Booo.
Some other weird quotes:As for the “other” big American luxury car, the Cadillac CT6, well, it’s unimpressive, finishing third to the Mercedes E-Class and Volvo S90 in its last comparison. With no major changes to the CT6 since then, we thought we’d give the Continental, a proper flagship for the Lincoln lineup, its shot at glory. Our loaded Continental Black Label tester stickered for $79,780. If it’s more expensive than the Genesis, it must be pretty good, right?
Continental did 14.0s @ 100.4 mph. That is quite sedate for a vehicle this expensive.Driven back to back with the BMW, Genesis, and Lincoln, the Lexus feels an order of magnitude sportier than the rest of the pack.
Out on the road, the Continental could benefit from a bit of finishing school. There’s too much unnecessary drama and not enough finesse for what purports to be a luxury sedan. “For a brand that has officially eschewed sportiness, it’s trying very hard to be sporty,” Evans said. “The throttle tip-in is aggressive, and the engine is loud. It’s difficult to leave a stop without being thrown back into the seat. It’s a powerful engine, but it feels like it hasn’t fully been tamed for the job.”
Unfortunately, the ride and handling balance also seem tilted a bit too far toward the ragged end of the spectrum, with a brittle, almost harsh ride quality, especially over larger impacts. The unexpected sportiness does have one positive trade-off, though, as all four of us found the Conti surprisingly fun in tight switchback corners.
There is a cure to the Continental’s harshness, though: Comfort mode. Buried under five layers of menus on the Continental’s instrument cluster, defeating the default sportier mode helps smooth out the Lincoln with an ever so slightly softer setting of the Lincoln’s electronic dampers, smoother throttle input, and lighter steering. Yes, this is an automotive journalist asking an automaker to not make Sport the default drive mode. Comfort vastly improves the Continental’s driving experience. We can’t help wonder how many potential buyers might opt for the Continental without such a harsh first impression if the car came equipped from the factory in this softer setting.
The Lincoln makes a great first impression, but like its drive experience, it’s a bit inconsistent.
Ultimately similar words issued to the CT6. Except at least the CT6 is a RWD-based car so I am sure I'd still vastly prefer it to the Continental.The sedan furthest from encapsulating all we expect from a flagship luxury sedan is the Lincoln Continental. There’s a lot to like about the Lincoln, from its art deco interior trim to its spacious cabin and tidy footprint. But its lack of polish unfortunately holds it back. “I really wanted the Continental to knock it out of the park,” Evans said. “Instead, it’s a base hit.”