14th Feb 2007, 13:31

Poster 13:19 is in total denial, especially since the CHIEF ENGINEER on the Explorer development project sent a memo in 1989 stating the vehicle was UNSAFE. Ford management, as usual, ignored the memo and built a vehicle that killed and maimed thousands.

15th Feb 2007, 06:30

Go to the Ford Explorer section to rant about its safety issues, some of us are here to read intelligent comments about the Lincoln Zephyr/MKZ. I must say I have only found about ten intelligent comments amongst all of this quarreling.

15th Feb 2007, 09:01

I see, so one should simply ignore that the SAME company that builds the most unsafe vehicle on the road (Explorer) also builds the Zephyr.

Sorry, doesn't work that way. One has to wonder about how many corners Ford cut in safety features when it has a long history of doing so with many of its other vehicles.

15th Feb 2007, 14:14

OK, I will talk about the Lincoln "Fusion". This car is obviously nothing more than a Fusion the only difference is the grille and tailights and a minor improvement on the interior. People say that The Camry and the ES are the same car, sure they share the same chassis, but that is it, its not cutting corners and cost like the Lincoln. I suggest buying Japanese or German car if you want luxury, even a Cadillac CTS is better then this car.

15th Feb 2007, 22:17

After mom kept hitting stuff with her gigantic Lincoln Town Car, the family decided to take it away from her and make her get a smaller car. Having driven the Zephyr/MKZ I was adamant that she get one, but she ended up getting a fully loaded Volvo S-60 instead. I just drove her Volvo and WOW!! What a DISAPPOINTMENT!!! The interior is EXTREMELY cramped (the console actually rubs against my leg while driving), the ride is very harsh, and the power brakes were entirely too touchy. I was very upset that she did not get the extremely roomy and great handling Zephyr/MKZ. Although reliability is not a concern (she drives less than 5000 miles a year and trades every three years), the Lincoln is rated as far more reliable than the Volvo. My wife's comment after mom was out of earshot was "Your 6-year-old Pontiac Grand Am (which we bought as a 3rd car to haul our dog in) rides MUCH BETTER than mom's new Volvo!!"

19th Feb 2007, 19:38

Coming from a family that has owned German, Japanese and domestic vehicles, I'd have to say that the verdict on the Zephyr/MKZ has been in for us for some time. No German or Japanese car has EVER held up for us as well as a Ford. The new Zephyr/MKZ is, as has been pointed pointed out, a Ford Fusion with an extra 7 grand tacked on, just like lexus is a Toyota with 10 to 30 grand tacked on, and an Acura is a Honda with 10 to 30 grand tacked on. With Toyoyta's MASSIVE problems (look on Camry, Highlander, Corolla and Tundra sites) and Honda's never ending transmission woes, I can't fathom rushing out to buy one of them just so I can get to be on intimate terms with the service manager. The Zephyr/MKZ line is probably the best-handling, smoothest, and most reliable vehicle anywhere within 10 grand of its price range. It's projected reliability tops both Honda and Toyota (not to mention the always unreliable Nissans). Our family has driven Lincolns since our first Town Car in 1984. Not one of them has ever had a single repair...EVER. The 1984 was sold to another relative, and as far as I know is STILL being driven.

20th Feb 2007, 07:29

You do know that Ford owns Volvos also right? I suggest waiting another 2 or 3 years to buy this car as its blue book will be very low and its value will drop significantly (like most Lincolns).

As far as the poster who said that no Japanese or German cars are better built then Fords all I have to say is; what are you smoking? Seriously that was one of the funniest things I have ever heard in my life. I owned a Ford before and that car along with the service were complete crap.

20th Feb 2007, 12:40

When one drives Lincolns for 250,000 miles without a problem it does tend to give one the impression that they are somewhat reliable vehicles. As for Japanese and German cars, our family's 2 Japanese cars never made it to 100,000 miles. One was so much trouble that we traded it (for a Ford) after one year and lost FULLY HALF of what we had paid for it (so much for RESALE VALUE!!) And the one German car we owned was so problem-plagued we sold it after only a year also (and bought a Ford).

20th Feb 2007, 18:43

Isn't it funny that all these diehard domestic buyers somehow ALWAYS have owned foreign makes and ALWAYS seem to have trouble with them, yet their domestic vehicles hardly need an oil change in 100K miles.

Methinks there is something rotten in Denmark.

I have owned six German cars, 14 Japanese cars, 2 Korean cars, and 3 domestics. The ONLY ones that gave me trouble were the domestics, the last one (a Ford) being so bad it had to be towed.

21st Feb 2007, 07:27

I have owned a Ford vehicle and that was easily the worst investment I have ever made. I still cannot believe people are standing behind Ford with their spotty reliability and questionable ethics. I am not bashing domestic vehicles (Chrysler seems to be doing something right) I am only bashing Ford because those guys do not deserve to be in business, but they are because of all this "pro american" thing. Just because Ford is an "American" company does not mean I have to buy their mediocre products.

21st Feb 2007, 12:54

After having one Ford that went well over 300,000 miles with NO repairs other than hoses and a muffler, plus having a company that routinely gets 300,000 miles out of 4-cylinder Ranger XL pickups, I fail to see any problem with Ford owners reporting incredible reliability. My family did own a Toyota (a Celica GT) in the 90's, and it was not a bad car. It was not, however, any more reliable than any of our Fords and cost much more for routine servicing.