Lincoln to Show More Than the MKC in L.A.

A few days ago, official photos surfaced of the next-generation Lincoln MKC, showing a crossover that had ditched its krill-hungry maw in favor of a new grille in line with treatments found on the Continental and Navigator. Lincoln announced that the refreshed MKC will be shown this week in L.A.

Yesterday, Lincoln dropped a quick teaser video on Twitter, showing several seconds of pavement followed by the lower half of a chrome wheel. Promising a vehicle that will “make a lasting impression,” the video leaves us pondering a question: If Lincoln has officially shown us the 2019 MKC, what else could it possibly have in store?

We have a feeling this vehicle is going to make a lasting impression. 11.28.17 pic.twitter.com/Pg5caGJ4sa

— LincolnMotorCompany (@LincolnMotorCo) November 27, 2017

Not much to go on, eh? We feel it’s safe to assume the vehicle in that 10-second clip is a crossover, because America and an OEM’s bottom line runs on SUVs and SUVish machines. There is an excellent chance the car will be shown in L.A. alongside the facelifted MKC, meaning the subject of that video is not something we’ve already seen.

It could be a refreshed MKX, sharing a new mug with the MKC and Navigator. This would be welcome, as the “split-wing” grille never did translate very well onto the face of a tall car. It is not overly likely, however, given that Lincoln (or any manufacturer) would be keen to give up bandwidth building up to the reveal of a new model. It is more realistic to speculate that the teaser video is confirming a Black Label MKC will be shown in L.A, a trim which was described a length in last week’s press release but was short on pictures.

If a new crossover is in the offing, this author sincerely hopes it is a replacement for the apocalyptically ugly MKT, a machine with cross-eyed taillamps and a face only a mother could slug. Like it or not, Lincoln needs a three-row crossover in its lineup and one based on the current Explorer would likely do well with its intended demographic.

Thinking back to my days on the sales staff at a small Ford-Lincoln store in the mid-2000s, the truckish Explorer-based Aviator of that era was one of our better performers on the Lincoln side of the showroom. I think it could be so again, so long as they strip off the MKSoup nomenclature. Aviator is a great name, as is Continental, so at least Lincoln is moving in the right direction on that front. Attentive readers will recall my long-term affection for the luxury brand, even if its recent crop of product left me decidedly unenthused. The new styling direction helps a lot.

As to discovering the subject of that tweet, we won’t have long to wait; the L.A. Auto Show begins in earnest today.

[Image: Ford Motor Company]