If the LS sedan flops, the Lincoln franchise may go down with it. The LS interior includes well-bolstered bucket seats. Unfortunately, the obviously man-made hook is useless for any purse with longer straps or weighing more than one pound. Maybe Lincoln will have better luck with its Japanese-oriented details. For example, the Merkur's coin holders and cup holders were incompatible with products in Japan.
Japanese commuters look for on their vehicles.
But that's the minutiae of the LS story. The big picture is that this newest Lincoln finally gives the division a sedan that competes against popular foreign products such as the Audi A6 and Lexus ES 300, as well as premium domestic sedans such as the Chrysler 300M and Oldsmobile Aurora. The LS doesn't overtake them in any major way, product-wise. But value is another story. As proof of its sporty commitment, the debut of the LS marks the first time since the 1951 Cosmopolitan that Lincoln has a sedan with a five-speed manual transmission.