eBay Find of the Day: Look Ma, No Door!

Alex Nunez — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 16:27:00 EST

Filed under: Concept Cars, Gadgets, Coupe, Lincoln

From the outside, it looks like a normal 1993 Lincoln Mark VIII, but with shaved door handles. The reason the handles are gone becomes evident when the window rolls down and the door slides down and under the car, creating a large opening for easy entry and exit. According to the vehicle description at RonSusser.com, the car was created by Joalto Design, Inc. at the behest of FoMoCo execs concerned about the effect the Linc's wide doors had on parking the car in tighter urban environments. This claim, it should be noted, is completely unsubstantiated, so take it with a grain of salt.

While the backstory may be murky, the car is very real, as are the patents on the door mechanicals RonSusser.com links to in the item description. The Lincoln was actually used as a daily driver by a previous owner and shows 43K on the odometer. It's also worth noting that the magic door only works on the passenger side, so the new buyer's going to have to find someone with the know-how to get the driver's side operational again. As of this writing, the high bid on the car is $10,100, which is still short of the reserve. Follow the jump for a video of the door in action. Assuming the reserve's not outlandish, someone has a shot at driving a real conversation piece. Climbing in through the passenger side will probably get old in a hurry, though.

Thanks for the tip, Spec!

[Sources: RonSusser.com / eBay]

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eBay Find of the Day: Look Ma, No Door! originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 09 Jul 2007 16:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Detroit Auto Show: Lincoln MKR rolls into the spotlight

Eric Bryant — Sun, 07 Jan 2007 08:58:00 EST

Filed under: Concept Cars, Detroit Auto Show, Coupe, Sedan, Lincoln

After the Lincoln MKR found its way to center stage inside the Cobo Arena here in Detroit, Peter Horbury (Ford's North American design chief) stepped out of the Lincoln with the gait of a proud man. Now, that could be just because he avoided the task of explaining Ford's Airstream concept (J Mays must have lost that game of rock-paper-scissors), or perhaps it's because Lincoln has some design cues it can call its own after so many years of wandering the styling wilderness.

In the flesh, the MKR's proportions the include severe inward curvature of the rocker panels and short overhangs make it appear smaller than it actually is, and lend an athletic stance - something we probably haven't said of contemporary Lincoln products. The grille stands out - perhaps too much so - from the other subtle styling cues, but it would at least be unmistakable when headed down the road.

The TwinForce twin-turbo V6 is mated to a six-speed gearbox of unknown type (a twin-layshaft would make sense, given the engine nomenclature), which is shifted via pushbuttons on the T-shaped center console and paddles on the steering wheel. The recycled black oak that runs throughout the interior has just the right finish and looks antique without looking old, and contrasts nicely with the white leather and chrome accents. We're betting that the bottom-swinging pedals and deep-dish steering wheel don't ever make it to production, though.

And so just when can we expect to see showrooms filled with this spiritual successor to the Mark VII and Mark VIII? Well, Ford made no mention of production, so for now everyone is left to guessing.

Check out Lincoln's complete press release after the jump, and the 19 additional high-resolution live shots we've added to the MKR Concept's gallery.

Continue reading Detroit Auto Show: Lincoln MKR rolls into the spotlight

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