Lincoln MKZ: История и характеристики люксового седана

The Lincoln MKZ, is a four door, five passenger mid size luxury sedan manufactured by Ford and marketed as the Zephyr (MY 2006) and as the MKZ (MY 2007–2020) by Ford's Lincoln brand across two generations in both gasoline and hybrid gas/electric models. Both generations of the MKZ were manufactured at Ford's Hermosillo Stamping & Assembly plant in Mexico. Production ended in 2020 to make way for new Ford vehicles.

For 2007, the Zephyr was refreshed and renamed MKZ to follow a new nomenclature developed by Lincoln that mimics the alphanumeric naming schemes used by other luxury automakers like Mercedes Benz. Management at Lincoln originally announced the MKZ with a "mark zee" pronunciation during the 2006 auto show circuit, but eventually changed it to the phonetic "em kay zee" due to confusion observed among focus groups and dealership personnel. The 2007 MKZ was first shown at the Chicago Auto Show in February 2006. In addition to its new name, the MKZ gained a number of changes over its predecessor. The standard and optional versions of the MKZ's 17 x 7.5 inch wheels were restyled. An intelligent all wheel drive system was now available, seamlessly distributing power to each wheel for optimum traction. Powering the MKZ, and taking a large step toward further differentiating the car from the Fusion and Milan, was Ford's new, all aluminum 3.5 L DOHC Duratec 35 V6. The engine was tuned to produce 265 hp (196 kW) at 6250 rpm and 249 lb·ft (337 N·m) of torque at 4500 rpm. Significantly, the new engine needed only 87 octane regular grade gasoline to achieve its output. Also, in spite of the MKZ's power advantage over the 3.0 L DOHC V6 equipped Zephyr, the fuel economy of the MKZ rivals that of the Zephyr at in city driving and on the highway in front wheel drive models. A road test by Motor Trend found that an MKZ equipped with all wheel drive could accelerate from zero to in 6.8 seconds and complete a quarter mile in 15.2 seconds at due to the more powerful engine and extra traction. One of the few other changes applied to the 2007 MKZ was a revision to the available THX II certified audio system to increase speakers to 14 and its peak output to 600 watts. Beyond the MKZ's changes, the car remained positioned as an entry level luxury sedan with base models still starting at just under US$30,000 and fully optioned models remaining below $40,000. For 2008, the MKZ received new standard features as a part of Lincoln's continued effort to refine the car. Sirius satellite radio, perforated leather seats, a reverse sensing system, a tire pressure monitoring system, and Lincoln SYNC (late availability) were all newly standard. For 2009, Ford's 'AdvanceTrac' stability control system became standard, while a special edition "Midnight Black" package was available, featuring black leather seating surfaces and panels contrasted with maple wood and satin nickel inserts.

The 2010 MKZ was unveiled at the 2008 Los Angeles International Auto Show, revealing an extensive update with a revised interior and exterior in addition to new features. The MKZ's exterior featured revised front and rear fascias. The MKZ's headlights were new, while its fascia and split wing grille closely resembled that of the Lincoln MKR concept. In the rear, the taillights have been revised to be longer and thinner, similar to the original Zephyr concept. The MKZ's standard and optional 17 inch wheels were restyled and featured an 18 inch wheel option. Inside, the MKZ's interior was revised, using real wood accents and metal surfaces. Bridge of Weir leather seating surfaces were standard. Other features new for 2010 included a reverse camera system, Sirius Travel Link, a DVD based satellite navigation system updated to accept voice commands, rain sensing windshield wipers, a cabin air filter, and adaptive HID headlights. Mechanically, the MKZ featured suspension revised to improve ride quality and handling and a new 'SelectShift' six speed automatic transmission. The 2010 MKZ was released during the spring of 2009.

The 2011 MKZ Hybrid was unveiled at the 2010 New York International Auto Show, and sales began in September 2010. It is the first Lincoln hybrid electric vehicle and the first Lincoln model with a four cylinder engine; it delivers an EPA city rating of and a highway rating of , which made it the most fuel efficient luxury sedan in the U. S. until the release of the 2011 Lexus CT 200h in March 2011. The Lincoln MKZ Hybrid carries over the hybrid powertrain from the Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan hybrids, including the 2.5 L Duratec I4 with the electric motor producing a total of
The Lincoln MKZ Hybrid is marketed by Ford as a competitor to the Lexus HS 250h and Lexus ES Hybrid. As of July 2011, the MKZ Hybrid was the only hybrid in the market with the same price as its conventional gasoline engine version. Ford reported that until June 2011, about 20% of 2011 MKZ sales have been hybrids, and the market share is even higher in markets where hybrids in general sell well, such as the Los Angeles region, where sales of the hybrid model represent 44%, and the San Francisco area, with a market share of 66%. Both the Lincoln MKZ and the Fusion Hybrid are expected to use a new compact lithium ion battery pack and an updated powertrain that is expected to deliver a higher fuel economy up to 48 mpgUS (4.9 to 5.0 L/100 km; 56 to 58 mpgimp) highway. The next generation Lincoln MKZ Hybrid was expected to be launched by mid 2012. The 2013 MKZ concept car was unveiled at the 2012 North American International Auto Show. The MKZ Hybrid was one of the five finalists for the 2011 Green Car of the Year awarded by the Green Car Journal in November 2010, which was won by the Chevrolet Volt. In its 2011 Hybrid Scorecard, the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) ranked the MKZ Hybrid, together with the Lexus CT200h, as the top luxury hybrid models in the scorecard's environmental improvement category, an achievement the UCS attributed to their relatively small gasoline engines. Nevertheless, the Lincoln MKZ Hybrid ranked higher than the Lexus on all factors: consumer value, hybrid technology, fuel efficiency, and pollution reduction. Also, the UCS praised the MKZ Hybrid, together with the Hyundai Sonata Hybrid, because both hybrids were available with few or no forced features that inflated the cost without adding to fuel savings or reducing emissions.

Ford redesigned the Lincoln MKZ for the 2013 model year, sharing the company's CD4 platform with Fusion and Mondeo. The concept model debuted at the 2012 North American International Auto Show. The production version of the second generation MKZ was unveiled at the 2012 New York Auto Show. It followed the general concept idea released in the model displayed at the 2012 Detroit Auto Show. The MKZ was originally set to be released in November 2012, but this was set back to January after Fusion production was delayed, which is produced at the same plant. Its release date was again pushed back after Ford looked to iron out any possible quality issues. Some MKZs were even shipped from the Mexican facility to Ford's Flat Rock plant to be reassured and inspected that they were ready to be sent to dealerships. This was an unprecedented move for such a big product launch, but Ford felt it would be profitable in the long run. Cars finally started to reach dealerships in sufficient quantities by mid March 2013. Ford offered the 2013 MKZ with three powertrains: a 240 horsepower EcoBoost 2 liter four cylinder (FWD or AWD), a 300 horsepower 3.7 liter V6 (FWD or AWD), and a hybrid system based on the 2 liter power plant. The hybrid, like the previous generation MKZ Hybrid, was available for the same price as the non hybrid model. Given the model's significant redesign for 2013, changes to the 2014 MKZ were primarily limited to color choices. For 2015, automatic headlights, rear parking sensors and rear view camera became standard.

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rated the 2013 MKZ Hybrid at with the same rating for combined/city/highway cycles. The 2013 model year 2.0 liter, 4 cylinder FWD automatic MKZ rating is combined, in the city, and on the highway. These ratings allowed the 2013 MKZ Hybrid to become the most fuel efficient luxury vehicle in the U. S. and improve the fuel economy of the Lexus ES 300h hybrid by 5 mpg US on the combined cycle. Despite sharing the same powertrain, the 2013 MKZ Hybrid rated 2 mpg US combined less than its sibling, the second generation Ford Fusion Hybrid at .

The MKZ received a facelift for the 2017 model year. Revealed on November 18, 2015, at the LA Auto Show, the MKZ is the first to adopt Lincoln's new design language previewed earlier on the Lincoln Continental concept car, featuring redesigned front grille and headlights. The 3.7 L V6 will be dropped in favor of an all new 3.0 L twin turbo V6 engine unique to Lincoln, producing between 350 and 400 horsepower depending on the drive train. Trim levels include the standard model, plus Premiere, Select, Reserve and top level Black Label, which is three special appearance packages, a tradition started with the Designer Editions in 1976. The MKZ offers the "Vineyard" (unique to the MKZ), "Chalet", and "Thoroughbred" theme appearance packages. In continuing with Lincoln tradition, Bridge of Weir "Deepsoft" leather is used for the Select and Reserve trim packages. The transmission is no longer activated with a center console installed transmission selector; the computer controlled transmission uses buttons installed to the left of the MyLincoln Touch infotainment touch screen labeled "P, R, N, D, S", a revival of an approach used in the 1950s by the Chrysler push button PowerFlite and the Packard Touchbutton Ultramatic. The "S" transmission selection represents "Sport" mode, where the Continuously Controlled Damping suspension, electric power steering and transmission shift points take on a different posture. The MKZ received no more major changes, with the new model years bringing new colors and a gradual diminishing of the lineup. For 2020, the car's final year on the market, only the Base and Reserve trims remained, with either Hybrid, Turbo, or V6 powertrains.

Calendar YearU. S. sales (2005–2021)China Total(gas & hybrid) Hybrid onlyHybridshare 2005 4,985 rowspan="10" 2006 33,114 2007 34,363 2008 30,117 2009 22,081 2010 22,535 1,192 5.3% 201127,529 5,73920.8% 201228,053 6,06721.6%201332,3617,46923.1%201434,00910,03329.5%201530,9018,40327.2%2,801201630,5347,21923.6%7,325201727,3875,93121.7%12,497201819,852 12,560201917,725 12,409202012,518 5,78820211,681 2,280