapton’s Ferrari SP12

Eric Clapton's Ferrari SP12 EC

Old “Slowhand” has a variety of signature guitars made by the likes of Martin and Fender. But he is, maybe, the first musician to have a signature Ferrari.

The model, officially called the SP12 EC — give you one guess as to what the “EC” stands for — is quite similar to the Ferrari 458 Italia. The big difference is the body panels, which are inspired by several vintage 70s and 80s Ferraris, which Clapton personally owns.

This Ferrari has a 4.5-liter engine (a bit smaller than Clapton wanted), and style for miles. If you’re going to be driving down to the crossroads, I can’t think of a more stylish vehicle to do it in. [Via Autoblog]

Jay-Z’s Maybach Exelero

Jay-Z's $8 Million Maybach Exelero

No, it’s not the one that garnered just $60,000 for charity. It’s an $8,000,000 vehicle that was featured in the video for “Lost One”, and it basically looks like the Batmobile but real.

The Exelero hits a top speed of just over 218 MPH (that’s $3,6633.39 per MPH if you’re keeping score at home!), but it weighs over 2.6 tons, so, yeah. It also goes from 0 to 60 in 4.4 seconds, so if Jay were fighting crime in Gotham (not putting it past him — he’s a busy dude), then the Exelero might be a good choice.

Quick: think of the least-fuel efficient car made in the last fiftysomething years. Did the Lincoln Continental come to mind? If it didn’t, it could have been right up there.

Neil Young’s Electric-ified Lincoln Continental Mark IV

Neil Young's 1959 Lincoln Continental Mark IV

Neil Young’s 1959 Lincoln Continental Mark IV apparently used to get 10 MPG. Not anymore! The iconoclast southern rocker has characteristically thumbed his nose at the powers that be, heavily modding his 60+ years’s old Continental to get better mileage. How much better?

Neil Young’s Lincoln Continental Mark IV gets over 100 MPG.

The rocker got this giant slab of metal — over 5,000 pounds and 19.5 feet long — to the century mark in fuel efficiency by turning it all electric.

But Young’s electric success story does not, unfortunately, have a happy ending. Young’s Lincoln Contintental allgedly caught fire, creating a $1 million fire loss damage to the warehouse it was stored in. According to SF Weekly,

Only a crazy (read: legally negligent) person would convert a 1959 Lincoln Continental to run on a hybrid of gasoline and electricity.

 

That’s the argument in a new lawsuit filed against a firm owned by Neil Young, whose custom-built hybrid is being blamed for a 2010 warehouse fire in San Carlos that caused more than $1 million in damage. The blaze burned a great deal of Young’s music memorabilia — including rare guitars and photographs — and left the car a mere shell of burned-out steel.

Well, Neil Young has always been known for being a little bit crazy, a little eclectic, and not afraid of breaking the rules. It’s just too bad it looks like risk-taking in the music world doesn’t necessarily pay off in the auto world.