LINCOLN Continental 1995-2002 Photos, engines & full specs

The ninth generation of the Continental appeared on the market just in time for the 1994 Christmas and continued the transverse-mounted V-8 engine saga into the American luxury brand.

Lincoln made a new generation for its mid-size sedan luxury vehicle to compete for the top position in the segment. While it wasn't a revolutionary car for the brand, it managed to surprise many buyers with its air-springs in all corners and three settings for its drivetrain (comfort, normal, and sport). It had all the bells and whistles for its class, but it couldn't dominate it.

Fritz Mayhew designed the car influenced by the bio-design theme. He made the car with round shapes all over the body and imagined slim headlights with corner-mounted turn signals. The raked, chromed grille featured vertical slats and contributed to the car's aerodynamic drag coefficient of just 0.32. At the back, the carmaker made the C-pillar slightly raked-forward, with a large and curved rear window. Its taillights showed a rounded outer edge and a crisp, narrow-angle on the lower inner side, towards the trunk's lid.

Inside, Lincoln managed to keep a comfortable, vast interior. The carmaker built the Continental with two interior layouts available: a five-passenger one with two bucket seats and a center console with a floor gear-selector, and a six-passenger version with a column-mounted shifter. At the back, the bench offered room enough for three occupants, but Lincoln profiled it for two.

Under the hood, the ninth Continental featured a 4.6-liter V-8 with four valves per cylinder. It provided 62 percent more power than the V-6 in the previous model while keeping almost the same figures for fuel efficiency.