April 16, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] Ford’s luxury car division Lincoln Motor launched the all-new 2017 Lincoln Continental in Korea on Nov. 30.

The premium sedan is the 10th generation of the Lincoln Continental, reintroduced at a motor show in 2015 after a 13-year hiatus. The first generation was made as a holiday car for then-Ford president Edsel Ford in 1939. 

Lincoln Motor Co. President Kumar Galhotra (left) and Ford Korea CEO Chung Jae-hee pose next to the 2017 Lincoln Continental on Nov. 30 in Seoul. Ford Korea

“Ford grew more than 150 percent in the five years in Korea. With the launch of the Lincoln Continental, we plan to accelerate the growth,” Kumar Galhotra, president of Lincoln Motor Company, said at the launch event.

The company started receiving preorders for the 2017 Lincoln Continental on Nov. 1, and the number has so far reached more than 100 units, according to a public relations manager on Wednesday.

Galhotra said the vehicle will target a unique segment within the luxury market.

“What we are discovering is that there are customers who are looking for something other than things like raw speed and horsepower,” he said.

The 2017 Lincoln Continental is 5,115 millimeters long and 1,910 millimeters wide, with a 3.0 V6 GTDI engine and 20-inch wheels.

The luxury sedan is equipped with a 19-speaker Revel Ultima sound system. The sound system is an exclusive audio system for the Lincoln Continental for the next 10 years produced by Harman, which was recently acquired by Samsung Electronics.

It also features patented 30-way Perfect Position Seats and a keyless entry keypad system.

The vehicles are sold in two models as a full package -- the Reserve and Presidential.

The Reserve with the 3.0L AWD is priced at 82.5 million won ($70,600), including taxes, and the Presidential has a total price tag of 89.4 million won.

The 2017 Lincoln Continental will compete with other luxury sedans like the BWM S series and Audi A8 in the Korean market. 

By Park Ga-young/The Korea Herald (gypark@heraldcorp.com)