First ride: Fathers pre-production Zephyr

[dave998]

Ill start my first post off with a bang, to those of you who know me from c&d im dave999 and to those who dont nice to meet you.

So as some of you know, my father has been working on the CD3S sedans for 2006 and 2007 MY. Normally he brings home Mazda 6 test mules, but a few days ago he brought home a Lincoln Zephyr pre-production model.

I wasted no time in jumping in the car once my dad got out and testing out everything, and asked for a test drive.

Exterior- It was all black with the chrome grille, I checked the fit and finish on the car and it was >1mm tolerances(thanks ruler). The tail lights seemed to flow a lot better in real life then in the picutres the JPEG compression seen in pictures online didnt show up in real life, and the back end had a
 __________
/                 \
|                   |  <---shape to it.

HVAC controls- Even though i was told it was a pre-production model it still had the production HVAC controls in it. On the steering wheel there was knobs to control fan speed, temp, volume, and other features as well. The fan was the quietest ive heard so far on a Ford/Lincoln/Mercury vehicle and I can tell they invested a lot in that area. I wish i could give you decibel level, but lack the equipment.

THX 2- I have to admit that when I initially heard about THX 2 i was expecting a loud system with massive bass and treble. What I ended up finding was sound quality on par to our BOSE wave radio, the sound was perfectly crisp with no distortion even up to the max volume (Mos. Def. sounds amazing on it).

Interior Materials- NO NO NO NO, no cheap plastics. When I first sat in the Zephyr I spent a good 10 minutes pressing and knocking on all the materials, testing softness and to my pleasant surprise the materials were all very soft to the touch. Its a noticable step up in softness compared to the Limited 500's interior. The dash was multi-layered with a soft top layer and proably a thicker material behind it. It felt of very high quality.

NVH(noise vibration and handling) & Power- Would it be too early to say that this may be lincolns answer to lexus? As we cruised along on I-96 I found to my pleasure that even as we went over potholes(detroit potholes) there was nothing that happened, and as we cruised up to 80 MPH there was only a slight hint on sound, im told by my father that the production model is even quieter. The 3.0L handles well for the size of its car and has more then enough passing power, but for those who want to do red light racing dont expect a 3-series.  It has a very nice sounding roar as you zoom up to the 45 MPH speed limit, but for those of us looking for a little more the 3.5L will be a nice addition (coming 2007 , or 2007 MY).

Note- Ill try getting pictures if I can, but  I cant make any promises

[BMWDave]

Ill start my first post off with a bang, to those of you who know me from c&d im dave999 and to those who dont nice to meet you.

So as some of you know, my father has been working on the CD3S sedans for 2006 and 2007 MY. Normally he brings home Mazda 6 test mules, but a few days ago he brought home a Lincoln Zephyr pre-production model.

I wasted no time in jumping in the car once my dad got out and testing out everything, and asked for a test drive.

Exterior- It was all black with the chrome grille, I checked the fit and finish on the car and it was >1mm tolerances(thanks ruler). The tail lights seemed to flow a lot better in real life then in the picutres the JPEG compression seen in pictures online didnt show up in real life, and the back end had a
  __________
/                 \
|                   |  <---shape to it.

HVAC controls- Even though i was told it was a pre-production model it still had the production HVAC controls in it. On the steering wheel there was knobs to control fan speed, temp, volume, and other features as well. The fan was the quietest ive heard so far on a Ford/Lincoln/Mercury vehicle and I can tell they invested a lot in that area. I wish i could give you decibel level, but lack the equipment.

THX 2- I have to admit that when I initially heard about THX 2 i was expecting a loud system with massive bass and treble. What I ended up finding was sound quality on par to our BOSE wave radio, the sound was perfectly crisp with no distortion even up to the max volume (Mos. Def. sounds amazing on it).

Interior Materials- NO NO NO NO, no cheap plastics. When I first sat in the Zephyr I spent a good 10 minutes pressing and knocking on all the materials, testing softness and to my pleasant surprise the materials were all very soft to the touch. Its a noticable step up in softness compared to the Limited 500's interior. The dash was multi-layered with a soft top layer and proably a thicker material behind it. It felt of very high quality.

NVH(noise vibration and harshness  ) & Power- Would it be too early to say that this may be lincolns answer to lexus? As we cruised along on I-96 I found to my pleasure that even as we went over potholes(detroit potholes) there was nothing that happened, and as we cruised up to 80 MPH there was only a slight hint on sound, im told by my father that the production model is even quieter. The 3.0L handles well for the size of its car and has more then enough passing power, but for those who want to do red light racing dont expect a 3-series.  It has a very nice sounding roar as you zoom up to the 45 MPH speed limit, but for those of us looking for a little more the 3.5L will be a nice addition (coming 2007 , or 2007 MY).

Note- Ill try getting pictures if I can, but  I cant make any promises

It seems like Ford is finally getting its interiors right!

[ifcar]

Lincoln's answer to Lexus, eh? Does it handle as floatily as an ES330 as well, or did they get both ride comfort and some of the Mazda6's agility in there?

[Catman]

I'm nervous about this car as it seems Ford spent little money styling this car.  It's doesn't look very good at all in my opinion.





*Notice it says that the vehicle appearance may change?  How should we take that?*

The black is again much better looking in this Ford.



What a terrible contrast to the nice looking concept car.



Tell your Dad that we want the concept looks not a Fusion with an ugly grill and taillights.

[SJ_GTI]

I think the production Zephyr looks pretty good.

As good as the concept? Well no...but then no car ever does. They always put smaller wheels on and lift the ride hegith a bit. Other than that its pretty close to the concept.

The interior looks nice. I tend to favor a "sportier" theme like Audi or BMW does but this certainly is competitive with Lexus and Acura (which is what most people cite when talking about luxurious interiors).

[dave998]

I'm nervous about this car as it seems Ford spent little money styling this car.  It's doesn't look very good at all in my opinion.





*Notice it says that the vehicle appearance may change?  How should we take that?*

The black is again much better looking in this Ford.



What a terrible contrast to the nice looking concept car.



Tell your Dad that we want the concept looks not a Fusion with an ugly grill and taillights.

Telling him wouldnt help since hes an engineer. Make sure to look at it when they hit dealership lots and be your own judge.

[BMWDave]

I think the production Zephyr looks pretty good.

As good as the concept? Well no...but then no car ever does. They always put smaller wheels on and lift the ride hegith a bit. Other than that its pretty close to the concept.

The interior looks nice. I tend to favor a "sportier" theme like Audi or BMW does but this certainly is competitive with Lexus and Acura (which is what most people cite when talking about luxurious interiors).

The interior is nice, if a bit too "upright and truckish" for my tastes.  But it looks very nicely executed.  I cant say the same for the exterior, as the back end looks very vanilla and the car looks too pinched and upright.

[BMWDave]

Some pictures I took.

[BMWDave]

[BMWDave]

[BMWDave]

[socalcookie]

I think Ford has got its act together and is really producing some quality vehicles.  

These sedans prove it.

[TBR]

I don't care for it at all, the dash just doesn't look right and the rear looks awkward. The Milan definitely looks better.


Note- I have seen the Zephyr in person (and even learned how to say the name properly) and it is safe to say it looks even worse in person.

[ifcar]

Note- I have seen the Zephyr in person (and even learned how to say the name properly) and it is safe to say it looks even worse in person.

Have I been pronouncing it wrong?  :o  

[BMWDave]

Note- I have seen the Zephyr in person (and even learned how to say the name properly) and it is safe to say it looks even worse in person.

Have I been pronouncing it wrong?  :o

I didnt know there was a special way to pronounce it.    :blink:  

[ifcar]

Note- I have seen the Zephyr in person (and even learned how to say the name properly) and it is safe to say it looks even worse in person.

Have I been pronouncing it wrong?  :o

I didnt know there was a special way to pronounce it.    :blink:

Same here. Of course, it's possible that I was always pronouncing it right (ZE-fir) but that doesn't sound like the case.

[BMWDave]

Its pronounced Zeph yr

[ifcar]

Its pronounced Zeph yr

Imagine that.  

[BMWDave]

Its pronounced Zeph yr

Imagine that.

 

[giant_mtb]

Is it said "zef-er"?

[Tom]

Looks are subjective.  I think it's pretty nice except for the grille.  Too bad we have to wait for the 3.5...

[cozmik]

The production version looks like an odd cross between the last generation Volvo S40 and the last generation Toyota Avalon. From the pictures I'm not feeling it. The concept actually looked good, this, eh. Good to hear about the interior though!