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Continental Review


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But at least it's positive. Not positive as in glowing, but positive in a "It knows it's place and it does it well" way.

Exactly. I agree with Lincoln that there are people willing to spend 60k or so for a sedan that is more focused on luxury than sport. However, I also agree with Autoweek that there are many people whose goal when buying a car is to impress others. Before I retired recently, I had a couple of people who reported to me that fit that description.

 

Lincoln expects the average buyer to be 58, a professional or retired professional and not give a rat's derriere about impressing anyone but himself. I know a few people like that, too.

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Ford factories are VERY primitive facilities compared to most luxury makers, especially in Germany and Japan. They simply don't have the quality control technology in place or the commitment to correct the problems before they hit the dealerships (especially on faster Ford lines). This has always and will always be the case. Every Lincoln I've ever purchased has noticeable fit n finish issues with almost all of them requiring repairs. This is the annoying thing about Lincoln, they think they can compete with very minimal effort or investment and charge insane prices to assemble them at the same cost as a Fusion. This is why the consumer and critics deserve to be extremely critical and skeptical of Lincoln when they start commanding prices like this.

 

If luxury vehicles become more than a hobby for Ford, maybe they can contract with companies like Magna or maybe even Jaguar Land Rover to build Lincolns at more modern assembly plants?

 

Didn't Lincoln have a dedicated assembly plant until fairly recently? I think it was named Wexford, Wixom, or something like that.

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Hey fuzzy, this is off topic but if I have a VIN and the build date is in late November, when should I be able to pull up a window sticker?

I'm not 100% sure. Akirby or Pioneer know more about that than I do.

 

Thank you for ordering one. I wish I was still there to be a part of building yours.

Edited by fuzzymoomoo
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Lincoln has a completely separate quality control process in place, so they do care and they are making a commitment even if they make mistakes.

 

That completely separate quality control process could use major adjustment, as the quality ratings that just came out at Consumer Reports show that Lincolns consistently have more problems than their Ford counterparts built at the same assembly plants.

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That completely separate quality control process could use major adjustment, as the quality ratings that just came out at Consumer Reports show that Lincolns consistently have more problems than their Ford counterparts built at the same assembly plants.

Thanks Captain Obvious.....

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I just didn't find the throttle sensitive at all. I own 3 Ford Motor Company vehicles. In drive mode, I found the Continental throttle mapping to be similar to my MKS or my wife's Taurus and probably less aggressive than my truck. I felt totally at home with the it. It is a bit more aggressive in Sport mode but I wouldn't call it jerky or annoying at all. I have had rental vehicles that had much more aggressive throttle tip-in than the Continentals that I drove. It is possible that the throttle mapping was a running change and there is a difference between early and later builds. Or, Maybe I just have an uncanny control of my right foot. :)

 

Oddly, the transmission behavior that C&D mentioned sounds very familiar. That issue affected some SHOs and MKSs and a TSB was issued to correct it. It is all software related so if there really is a transmission drivability issue with some 3.0/6F55 combinations, it can be corrected. Again, I didn't experience anything like that in the cars that I drove. My biggest complaint was the amount of torque management that made the shifts smooth but slow. Of course, I am a bit spoiled since my MKS has an aftermarket tune that vastly improves shift quality.

 

The ride: Wow, I am shocked that they thought it was too firm. They also complained about the ride in the CT6 reviews. I agree the 40 series 20 inch wheel/tire combo is firmer than the 19s. However, even on Minneapolis's notoriously pot holed streets, I found the Conti's ride to be pretty plush. I did use the comfort mode mostly around town but even in Sport, I would call it velvety firm. There is a significant difference between the damper modes.

 

Overall, the C&D review was probably more positive than I expected but their complaints were substantially different that I anticipated. As far as C&D is concerned, I always thought Pat Bedard was their best at reviewing vehicles. The new crop of writers/reviewers inject too much of their own bias and personal opinion to make the reviews relevant to me.

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I just didn't find the throttle sensitive at all. I own 3 Ford Motor Company vehicles. In drive mode, I found the Continental throttle mapping to be similar to my MKS or my wife's Taurus and probably less aggressive than my truck. I felt totally at home with the it. It is a bit more aggressive in Sport mode but I wouldn't call it jerky or annoying at all. I have had rental vehicles that had much more aggressive throttle tip-in than the Continentals that I drove. It is possible that the throttle mapping was a running change and there is a difference between early and later builds. Or, Maybe I just have an uncanny control of my right foot. :)

 

Oddly, the transmission behavior that C&D mentioned sounds very familiar. That issue affected some SHOs and MKSs and a TSB was issued to correct it. It is all software related so if there really is a transmission drivability issue with some 3.0/6F55 combinations, it can be corrected. Again, I didn't experience anything like that in the cars that I drove. My biggest complaint was the amount of torque management that made the shifts smooth but slow. Of course, I am a bit spoiled since my MKS has an aftermarket tune that vastly improves shift quality.

 

The ride: Wow, I am shocked that they thought it was too firm. They also complained about the ride in the CT6 reviews. I agree the 40 series 20 inch wheel/tire combo is firmer than the 19s. However, even on Minneapolis's notoriously pot holed streets, I found the Conti's ride to be pretty plush. I did use the comfort mode mostly around town but even in Sport, I would call it velvety firm. There is a significant difference between the damper modes.

 

Overall, the C&D review was probably more positive than I expected but their complaints were substantially different that I anticipated. As far as C&D is concerned, I always thought Pat Bedard was their best at reviewing vehicles. The new crop of writers/reviewers inject too much of their own bias and personal opinion to make the reviews relevant to me.

 

 

The way you describe the throttle/shift behavior is spot on, although I find it to be a huge improvement over what I was use to with previous Lincolns which had rough shift points (especially from rolling stop acceleration). I certainly prefer the smoothness which does a great job hiding the imperfections of that transmission. Sport does sharpen the transmission up considerably, it actually resembles the Edge Sport, that's the only mode that for me feels twitchy, I drive in that mode only when I need an extra fast start. In the end this is the first time I've ever liked a Ford/Lincoln transmission (only took them 10+ years to sort this one out, haha).

Edited by BORG
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I have rented a lot of cars over the years for business. I always thought GM transmissions behaved MUCH better than Fords. The old Ford 4 speed OD transmissions were clunky and the ones used in transverse applications (Taurus) were fragile. The 5 speed used in the LS was terrible although in the Ranger pickup, it proved to be adequate. It was not until the joint venture with GM and the 6F50 and 6F55 came along that I was really happy with Ford's automatic transmissions.

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http://www.motorauthority.com/news/1106934_2017-lincoln-continental-first-drive-review

 

C&D says the ride is too firm and this review calls it pillow soft. This is a perfect example of why buyers need to take multiple test drives and make up their own minds rather than blindly subscribing to the opinions of others.

 

Despite the abundance of power, no matter which powertrain you select, the Continental is most at home on boulevards and freeways. Spend just a few minutes behind the wheel of the Continental, and your thoughts turn to finding time on the calendar for long drives. With the seat massage enabled and the volume up on the optional 19-speaker Revel Ultima stereo, the Continental is at peak relaxation chamber. Opt for the rear-seat package ($4,300) and two rear outboard passengers can also benefit from heat, cooling, massage, and an adjustable backrest. The ride is pillow-soft, regardless of drive mode settings, just the way Lincoln’s engineers wanted it. The Continental is a grand tourer par excellence, not a canyon carver, and that’s perfectly okay.

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They actually specifically said it only had D and S modes. Of course, after they butchered their 3.0 MKZ review so badly, and mentioned nothing about any mode since they were so hell bent on complaining about the tires, I am not surprised.

 

Frankly, I wouldn't be surprised if they didn't know.

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I have rented a lot of cars over the years for business. I always thought GM transmissions behaved MUCH better than Fords. The old Ford 4 speed OD transmissions were clunky and the ones used in transverse applications (Taurus) were fragile. The 5 speed used in the LS was terrible although in the Ranger pickup, it proved to be adequate. It was not until the joint venture with GM and the 6F50 and 6F55 came along that I was really happy with Ford's automatic transmissions.

 

 

And of course we just saw their greatest transmission failure ever with the DCT which derailed their small cars and sank their quality ranking to the lowest in the industry.

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Pretty fair but why do they insist on comparing it to a 5 series? It's bigger than a 7 series!

 

Conti

201.4 x 82.3 x 58.5 x 117.9 (wb)

 

5 series

193.2 x 73.2 x 57.6 x 116.9 (wb)

 

7 series

200.7 x 74.9 x 57.8 x 120.9 (wb)

Edited by akirby
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