Lincoln Continental story, Part Six
In our sixth instalment of the Continental story, we’re looking at the seventh iteration of the Continental Mark series: the evergreen Mark VII, a powerful, aerodynamic coupe that looks as fresh today as when the covers were first pulled off 37 years ago…
While we still may find it hard to appreciate the greed decade, the Eighties introduced us to many things which have since become a staple part of our daily lives – mobile phones, compact discs and cable TV. In terms of automotive technological development (particularly in North America) it was also a time of immense progress and change. Right at the forefront was the Ford Motor Company, which, after having languished in the Seventies, came roaring back with a whole new line of products, many of which were spun off the extremely versatile ‘Fox’ platform, begun with the Ford Fairmont/Mercury Zephyr in 1978. The new-for-1984 Lincoln Mk VII was no exception.
Replacing the slow-selling MkVI duo, this new car signalled a change of direction for Dearborn’s upscale division and at the time, more than a few critics wondered if it would work. Whereas the Mark VI was essentially a tarted-up full-size town car/coupe, the new Mark VII had its own distinct identity and was aimed at buyers of imported luxury coupes like the Mercedes 380 SEC and BMW 6-series, something which Lincoln-Mercury hadn’t even considered before. Built on the same 108.3-inch wheelbase stretched Fox chassis as the new-for-1982 Continental ‘bustleback’ sedan, it was clearly derived from the then current T-bird/Cougar. The new Mark sported distinctly smooth aero styling, with flush ‘eurostyle’ headlamps (the first domestic car ever to use them) and soft contours, resulting in the lowest drag coefficient (0.38cd) seen on any US luxury automobile, something which Lincoln was keen to mention in contemporary sales literature.
However, not wanting to alienate traditional Lincoln buyers, the division made sure to dress its slippery new coupe with plenty of gingerbread, including extensive use of chrome trim on the window surrounds, mirrors, bumpers and door handles, along with a traditional (albeit smaller) Mark grille, vertical tail-lights and humped trunk lid with faux spare tyre. Underneath, the basic Fox architecture was clearly evident (read front engine, rear-drive and solid axle), though in Mark VII iteration there were a few differences, particularly regarding the suspension. Here, FoMoCo engineers went down a different path. In place of the conventional front MacPherson struts and coil-sprung rear with trailing arms as found on other Fox cars, the Mk VII employed air suspension front and rear.
Jointly developed by Ford and Goodyear, the system employed a cylindrical rubber bag in place of a coil spring at each location. Pressure inside the bags was monitored by an electronically controlled onboard compressor, via sealed plastic tubes, which adjusted the settings according to changes in road conditions (between 75 and 100psi). The result was a traditional style pillow-soft ride (something most buyers of Lincoln products at the time expected), but tauter handling on the twisties – standard front and rear sway bars also helped. Inside the Mk VII’s interior smacked of the latest T-bird/Mercury Cougar and in the typical Lincoln idiom, was loaded to the gills, featuring, among other things, six-way power front seats (with optional heating), full-length centre console, premium AM/FM sound system, tilt steering, cruise control, power windows and full instrumentation, albeit in digital form.
Powertrain options comprised a standard 302cu in (5.0-litre) V8 with throttle body fuel injection and 8.4:1 compression ratio, rated at 140bhp and 250ft-lb of torque. The only optional engine was a BMW-built 2.5-litre straight-six turbo diesel, cranking out a paltry 115 horses and 130ft-lb of torque. Both engines featured dual exhausts and in each case were teamed with Ford’s new AOD (Automatic Overdrive) four-speed overdrive automatic transmission. For its first season on the market, the Mark VII was offered in four trim levels: base, Bill Blass and Versace ‘designer’ versions and LSC. The last was of particular interest to enthusiasts – LSC stood for Luxury Sport Coupe (the fabled ‘hot rod Lincoln’ had come to life once more, or so it seemed). LSCs featured a firmed-up suspension with tauter shock valving – some 40% stiffer – and revised spring rates through increased airbag pressure, plus thicker front and rear sway bars.
Outwardly the LSC wore handsome polished 15-inch aluminium rims, riding on beefy Goodyear Eagle GT 215/65/R15 blackwall tyres with unidirectional Gatorback tread – cuttingedge rubber in 1984 – along with quicker rack and pinion power steering (just 2.5 turns lock to lock) and shorter 3.27:1 gearing in the 7.5-inch axle. Not surprisingly, contemporary auto journalists were exceedingly keen to get their hands on the LSC. Car & Driver managed to get a hold of one of the first preproduction examples built and while straight line performance wasn’t stellar – the test car took 11.1 seconds to reach 60mph and over 18 through the quarter – handling was quite astonishing next to rival American luxury cars of the day. Overall, they had this to say about the Mark VII in LSC form: ‘a Mark with blackwall tires and no more chrome than an Audi; maybe there is hope after all’.
Indeed there was. As it did with most other products in the line at the time, FoMoCo saw fit to constantly improve the Mk VII nearly every year and the 1985 models featured a number of updates. The biggest was the adoption of anti-lock brakes on LSCs (yet another first on a domestic car). Unlike some other set-ups, the Mark’s ABS was operated via an electrically activated hydraulic booster – operative only when the brake pedal was depressed, resulting in a considerable weight and efficiency saving compared with engine-driven pumps. The 302 motor also received a serpentine accessory belt drive for simplicity and reduced maintenance. On LSC models Lincoln also saw fit to throw in a pair of multi-adjustable sport bucket seats and bolt a pair of Marchal driving lights below the front bumper. However, despite the improvements, the Mark’s second season on the market proved to be its slowest selling of the Eighties, with just 19,853 in total being built.
For 1986, Ford engineers finally sought to correct the Mk VII’s weakest link – straight-line get up and go. Ads touted ‘the car you’d never expect from Lincoln’ and with each passing season the more truthful this statement seemed to be. This season, the Versace edition and diesel engine option were dropped, and all VIIs were now exclusively powered by the 302 – unpopularity and the re-emergence of cheap gas was a big part in the oil burner’s demise.
LSC versions also got a major power boost in the shape of the Mustang’s 5.0-litre HO engine. This hi-po version of the 302 featured sequential multipoint fuel injection, tubular ceramic-coated exhaust headers, 9.2:1 compression flat-top pistons, long tuned intake runners with 19lb/hr injectors and a roller camshaft and lifters.
Output was the same as in the Mustang: 200bhp at 4000rpm and a mighty 285ft-lb of torque at 3000 revs. Combined with a stouter 8.8-inch rear end sourced from Ford’s compact Ranger pick-up truck (with 3.27:1 final drive) this finally addressed the car’s long-standing weakness of sluggish acceleration and turned it into a serious performer – making the old ‘hot rod Lincoln’ moniker more appropriate than ever. Other notable improvements were the substitution of an analogue instrument cluster for the glow-winkle lights on LSCs and the availability of ABS across the board. With the US economy in full swing, Detroit enjoyed a good year for ’86 and Mark VII production jumped, with 23,780 cars rolling out of the factory.
After garnering such big changes the previous year, it seemed that 1987 would see only minor improvements for Lincoln’s personal luxury coupe, and indeed the early ’87s differed only in detail. However, halfway through the model year the LSC version got a serious shot of oats, receiving an even stronger 302 motor, shared with that year’s Mustang.
Boasting a bigger 60mm throttle body and larger intake, along with E7TE free-breathing heads, but slightly lower compression (9.0:1), it packed a considerable wallop – 225bhp at 4200rpm and an arm-twisting 300ft-lb of torque.
Outwardly the fortified 1987-and-a-half LSC was also distinguished by the addition of bigger and very handsome 16-inch finned cast aluminium rims and 225/60 series Goodyear Eagle GT+4s which offered considerably improved traction, especially in the wet.
As with the original ’84 edition, Car & Driver testers managed to get their mitts on one of the earliest 1987.5 LSCs. In testing, the newest version was discernibly quicker – 0-60 came up in just 8.2 seconds and the quarter in 16.1 – and remember this was a near-4000lb luxocruiser. However, like much of the mainstream automotive press at the time, they derided the car’s ‘unsophisticated’ Fairmont chassis, which was by then a decade old, despite still loving the styling and interior ergonomics.
Automobile magazine was a little more balanced and kinder in its review. The LSC garnered all kinds of points in the publication’s all-star ratings and editor/publisher David E Davis Jr (who owned an LSC at the time) remarked: “It [the MK VII] has some of the best seats of any car built in the United States, is the best car to drive at 75mph down the freeway without attracting unwanted attention and an eminently more appealing vehicle (in 225 horse form).”
Armed with the newly fortified V8 and with trim options cut back to just Bill Blass and LSC for 1988 the VII began to take on the role as the ‘Gentleman’s Mustang GT’ rather than the import-fighting luxo-coupe image FoMoCo had originally sought – hardly a bad thing, especially considering that the 5.0 Mustang craze was just taking off. By 1989 the VII’s once-revolutionary shape was starting to get a little long in the tooth, but after selling 22,526 copies the previous year, Lincoln managed to shift 24,620 Mk VIIs – exposure as James Bond’s ride in United Artists’ Licence to Kill probably helped sell the additional 1500 or so units. With the onset of a new decade, FoMoCo retired the Mark VII in 1992 after the 190,832nd car rolled off the line. Today these understated Eighties hot rods make for a great daily driver, while offering lots of performance on tap – could there be a Mark VII in your life?