Ford->ke31 Motor Company is desperately trying to breathe some life into its nearly deceased luxury brand, Lincoln. A recent lineup overhaul was step one, and we definitely see improvement to date. The next step appears to be to develop a new rear-wheel drive car to add to Lincoln’s lineup to face off against the likes of the Cadillac ATS and BMW 3-Series->ke290.

Lincolns->ke48 will not have to look too far for a donor rear-wheel-drive car that is willing and able to donate a platform for this new Lincoln. According to Car and Driver, Ford is seriously contemplating using the 2015 Ford Mustang platform as the Lincoln’s base. If that ends up being the case, we could not only be in for seeing the first rear-wheel drive Lincoln in some time, but also we could see the first performance-based Lincoln since who knows when.

This could end up going in either direction. On the good side, it could result in the Lincoln brand being seen as “cool” again and drawing in young buyers. Then again, once Mustang enthusiasts find out that the Mustang underpinnings have become modular, they could lose interest rather quickly.

We would love nothing more than to see Lincoln succeed. It has one of the longest and most storied histories in all of the automotive realm. That said, you don’t want to alienate the bases that you already have. Ford needs to make sure that, if it decides to go this route, they change the Mustang’s underpinnings enough so when under the Lincoln name, Mustang owners can notice a difference and feel satisfied.

On the other hand, Lincoln, despite its struggles, does have a loyal customer base, so Ford has to be sure not to alienate them. We’ll keep an eye on this situation and let you know if anything else comes up.

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