2013 Lincoln MKS evolves new nose, bigger brakes

2013 Lincoln MKS evolves new nose, bigger brakes




Think about the position that Cadillac was in over a decade ago; that's about where Lincoln is today. The rebirth of a brand doesn't happen overnight, so until Lincoln debuts its next generation of fully redesigned and reimagined products, subtle evolution and continued refinement are the order du jour. Hence the 2013 Lincoln MKS.

The greenhouse of Lincoln's flagship sedan carries over unchanged, but the front and rear fascias, fenders, hood, HID headlights and LED taillamps are all new and punctuated by the reworked grille. That last bit is far and away the most radical change, making the 2013 MKS come off as less baleen and slightly more elegant.

Stuffed behind the standard 19-inch aluminum wheels (or optional 20s) is all new braking hardware to address one of the MKS' most glaring dynamic faults, with the front discs upsized to 13.86-inches – more than an inch larger than the outgoing stoppers – and 13.58-inch rotors in the rear. More impressive is the standard fitment of Continuously Controlled Damping (CCD), which monitors and adjusts the suspension up to 500 times a second to balance handling and comfort. CCD works in conjuction with a torque vectoring differential and the new Lincoln Drive Control, which modifies ride, throttle, shifting, steering and traction control on the fly when changing the system from Comfort to Sport mode.

The powertrains are also largely carry-overs, with the standard 3.7-liter V6 getting a boost in horsepower from 274 to an even 300, all while returning 19 mpg in the city and 28 on the highway in FWD spec. The 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 – standard with AWD – outputs 355 hp and 350 lb-ft of torque and is projected to return fuel economy ratings of 17/25.

On the tech front, the MKS comes equipped with the recently reworked MyLincoln Touch system, with standard Operator Assist, WiFi hotspot functionality and a tweaked UI to match the updated interior. Also included for 2013 is the new Lane Keeping System and Lane Keeping Aid, which alerts the driver if he or she is drifiting out of a lane and applies a small amount of torque to the wheel to bring things back in line.

We'll have full impressions of the MKS from the floor of the LA Auto Show later today, but in the meantime, get all the details in the press release below the fold.