Which 2017 Lincoln MKZ is Right for You?
The Lincoln MKZ is a luxury cousin of the Ford Fusion. It’s got a bit more oomph, and nicer trappings. But how luxurious do you want to go, exactly? The high-end “Black Label” MKZ offers a lot, but honestly this car comes with so many standard features that you might not want a high-end version.
There’s one downside to this car, though, and it’s the reason you might shell out a little more. The thing that really sets the MKZ apart from the Fusion is a 3.0L turbocharged V-6 that gets 400hp at a reasonable rpm and 400 lb-ft of torque. It’s strong enough that on the FWD MKZs, Lincoln electronically caps its power at 350hp. Unfortunately, this engine is optional, and chucking it in can raise the list price a pretty great deal.
Premiere
The various MKZ trims (Lincoln refers to them as “models”) all sound like descriptions you’d find on a whiskey bottle. The first up is the Premiere. This is the base model MKZ, and it can be yours for as little as $35,170. That gets you a 2.0L, 245hp turbocharged I-4. You may recognize this engine as an optional upgrade for the Ford Fusion. It gets an estimated mileage of 21mpg in the city and 31mpg on the highway. In addition, you get some nice little amenities.
The interior comes with 10-way heated power front seats and a leather-wrapped steering wheel. You get SYNC 3, the premiere version of Ford’s computer getup that includes an app suite and voice controls. You get an 11-speaker sound system, remote keyless entry, and a capless fuel filler. Major options include adding all-wheel drive, which of course will affect your mileage. The Premiere is also available as a hybrid that gets 41mpg in the city and 38 on the highway, for the same price as the 2.0L gas engine.
Select
The Select bumps the MSRP up to $36,920, and it’s definitely got a few things to show for the extra cash. The seats are trimmed with leather, with the option to shell out for heated seats in the rear. The interior trim on the door, steering wheel, and instrument panel is made of wood. A host of options become available at additional cost, like rain-sensing windshield wipers, adaptive cruise control, and a blind spot information system with cross-traffic alerts. All-wheel drive comes into play, and at this level, it doesn’t really add much to the price of the car.
But perhaps the most important change? This is where the 3.0L Twin-Turbocharged V6 becomes available. Granted, it’s going to cost you a little more – $39,670 for FWD and $42,810 for AWD. And it will decrease your mileage to 18 city/27 highway. But the general consensus among reviewers is that this engine is what makes getting an MKZ worth it, instead of just buying a Ford Fusion and a really fancy hat to put on top of it. Like the Premiere, a hybrid option is available at the same base MSRP as the gas-powered Select.
Reserve
At $39,670, the Lincoln MKZ Reserve offers a focus on performance. By default, it comes with 19” wheels, rather than the 18” wheels of lesser trims. If you want a sportier ride, the Reserve has optional dynamic torque vectoring and sport-tuned suspension, for a price. The leather seats are perforated now, and they’re cooled as well as heated in the front. The Blind Spot Information System now comes standard, as does a power trunk lid. As usual, the hybrid option comes for the same list price. If you want to move the other direction, you can add the 3.0L engine for a total cost of $42,420.
Black Label
We’ve reached the high-water mark, both in terms of luxury and in terms of trim names that sound like whiskies. The Black Label presents itself as an experience as much as a vehicle. It has Venetian leather seats and suede accents, higher-quality wood accents, a Revel Ultima sound system with 20 speakers, and a personal liason with Lincoln. That’s right, you’ve got a dedicated single point of contact to take care of you and your vehicle. If all this sounds excessive, well, it probably is. But if you’re paying $47,830 for a car, you want to see where that money’s going.
Lincoln’s Black Label vehicles are available in three color schemes – Chalet, Vineyard, and Thoroughbred. They come with special badging, of course, and the leathers, paints, and accents have been selected to complement each other perfectly. Like the other MKZs, you can get a hybrid for the same price as the base model, and there’s available AWD, as well. For the fun, exciting 3.0L, the list price goes up to $50,580 for FWD and $53,720 for AWD.
