Lincoln displays Anniversary concept at Pebble Beach

After summarily dumping everything but crossovers and SUVs from their lineup, Lincoln chose this week to tempt us all with a … long and slinky coupe, of course. Showing up at The Quail Motorsports Gathering, a swanky assemblage of megabucks machinery during Monterey Car Week at Pebble Beach, it’s one of four concepts from a Lincoln and ArtCenter College of Design challenge.

“The storyboarding presented by these students was beyond impressive, showcasing their rich design talent and creative approach to storytelling,” said Kemal Curic, global director, Lincoln. “This is precisely why we decided to create a full-sized replica of one of the projects, highlight the amazing talent in tomorrow’s designers and their unique perspective of our Lincoln Quiet Flight brand DNA.”

While no one expects the brand to reembrace the personal luxury coupe segment anytime soon, there’s no denying the Anniversary is a striking full-size build of what started life as one of four concepts from the ArtCenter College of Design. Readers may recall Lincoln pairing with the SoCal design house earlier this year, assigning a quartet of transportation design students the task of developing a short film to accompany their effort.

Each concept was guided by the ethos of Quiet Flight, Lincoln’s current tack which attempts to create a “gliding human sanctuary.” Snicker if you must, but it should be noted Lincoln interiors make an active effort at serenity, deploying a fuss-free ‘calm screen’ setting for its gauges and warning chimes recorded on instruments played by the Detroit Symphony. All four concepts represented a different automotive segment: a two-passenger, this four-passenger, a four-passenger with elevated ride height, and a six-passenger vehicle.