The powerful new turbo V6 with 400hp provides the Lincoln MKZ with a chance of gaining a foothold, not with your grandpa, but a newer younger generation looking to enter the luxury sports market.
The 2018 MKZ design is impressive when you think about it. Lincoln was able to take your everyday Fusion, use it as a base, and with just some minor changes fill it with sleekness and swagger. The wider more aggressive front grill gives a nod to it Jaguar cousin, with full double ring adaptive LED headlights and cleaner front lip sure help the MKZ stand out. Additional features such as the retractable panoramic glass roof and 19” aluminum wheels, is showing Ford refinement at some of the highest levels. I thought the approach detection was a nice touch and was impressed to see things like the Lincoln welcome mat. That level of elevation a few years ago would have only been seen in vehicles well above the price of a fully loaded MKZ. The beauty of the design of this vehicle is that it looks good as a 4-door sedan, it’s not trying to look sporty, and it doesn’t need to be a coupe. Instead, this car is more of a sportscar in a suit.
That sportscar comes in the form of the 3.0L twin-turbocharged V6 producing 400hp and 400ft-lbs of torque. Which with the weight it must carry might the MKZ will not break records or seem nimble or agile when driving but will certainly provide you with enough acceleration for an exciting drive in both the city and on the highway. For contrast, the similarly priced Mercedes C43 has only 362 hp and the more expensive 320hp in the BMW 440i. The powertrain on the 2018 Lincoln MKZ Reserve is more impressive in raw numbers even when comparing it to its distant cousin all done out with 380 hp on the 3.0L supercharged Jaguar XE S, which starts at quite a bit more at around $61,500 CND.
All of this refinement is continued throughout the interior and in the technology available for the MKZ. Starting with the available 2.0L iVCT Atkinson I-4 Hybrid Engine, giving you the option to lose the sports car, but get an impressive 5.7L/100km in the city, while keeping all of the luxury and class. Or in things like Active Noise Control, which utilizes technology similar to noise canceling headphones, reducing unwanted cabin noise. One feature that was hard for me to get used to during the test drive was the location of their push-button transmission system. Having to push a button near the radio for Park was odd and I kept reaching down hoping for a familiar knob, dial, lever or button where the cup holder was.
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