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Weekly Recap: An '80s encore in the auto world

The '80s returned in a big way this week, as National Lampoon's, Ghostbusters, Miami Vice, and even Tetris were back in the news. While there were far more serious topics (see below), nostalgia mingled with modern marketing to put these Reagan-era favorites back in the spotlight. The '80s were alternately cold and corny at times, but their cultural touchstones can still generate big money. That's why Infiniti recreated an iconic scene from National Lampoon's Vacation (1983) for an advertisement that hawks the QX60 crossover. Actor Ethan Embry, who played Rusty Griswold in a later Lampoon's movie, pilots the Infiniti – which is serving as a modern Family Truckster – for a trip to Walley World. A blonde pulls alongside in a red Lamborghini. They flirt, and she drives on. Christie Brinkley, who played the original girl in the red sports car (she drove a Ferrari in the '83 flick), is riding shotgun and chides Embry with: "A blonde. In a convertible. Seriously?" Okay, it's hardly on the level of "here's looking at you," or even "you can't handle the truth," but it should resonate with '80s babies, many of whom are now having children of their own and moving into three-row SUVs like the QX60. Naturally, Hollywood is going back to the well, too, with a Vacation remake that premiers July 29. Meanwhile, Ghostbusters is returning next year, and director Paul Feig offered a peak at the new Eco-1 in this tweet. In the 1984 classic, the team drove a modified 1959 Cadillac. Now, it will drive a late '80s Cadillac. As expected, the announcement generated support and controversy from movie and car enthusiasts. His tweet had generated several thousand retweets and favorites in the days following the news. Though the '80s Caddy looks, uh, less elegant in comparison to the now-iconic fins and curves of the original Ecto-1, it's about the same time lapse into the past as the '59 Caddy was to viewers in 1984. Speaking of 1984, Miami Vice, which debuted that year on NBC, is seeing one of its hero cars hit the auction block, Mecum Auctions announced this week. The 1986 Ferrari used on the show will be offered for sale Aug. 15 during Monterey classic car week. The white supercar runs a 390-hp flat 12-cylinder engine paired with a five-speed manual transmission and was in storage after the show ended in 1989 until earlier this year. It has 16,124 miles on the odometer and is authenticated by Ferrari North America and Classiche.

Production 2017 Lincoln Continental arrives with 400-hp V6

Lincoln still isn't saying much about its new flagship, the long-awaited Continental. Instead, it's got to get everyone's attention. The brand that's been threatening to get a genuine luxury game going for years probably wants people to sit inside the fullsize sedan to learn what it's got, and we think that's a great idea. One good bit we know is that the new Continental is powered by a 3.0-liter, twin-turbo V6 with "a projected" 400 horsepower and 400 pound-feet of torque. We also know the marketing folks have the luxury-speak down, with lavish promises of heated, cooled, and massaging Perfect Position 30-way seats that adjust to shape and weight, as well as climate-controlled seats for rear passengers that also recline, and "generous rear legroom." Themed interior appointments come in Chalet, Thoroughbred, and Rhapsody selections, perceived-quality boosted further by a specific number of stitches-per-inch on the leather, a laser-cut door on the instrument panel, and real wood and aluminum trim. Acoustic laminated glass, active noise control, and available Revel audio are meant to insure serenity. Technology points are scored with optional adaptive steering and all-wheel drive, three drive modes, dynamic torque vectoring, surround-view cameras, adaptive cruise control, and pre-collision braking. We will really begin to know the new Continental when we sit in it later today at the Detroit Auto Show, for now there's the press release below. All-New Lincoln Continental Delivers Quiet Luxury: Elegant, Effortlessly Powerful, Serene - Lincoln Motor Company introduces its elegant new flagship – the all-new Continental – coming this fall - Effortless power comes from new 3.0-liter twin-turbocharged V6 engine that produces a projected 400 horsepower and 400 lb.-ft. of torque1; advanced safety technology is also featured - Serene interior offers the comfort of Lincoln's innovative Perfect Position Seat, spaciousness, rear seat amenities, Revel® audio system and top-grade materials DETROIT, Jan. 12, 2016 – Lincoln Motor Company heralds the return of its flagship – the all-new Lincoln Continental – an elegant, effortlessly powerful, serene full-size sedan that delivers quiet luxury to the industry's most discerning customers. Beginning this fall, Continental offers first-class travel for clients in America and China, bringing warm, human touches and a contemporary design.

Conan O'Brien takes McConaughey's Lincoln ad to its logical conclusion

We all had to see this coming. Conan O'Brien has released a parody of Matthew McConaughey's new ads for the 2015 Lincoln MKC and remixed them with lines from one of his most critically acclaimed recent roles.
The now much darker commercial probably isn't how Lincoln would prefer the MKC to be marketed, but really in a few of the actual ads, McConaughey already seems moments away from breaking into a full Rustin Cohle from True Detective impression. The cadence and tone of his voice are just so close to that character, especially in the one where he's talking to the bull standing in the middle of the road. It very nearly verges on parody anyway; Conan is just turning all of this up to 11.
It's a little surprising that the writers didn't dig a little deeper into the McConaughey oeuvre for the parody. Maybe McConaughey could have taken the MKC for a party at the Moon Tower from Dazed and Confused. In any case, it's worth a quick watch, so check it out.