drzoidberg

Rented a 2011 Lincoln MKS this weekend; it's a fullsize elite car, which means you will most likely find it on the luxury section at your National location. Although, I believe our esteemed moderator peteropny mentioned that he found one randomly (and quite possibly by mistake) on the ES once.

I really enjoyed driving it; much more luxurious than the Lincoln LS I used to own, and the base model was equipped with a lot of standard features. I would prefer a base MKS to even a maxed out Buick Lacrosse, and I'd say the premium features do distinguish the MKS from its cheaper brother, the Taurus. The base 3.7L FWD gets about 17/24; ironically, the EcoBoost AWD equipped MKS gets slightly better fuel economy at 17/25.

The base model MKS comes very well equipped and includes the following STANDARD features;

- standard adaptive HIDs and fog lights.
- standard power rear sunshade.
- standard illuminated doorsills (sophisticated in appearance).
- standard start/stop button.
- standard rear passenger seat heaters, with heated/cooled seats for front passengers!
- standard 4 way power lumbar!!
- standard THX-II audio system with 16 speakers, 10" subwoofer, 600 Watts of power The upgraded THX-II option only adds an 8" high-resolution screen with 5.1 HD support; otherwise, both share the THX-II system.

** While not technically a standard feature, I appreciated that the MKS only needed regular gas. A few slight increase in hp and torque is attained when premium is used.

EXTERIOR DESIGN:

I liked the design language on the MKS; I think it looks quite elegant, and is a nice application of the Lincoln corporate split-wing grille. The rear lights were canted slightly, decreasing trunk width, but I didn't need to load anything particularly wide into the trunk.



There were two fat chrome exhaust pipes in the back; rear visibility was about the same as on the Ford Taurus, and both shared the same high decklid. I liked the rear face of the MKS as opposed to its Taurus brother.



INTERIOR:

The interior of the MKS was the place to be; the seats had a wonderfully soft Bridge of Weir leather seating, but there was also quite a bit of firm cushioning underneath. The 4-way power lumbar was wonderfully supportive and comfortable for long distance driving.



The chrome rimmed instrument gauges were easy to read, and the numbers lit up like a "starship" as the advertisements would lead you to believe. There was a large strip of chrome-flanked wood running across the dashboard, and you won't mistake this for anything but a Lincoln. It's bold, it's American, and I liked it. At least they used real wood, unlike Buick (or some of the cheaper Cadillac models). Some of the HVAC vents used too much metal-colored plastic, and the center console could do away with some of the hard looking plastic. The standard rear-sunshade was operated by a button near the gear shifter (see picture below of extended sunshade)



and the nifty arm-rest was adjustable for both the driver and the passenger. The rear sunshade button is just visible above the right hand side cupholder.


Of course, the highlight of the MKS was the THX-II audio system, and I was greatly looking forward to testing it out.

Fortunately, it did not disappoint. It played everything I threw at it magnificently; e.g. classical music, hip-hop, trance, etc.. Bass was deep, seat shaking, yet undistorted at high volumes. Mids and highs were crisp and clear. Loved listening to music in the MKS!! Best car audio system I've heard to date.

I was disappointed that the MKS did not come with a rear-view camera mounted in the driver's rearview mirror; afterall, the camera comes standard on the Taurus Limited. It seems the camera is available only as an option; but, the MKS does come equipped with FRONT and rear ultrasonic parking sensors, which greatly helped when attempting to parallel park the car.

DRIVING & HANDLING: The MKS was a big car, yet I found it handled pretty decently. There was little body lean in turns, and the engine accelerated smoothly and crisply. Definitely a noticeable difference between the 3.7L in the MKS and the 3.5L in the Taurus; I hope they add the 305-hp 3.7L Mustang engine to the MKS soon, could make a considerable improvement on the base MKS.

Brakes were fine, with a good linear response. Noise insulation was significantly improved over the Taurus, the MKS was library quiet. Additional noise insulation was added to the engine bay, I suspect.

There were a few CONS:

CONS:

- Some questionable interior materials, e.g. metal colored plastic.
- Driver's side seat heater was a bit weak.
- Manual trunk release mounted in glove compartment (whereas it's mounted on the dash on the Taurus).
- Front assist parking sensors beeped incessantly (some sort of electrical gremlin); at least they can be manually turned off.
- Vehicle bulk/curbweight could be reduced
- Narrower trunk opening, but the well was huge.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: A very enjoyable vehicle to drive; Lincoln has come a long way, and the MKS is a fine example of their efforts to date.

DJ_Iceman

Wow. I just had one last week from the ES at IAD and thought it was a piece of crap. I guess it's better than a Cobalt or a Fusion, but I can't imagine ANYONE buying one of these over a Camry, let alone a Japanese luxury brand like a Lexus or Acura.

drzoidberg

Care to explain your viewpoint a little more? Not sure how you can compare an MKS to a Camry; maybe you're confusing it with the smaller MKZ?

DJ_Iceman

No, it was an MKS. Maybe a better comparison size-wise would have been to an Avalon, but I thought the interior appointments (materials, fit-and-finish, audio system, features, etc.) were sub-par compared to a mainstream car like a Camry.

3Cforme

I've driven an MKS; I've driven a recent Camry. That the Camry has superior interior materials and features isn't my opinion, nor that of a number of professional reviewers (and it seems drzoidberg wants to join their club).

drzoidberg

I've also driven a Camry recently, and I could not disagree more with you DJ_Iceman.

kennycrudup

I rented one of these for 5 days over Thanksgiving weekend; uh, dude- this is NO Camry (and was pretty nice for an American car).

DJ_Iceman

I think you guys are taking the Camry comment way too seriously (or literally). What I said is that I can't imagine anyone buying an MKS over a Camry, and I stand by that statement. For overall quality, inside and outside, a mainstream Japanese car like that is still head and shoulders above the Lincoln I rented, which is supposedly a premium car.

dstan

Another great report!

qs933

Picked up a 2010 MKS from OGG over the weekend (reserved a Premium, was allowed to take from the luxury section).



My quick impressions (typed on my iPad as I wait for my delayed flight back to HNL):

Keyless entry: The push button start is great. Unlike other cars I've experienced with a "smart key," unlocking and locking outside is done via the keypad on the B-pillar. Other cars usually use a small button on the door handle or, like my own Toyota Venza, just require you to touch the back of the handle. I had to read the manual to find out that pressing 7-8 and 9-0 locked the doors. I'm sure most just assume that you have to use the keyfob to unlock and lock, defeating the purpose of not having to reach for the fob to start the car, IMHO.



Auto High Beams: Another feature also on my Venza, but implemented differently with the MKS (and in a way I probably prefer). When the headlights are on, the high beams automatically activate when no oncoming traffic is present and there's little or no street light. When the MKS detects an oncoming vehicle (by its lights), the high beams automatically turn off. My Venza requires you to have the high beams activated using the stalk and the headlamps in Auto mode...I usually forget to do this, so I rarely use it.

THX Audio: Was not as impressed as I thought I would be. I'm in no way an audiophile, so this is based on my unscientific impression. Regardless of what I played or how I adjusted the sound settings, everything sounded muddy. Maybe if I had more time to adjust it, I would have found a more optimum setting.

I connected my iPad via USB and played music from it for most of my trip. The USB port does not provide enough juice to charge the iPad, but I'd guess it'd be OK for iPhones/iPods. There is also a standard aux-in. Both the USB port and aux-in jack are in the center console.

Sync: I wish I had more time to dig into the owner's manual to learn how it worked. I couldn't get it to recognize anything other than "USB," "play next track," and "cancel." On the other hand, really liked being able to play playlists and use the steering wheel controls to move between songs.

Park Assist: Really glad the MKS has park-assist sensors, as rear visibility is poor. I really wanted a reverse camera too, but the mirrors and park-assist were sufficient. Wasn't sure how the front park-assist sensors come into play. They were turned on (via the setup menu). I assumed they came on during low-speed driving, but I think I heard them chirp just once the whole time (even though I had numerous parking adventures in tight parking lots).

Seats: Really liked the lumbar support and the heated and ventilated front seats. Rear seats are also heated with individual controls on the back of the console. Leather quality was good and, though the MKS was almost a year old and with 13K+ miles, the leather wasn't anywhere near as worn as the Lucerne or Town Car that I previously rented.

One downside to perforated leather (necessary, I assume, for the heat/ventilation). There was a lot of white gunk in the holes -- I'm guessing sunscreen, a necessity for the beach here in the islands.



Other Notes: Middle rear seat position lacks a headrest...rear sunshade automatically retracts when you shift into reverse (not sure if there's a way to get it to extend automatically when you shift out of reverse)...agree that the plastic silver trim would be nicer if it was metal...liked the interior illumination including the multi-color footwell lights controlled by the switch to the right of the headlights...blind spot mirror was also a nice surprise...