#mkt

Ford has announced two separate recalls that affect a total of 442,300 vehicles in North America.

A few weeks ago we published a Top 10 list focusing on some of our favorite in-production vehicles that are getting on in years. In spite of their geriatric status these cars and trucks are aging gracefully, still capable of plastering a big ol’ grin across the lower portion of your face.

Cars like the Mercury Grand Marquis and Buick Roadmaster are quintessential examples of “old-person transportation,” if we may make a blatantly ageist statement.

Since its founding in 1936, Consumer Reports has become the go-to source for shoppers. From new refrigerators to bottles of wine, Blue-ray players to homeowner’s insurance, if it’s on the market it’s likely the non-profit organization has scientifically tested it. Of course the consumer watchdog is probably most famous for its vehicle reliability ratings.

This week’s subject for AutoGuide’s Five-Point Inspection is the Lincoln MKT. It comes standard with a 3.7-liter V6, but our tester came equipped with Ford’s EcoBoost twin-turbo V6, which is EPA rated at 16 mpg city and 23 mpg highway. The base price is $45,285, while a fully loaded version can reach up to $50,780.

The Lincoln MKT is about to get a 4-cylinder engine option, though you won’t be able to buy it. The new EcoBoost 4-cylinder will only be available on the MKT Town Car, built for fleet use by livery companies.

Ahead of its scheduled debut at the New York Auto Show, photos of the 2013 Lincoln MKZ sedan leaked onto the internet today. 

Lincoln is brewing up some more interest for its upcoming LA Auto Show debuts. Recently we were teased with a single photo showcasing the new design of the 2013 MKS and MKT, and now the Ford luxury brand has released a couple more. This time it’s clearly showcasing the new MKS sedan’s LED taillights and a new dashboard featuring FoCoMo’s configurable instrument panel LCD screens.

Just as industry analysts and veterans are convinced that the Lincoln brand will share a similar fate to Mercury, Lincoln is determined to prove the naysayers otherwise. According to global product chief of Ford, Derrick Kuzak, Ford promises no fewer than seven new or improved vehicles in the Lincoln lineup by 2014, a mere three years time.

For 2012, Lincoln has lowered the price of its not-so-successful EcoBoost MKT three-row crossover by $3,000. There are no equipment of styling changes for this model year, but Lincoln is hoping the lower price will make the car more desirable to consumers. For 2012, the MKT will no longer have the all-wheel drive model with the naturally aspirated 3.7-liter V6. Instead, the AWD model with the 355-hp 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 will cost $46,295 with the price reduction.

Lincoln sales have been slipping and so far are down 8 percent this year. The automaker has sped up redesign plans for the full-size MKS and three-row MKT as sales have dropped by 40 percent this year for the sedan, and 38 percent for the crossover. The redesigned MKS and MKT will debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show in November.

Lincoln has been hard at work refreshing its lineup over the past few years and the luxury arm of Ford has chosen to display three of its newest vehicles at the 2009 SEMA Show: a 2010 MKZ, a 2009 MKS and a 2010 MKT. But before the two luxury sedans and one crossover made their way to Las Vegas, Lincoln shipped them out to different tuning shops across the country to have each car individually stylized.

“Lincoln as a brand is continuing to attract younger customers to the showroom with products like the MKS, MKZ and the new MKT luxury crossover,” said Amy Marentic, Ford Car and Crossover marketing manager. “These customers place huge importance on style, design and technology, and these are areas where Lincoln plays well. SEMA gives customizers the opportunity to push the boundaries of design, while still focusing on the core strengths of the Lincoln brand.”

Ford’s SEMA Designer Melvin Betancourt echoes Marentic’s thoughts stating that, “Customization is about individuality and reflecting who you are. That is particularly true about the new generation of people who are buying cars. The vehicles at this year’s SEMA show prove that Lincolns have great personalization potential.”

See AutoGuide’s live SEMA Coverage here!

See more on each of the three SEMA Lincolns after the jump: