Article Comments: 2007 Lincoln MKZ First Drive - 11/06

6 messages, Last post on Nov 18, 2006 at 9:36 AM

You are in the Lincoln Zephyr/MKZ Forum. Your Hosts are pat & karens

What is this discussion about? Lincoln MKZ, Sedan

Article comments for First Drive: 2007 Lincoln MKZ - With the introduction of the 2007 Lincoln MKZ, Ford's luxury brand is taking a do-over. (more)

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#2 of 6 FWD vs RWD by andre1 Nov 16, 2006 (10:50 am)
It's too bad Lincoln abandoned the RWD market in their sedans. There is a gaping hole in offerings from domestic car companies for RWD sedans, which are much more fun to drive than any FWD sedan. The HUGE difference between this car on the Acura and Lexus is the depreciation. The Acura and Lexus vehicles hold their value very well. You will be able to buy this Lincoln MKZ is three years used for less than $20,000 since all Lincoln's values drop like a rock...
#3 of 6 Re: Article Comments: 2007 Lincoln MKZ First Drive - 11/06 [KarenS] by fullthrottle Nov 17, 2006 (9:40 am)
Replying to: KarenS (Nov 16, 2006 8:48 am) Daniel, The title of the last section of the review indicates you think the car is "boring". Could you elaborate a bit more on why you think this way? My impression of Lincoln is that it is a brand for people who want comfort and a smooth ride, rather than sharp handling. Is this what you meant by boring? Or did you just mean overall the new MKZ is merely competitive with other vehicles in the segment instead of being superior?
#4 of 6 the big "D" by jerseypr5 Nov 18, 2006 (1:33 am)
I am wondering if having only one "D" forward gate in the 6-speed auto is really all that bad. I have yet to test drive the car, and I will look at it when I begin my new car search. In the mean time, I drive a Pr5 with a manual 5-speed and as such like rowing my own gears, but when fly home and drive my Mother's 5 series BMW, I just put the car into "D". My mother and father both just put the car into "D". I am almost convinced that nobody besides the editors and maybe a few kids my age who know how to play the stock market actually use the steptronic feature. Now If there is a major problem with the shift points--like what GM four speeds--then I can see a problem. But you did not really point to that being a problem. Besides noting that the tranny kept the high gear even with O/D off as the only other major tranny issue. "D" is the only position an automatic tranny should have, and if you want to pick your gears and when to shift, then buy a manual. now that IS a problem with the MXZ, why didn't the ford/merc 5 speeds transfer over to the MXZ?
#5 of 6 More on the big "D" by jerseypr5 Nov 18, 2006 (1:43 am)
a quick wikipedia (I know) search says: "The overdrive consists of an electrically or hydraulically operated epicyclic gear train bolted behind the transmission unit. It can either couple the input driveshaft directly to the output shaft (or propeller shaft) (1:1), or increase the output speed so that it turns faster than the input shaft (1:1 + n). Thus the output shaft may be "overdriven" relative to the input shaft. It is actuated by a knob or button, often incorporated into the gearshift knob, and does not require operation of the clutch." SO your clam that the tranny "locks out the high gear" with the O/D off is in fact false, or at least an over simplifaction of the truth. The O/D off button just turns off the unit and it is as simple as that. the "High Grear", 6th in this case, is still a choice for the automatic tranny to make on it's own. Just another reason why Lincoln should offer the Ford/Merc 5 speed manual, and "sequential-shift systems" should be left out of all but M-series BMW's or AMG MB's. Replies to this message: heyjewel (Nov 18, 2006 9:36 am)
#6 of 6 Re: More on the big "D" [jerseypr5] by heyjewel Nov 18, 2006 (9:36 am)
Replying to: jerseypr5 (Nov 18, 2006 1:43 am) If you're talking about the 5 speed manual in the Fusion/Milan, it is only available with the 4 cylinder engine. That engine is not offered in the Z, nor should it be. Just because you don't think select shift is a useful feature doesn't make it so. We've had this argu - er - discussion already. Some want it, some dont care. That's the end of it. Ford apparently doesn't care about those who want it. Simple as that. In actuality, it's another bean counter thing because these D-L shifters were supposed to go in cars that had the CVT transmission. But it probalby saves Ford $10/car to use them in the new 6-speed tranny cars until enough poeple complain or sales are lost that the car guys can convince the bean counters to let them create a new shifter and write a bit of software.