1998 Lincoln Mark VIII Genteel refinement in a muscular sport coupe. By Kevin Ransom, New Car Test Drive .com

Although nearly 50 years have passed since Lincoln first introduced the Mark series, its mission remains the same: To attain the perfect balance between luxury-line comfort levels, under-the-hood power and sport-coupe handling.

The Mark VIII LSC is a proud inheritor of that legacy. It comes with elegant styling, a refined interior, a muscular 290-horsepower 4.6-liter V8 engine and a taut suspension that does a marvelous job of taming this beast of a coupe.

Last year, Lincoln redesigned the Mark VIII with fresh styling, a new interior and major technological advances in the lighting department. The new styling brought smartly rounded corners and gently sloping lines that are sleek and elegant.

High intensity discharge headlamps deliver nearly three times as much reflective light as standard halogen lamps. That translates into much greater nighttime visibility. At the same time, they control the output to prevent glare from blinding other drivers. We applaud this improvement as most vehicles offer poor lighting performance with headlamps being designed more for style than their ability to light up the road.

At the rear, a unique new neon taillamp with big brake lights, and mirror-mounted turn signals were designed to enhance safety by making it easier for other drivers to see and react to dynamic driving situations.

Lincoln's big coupe comes in two trim levels: Mark VIII and the sportier LSC. LSC stands for Luxury Sport Coupe.

We drove an LSC in the popular white pearl color. Its base price was $39,990 and came equipped with three options: that rich metallic paint ($365), heated seats ($290) and the trunk-mounted CD changer ($670). It also came with electronic traction control that was a no-cost option. The total cost of the package was $41,315. (All prices include destination charge.)