Lincoln Motor Company
Lincoln Motor Company was founded in 1917 by Henry M. Leland, naming it after Abraham Lincoln; in 1922, Lincoln was acquired by Ford. Following World War II, Ford formed the Lincoln-Mercury Division, pairing Lincoln with its mid-range Mercury brand through 2010. In 2012, Ford rebranded the Lincoln division under its original name, Lincoln Motor Company. Originally founded as a freestanding division above Lincoln, Continental was integrated within Lincoln in 1959. The Continental-branded Mark Series was marketed through Lincoln starting in 1968, adapting the Lincoln name in 1986. The Lincoln star emblem is derived from a badge first used on the 1956 Continental Mark II.
Lincoln Motor Company
While introduced following the beginning of downsizing among American vehicles, the Continental Mark V would go on to become the most successful of all the Mark series vehicles, with over 228,000 sold across three model years.
As Lincoln entered the 1980s, the American auto industry remained in the "Malaise era", struggling to balance fuel efficiency, emissions controls, and downsizing; the industry also found itself competing against European and Japanese manufacturers entering segments once dominated by Ford, General Motors, and Chrysler.