Teresa’s View
On first blush, the all-new Lincoln MKX has everything going for it — clean, contemporary styling; a light, airy interior and the requisite “X” in its name.
The spacious cabin makes no bones about the fact it’s designed for five — not seven — healthy-sized Americans. Lincoln says that extra attention was paid to blocking out the noisy world in quiet comfort. They also did a wonderful job with the suspension — the ride is buttery smooth without tipping into soft or floaty territory.
When Lincoln’s first crossover vehicle replaced the truck-based Aviator late last year as a 2007 model, the company was loath to call it a sport-ute. Instead they prefer “multi-activity vehicle” or MAV. Not as sexy, but they get points for accuracy.
Based on the Mazda6 sedan, The MKX shares body parts with the Mazda CX-7 and Ford Edge (Ford owns 33-percent share in Mazda). All three are driven by a 265-horsepower, 3.5-liter V-6 with a six-speed automatic transmission.
Parked next to our seven-year old Expedition, the MKX looked fabulously chic. Despite weighing 4,621 pounds, the sleek MKX is eminently more nimble than our brutish sport-ute.
So, why wasn’t I more impressed with the MKX? Let’s start with the plastic silver trim. This is a premium ride meant to compete with luxury contenders like Cadillac, Lexus and Acura. What’s with the lowbrow trim? Call it “satin nickel finish” all you like, but in the end it’s just silver-painted plastic that barely belongs on a truck.
I also have concerns about the light-colored interior. Don’t get me wrong, it looks great; in the same way my childhood friend’s all-white living room looked great — from a distance, as long as you don’t touch it. The beige carpets of our tester were already hopelessly stained.
The MKX is a great improvement over its trucky predecessor, but it needs a few tweaks to more aggressively complete in the cutthroat world of luxury autos.
What Is It?: The Lincoln MKX is a five-passenger, luxury, crossover MAV. It’s available in a single trim in either two-wheel or all-wheel drive. Prices for the two-wheel drive version start at $34K. The AWD models start at $36K.
Gadget Rating: 8 out of 10. Our well-equipped tester included two options packages. The Elite package includes a Vista Roof, a panoramic skylight that provides near top-down driving for front- and back-seat occupants; a navigation system and an award-winning THX surround-sound audio system with an in-dash, six-CD/MP3 player, satellite radio and 14 — count ‘em — 14 speakers. The Ultimate Package adds heated and cooled seats, adaptive headlights, a reverse sensing system and power rear liftgate.
Safety: Six airbags, including side-impact and side curtain airbags, protect the occupants. Roll stability and control systems help prevent rollovers before they happen. The MKX is so crash-worthy the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety presented the 2007 MKX with its Top Safety Award.
Cheat Sheet: Lincoln has been part of the Ford family since 1922 and serves as Ford’s premium brand.