The Contenders - 2009 Motor Trend Car Of The Year - 2009 Lincoln MKS

2009 Lincoln MKS AWD

What They Did Right: SelectShift transmission, sharp exterior styling, rich interior materials and tech package

Room For Improvement: Distant, disconnected handling, pretty but functionally inept interior, high price.

Lincoln's new MKS not only replaces the long-running Town Car, it turns its flagship formula back to front. For the first time in its 90-year history, Lincoln's top-step sedan is based on front-drive architecture-borrowed from the {{{Volvo S80}}}.

Visually, the MKS is an equally dramatic, thoroughly modern departure from the Town Car. Too bad the same cannot be said about the interior. Some testers have been impressed by the Microsoft SYNC system, throne-like rear seats, and extensive use of leather, chrome, and real-wood trim. Others find it dated, with little innovation or useable storage space.

Underhood, the MKS uses a 3.7-liter variant of the V-6 initially developed for the Ford Taurus nee Five Hundred. Bumped up to 3.7 liters, this engine powers the front or all four wheels via a six-speed automatic transmission also pulled from the Taurus. Unlike with the Ford, Lincoln product planners mercifully allow drivers to manually select gears via SelectShift.

In a straight line, this Lincoln does as all have done since 1917. It glides smoothly along with quiet, stately grace. At full throttle, the MKS is surprisingly quick given the 4325-pound curb weight and sedate feel off the line.

Though not as soft as Lincolns past, the MKS clearly prefers steady-state boulevard cruising to any sort of rapid direction changes. As speeds and corners increase, grace and any handling clarity go away completely. What remains is a benign murkiness as to where the wheels are in relation to the steering wheel and what exactly they're doing.

Overall, though, it's a thoroughly competent, comfortable car. So why doesn't it win? Todd Lassa puts it best, "There's nothing about the [the MKS] that makes me think of the better Lincolns-from the 1961 Continental to the LS. And it doesn't push any of the hot buttons the Cadillac CTS does."
- Edward Loh