New Car Overview of the 2006 Lincoln LS Mid-Size Luxury Sport Sedan

Description: Mid-Size Luxury Sport Sedan
Base MSRP Range: $39,285
Invoice Price Range: $36,182
Where built: USA

Lincoln's touring sedan employs the label of LS, as in Luxury Sport. With mid-size dimensions and four doors fixed on a leather-lined cabin for five riders, the tight machine rides on a rigid unibody structure and features liberal applications of lightweight aluminum for body panels and suspension components.

Lincoln whittles LS to a single trim -- the V8 Sport, which gains a chrome grille, round foglamps in front fascia and 17-inch aluminum wheels. The LS V8 Sport carries a 3.9-liter aluminum V8 worth 280 hp through a five-speed electronic automatic transmission with H-gate SelectShift controls.

Two new optional packages (Elite and Premium) show up this year, each stacking more popular equipment aboard. Standard safety gear includes an anti-lock brake system (ABS) with electronic brake force distribution (EBD), as options range from side curtain-style air bags to Ford's AdvanceTrac electronic stability enhancement system.

Surprising new themes for products emerge in the 2006 slate of products by Lincoln from the Lincoln-Mercury Division of Ford Motor Company. Lincoln classics return, such as elegant Town Car the flagship sedan and humongous Navigator the premium SUV, plus the LS sport-tuned performance sedan. Yet Lincoln gets a new mid-size luxury sedan called Zephyr, as well as Lincoln's first truck -- the Mark LT with full-size dimensions and a plush five-seat cabin.