Ford Motor Co. unveiled an early version of the new Lincoln MKZ that signals the styling direction the brand is taking as it struggles to gain traction in the U.S. luxury market.
 
The production model will go on sale toward the end of the year.
 The concept vehicle went on display at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. 

Ford Chief Executive Alan Mulally said the car was “very close to what you will see in the showroom.”

PHOTOS: Highlights from the Detroit Auto Show

It offered a sleeker, less boxy design than the current model and a sweeping horizontal front grill inspired by the wings of an eagle.
 
A clear glass roof allows light to flood the passenger cabin, giving the MKS the feel of an enclosed convertible. It has a wide rear end with slim, full width tail lamps. The automaker spells out the word Lincoln in big letters across the back.
 
“We want it to be very clear that this is a Lincoln when people see it on the highway,” said Max Wolff, Lincoln’s design chief.
 
Mulally said the MKZ, a mid-sized sedan, will be the first Lincoln to come to market as an all new vehicle and designed by a team distinct from the much larger Ford brand as the automaker tries to revive the brand.

The mid-sized sedan makes up the largest volume segment of the luxury market and represents Lincoln’s best chance to gain ground against the other luxury nameplates, he said.
 
“This is the center of the market and, if we get this car out there, it will pull other people into the brand,” Mulally said.
 
Sales peaked at nearly 232,000 vehicles in 1990 and have been on a long downward slide – dipping below 86,000 last year. It trailed every volume luxury brand but Volvo last year and had only about a third of the sales of BMW, the biggest seller of upscale vehicles in the U.S.
 
Mulally said the MKZ represents a “reinvention” of the Lincoln brand and Ford’s luxury strategy.
Ford sold off premium marquees such as Volvo, Jaguar and Land Rover in recent years to raise cash to help restructure the automaker and focus on its core Ford brand. It shut down Mercury in 2010.
 “There is no way to focus on 97 brands,” Mulally said. “This has a lot less risk because everybody now is focused just on Ford and Lincoln."

PHOTOS: Highlights from the Detroit Auto Show