QOTD: Cruel, Cynical Tease, or a Return to Past Glory?

The recent report that Lincoln might return the Continental to its suicide doored past aroused a cornucopia of feelings here at TTAC. Among them: guarded titillation, with many — your author included — envisioning a retro-themed alternative reality in which slab-sided Continentals remain the pinnacle of roadgoing luxury. A crossover-free world in which the 1961 Lincoln is a template for how to clean up in the premium segment.

Basically, the movie Her, only with Continentals instead of high-waisted men’s pants.

The second feeling: a deep sense of distrust in both the automaker and the buying public, as the report goes against everything we’ve heard up to this point — and everything we know about the average American’s fondness for full-size sedans.

Which emotion should gain the upper hand?

Let’s face it — until this past weekend, things weren’t exactly rosy for fans of the Continental. A report last fall claimed development work on the next-generation Ford Fusion was called off, and Ford CEO Jim Hackett’s later words didn’t exactly inspire hope in those who value the Fusion or any other Blue Oval car. Of course, the Continental rides atop a modified CD4 platform, the same one underpinning the Fusion. Our own source claims the CD6 platform, which underpins the 2020 Ford Explorer and Lincoln Aviator, and seems like an obvious candidate for a next-generation Continental, is an SUV-only platform.

Since last year, we’ve seen another report, also derived from sources close to Ford, claiming a next-generation Continental is also off the table. This didn’t come as a surprise; sales have declined markedly since the model’s late 2016 debut, and both Ford and the buying public seem ready to accept an automotive landscape that relegates vehicles without a liftgate to the sports car segment.

Jim Farley, head of global markets at Ford, steadfastly refuses to discuss the future of Lincoln passenger cars. Nor has he mentioned the continued existence of any Lincoln car. But hey, there’s two new utility models coming by 2020, and four more after that!

Things looked grim for lovers of the traditional American luxury car. Then came word from the NADA meetup that Lincoln showed dealers a next-generation Continental with suicide doors, one it’s apparently determined to build, and… it just seems like too much hope. Too much like cynically placating a nervous dealer body that still holds fond memories of the Town Car years.

There’s a number of competing elements in all of this. First, there’s Ford’s desire to streamline its lineups and position itself for future success. That means SUVs in the short term and whatever electrified mobility the crystal ball crowd says we’ll be gaga for in three, five, seven years. Whatever’s necessary to boost profits and get that valuation on an upward climb. Whether heritage factors into this plan in any great measure is unknown.

Just last week we talked of car-less Lincoln, and it seemed like a very plausible near-future reality at the time. If buyers aren’t even taking to the Continental in Cadillac XTS-like numbers, who can honestly state, with any measure of accuracy, that a successor with suicide doors would perform any better? The current Continental’s development wasn’t cheap, so why would Ford sink more money into redesigning the model and potentially plopping it onto a new platform? Besides keeping a famous model nameplate alive for heritage reasons, what’s the upside in keeping a Continental in the Lincoln lineup?

Is it even possible, in this day and age, that a Continental sedan that fully embraces the Kennedy era (as the Lincoln Continental Concept did back in 2002) could actually become the hit Ford wants?

What’s your take on all of this, B&B? Are we being taken for a ride, or is our dream ride looming just beyond the horizon?

[Images: Ford Motor Company, Alden Jewell/ Flickr ( CC BY 2.0)]