With about a week until the 2015 New York Auto Show->ke226 opens its gates, a surprise Lincoln Continental concept car may be slated to make an appearance, even though nothing official has been confirmed as of yet. Details are scarce at the moment, but some of the folks from the Blue Oval forums got around an odd minisite – which has been taken down since – that offered some details about the model.

"This is the new elegantly styled and boldly distinctive Lincoln Continental Concept. It represents who we are as a carmaker. It’s a culmination of learning, engineering, and envisioning what’s to come. In conceiving it, we left nothing unturned. No question went unanswered. No answer went unchallenged. In designing it, we unearthed the simple truth that elegant design can elicit highly emotive connections. The Lincoln Continental Concept is everything we know about cars, and everything we understand about people. And when you bring the two together, you understand why they should never really be apart." -- was the revealing text accompanying the minisite, which should be noted that is part of Team Detroit's website. Team Detroit is an advertising agency that is a frequent collaborator of both Ford->ke31 and Lincoln,->ke48 so the leak is obviously official.

That block of text is not much to go by, but it does reveal that the upcoming Lincoln concept car->ke169 won't be named MKS, like almost everyone was expecting, and it could also feature a more upscale design language. Whatever it is, we shall find out in the upcoming days, so stay close!

Continue reading to learn more about the 2017 Lincoln Continental.

Why it matters

Nobody can argue with the fact that Lincoln's current image is not what it used to be. From some perspectives, its entire lineup comprises restyled Fords with better standard equipment and higher prices, while the model nomenclature is uninspired, to say the least. Lincoln's multiple tries at reinventing itself since the late 1990s can be viewed as a recurring train wreck, so a new halo model with RWD, a historical name and a more upscale positioning, could be exactly what the brand needs.

This is not the first time that Lincoln has revived the Continental name for a concept car, but it could be the first time that the model previews a production version. It's more than far-fetched, but I would love a luxo-barge with RWD, suicide-doors and an EcoBoost V-12 engine under a long hood, wouldn't everyone? The only thing Lincoln needs is to stay away from another FWD Ford family car with a reshaped body.

2017 Lincoln Continental

Read our full review here.