Photos: 2009 Lincoln MKS
The 2009 Lincoln MKS is a star when it comes to in-cabin entertainment and information sources, especially at its price. Though you will have to be content with a comfortable, rather than sporty, ride.
First shown at the 2007 LA auto show, the MKS represents a new flagship luxury sedan for Lincoln. The car features the best cabin tech available today, but is more luxury cruiser than sport luxury sedan.
Adaptive headlights are part of the Technology package, which also includes automatic high-beams. With this option, the brights turn on when it's dark and no other cars are visible, turning off when head or tail lights are in range.
The MKS explores a new design language for Lincoln, although the grille shape hearkens back to models from the 1940s and 1950s.
Ford bores out its Duratec engine for the MKS, coming up with a new 3.7-liter V-6.
The roofline of the MKS looks similar to Lexus models, with a nice curve that terminates close to the trunk lid.
Ford keeps its keyless combination lock--a technology the company has used for decades--but the MKS gets touch-sensor buttons.
The MKS delivers a comfortable ride, doing a good job of damping out road imperfections. The base model is front-wheel-drive, and an all-wheel-drive version is available.
The trunk is more than spacious, and suggests that Lincoln is still interested in the body-dumping demographic.
Lincoln did an excellent job with the interior, employing soft materials around the cabin and stitched leather on the dashboard.
The voice command button, located on the lower right of the steering wheel, activates the most advanced system we've tested. It lets you ask for music by artist name, dial phone numbers by contact name, and set destination by saying the street name.
The six speed automatic generally works smoothly, although we noticed some chunkiness. It has a manual mode, mostly useful for long descents.
Controls on the car's instrument panel let you select major function areas, such as navigation and Sirius Travel Link. The touch-screen LCD lets you navigate within function areas.
If there is a traffic incident on your route, the navigation system will offer a detour around it.
Route-guidance graphics are very detailed, and the navigation system will say the names of upcoming streets onto which you should turn.
The navigation system is hard drive-based, and can show maps in 3D view.
One of the coolest features of the MKS is the ability to see gas prices for nearby service stations, and sort them by price.
A somewhat more frivolous informational feature are movie times. You can also get sports scores and the weather.
Sync integrates most Bluetooth cell phones with the car for hands-free calling, downloading the phone's contact list ,and making it accessible from the MKS' touch screen and voice command.
The MKS allows for many audio sources, including full MP3-player integration. When you insert a CD, you can choose to rip it to the car's hard drive by touching the record button. The car's Gracenote database not only properly tags CD tracks, but it also includes album art.
The navigation package includes the THX audio system, which delivers the best audio experience for the money, comparable to systems found in much more expensive cars.
The disc player can also handle DVDs, displaying them on the car's screen. DVD playback is disabled when the car is in motion.
A rear view camera also comes with the navigation system. It includes distance lines, but this overlay doesn't move when the wheels are turned to show the path of the vehicle.
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