2018 Lincoln MKZ

Lincoln is Ford’s luxury brand, and most Lincoln models are fancier, quieter versions of existing Ford SUVs. The Lincoln Navigator, for example, is based on the Ford Expedition, and the Lincoln Corsair is based on the Ford Escape. Some models are available as hybrids. Lincoln SUVs tend to come with standard leather seating surfaces, large screens, and sound deadening. That interior quality paired with lively powertrains have earned some models Consumer Reports’ recommendation. Lincoln stopped building sedans when it discontinued the Continental and MKZ in 2020. As a brand, for new and used car reliability, road-test scores, and owner satisfaction ratings, Lincoln tends to be average.

The 2013 redesign brought a whole new car with a far more luxurious interior, along with turbocharged four-cylinder, V6 and hybrid powertrains. We considered it to be the most appealing and well-executed Lincoln in memory, though the MyLincoln Touch infotainment system is cumbersome to use. We'd opt for the fuel-sipping hybrid, which, unlike many other hybrids, does not carry a price premium. The Reserve Equipment Group includes blind spot monitoring to help with visibility. A rearview camera was added for 2015. A 2017 freshening brought an array of revisions. Most apparent is the new front-end styling with a more pronounced grille. Crucially, the frustrating MyLincoln Touch controls have been replaced with the Sync 3 infotainment system, which is much more intuitive and responsive to use. The 2019 model gets a standard suite of advanced safety features that includes forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, blind spot warning, and lane keeping assistance. 2020 was the final year for the MKZ.