2015 New York Motor Show: Lincoln Continental ruled out

THE polarising Lincoln Continental will remain off limits for Australians, with the brand again ruling out any medium-term plans to join Cadillac for a luxury assault Down Under.

The latest block for the boldly styled brand that is focused heavily on the North American market came as it unveiled the radical Continental Concept at the 2015 New York motor show.

“We’re focused on building our core [model] portfolio … and we’re growing our volumes and distribution network in China,” Lincoln president Kumar Galhotra said at the show.

“There are opportunities in other markets … [but] none of them are right-and drive.

“Never say never; it’s a question of where our priorities lie right now.”

Galhotra said the focus for Lincoln was expanding its presence in China, which he said would account for the majority of a planned tripling of sales from about 100,000 vehicles globally each year to 300,000 by 2020.

“China is going to be huge for Lincoln,” Galhotra said. “At this moment we don’t have any plans to enter Europe. We’re focussed on the North American markets and the Chinese market.”

The Continental Concept is dripping in chrome, plush carpet and leather trim. It’s powered by a 3.0-litre twin-turbo EcoBoost V6 and, while Lincoln wasn’t going into details about the drivetrain, it was understood to drive all four wheels.

Galhotra said the Concept was a “very strong” indication of how the production car will look when it goes on sale in 2016.

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