By Twain Mein

Pros:

• Very quite and well-damped ride
• Beautifully appointed interior
• Massive dual-panel panoramic sunroof
• Incredible THX-certified sound system
• Exterior styling

Cons:

• Visibility
• iPhone syncing
• 3^rd row leg room and overhead space
• Exterior styling (!)

Introduction

The 2010 Lincoln MKT is Ford’s up-scale version of the Ford Flex “crossover”. Crossover is taking a traditional car platform and extending it to give the space of an SUV. Many SUV’s, like the Chevy Tahoe, are built on truck chassis (”body on frame”) versus a car chassis (”unibody” construction where the body is structural). By enlarging a car unibody, crossovers promise the space of an SUV with ride and handling of a traditional car. The Lincoln is built on the same D4 platform as the Ford Flex, and it distinguishes itself with aggressive styling and luxurious amenities. The D4 platform is a “stretched” version of the D3 platform which originally underpinned the ‘03 Volvo XC90 as well as the Ford Taurus. These Swedish genetics are good assets for Ford/Lincoln which provide a rigid structure and competent chassis. The version we tested had the base 3.7 liter, 270 hp Duratec engine and was optioned for a ~$49,000 price tag.

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Pros

• 355 hp EcoBoost engine with a power band wider than the Grand Canyon
• Active Park Assist feature that works 10x better than Toyota/Lexus
• More standard luxury features than its closest competitors
• A ride quieter than Tibetan Buddhist Monastery
• No longer using switches and knobs from the Ford-Mercury parts bin

Cons

• Oversize split-bow grill is more ugly than intimidating
• Supposed to be smaller than a Navigator, but still really large

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The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, also known as the IIHS has just given its highest safety rating to three new model rides: The Dodge Journey, Lincoln MKT and Mazda Mazda3. All three of the cars got top marks in the front, side and rear impact tests and all three featured standard stability control.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety said in a statement that “Criteria to win are tough because the award is intended to drive continued safety improvements.”

Only the Dodge received the IIHS’ top marks in every single category whereas the Lincoln and Mazda received “Acceptable” ratings in other categories. The Insurance Institute said that the Lincoln and Mazda’s overall evaluations were robust enough to receive the “Top Safety Pick” award.

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