Accelerate Mpls

If you asked me about Lincoln around five years ago, I would have said “Town Car what?”  Yes, the Navigator hit it big during the large SUV boom and the LS was an interesting car, but Lincoln has not revisited those old glory days in a while. And when I say a while, I am talking long before I was born.

Now,they are in the midst of what I would almost call a rebirth – or a reboot, if you will.  They are trying to build a brand identity and bring the team together.  So how does the MKT play a role in that?  Is this what Lincoln should be?  Lets find out.

Exterior

As I mentioned above, Lincoln is rebuilding brand identity.  There is no question the exterior of the MKT is polarizing.  Some will like it, some will not – few will be indifferent to it.  When the MKT first rolled up, I was on the fence but leaning towards liking it.  After spending a week with it, (are you sitting down for this?) in my opinion this is exactly how a Lincoln should look.  The front is bold, with a strong crease running up from the Lincoln emblem on the front clip into the hood.

The large (read huge) dual-winged grille sits on both sides of the Lincoln emblem, and two sculpted character lines run from the front fenders into the side of the MKT.  There is also slight sculpting down near the bottom of the doors to bring the sides in a bit.  I even like the window line dip on the side near the rear.  The rear features large light pipes that make up a big rear light.  It looks terrific and really unique at night.  For me the exterior is a huge win.

Interior

The interior in the MKT again makes a strong statement.  The perforated leather is thick and feels of good quality.  The seats are road trip comfy and are both heated and cooled (a great feature).  The touch screen navigation/climate control/infotainment/etc system worked quite well and never appeared washed out by sunlight.  Physical buttons get you around to the function screens you want quickly, and you then manage the details via the touch screen.  It was an easy system to learn and operate quickly, although it does lock you out of certain navigation functions while driving.

The THX sound system simply rocked! Everyone seems to agree this is one of the finer sound systems in the industry offered by an OEM.  With HD radio and Sirius satellite radio available, you have some great choices on board.  Lets also not forget about the Microsoft Sync system, which paired with my iPhone 3Gs seamlessly and operated easily.

The rear had the flowing center console option with a small fridge/freezer in between the rear buckets.  The third row was power-operated and folded flat when not in use.  The interior materials were first class all around.  Everything was soft touch with a nice finish, while all plasticsl felt of high quality.

Powertrain and Driving Impressions

This MKT was equipped with the (awesome) 3.5 liter EcoBoost engine, which pumps out 355 horsepower and 350 pound feet of torque to all four wheels.  The power goes through a one-choice six-speed automatic transmission with paddle shifters.  The bottom line?  This thing is a rocket ship for its size.  Seriously, it is just silly! The torque curve is flat from 800 rpm to 5250 rpm.  That is nearly the entire power band.  That is thanks to the twin-turbo direct-injection set up on the V-6.  Essentially the concept is V-6 fuel economy with V-8 power.  Bravo!  The transmission actually played nice and I had no gripes with the programming.

The MKT Ecoboost rode on 20″ wheels and it can actually handle better then you would expect a vehicle of its size to handle.  The steering is light but not overly so.  The adaptive cruise control worked terrific on the highway all the way up north and the active park assist worked as advertised (though a little creepy the first time you do use it, and the second).

The EcoBoost engine is completely worth the $3,005 price.  The MKT with all-wheel drive and EcoBoost is rated at 16/21.  During my week with MKT, I averaged 17.2 in a mix of city and suburb highway driving.  That was without really trying to achieve the best mileage possible.  On the open road loaded down with four adults and the rear packed with gear, I averaged 21.2 with the cruise control set at 77 mph.  Neither of those numbers are bad at all.  I would call those good considering the MKT has three rows and weighs quite a bit.

Gripes? Well, the A-pillars are quite large.  I am not sure what it is with this recent trend, but it is almost a safety hazard on some vehicles.  Also that touch screen system I mentioned earlier – it had a melt down.  I am talking a 13-year old girl tantrum melt down.

I started the MKT after leaving it in the sun for four hours.  It was approximately 92 degrees outside.  Upon entering the car, I went to input a destination into the navigation system.  The entire screen/system froze up.  After restarting the vehicle and realizing that was not going to fix it, I had no choice but to drive using my iPhone as my navigation.  I was going to be late for a meeting.  About five minutes into the drive the screen changed to a inform me a system fault has been detected and I would have limited functionality of the screen.  Terrific.

It also informed me I should head to my dealership.  Luckily for me, my appointment was at a client that happened to be an auto repair shop.  They pulled codes and found the yaw control sensor and something to do with the cruise control sensors had both faulted.  After resetting the sensors, we could not get the system to malfunction again.  I will note that Ford reached out immediately to try and resolve the problem, without me prompting them or making contact, Seeing as I only had the vehicle for a week and cannot fully determine what happened or how it was caused, I am saying it was a fluke. However, it did happen and I wanted to note that incident.

The MKT I was in was pretty much fully loaded.  The total sticker price rang in at $56,980,which included $7,780 in options.  The bottom line is this segment (like many of the luxury segments now) is packed with great options.  I would put the MKT right next to the Audi Q7 TDI (along with other competitors) and say drive both.

They are very different vehicles both in personality and execution.  The Lincoln MKT is most definitely a winner.  You would be missing out if you did not consider it when purchasing a vehicle in this segment.  I truly believe this is what a Lincoln should be.

Full Disclosure- The review vehicle was provided by Ford

Volvo has had an interesting run lately.  Just a few years ago sales were good and profits were actually being made.  Now sales are nothing to brag about and the revenues, well, what revenues?  With the pending sale to Geely, the future is really cloudy but they say that letting Volvo be Volvo will be their plan.  That is definitely a plan, but as that may be, every new Volvo launch better go off without a hitch.  The XC60 is off to a good start as Volvo’s new entrant to the entry level luxury crossover market.  This is a hotly contested arena in which large players are throwing their weight around.  The XC60 is a fresh and dare I say, Swedish approach to this category.

The XC60 slots right between the XC70 and the larger XC90.  The interior is nearly the size of the segment champion, the Lexus RX.  The front is spacious with plenty of head and leg room.  The seats were terrific and the tilt and telescoping steering wheel made finding a comfortable driving position a cinch.  The interior is filled with soft touch materials and the gauges are easy to read.  The button lay out is very similar to other Volvos which is a good thing.  Overall, the interior is easily in the top of its class.

The exterior is typical Volvo with styling that stays with the family but pushes the edges a little. With curvy hips in the rear in place, the front is slightly more aggressive than the current line up.  This front clip is an evolution of the current styling, and we will be seeing these design cues on the 2011 C70 and 2011 S60.  Personally, I am a big fan of the use of light pipes next to the grille.  The fog lights actually provide a good amount of light on the ground, making a noticeable difference when driving at night.

Two engines are available.  The vehicle I was testing was equipped with the base 3.2 liter inline six cylinder putting out 235 hp and 236 ft-lb through the optional all wheel drive.  The optional engine is a 3.0 liter inline six cylinder with a twin-scroll turbo (T6) putting out 281 hp and 295 ft-lb.  Both engines feed the power through a six speed Geartronic transmission.  Geartronic is Volvo’s speak for automatic with self shifting capabilities.  The 3.2 liter is rated at 18/27 mpg while the T6 drops down to a rated 16/22.  I observed an average of 18.2 mpg.  All wheel drive is optional on the 3.2 liter while standard on the 3.0 liter turbo.  The XC60 weighs barely over 4000 lbs which is certainly no light weight.  It is still light when compared to its competitors.  Getting that large mass moving is no small task and the 3.2 liter inline six I was equipped with did its best.  Its best was not good enough to satisfy my urge to get going.  Things were better once started, it was the act of getting underway that took a little longer than I would have liked.  Slamming the gas incurred the vehicle to say, “Oh you want to go now? Ok we will work on that.”  I think the optional T6 engine would be a better choice for me personally.

While the XC60 may not be a canyon carver, it handled itself quite well when it came to quick lane changes.  The mass was kept in check and overall handling was good with less body roll then expected.  This is probably one of the “sportier” handling vehicles in the class.  The steering was not as light as I expected at parking lot speeds but it did feel natural.  On center feel was great while on the highway.  Volvo says the steering is speed dependent.  While I can definitely notice a difference between highway speeds and parking lot speeds, the steering never felt over boosted.

The XC60 comes with some decent technology as standard equipment.  Both bluetooth handsfree for calling and HD radio are standard.  City Safety is the system that can help lessen or completely avoid an impact below 18 mph is standard.  The vehicle I had was by no means loaded but was nicely optioned.  Equipped with the premium package, climate package, convenience package, laminated panoramic sunroof, PCC (Personal Car Communicator), and integrated child booster seats.  Part of that climate package included both heated front and rear seats along with heated windshield washer nozzles.  A rain sensing system is also part of that package.  I did not get to test it due to the lack of rain and abundance of snow.  The convenience package gave me the power operated tail gate along with other niceties.  Oh, and that power tailgate might quite possibly be the loudest power tail gate in the history of power tail gates.  The panoramic sunroof is a crowd pleaser, though I could not test it due to frigid temps and the pile of snow sitting on top of the car.  PCC is pretty cool as a $550 dollar option.  PCC is essentially an advanced keyless remote that has two way communication with your XC60.  When you push the information button on the remote when within 200-300 feet of the car, the remote will “check in” with the car and inform you of the status, including whether the car is locked, unlocked, or a heartbeat is detected inside the car.  If you press the information button outside of the 200-300 foot range, the remote will report the last known status before you went outside of the range.  I have heard strong opinions on the optional navigation unit and will hopefully experience that when I test the T6 model.

Overall, the XC60 is a competent vehicle.  I would definitely rate this high in its class right next to the new Audi Q5.  Gas milage was acceptable with the 3.2 but from the ratings I know that the T6 is thirsty.  Truth be told, I am guessing that is the engine to have in this vehicle since 3.2 is a bit sluggish.  Though I am willing to bet that the general public will accept the 3.2 performance just fine.  In the end, I personally liked the XC60.  It is sportier than the Lexus RX while having almost as much room.  With a starting price of $32,995, the vehicle I was in had a sticker price of $40,645, and for that money you were getting a competent vehicle.  The XC60 is just a few tweaks away from a class leading vehicle.

Full Disclosure- Vehicle was provided for review by a local Volvo dealership.

The concept behind MyFord is driver connect technology that will redesign the driver’s interface and how they interact with the car.  This is fusing together consumer electronics ease of use and the rich graphics interfaces used in them.

“MyFord Touch, combined with new SYNC functionality, creates an experience that will cause people to fall in love with their vehicles again,” said Derrick Kuzak, Ford group vice president, Global Product Development. “It’s not just a technology; it’s an experience – one we hope will have people across the globe looking forward to spending time behind the wheel of their vehicle.”

MyLincoln Touch

MyFord will be branded MyLincoln and MyMercury in the respective brands.  This will not be brand exclusive rather just exclusive to the Ford brands.

MyFord Touch 3D Navigation

The MyFord Touch system will be used with an available 8-inch touch screen LCD at the top of the center stack.  Also information will be displayed using two 4.2-inch on both sides of the speedometer.  Five way switches will be on each side of the steering wheel controlling the corresponding 4.2-inch screens.

“The steering wheel has all the necessary functions available in a very compact area, right where your hand falls as you grab the wheel,” said Johnson. “The five-way buttons will feel familiar to anyone who has used a mobile phone or MP3 player. Drivers aren’t forced to use a quirky or unfamiliar interface like a joystick or rotary knob.”

The left 4.2-inch display will feature information and settings for the vehicle, fuel economy, mechanical status and safety features.  The right 4.2-inch display will feature infotainment information, audio settings, climate control, phone communications and navigation menus.  The features in the right hand display will also be available in the 8-inch center stack display.  This display will replace many traditional buttons.  The MyLincoln will take the 8-inch display a step further by providing fingertip slider controls on the touch screen.  These sliders will control the audio volume and or fan speed.  When using your finger on the slider a LED chaser will give visual representation as to the changes being made.

The 8-inch touchscreen in the center stack is the key to this interface Utilizing a “four-corner” solution to the layout design.  The four corners are phone, navigation, climate and audio/entertainment functions.  Touching the desired corner will always bring up the corresponding application no matter what screen you are currently in.  Voice commands can be used to adjust most controls.

The next generation of Microsoft’s SYNC system is behind the scenes running the show.  This is no longer a add on black box.  SYNC is now a fully integrated part of the car.  MyLincoln will be standard in all future Lincoln’s beginning with the 2011 Lincoln MKX.  MyFord technology will be available in all future Ford products.  Ford pretty much just announced the iPhone of car technology.

Features available through MyFord Touch, powered by SYNC include: