Could This 2022 Lincoln Zephyr Revive Ford Sedans?
Sedans in the US are toast. That’s why there are very few that remain unless you’re Stellantis. And Ford saw its last sedan go down last year. So for the first time ever, Ford is sedan-less. But in China, sedans still sell. And Ford has come up with a new, spectacular sedan for the Chinese market. Called Lincoln Zephyr, could it revive Ford sedans in the US?
This is a mildly disguised Lincoln concept of the 2022 Zephyr
This is a mildly disguised concept of the 2022 Zephyr that Lincoln calls the Zephyr Reflection. The production version will be released later this year. It is instantly recognizable as a Lincoln yet is nothing we have seen to this point.
Heavy body sculpting along with sharp rocker details and an aggressive front are just some of the Reflection’s features. The prominent Lincoln badge in the grille ties into chrome trim that carries into the headlights. A sweeping design line begins at the chrome trim ends, arcing back to the rear.
Inside a touch button gear selector begins at the top of the center console. A simple controller is housed in the console with a sprinkling of buttons and a storage compartment. It sits below the expansive end-to-end panoramic black screen.
The Zephyr interior has a minimalist look without hiccups and fussy details
That widescreen is actually three screens seamlessly tied together. In general, the interior has a minimalist look without hiccups and fussy details. The light “grage” gray and dark gray looks rich yet inviting.
One mysterious feature is what Lincoln calls “Constellation” which is a “human-machine interface language.” The folks at Lincoln are not revealing much about it. But they do say it will come in three themes. They are Normal, Sport, and Zen. We can’t wait to find out more about this.
The Lincoln Zephyr continues manufacturers’ habit of offering up concepts that are thinly disguised production models. We hope that what you’re Lincoln sells in the US should be gravy at does not change much once it is productionized. The question is if Lincoln would consider marketing the Zephyr again in the US?
Any Zephyr Lincoln sells in the US should be gravy
We don’t think so. But with the tooling already made and the end result being this good-looking sedan, why not take a chance. Expectations for amortization are crunched into the numbers for China exclusively. So anything Lincoln sells in the US should be gravy. So parent Ford has almost nothing to lose.
But many warm bodies and marketing money will have to be utilized to see a Lincoln sedan revitalization. Right now, with the microchip shortage and zeal to crank out EVs it probably isn’t a huge priority. Being neither an EV or an SUV leaves the Zephyr as an outlier in the US. In China it should sell well.
