Former Lake Geneva resident subject of Masterpiece TV series

32 — The Beacon also at www.readthebeacon.com March 22, 2013
Transportation
ransportation
Lincoln’s 2013 MKZ propounds luxury, relativity*
By Susan Carpenter
It takes more than good genes to survive
almost 100 years in the U.S. auto
business. It requires grit, stamina, courage
and, in the case of Lincoln, a tremendous
amount of chutzpah to “introduce” a company
that’s been around longer than the
light switch. Like 111-year-old geriatric
Cadillac and the even more elderly 114year-old
Buick, Lincoln is part of an automotive
old folks club that refuses to go
gently into the night.
With its 2013 MKZ, Ford’s luxury division
kicks off a four-model reinvention
strategy designed to appeal to buyers who
are younger than the brand’s 65-year-old
median age but still AARP-eligible.
Unusual as it seems to reboot a legacy
brand with a redo instead of an entirely new
model, the MKZ makes a certain amount of
sense. In the seven years it’s been on the
market, the midsize sedan has become
Lincoln’s best-seller. It is also part of the
fast-growing, entry-level luxury segment.
What luxury means, of course, is relative.
In the case of the MKZ, it means a car
that forgoes dramatic exterior design for
creature comforts and safety features in a
vehicle priced ever-so-slightly out of reach
of mere plebes. The version I tested cost
$49,585.
The first vehicle to emerge from
Lincoln’s dedicated design studio in
Detroit, the 2013 MKZ sports a slightly
more aerodynamic and edgy style than the
outgoing model with a large panoramic
roof, LED brake lights that extend across
the entire rear end and a split-wing grille
vaguely reminiscent of a Beemer. Still, its
most significant innovations are technological.
The base model MKZ is powered by a
2.0-liter inline-four cylinder engine. I was
The 2013 Lincoln MKZ shares its platform and most systems with the Ford
Fusion. (Courtesy of Sam VarnHagen/Lincoln/MCT)
driving the 3.7-liter V-6, which was
responsive off the line and felt completely
comfortable cruising the carpool lane at
speed. It did, however, yield an abysmal
21.7 mpg. A hybrid model more than doubles
the car’s fuel economy to an EPA-estimated
45 mpg and is priced the same as
the gas model, which starts at $36,800.
In an effort to streamline its controls
and simplify its interior, Lincoln has
moved the MKZ’s gear selector next to the
eight-inch touch screen which accesses the
car’s three drive modes, as well as the
entertainment, navigation, climate and
phone systems. The car’s push-button start
tops a vertical stack of buttons for park,
reverse, neutral, drive and sport, the result
of which is more space at the driver’s right
elbow for various cubbies.
Astandard feature on all three trims of
the MKZ is Lincoln Drive Control, which
automatically adjusts the suspension,
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steering, engine, transmission, traction and
stability control settings based on driver
inputs. Lincoln says the suspension settings
alone are updated 50 times a second,
including on the all-wheel drive version I
inadvertently tested on the dirt and sand
access roads leading into an off-highway
vehicle recreation area on a recent weekend.
Even at speeds exceeding 60 mph, the
MKZ held its ground without skidding into
the scrub.
One of Lincoln’s goals is to distinguish
the brand through personalization. To that
end, Lincoln is comping buyers with three
years of live operator assistance accessible
through Sync Live. With the press of a button,
drivers are connected to a real human
being who can send custom navigation to the
car and provide them with addresses, similar
to GM’s OnStar. That same information is
also accessible through the car’s built-in nav,
but it can’t be operated while driving.
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As a whole, the MKZ is so safety-conscious
it’s borderline hypochondriac. In
addition to a lane departure warning system
integrated into the side mirrors, there’s
long-range radar that senses what’s in front
of the car and auto-adjusts the speed to
avoid a fender bender, as well as a camera
integrated into the rearview mirror that
reads the road’s lane markers and alerts
drivers to hazards with blindingly bright
lights and dramatic beeps.
Considering all the money spent
“introducing the Lincoln Motor
Company” with its “new” MKZ, the car
doesn’t feel like a dramatically different
direction for the company. The five-door
five-seater is comfortable. It’s spacious
with a good amount of head- and legroom,
front and back. It’s nicely finished with
understated black leather seats and colormatched
soft plastic touch points on the
interior door panels and dash. It’s easy to
drive. But ultimately the MKZ lacks distinction
other than the fact that Lincoln, 96
years into its existence, has become something
of a novelty.
2013 LINCOLN MKZ
• Powertrain: Sequential multiport
electronic fuel injection, 3.7-liter, V-6,
DOHC, 4 valves per cylinder, intake variable
camshaft timing, 6-speed automatic
transmission, all-wheel drive
• EPA fuel economy estimate: 18 city,
26 highway
• Road test fuel economy: 21.7 mpg
combined
• Base price: $35,925
• Price as tested, including destination
charge: $49,585
©2013 The Orange County Register
(Santa Ana, Calif.)
*Probably the worst headline we’ve
ever seen – whatever it means. Editor.
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*Prices exclude tax, title, lic. & doc fee. No prior sales. Expires 3 days after publication. See dealer for more details.