Rarely have I found a reboot of what I found to be a compelling design to be nearly as good as the original; whether that be a sedan, coupe, truck, Jeep or whatever. The 1966 Chevelle and 1969 Camaro being the rarest of examples of an update being an improvement. And then...they were gone. Anyway, I'm sure there are others but the point is there are very few updates that really make an improvement on the original. And while I respect the effort that went into updating the Lincoln MKZ for 2017, Lincoln missed the, ahem, "Mark" on it. That's a shame too since Lincoln did a really nice job with the ages old three box concept from 2013-2016.
It's not that the update is that seismic a change from the 2013-2016 MKZ and they did keep the old car's gorgeous profile mercifully in tack. But why did they ditch the beautiful flying of buttress of chrome for this boring front end? The changes are more subtle up here than you might think too; the fenders and lower fascias have undergone re sculpting as well. It might be tasteful but it has no where near the "What Is That? firepower power of the old car. Perhaps they went with this very conservative design believing that the flamboyance of the '13-'16's front end was a hindrance to sales? The new 2017 Continental has almost the same front end too; Lincoln again attempting to have common design thread through their lineup and both cars are as alluring to me as a 1988 Continental. Somewhat interesting in a clichéd luxury car way but ultimately forgettable. Hopefully they did some market research and found that buyers were actually put off by the old car's chrome fest of a front end. Man, was that hot. If they didn't, they've made a big mistake. Now the MKZ is just another soul less drone of a luxury appliance. Might as well be a leather trimmed refrigerator for all I care. Oh, Lincoln, I don't like what you've done to my car.
It's not that the update is that seismic a change from the 2013-2016 MKZ and they did keep the old car's gorgeous profile mercifully in tack. But why did they ditch the beautiful flying of buttress of chrome for this boring front end? The changes are more subtle up here than you might think too; the fenders and lower fascias have undergone re sculpting as well. It might be tasteful but it has no where near the "What Is That? firepower power of the old car. Perhaps they went with this very conservative design believing that the flamboyance of the '13-'16's front end was a hindrance to sales? The new 2017 Continental has almost the same front end too; Lincoln again attempting to have common design thread through their lineup and both cars are as alluring to me as a 1988 Continental. Somewhat interesting in a clichéd luxury car way but ultimately forgettable. Hopefully they did some market research and found that buyers were actually put off by the old car's chrome fest of a front end. Man, was that hot. If they didn't, they've made a big mistake. Now the MKZ is just another soul less drone of a luxury appliance. Might as well be a leather trimmed refrigerator for all I care. Oh, Lincoln, I don't like what you've done to my car.
So, what is an MKZ anyway? Well, it's still a gussied up Ford Fusion like it's always been since it debuted in 2006 replacing the "Zephyr" - which was also Fusion based. That's not a bad thing per se. The Fusion is a pretty happening appliance but it's a Ford. Lincoln's are supposed to have more going for them than clinical perfection; perfection is boring. If I wanted that, I'd just get a Fusion. No, I wouldn't since I wouldn
't be caught dead in a four door but you get my gist.
't be caught dead in a four door but you get my gist.
The model name "MKZ" is part of Lincoln's "MK" naming scheme they've had for over ten years now. "MK" being short for "Mark", like the Mark II-VIII's of yore. The Z in MK-Z stemming from the fact that this car started out as the Lincoln Zephyr. "Zephyr" harkening back to the days of Edsel Ford as if anyone cared. P.S. They didn't.
What really gets me is how much of a premium Ford is charging for this car over the price of a Fusion. Does it really cost Ford that much more to make this car than a Lincoln? Of course not. Now, don't get me wrong, this car is no doubt an absolute blast to drive and will coddle you in supreme comfort but that same driving experience can be had in a Fusion for thousands upon thousands less. You want an even better bargain than that? Get a low mileage 2013-2016 MKZ at more than half of the original sticker price. Good luck, Lincoln. With this thing and the new Continental, which incidentally is replacing the Taurus based MK-S, you're going to need it.
As far as design, it looks like Lincoln has updated their look. I could picture someone younger driving this car. Lincoln seems like a car targeted toward older folk. I would not buy a Lincoln though, I would rather find a cheaper car that is just as good as this one. Why pay more for something just as good?
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