News
Lincoln unveils Star Concept EV with plans for three fully electric vehicles by 2025
Lincoln unveiled its Star Concept EV earlier this week to showcase its “captivating, dynamic new face – revealing the brand’s vision for connected, electrified vehicles.” The Star Concept EV, which officially debuted on Wednesday, brings fresh design ideas and concepts to Lincoln’s brand language, which prepares to partially transition to electric powertrains with three full EVs by 2025.
“This is a shining example of what happens when we combine Lincoln luxury with flexible electrical architecture to create unimaginable experiences for customers,” Ford CEO Jim Farley said. “We can truly revolutionize how people engage with the brand and scale it across an exciting lineup of products that catapult Lincoln into the digital, connected age.”
Despite its futuristic design, the Star Concept encapsulates a new design language with Lincoln’s tenets of beauty, human, gliding, and sanctuary on full display. These design tenets will help Lincoln navigate a tough transition to EVs, as it plans to have three models powered by electric powertrains by 2025. An additional model is expected the following year.
Rivian's partnership with Ford will bring Lincoln its first luxury electric vehicle
“As Lincoln enters the next chapter in our transition to a zero-emissions future, the Lincoln Star Concept will lead the way for our portfolio of fully electric vehicles,” Lincoln President Joy Falotico said. “It is an excellent example of how we are redefining luxury for the next generation as we work to transform the vehicle into a third space – a true place of sanctuary – for our clients.”
How the Star Concept will lead Lincoln’s EV Efforts
The Lincoln Star Concept EV delivers modern aesthetics with intelligent features, but the company truly planned to make the vehicle “the ultimate sanctuary for clients.”
“Electrification is removing many traditional vehicle design constraints, allowing us to reimagine what a vehicle can be,” Chief Design Officer for Ford Motor Company Anthony Lo said. “The Lincoln Star is a study of experiences and themes that push the boundaries of Lincoln design – and it’s just the start.”
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- Lincoln Concept vehicle. Not available for purchase.
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- Lincoln Concept vehicle. Not available for purchase.
A hat-tip to Lincon’s evolving design language, the new Star Concept EV combines sleek and dynamic silhouette features with an immersive experience that is truly one-of-a-kind. Lincoln said that the vehicle, “whether stationary or in motion, the concept uses design, light, displays, scents, and sounds to create an immersive experience for clients. Intelligent technology that enhances comfort, productivity, and entertainment is deployed throughout to bring the romance of travel back in a uniquely Lincoln way.”
Electric vehicles in today’s market are more like smartphones than like automobiles, in a way. Lincoln highlights its focus on an intelligence system to capture the essence of a “digital assistant.” These assistive techniques and ideas for a more in-depth ownership experience will enable features like “connected vehicle-to-vehicle and infrastructure capabilities, as well as next-generation leading driver-assist features such as Help Me See and Park for Me,” Lincoln said.
A Sanctuary Vehicle
An increased focus on luxurious feel and comfort was obviously dialed in by Lincoln before releasing images of the Star Concept EV. The interior is partitioned into first and second-row areas, with premium, spacious, wraparound seating that offers comfortable reclined lounge posture and individual leg rests, providing a truly unmatched interior experience only seen in the most premium luxury vehicles. Horizontal display screens seamlessly integrated into the vehicle’s interior provide a unique and modern experience.
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- Lincoln Concept vehicle. Not available for purchase.
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- Lincoln Concept vehicle. Not available for purchase.
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- Lincoln Concept vehicle. Not available for purchase.
Lincoln is also introducing “rejuvenation moods:”
“Three rejuvenation moods join a new Lincoln Embrace sequence harmonizing audio, scenting and lighting throughout the cabin. A symphonic orchestration with crisp, high-resolution animations on the displays creates an immersive digital sanctuary. Whether stuck in traffic or just enjoying a few quiet moments after work, the rejuvenation moods provide a true sanctuary in a third space:
- Coastal Morning uses gentle, oceanic sounds, a fragrance of sea mist and the soft, warm glow of the sun with dynamic lighting throughout to replicate a stroll on the beach at sunrise
- Mindful Vitality is meant to reenergize the senses, with invigorating, upbeat audio, dynamic abstract artwork, soft, glowing lighting and a flowery fragrance throughout
- Evening Chill mirrors dusk using a calming night soundtrack coordinated with night sky video and an evergreen fragrance”
“The Lincoln Star Concept has been a true labor of love for our team and provides us with a platform to share and test our experiences and design philosophy with clients as we evolve our Quiet Flight DNA,” Kemal Curic, Lincoln’s Global Design Director, said. “Signifying transcendence through both space and time, the concept creates a sense of peace and serenity within an electric experience and previews what is to come from Lincoln.”
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A new report from Reuters claims that a transport authority in Sweden is pushing back against the approval of Tesla’s Full Self-Driving suite because it will travel over speed limits.
The report says the Swedish Transport Administration (TRV) recommends the European Union votes against FSD’s approval. TRV believes it should not be approved until Tesla disables FSD’s ability to speed.
TRV sent a letter to the European Union’s Technical Committee on Motor Vehicles (TCMV), which is set to meet on June 30 to discuss the potential approval of the Tesla FSD suite in the country. Tesla, which has received various approvals in Europe over the past two months, has not provided a comment.
Teslas operating on FSD do travel over the speed limit, depending on the Speed Profile that is chosen. Drivers have the ability to disengage FSD at any point; Tesla specifically states that those supervising the suite are responsible for its actions.
Let’s cut to the chase: humans operating any vehicle speed almost daily in the United States. Realistically, speed limits in the U.S. are more frequently treated as speed minimums. However, other countries are different, and driving behaviors are less aggressive.
TRV believes that “allowing automated systems to systematically exceed legal speed limits…risks undermining both the legal framework and the expected safety benefits of vehicle automation,” the report stated. It’s surprising that Tesla has not received this claim from other countries previously.
This could be a good argument to bring Max Speed back, the setting that previously allowed the driver to choose the absolute fastest the car would travel.
This would still put the responsibility of supervision in the hands of the driver. It would allow the driver to choose whether the car would travel over the speed limit or not, acknowledging that they set the speed, and if they get pulled over, there would be no ability to argue it.
However, it does not seem as if this is something Tesla will do, especially considering many U.S. drivers have requested the feature in an effort to eliminate speeding or at least tone it down. The company has not shown any interest in bringing it back.
Tesla has approvals for FSD in Europe in Estonia, Lithuania, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Belgium.
Tesla is going to let you guide Full Self-Driving with Grok in 3 months, CEO Elon Musk confirmed on X.
The response from Musk, which revealed Tesla plans to allow drivers to effectively control the car and its navigation more explicitly using Grok, puts the feature for about September.
A Tesla owner said that Full Self-Driving is great, but owners should be able to “converse with Grok like we can with an Uber driver.” She then used examples like, “Grok, turn right here,” and “Drop us off right here, we’ll walk due to traffic,” and finally,” Drop at entrance first, then park far away.”
Coincidentally, the final piece of dialogue would also mean features like Banish are potentially on the way soon.
This functionality will be there in about 3 months or so
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 18, 2026
Banish is also referred to as “Reverse Summon,” and would enable the car to self-park while dropping occupants off at their destination.
This would be a great way to improve the overall experience while supervising FSD. Navigation is already a major painpoint that many owners complain about. Manual overrides when a maneuver is requested or canceled (like using the turn signal stalk to override a navigation route), do not always work.
The feature could be especially useful in street parking scenarios in a city, where spots are sometimes tough to come by. Many of us who grab dinner in a more populated area will park a street or two over from wherever we’re going, because sometimes you know that’s the best you will get. If a driver using FSD could say, “Hey Grok, turn right here on Queen St. and park in that open spot on the right,” it could save a lot of confusion FSD might have on its own.
Musk teased that a similar feature was “coming” back in February:
Tesla Full Self-Driving set to get an awesome new feature, Elon Musk says
It is certainly surprising that Tesla is doing it at this point. The company’s more recent moves have been more evident of taking control and inputs away from humans and putting them in the AI’s hands more frequently. The biggest example of this was taking away Max Speed in AI4 cars, giving us Speed Profiles, and not having any input on the fastest speed the car will travel.
Of course, giving navigation preferences to Grok is availble already in Teslas, but not at the drop of a hat. Instead, you can suggest a certain route at the beginning of your drive.
Here’s an example of that from December:
🚨🏈 I am taking my parents and Fiancee to the @Ravens game next weekend and asked @Grok to help me route my @Tesla through a specific neighborhood to reach the correct Lot we will park in.
This is a great example of the new @grok nav integration with the Tesla Holiday Update: pic.twitter.com/rPp4I7q8Yv
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) December 13, 2025
Finally, the original post that Musk responded to mentioned a parking preference after dropping off the occupants, which describes the Banish feature that Tesla has teased for years.
We’re not sure if Musk was responding more to the ability to guide the car with Grok, or whether he also was including Banish in the three-month prediction timeframe.
A close-up image of a Cybercab engineering vehicle in Peabody, Massachusetts, reveals a compact triangular side repeater camera housing equipped with an integrated washer mechanism.
This seemingly small hardware addition could prove to be one of the most critical components for achieving reliable, unsupervised Full Self-Driving (FSD) — not just for the dedicated Robotaxi but potentially for existing AI4-equipped vehicles as well.
The washer system’s importance cannot be overstated in Tesla’s vision-only autonomy approach. Cameras are the sole sensory input for the neural networks powering FSD, constantly interpreting the environment for safe navigation. In real-world conditions, however, lenses quickly accumulate rain, snow, mud, dust, or road spray.
Many of us Tesla owners, especially those who deal with any sort of winter weather at all, know the all-too-common alert that pops up when cameras are obstructed:
Even brief obstructions can drop perception confidence, trigger safety disengagements, or force the vehicle to pull over, although these are relatively rare. Instead, most of the time, the camera will need a wipe from the owner next time they stop the car.
But unlike human drivers who can manually clear their view, a Robotaxi operating 24/7 without a steering wheel or mirrors must maintain pristine vision autonomously. The Cybercab’s side repeater washer delivers targeted cleaning bursts precisely where needed for merging, lane changes, and blind-spot monitoring — functions that demand uninterrupted visibility from the external cameras:
And this is how the side camera and washer look like on a Cybercab. This is from an Engineering vehicle in Peabody MA. pic.twitter.com/Re8VknpmLM
— Tobias Goebel (Unsupervised) (@tpgoebel) June 17, 2026
This hardware directly tackles a known pain point in current FSD deployments. Owners frequently report camera-related alerts during inclement weather, which is understandable, but needs to be solved for a true autonomous experience.
For a production Robotaxi fleet aiming for high utilization and minimal downtime, robust washer systems represent a foundational reliability upgrade; essentially, they’re a must-have. Early sightings suggest the design may extend to rear cameras as well, creating a comprehensive cleaning architecture that keeps the entire vision suite operational in harsh environments.
Without it, even the most advanced neural nets struggle when their “eyes” are compromised.
What Does This Mean for AI4 Cars?
This Cybercab detail raises timely questions for AI4 cars already on the road. While Hardware 4 delivers superior compute and camera resolution compared to earlier versions, production models typically lack dedicated side and rear washers. Tesla has included them on Model Y robotaxis that it is using in the fleet:
Tesla Robotaxi has a highly-requested hardware feature not available on typical Model Ys
As Tesla refines unsupervised FSD for broader release, the gap in environmental resilience becomes evident. Software improvements can help mitigate issues, but they cannot fully replace physical cleaning in heavy rain or muddy conditions. Analysts and owners increasingly speculate that AI4 vehicles may eventually require similar washer retrofits — or a future AI4.5 variant — to match the Cybercab’s all-weather readiness and support the same level of autonomy.
As testing progresses, the Cybercab’s washer mechanism highlights Tesla’s pragmatic focus on real-world robustness. It may well become the hardware piece that determines how quickly and reliably FSD scales from prototypes to everyday vehicles.
Tesla faces Full Self-Driving pushback in EU over ‘speeding’
Tesla teases greater Grok FSD integration and ‘Banish’ feature ‘in about 3 months’
