New Cars - February 2006

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• new cars
• Chevrolet
• Lincoln
• Cadillac
• Toyota
• Buick
• Lotus
• Acura

Hiding Its Roots

The newest Lincoln may share its DNA with other Ford family models, but it stands alone as an affordable luxury sedan.

Lincoln could have simply slapped a chrome grille on the Ford Fusion, called it a Zephyr, and stopped. Happily, there's more to the new Lincoln than the real wood interior trim. True, the interior is the car's strongest selling point, with leather seats, dual-zone automatic climate control, a six-CD changer and heated front seats. But during our test drive from Manhattan to upstate New York, we found the Zephyr's underpinnings have also been given the luxury-car treatment. The ride has plenty of polite pothole-soaking power without being sloppy. And the car handles in a relaxed, not roly-poly way. Softer tire sidewalls and specifically tuned shocks help separate the Zephyr's ride from the Fusion's. The 221-hp 3.0-liter V6 provides adequate hustle for the Zephyr's front wheels to drive its 3410 pounds.--Jon Gromer

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