Rivals: Genesis, Lincoln and Volvo are three of the best-kept secrets in luxury

[MUSIC] We've gathered three of the hottest, new full-size luxury sedans. And look Ma, no Germans, in fact there's not even a Japanese car here. What are we thinking? Well I'll tell you what we're thinking, these are the unusual suspects, and you might just be looking at what's next in luxury. We've brought together Volvo's gorgeous new S90. Genesis's range-topping new G 90. And Lincoln's indulgent, born-again Continental. Here to check out three alternative takes on high-end, full-size luxury. This trio of all-wheel-drive flagships demonstrates how you can spend about 70 grand on a less-than-obvious luxury sedan. And while they're different, they all emphasize comfort over corner-carving. Serenity Now. Let's kick things off with the 2017 Genesis G90. Now while it is the most expensive car of the three, this is actually the base model. For an as tested price of $71,550, you get a 3.3 liter v6 with 365 horsepower, and 376 pound-feet of torque. Rearwheel drive is standard, but this model puts power to the ground through all four wheels. With an [UNKNOWN] price of $70,945, this Lincoln Continental is in the middle when it comes to price. But it's tops in the power department with a three liter twin turbo charged V6 engine. Churning out 400 horsepower and 400 pound [UNKNOWN] torque, which comes standard with all wheel drive. My slip stream Scandinavian is a top flight inscription model, and it's still the cheapest car here. Face front wheel drive S90s start at about $47,000. But this loaded version runs about $66,000. And my car is long on tech too, including in the engine department. This car may have the smallest engine here at just two liters and four cylinders, but it's turbocharged and supercharged. To deliver 316 of horsepower and 295 pounds of heated torque. Fuel economy in the G90 is good but not great. Achievinng 17 mpg city and 24 mpg highways. it should be noted however that there is no difference between the V6, G90 rear and all wheel drive fuel economy bigger. Traditionally, there's a bit of penalty for adding two extra driven wheels. So, points to Genesis for that one. [MUSIC] For sure it's quick to motor away from stoplights and to merge onto Expressways but it's not jaw dropping fast partly because it weighs 45 hundred pounds. Nor is it real fuel efficient with a 16 mile per gallon city and 24 mile per gallon highway rating. Again the weight doesn't help and the power comes at the cost. But unlike the other two that have eight speed automatic transmissions. The Lincoln only has six. [BLANK_AUDIO] Volvo says that zero to sixty happens in just under six seconds. That means I'm staring at the Lincoln's tail lights but I'm about even with the Genesis. The replacement for displacement valve is better fuel economy. This car gets 22 city and 31 highway, and that's a lot better than the other guys. Plus if you really wanna put on green airs, you can get a plug-in hybrid model. The G90 comes with four different drive modes, smart Sport, eco and individual, the latter of which allows you to tailor suspension, steering and throttle to your liking. Now there's definitely some difference in each of the drive modes and you can really feel it whether you're careening over bumps, or taking some turns kind of quick, or just straight, putting your foot to the floor. [MUSIC] Now, I never really thought I'd say this, but even with the curb weight north of 4,500 pounds, this thing can hustle. Now it might not be as bonkers as the Continental with its 400 horsepower V6 but this thing will push you along on a wave or torque with a surprisingly pleasant engine [UNKNOWN]. When driving the Continental, I don't get the urge to bounce Am around corners, which is good, because that's not the intent of this car. It's a cruiser that feels solid rolling down the road with a suspension that soaks up bumps nicely. Now, it doesn't fall onto its side in corners, which is also good, but comfort is the name of the game here without being overly soft. Steering feels hefty, but isn't super-quick to respond to commands, while the brakes are strong, but not too grabby. To sum things up, the Canty is comfortable and quiet, and would be great to take on a long road trip. Unlike some cars, there's a really pronounced difference with drive modes in the Volvo, especially sport. It feels on the balls of its feet and a little nervous. That may be fun when you're piling down a canyon road, but in every day driving, it just feels a little too fanatic. A little too nervous, it never really feels comfortable. One thing that's harshing this sweets mellow is the optional 20 inch watch strap rubber. They're Pedrell P0 tires. That's really serious high performance rubber and they don't fit this car at all. The car hops around in mid corner bumps and it just doesn't feel subtle. My advice, get the 18 or 19 inch wheels. Save your money and put it toward the optional air suspension. [BLANK_AUDIO] Now when it comes to tech, the G90 does kind of fall to the back of the three. But I still think that Genesis does an excellent job of providing just the right amount of tech for a price point that isn't downright offensive. Now the G90 won't Park itself but the safety systems that are on offer about configurable and not at all intrusive. Lane keep assist provides plenteous steering assistance on clearly marked roads even without a [UNKNOWN] control activated. And it doesn'[t really ping pong here around in the lane like some other auto makers do. Now as [UNKNOWN] control itself it's smooth, it doesn't really [UNKNOWN] around whether you're hitting the breaks or the gas Perhaps my favorite system on this car is the surround view camera. The resolution is great and the guidelines are accurate, which makes parking a breeze really. Especially in conjunction with the parking sensors. And you are going to need all of that equipment, because like I said before this car is huge. [SOUND] The only infotainment on offer is a 12.3 inch widescreen with connected apps, navigation, and sadly, no Apple car play or Android auto. Now, there are no touch capabilities on the screen, so you'll be forced to make do with navigation buttons beneath the screen and a rotary control dial on the center console. Now that may seem like a lot, but it's really generally pretty intuitive. It only took me about An hour or so to get the lay of the land. When it comes to tech, my Lincoln wins hands down, and that's just because of the 30 way perfect position seats that also have a massage function. It's darn near impossible not to get comfortable in these things. Of course, there's your typical infotainment goodies like Sync 3 with a really good voice recognition system, navigation and a rocking Rebel Audio system. My favorite thing about the controls is that not everything is handled through the central touch screen. There's still a lot of traditional hard buttons to handle climate and audio on the center stack. For safety, there's a lot here like blind spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, adapted cruise with stop-and-go that works quite well, pre-collision warning with active braking, lane-keep assist, park assist, and a 360 degree camera. All work is advertised, but I have to say that the image quality for the backup end 360 camera is a little disappointing. This Volvo's got all the latest tech inside, including the new Sensus Connect system, which uses a vertically oriented nine inch tablet-like screen. And I really like that for a couple of reasons. One, when you're looking at the navigation map, you can see further down the road plus you don't have to reach as far over to the right hand side of the screen. My fully loaded test car has all the features you've come to expect, including standard items like Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. But it's also got options like a Heads-up display, 360 degree camera and a wi-fi hotspot. I do need to mention that there's a learning curve with Census Connect, in fact, it might be the toughest of the three systems to get used to Not only is it occasionally slow to boot up or laggy between menus but sometimes the secondary functions are a little buried between the menus. For instance, I just want a hard button to defeat the start/stop system but instead I've got to swipe and then fish through a bunch of menus. My biggest complaint about this whole system is the glass. It picks up fingerprints like it works for the FBI. I wish Volvo had spent a little bit more money on low fingerprint class or maybe a multi controller. With this being a Volvo you would expect it to have the most advanced safety features here. You'd be right. This car has pile and assist. The best semi autobus drive system here. The lane keep intervention system is subtle. It's got a pre collision warning system with auto brake. That detects things like large animals and pedestrians. Now sitting here and talking is all fine and dandy but this is a luxury car and a luxury car needs to be experienced and it can be experienced from more than just the driver's seat. So in order to do that, let's get the band back together. Gentlemen, welcome to the G90, the eventual winner of our rivals. And let me tell you why I think that is. First of all, space, tons of it, front, back, trunk, doesn't matter where you shove a human being plenty of space for them. Now, if you'll gladly move the center console down for me and hey, what do you know is back there, a controller that lets you manipulate both the HVAC and the infotainment system. You guys don't have that, do you? No, I already know that you don't. Now let's talk about design. This is timeless in ages more like a fine wine unless you guys' car which is kinda bread without preservatives. This is nice horizontal with emphasis things to the lines and I think it's a little bit more timeless [UNKNOWN]. I'll give you that the backseat is comfortable, but my continental actually has more rear leg room and a bigger trunk in this thing Go check it out. How's that rear leg room? Not gonna lie, it's actually really nice. Then up front we have the 30 way power seats with massage. My backside thanks you. I have the most horse power of you guys, so 400 horse power, 400 pound feet of torque and I think I have the best handling mix with decent corner ability and a comfortable ride. As for tech I have the Synch 3 system that can run Apple Car and Android Auto And a really good Revel audio system. I don't know guys, I still think the genesis has this one. Well both of our cars have Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and mine has a wi-fi. Well if it's so great, why dont we just check it out. Let's go. All right. Gentlemen, welcome to the least expensive car here and the one with by far the most beautiful well screwed together and stylish interior This car makes your interiors look like Barka loungers, and this is an Eames lounger. It's timeless. So I've got a kickass stereo, the best road handling, and by the way, the best fuel economy by far. Now of all the three cars here, this has got the smallest interior, the tightest trunk, and the coarsest drive terrain. All through. So the question is, for $70,000, do we know which car is the winner between these three? I think we do. I think we do. Let's go call it. [MUSIC] At the end of the day, we're struck by how different these three cars are. They may have similar price points, and the same end goal, but each feels very different, without trying to copy the Germans. The Volvo gives a great first impression, thanks to its knock-out styling, interior, and safety tech. But it's completely undone by a shockingly brittle ride and a power train that seems particularly unrefined in this company. Add in an undersized cabin and convoluted infotainment and it's out of the running. The Lincoln impresses with its powerful drive train and solid ride and handling balance. But its poor fuel economy and tighter packaging means it's not our favorite. In the end, it's the big white whale that sneaks up and worms its way into our hearts. It's got the most comfortable ride, the largest cabin space and tech that's easy to live with. The surprise winner of this Roadshow Rivals is the Genesis G90. [MUSIC]