Trouble is, the MKT is exciting to stop too. Although a 130 foot braking distance from 60 mph isn't catastrophic for a 5000 lb automobile, its brake pedal's sponginess causes an unsettling delay. Said Loh, "It goes like freight train -- but stops like one too." Todd Lassa added "With the optional EcoBoost engine, it's everything Lincoln's were in the '60s and '70s -- floaty prairie schooners with big, powerful engines and no brakes." Harsh words, but true.
At a test price approaching $60,000 and a base price of $50,000, the MKT represents serious money, and decent brakes should be there to match the big Lincoln's impressive power. And while its styling is perhaps in the eye of the beholder, there's no question it is one dramatic vehicle. Like those great Lincolns of the forties and sixties, maybe.
| 2010 Lincoln MKT EcoBoost |
| Base price | $49,995 |
| Price as tested | $58,370 |
| Vehicle layout | Front-engine, AWD, 6-pass, 4-door SUV |
| Engine | 3.5L/355-hp/350-lb-ft DOHC 24-valve twin-turbo V6 |
| Transmission | 6-speed automatic |
| Curb weight (f/r dist) | 5029 lb (54 / 46%) |
| Wheelbase | 117.9 in |
| Length x width x height | 207.6 x 76.0 x 67.4 in |
| 0-60 mph | 6.1 sec |
| Quarter mile | 14.6 sec @ 95.3 mph |
| Braking, 60-0 mph | 130 ft |
| Lateral acceleration | 0.75 g (avg) |
| MT Figure Eight | 28.4 sec @ 0.59 g (avg) |
| EPA city/hwy fuel econ | 16 / 22 mpg |
| CO2 emissions | 1.06 lb/mile |