By 1990, the majority of manufacturers had shifted over to building front-wheel-drive cars, but there were a few hold outs. The Lincoln Mark VII was one of those and if that didn’t make these luxury cruisers stand out enough, they offered a performance variant known as the LSC (there was also a Bill Blass Edition). This LSC optioned example is a one previous owner survivor with just 33k miles and is in amazing shape! You can find this beauty here on eBay in Orlando, Florida with a BIN of $13,900 and the option to make an offer.
The LSC was a mix of luxury and performance, but as you can see these seats are definitely more on the performance side of the spectrum. They still look comfortable and I doubt the bolsters are overly stiff. It looks to be in great shape but the plastic bits are starting to show a little discoloration. That’s not surprising though, given the era that it was built. Overall, everything looks to be in good shape though and as you’d expect from a car with 33k miles.
Under the hood is the high output 5.0L V8 from the Mustang GT. It’s good for 225 horsepower, which might not sound like a lot by today’s standards, but in 1990 that was impressive for a luxury coupe and put it on par with BMW’s more expensive 6 Series. Interestingly enough, you could actually get the Mark VII with a BMW sourced turbocharged inline-six diesel engine, but there weren’t many with this engine and by ’86 it was removed from the option list. Things are looking clean under the hood and even the AC is said to work well.
It’s weird to see this body style sitting on BBS RA style wheels, but I’m actually digging the combo. This thing would be sweet to take to events like Radwood, heck it would be fun to have just to cruise around in. It seems like it would make for a comfortable and classy daily driver. So, would you drive this Lincoln the way it’s meant to be driven or would you preserve it and only bring it out for shows?
yeah, this is a sweet example.
roommate’s dad had an early one (84 i think?) with the low-power 5.0 and it was ok, handled pretty well for a heavy luxo barge, way better than dad’s Caddy or Riv.
last of the US rwd personal luxo coupes.
never got to drive one of the later ones but 225hp was serious power for the ’80s and there’s something graceful and timeless about the lines of the LSC that just works, especially with these wheels and some fat blackwalls, although the darker colors work better for me.
not sure what they’re worth but i’d lay odds that they become more desirable, especially in this condition.
Not the last. There was a Mark VIII
Love these, and this looks like a great one to own. I’d run the wheels off it!
I always liked these. I think the clean styling has held up well, even with the vestige of the spare tire hump. I agree with poseur, this one is a nice example, but I also prefer the dark colors. Pretty much a gentleman’s version of the Mustang GT.
Just last night I looked these up on Autotrader Classic. There are usually a few low mileage examples out there.
My dad had 2 of them, an 86 and a 90. Ford was making good cars during this period, with the Mustang, Taurus, and this.
I prefer darker colors, always liked the car. It’s too far away and I think the price is too high.
Definitely worthy of preservation, but you’d be remiss if you didn’t enjoy it as often as possible…no need to wrap it in pool noodles and bubble wrap, just treat it with respect.
That’s a really nice example. They looked too T Bird for me too warm up to them,though
yes, i always called them a mustang in a tuxedo… bit heavier but MUCH more luxurious, quieter… still have a body kit from one!
Ford really was making some cool cars back then. Performance oriented models across the board. I remember the street racer magazine called Cars testing one of these, Tony DeFeo or Cliff Groomer did the driving. I don’t remember the numbers anymore but they liked it, which was rare with those guys.
For some reason I’d like to see it a bit more aggressive, heavy exhaust note wide rims and tires, maybe some 5.0 hop ups, and absolutely flog it for all it’s worth.
Wow! a BMW sourced turbocharged inline-six diesel engine. That would be cool. I wonder how many horse?
About 115hp iirc but decent torque.
Not horrible when you realize the early 5.0 only had 140hp at the same time.
Ford didn’t bump the V8 up to 200 mid decade then 225 at the end
I agree with Troy S. I’d put a supercharger under that stock hood, along with the usual Mustang bolt ons, Flowmasters, and the widest tires that the rear wheelwells could take, staying with the stock rims and appearance. Oh and build up the notoriously weak auto transmission to handle it all. But that’s just me…
I had always wanted one of these. I was going to get one for my ex-wife before she turned sour. I heard electrical gremlins on these will drive you nuts.
Got one,154k original .2nd owner. need restoring to your liking…engine in good shape. best offer
Josh, you said “It’s weird to see this body style sitting on BBS RA style wheels, but I’m actually digging the combo.”
Those look like factory wheels to me.
I own 1984 Lincoln Continental with BMW 2.4 engine and also 1985 Lincoln Mark VII also BMW powertrain. Perfect cars one with 90.000 and 157.000 miles.
Perfect cars and I tested those engines at
Ford new holland back in 1987 – still have 2 engines and 2 ZF transmission with 50 hrs testing with all data.
Also I got 1985 BMW 524 td
Average mpg – 34 mpg
I knew a guy who put a 5 speed in a LSC. Another friend has one with many like 234000 miles on it and still going with no engine problems just the usual maintenance. I had a Thunderbird turbo coupe at the time and it’s 4 cylinder engine with the 5 speed was close to it. Ford did good with the Fox bodies! But looking back at the Fox cars it’s hard for me to like them as much as the new ones of today. The Fox cars however will go down in history as one of fords better ideas!
I may be ill educated in these matters, coming from the UK. But am I right in thinking that the dash is similar, if not the same, as a VW dash of the same era? I had a ’85 Scirocco (MK2) with this dash, am I right?