The Lincoln Zephyr is a brand name of automobile from the Lincoln automobile division of the Ford Motor Company. It was the lower priced luxury car of the Lincoln line and served a purpose somewhat the same as Cadillac's smaller LaSalle.

1935

The Lincoln Zephyr was originally produced from model year 1936 through 1942. It was initially offered for sale in November 1935. The car was available as a coupe or a sedan and a convertible was added after the first model year. The name was discontinued due to the switch to war-related production during World War II, and not revived by Lincoln after the war. The post-war Lincolns were the continuation of the pre-war Zephyr. TheLincoln Continental was developed from the Lincoln Zephyr, prototypes were built from the 1939 Lincoln Zephyr and production versions were based on the 1940 Lincoln Zephyr and updated each model year.

Annual production for any year model was not large but accounted for a large portion of the Lincoln brand's sales. In its first year, 15,000 were sold, accounting for 80% of Lincoln's total sales.

The Zephyr was powered by a small V-12 engine. The 1936 to 1939 models were 267 cubic inches (c.i.); 1940 and 1941 were 292 c.i.; 1942 and early 1946 were 306 c.i. and late 1946 to 1948 were 292 c.i. The original engine had 110 horsepower (82 kW) and gave the car a top speed of 90 miles per hour (145 km/h). The body was mono construction and very rigid, but surprising light for its size. The first model had a weight of 3,350 lb (1,520 kg).

Suspension was transverse springs front and rear, already seen as outdated when the car was introduced. Brakes were steeldraulic for 1936 to 1938; 1939 and onwards were hydraulic. The Zephyr was the first Ford product to have an all-steel roof.

2006

The 2006 Lincoln Zephyr was introduced at the 2005 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. The 2006 Zephyr (code name CD378) will go on sale in the Fall of 2005. This Zephyr will be built at Ford's Hermosillo, Mexico plant. It will use the Mazda 6-derived "CD3" platform and a Duratec V6 engine. A 6-speed automatic transmission, and both front- and all wheel drive will be offered. Ford will add a Hybrid drivetrain in the future.

While the new Zephyr shares 35% of its body panels with the Ford Fusion, the interior is completely unique. AWD and features like a 600 watt THX sound system with 14 speakers will also set it apart from the Ford and Mercury versions.

See also

• Ford Zephyr
• Mercury Zephyr

References

1. "Jewels at the Javits: Sparkling Luxury Cars Jostled Brawny SUVs to Capture the Limelight at the Most Popular U.S. Auto Show", an article on page twenty in the "News" section of the June, 2004 issue of Automobile magazine
2. "The Lincoln motorcar, sixty Years of Excellence" by Thomas Bonsall.

External link

• Lincoln Zephyr Owners Club
• Lincoln Zephyr on CanadianDriver.com