Auto News 5

It's January and that means that its time for the annual three day extravaganza of world premieres that is the Detroit Auto Show.

"The MKT is fully differentiated from the Flex," claims chief engineer Ron Heiser. That's a bit of hyperbole, since they share the same platform (one which Heiser points out has superb crash performance) and basic chassis tuning. But his point is well-taken, because everything you see and touch both inside and outside the MKT - which closely hews to the MKT Concept from last year's Detroit show - has little to nothing in common with the Flex. Indeed, chief designer Gordon Platto takes visible pleasure from pointing out the MKT's features: "This is the first time we've actually fully integrated the grille from the MKR Concept. We've combined it with zero-offset bumpers for a smooth exterior. Inside, we use the same cut-and-sew leather and wood trim as in the MKS sedan, and our 'floating armrest' is also from the MKR and allows us to offer contrast-color inserts later."

Lincoln surprised the media at the 2009 Detroit auto show with a concept car, the C, an ultramodern, small four-door that's based on the platform of the next-generation Ford Focus.

While three ENVI concepts were originally revealed last summer, Chrysler's saved this - the Jeep Patriot EV - for the 2009 Detroit auto show.