Straightline

Bob, you have touched the Question of our time. Something which for luxury makes - Lincoln, Imperial included - is a question of to be or not to be. Only in English language there seems to be a right word for definition - PRESENCE. Most current luxury cars, including Maybach, haven´t got enough of it. You can´t be proud also seeing - after tractor like 300C - that groveling SUV style Imperial, if it really materializes ( I hope it won´t). Having followed auto industry - including Russian ZILs and Chinese Red Flags - for nearly 50 years and written numerous articles and a book on auto design history over past 36 years I do know more or less exactly what I´d like to see in the future. But I hardly can hope that really happens in my lifetime, or ever. Bugatti sedan-limo perhaps? But the initial sketches show it is not distant of what brilliant Giugiaro once already did with EB112. Most certainly it had not enough height, roominess and limo-class style to compare with Type 41 Royale, the ultimate "presence" car of all time.

The Type 41 Royale is one of the best designs ever.

Speaking of "presence," I think the new Rolls-Royce Phantom has it by the boatload. You may not like it, but that car, like very few others—will make your head turn and stare.

To me a Limo is a joke. A tacky monster of a car that teens rent to go to the prom.
 
To actually own one is absurb. People would laugh at you as you "arrive".

There's no question that the tacky "prom limos" have done nothing but harm to image of true limousines.

I'm not that old, but I remember back to the flagship MB sedans and limos of the 80s and early 90s demanded a respect and presence that only a Bentley or Rolls Royce were worthy of in those days. A Maybach today seems to only say "I have more money than the average rich person, so I bought a bigger car than they did;" the demanded presence and respect are in lacking.

When I think of limos, I think of nice taxis, company cars, and yes, prom rides. I don't really think of the occupants as being rich so much as wanting to look rich. The limo might have meant something a long time ago; it only expresses "gaudy" to me.

We had a limo with a hot tub for my bachelor party. Tacky, but still fun! Not the image I'd expect Mercedes wants.

The perceived lack of "presence" in many cars today is caused by all the new realities the entire world and the auto industry has to face: needs for lower emissions, higher fuel efficiency, better refinement in terms of isolation from road and wind noise, etc. Today cars are being designed to meet all those needs and in the process plenty of deisgn sacrifices are made, thereby also sacrificing "presence." Take for instance, the Mercedes-Benz S-Class. The 1991-1999 S-Class had great road presence, everyone that saw it wished to have one and gave it plenty of respect. However it had the aerodynamics of a brick and was very heavy and so guzzled a lot of gas. It was very refined, I own a 1999 S600 and it is far more refined than many brand new luxury cars today, but in redesigning the S-Class Mercedes had to produce a lighter, more fuel efficient and more aerodynamic car, thereby giving up a lot of presence.
 
I think it is a sign of the times and we just have to get used to it. As consumers keep demanding for more electronic and safety features in their cars, automakers will have to do even more sacrificing to keep these cars light and fuel efficient while having even more electronics.