Lincoln Joins the List of Car Brands Pledging to Go All-Electric
Recent months have seen more and more car brands announce a shift towards electric-vehicle-only lineups. The EV upsell now includes companies like Caterham and Ferrari amongst its ranks. Now, those ranks have another member: Lincoln. And based on the brand’s recent announcement, a Lincoln EV won’t be long in coming.
Lincoln wants to only offer EVs by 2030
So far, Lincoln’s attempts at electrification have been limited to plug-in hybrid versions of the Aviator and Corsair. However, a Lincoln EV has been in the works for some time, based on its past partnership with Rivian. And while that partnership ultimately dissolved, Lincoln reiterated at the time that it wasn’t abandoning EVs.
Those past statements have held up. In a recent press release, Lincoln announced that it plans to have a fully electric lineup by 2030. And in between then and now, the brand expects half of its global sales to come from zero-emission vehicles. This is all part of the Ford Motor Company’s $30 billion investment towards electrification.
That electrification might soon bear purchasable fruit. Although it’s not using Rivian’s skateboard platform, Lincoln already has four battery-electric vehicles in development. And one of them could be just around the corner.
The first Lincoln EV could go on sale as early as 2022
2022 marks the Lincoln brand’s 100th anniversary. And unless plans change drastically, that’s also when the first Lincoln EV will make its public debut.
As of this writing, we don’t have any confirmed details about what kind of vehicle this EV will be. However, we do know it will be built on Ford’s new modular rear-wheel-drive/all-wheel-drive EV platform. Note, this isn’t the same platform the Mustang Mach-E rides on, MotorTrend clarifies. Indeed, the Lincoln EVs won’t share platforms with any Ford-branded product.
But while the specific nature of the upcoming Lincoln EV isn’t known, we may already know what it could look like. First shown at the 2021 Shanghai Auto Show, the Zephyr Reflection Concept was meant to preview Lincoln’s future design language. And Roadshow confirmed with Lincoln representatives that the concept gives “the clearest hints of what the new BEV will look like, both inside and out.” That likely includes the concept’s panoramic glass roof.
However, while the Zephyr Reflection Concept is a sedan, Roadshow and MT both expect the upcoming electric Lincoln to be an SUV or crossover. Though based on the teaser video Lincoln released, the 2022 EV will indeed have some visual similarities to the concept car. Most notably, the light bar up front.
An electric push isn’t the only thing the brand is introducing
The Lincoln EV announcement isn’t limited to vehicles, though. One of the biggest hurdles to EV ownership is reliable charging station access. And to help with that, Lincoln is partnering with multiple charging companies, including Electrify America, to build its charging network. Once it’s up and running, Lincoln owners will be able to browse locations via the Lincoln Way mobile app.
Ford’s $30 billion investment is also helping transform Lincoln dealerships and technology, The Drive reports. The brand will be investing more heavily into online sales and re-focusing its existing retail stores. Plus, Lincoln’s cars are also getting a version of Ford’s BlueCruise driver-assistance suite, dubbed ‘ActiveGlide.’
Lincoln’s EV plan, then, is fairly comprehensive. Now all that remains is to see how well it sticks to that plan.
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