HSE2

A 400-HP LINCOLN LS, TOO?
Ford Motor Co.'s Lincoln division will join the procession of carmakers
looking to spice up their offerings with some serious performance. Senior
company officials tell TheCarConnection that Lincoln will launch a
400-horsepower version of the rear-drive LS sedan, most likely in early to
mid-2004. It will be powered by the automaker's modular V-8, but in this
case, the engine will be upgraded from 4.6 liters to 5.0 liters. It will
be mated to the same six-speed ZF gearbox found in the new 388-hp Jaguar
S-Type R, according to current plans. Don't be surprised, sources add, to
see the high-performance motor show up in other Lincoln products,
including the Navigator, Aviator and even the Town Car. There's a contest
underway among the luxury division's employees to come up with a name for
the new line of products. The current front-runner is "Emerald Series,"
which refers to the fact that as part of the effort to create a consistent
brand "DNA," Lincoln has adopted a black background behind its gun sight
logo. The performance models might be visually distinguished by using a
green background, along with other subtle body tweaks. As TCC recently
reported, Cadillac has its own performance series under development, with
a Corvette-powered version of the CTS, tentatively dubbed CTSi, due to
debut early next year.