Posted on 07/05/2017 12:19:10 PM PDT by RoosterRedux
Comebacks are never easy — but they are doable.
Ask Cadillac.
Not so very long ago, GM’s luxury car division was on the mat, the count at seven or eight. Cadillac had lost its mojo, traded it for Metamucil. Its cars weren’t even gaudy anymore.
Just old.
Then an ether-fed cold start.
Over the course of about ten years, beginning in the late 1990s with the introduction of the Catera — the first Caddy in decades that zigged rather than shuffled — Cadillac redefined itself as the American luxury-sport brand.
So, it can be done.
Now Lincoln is in the process of trying to do it.
But, differently.
The emphasis is on luxury more than sport.
It is no accident that the new Continental — subject of this review — bears more than a passing resemblance to a Rolls Royce Phantom.
Well, except for the window sticker.
What It Is…
The Continental is Lincoln’s new flagship sedan.
It is cleverly positioned in between mid-sized (and mid-priced) luxury-sport sedans like the BMW 5 Series and Mercedes E Class and the much pricier — and only slightly larger — full-sized BMW 7 Series and Mercedes S-Class sedans.
The Connie is only about 5 inches shorter than an S550 (and 7.6 inches longer than an E300) and has more front seat legroom than both the 740i and the S500 — and the Rolls Royce Phantom, too.
It also has much more backseat legroom — and engine — than the mid-sized 5 Series and E-Class offer.
You can also get a Connie with AWD for less than any of them. Or not at all. The Rolls Phantom is rear-drive only.
Base price is $44,720 — topping out at $65,075 for a Black Label edition with Lincoln’s new 400 hp twin-turbo V6 under the hood...
(Excerpt) Read more at spectator.org ...
I started with two Buicks back in the day that had 350’s in ‘em. Wonderful sound. But not nearly as much HP as the 5.0 liter Coyote in my Mustang has now (435). I LOVED those cars. And I could work on them... Never open the hood now - can’t see anything anyway.
But, I have had some good 4-bangers.
I had a 1980 Pontiac Sunbird - black coupe. The 2.5 liter 4-cylinder engine was called the “Iron Duke”. Nice car, plenty of torque, especially since it was a 4-on-the-floor. Wish I still had it.
I also bought a 2.0 liter turbo Saturn Sky Redline in 2008. 260 HP for that little car made it really scoot. Sound? Like a European sports car you hear in the movies. Nice - but not a V8.
“in the late 1990s with the introduction of the Catera...-Cadillac redefined itself as the American luxury-sport brand. So, it can be done.”
The Catera? That was a joke of a car that cost over $37K with typical options for 1997 and was disingenuously marketed to working women who wouldn’t have known they were gonna be ripped off. It was image over substance and so typical of the ‘90’s.
If I remember, it was basically a Chevy Citation with a Cadillac badge, wasn’t it?
We had a Volvo sedan and station wagon in the late 80s when the kids arrived. Both were the four-bangers, one naturally aspirated and one turbocharged. They were amazing engines, but the turbocharger failed with the normal turbo problem of burned out bearings and seizure. Fortunately, it was covered by warranty.
Still like my V8. Most V8s in the 60s were making about 1 hp per cubic inch. Today’s engines typically are producing 2.0 to 2.5 times that amount. Amazing progress in ICE design and efficiency in the 50 years.
The Ford Triton V8 suffers from aluminum heads that often seize up spark plugs due to dissimilar metal galling. It is a very costly failure when that happens. Engine blocks and heads should be made of cast iron!
Or was that the Cimmeron?
“Engine blocks and heads should be made of cast iron!”
Preach it, Brother!
Not to mention the fake hood air intakes available on just about every new pickup on the market.
“You are the Duke of New York. You’re A-number one.”
—Donald Pleasence
No, it wasn’t THAT bad...It was made in Russelsheim, Germany and was based on the Opel Omega.
Some day someone is going to design a car for entry/egress savior-faire, fair weather or foul. It’s a good thing I haven’t been holding my breath waiting, tho . . .
. . . and pistons of titanium. The stresses in an engine would be negligible if you had massless pistons and con rods.
Looks like an updated Chrysler 300 Hoodmobile.
Without the badge I would have guessed Hyundai.
The Lincoln Continental of old had class.
The stink was put on it, through two things:
1. the doors swung from the ‘wrong’ jambs;
2. it was the style of car that Kennedy was shot while riding.
This ‘new brew’ of styling is too metrosexual for my tastes.
Obama used to drive a Chrysler 300. Just sayin’...
Still holding on to my Town Car Ultimate.
He was very proud of it. As he should be.
(example)
It’s $15,000 overpriced...
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