Cohort Outtake: Mark V – Lee Spins Gold

I’m not looking for these Marks at the Cohort; they just keep appearing there on the front page. And after my little rant over the Mk VI, it’s only appropriate we pay a bit of homage to its pre-hot-washed inspiration. Stare at it long enough, and you’re going to think your eyes are playing tricks on you. Check out that insane front overhang; no other car could ever pull that off except the Mark V. Yes it’s sick, but in a really good way.

The V is the ultimate Iaccoca-mobile (here with a Mk. IV). Everything that Lido loved in cars, or more importantly, was sure Americans loved in cars, is here in its final evolution. There was no way to take the formula any further; when he tried, it invariably blew up in his face (Imperial). Although the earlier Thunderbirds were the preview of coming attractions, the Mark V’s true lineage started with the 1965 Mustang, when Iaccoca proved that Americans were suckers for long hoods, slab sides and cramped coupe bodies with fat, flat C-pillars. By adding a faux-classical grille and putting it on the rack to stretch it, Lee discovered the formula for alchemy, and the gold kept on being spun, until it eventually ran out.

 

Jim Cavanaugh’s homage to the Mk. V is here