On your Mark VII

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…

- Huw Evans

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 ‘bustle back sedan, it was clearly derived from the then current T-bird/Cougar. The new Mark sported distinctly smooth aero styling, with flush ‘euro-style’ 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.