hbalek

This is a cool video of the Zephyr: Lincoln Zephyr Reflection Concept (China Only) - YouTube I had a 2013 MKZ 2.0 AWD in Ingot Silver. I traded it for a 2020 Explorer ST and love it but still miss the sleek sedan. This would've been an awesome evolution of that last design!

I guess both apply to this tire, the screw was near the edge of tread on the shoulder and also it has a foam lining called PNCS which makes it unrepairable. Luckily according to the Pirelli warranty PNCS and run-flat tires have road hazard coverage for a year because I didn't purchase additional warranty. My NTB dealer copied the warranty information and is submitting a warranty claim with Pirelli.

At only 3100 miles, I got a drywall screw in the inner shoulder of the tire which of course can never be repaired. NTB ordered a new one for me for 313.99 and it was received in 4 days. When they unpacked the tire and saw the foam insulation inside, they told me these tires can never be plugged/repaired by them. You have to buy a new tire every time it gets punctured! I'm thinking because of the special order status of this tire size and that it can't repaired, it may be smart to purchase a spare and have on hand at home for emergencies!

I guess conquest is not the right name for me. I am a convert in that I haven't owned a Ford branded vehicle since 1994 and never owned a truck. So the existence of the ST version of the Explorer made me reconsider the Ford brand and made me desire an SUV for the first time. I thought I'd always drive Lincolns especially Lincoln sedans. That all changed after seeing the ST for the first time in press photos and then in person at the Detroit Auto Show. Many of the Platinum and ST buyers are conquests especially from Audi and BMW it seems. I agree with everyone who says the Aviator is nearly perfect but with the ST and Platinum version of the Explorer you get most of the performance and tech goodies for $20-30K less. So high end Explorers are actually a bargain!

I'm a conquest customer in that I've never owned an SUV let alone a Ford Performance model. My 2020 Explorer ST is my first brand new vehicle since my 2003 Infiniti G35 sedan. After that I owned 2 certified pre-owned Lincolns, a 2010 and 2013 MKZ AWD. At the time of my latest purchase, I was also considering a CPO Continental, Nautilus or MKZ. When I saw and drove it, I absolutely fell in love with my Rapid Red ST!!!!! Yes it has some flaws and issues but overall I'm still very excited every time I drive it, after 3 months and 3000 miles of ownership!

Didn't the smaller plantforms like the last generation Escape. MKC, Focus, C-Max get engineered and designed by the European operations? I'm wondering if this is still the case with these new models.

The only thing I don't like about the 10.1 inch screen is the camera image placement. Yes it is too small but there are 3 buttons at the bottom that are very easy to use if you want a larger rear-view image. It fills the width of the screen if you really need to see what's behind you. It was unfair of him to make the pinch and zoom gesture for that camera image without mentioning that it has 3 view buttons below the image. I agree with other critics who said the 2 camera images should be stacked to fill up more of the screen but when you're in navigation mode or other modes the vertical screen really does show you more information than the horizontally oriented one, which would require more scrolling to see complete lists and such. No vehicle is perfect and he's a very finnicky critic. But the fun-to-drive factor of this vehicle not to mention its stunning looks and presence along with comfort and premium features usually not offered on mainstream brands make it stand out from the pack. Flaws and all this vehicle is never boring! I've had this Explorer ST now for about 2 months and I'm very happy with this purchase decision over the Lincoln Nautilus or Ford Edge ST!

I love the digital display on my Explorer ST! It took some getting used to but they thought of every piece of information and how to best display and arrange that info. Once you're used to it, it becomes second nature. Some have complained about the empty space in the middle above the lane keeping display. But that empty space is put to good use when the navigation is on and displays the next turn/direction and the audio track is displayed just above it. I have also gotten used to the minimalist tachometer to the left of the speedometer when in Normal or Eco mode.

So my brand new Explorer just hit 1000 miles yesterday. Prior to this at around 500 miles when oil life indicator hit 96% it changed to 0%. I reset it and again at 96% it displays 0%. I checked the FordPass app and it displays 96% consistently but every time I check the instrument panel it says zero. Anyone else familiar with this problem? Any ideas? There are no other warnings or indication of any problems with the vehicle.

On my 2013 MKZ, the lane-keeping assist and heated/cooled seats would turn off after every trip. On my 2020 Explorer ST, I love the fact that I don't have to turn on heated seats and steering wheel or lane-keeping at every startup! A minor issue is the drive mode always defaults back to Normal which is fine with me most of the time. Also, SYNC 3 stays on the screen you had on the last trip. SYNC 2 would always revert back to the home screen. I think I like this better so far too. A lot of things have been improved since the last generation. I had the first generation active park assist which was fine but this latest version which is completely automatic in and out of spots took some getting used to for sure but I love it! ACC with Stop-and-Go works really well too!

I've only owned 5 sedans (4 of them were Ford, Mercury and Lincolns) in my lifetime and never considered another category like coupes or trucks until I turned 50 this year. The day before Thanksgiving I test drove the Explorer ST on 4 different occasions and really fell in love with it. Ten days ago I pulled the trigger on a loaded Rapid Red ST! So far I've driven it 300 miles and it is a joy to drive. The size and height took some getting used to after driving MKZ's for the past 9 years. My only complaints or little nitpicky items are: 1) With all of the high tech features and all LED interior and exterior front lighting, why did they cheap out and use 6 incandescent bulbs in the rear? (turn signals, reverse and license plate lights look a bit out of place like on some Acuras and BMWs with combination LED/incandescent units) 2) On a $60,000 vehicle, all 4 windows should be auto up/down not just the front ones! 3) Some of the interior plastic does feel flimsy for such an expensive truck, especially the glove box release which feels like it may fall off! 4) Again, $60K and no hood struts? 5) Why does this vehicle have mechanical door lock plungers? I haven't owned a car with that old-school type of lock since my 1985 Tempo, every other car either had toggle-type mechanical locks or my 2013 MKZ had a red LED door lock indicator. This is like going backwards with tech. 6) Sync 3 has some lag issues and the most annoying one is the radio presets which can have up to 5 pages but really only works well with 2 pages. If you save 5 pages of SiriusXM channels, the logos disappear every time you restart the vehicle and take a while to reload and reappear on the pages. Sync 3 is a vast improvement over Sync 2 and MyLincoln Touch but sometimes at startup Sync 3 updates and reloading screens take far too long. 7) As cool as the sculpted, scooped out flat middle of the hood looks, when it rains and I park on an incline, it collects water! WTF! This is the weirdest thing I've ever seen! Despite all of these relatively minor complaints, I am very happy with my purchase and this thing is a stunning beast and with Ford Co-Pilot 360, I feel very safe and secure!

My 2013 Lincoln MKZ 2.0 EB with 80,000 miles has a similar problem. The engine seems to almost stall at idle once or twice at stoplights immediately after a fillup. It has been a problem since about 70,000 miles. It doesn't happen every time and seems to be worse in warmer weather. After the first 10 minutes of driving the problem disappears. I have not however experienced the startup problem myself--yet.

I still love this car now at almost 7 years old and 80,000 miles and out of warranty. Sadly, 5 months after the extended warranty expired (I bought it Certified Pre-Owned which had a 6 year/100,000 mile bumper to bumper warranty) the AC quit on me at the worst time possible. We were having an early fall heat wave, breaking record high 90s temperatures. I had the fuses/relays checked and also the Freon pressure and they were fine. This means it will most likely be an expensive out of pocket repair to replace the compressor or sensor inside the dash. The only other problem I had was the heated/cooled front seats stopped working last winter but that was repaired during the warranty period.

https://www.cars.com/articles/2020-ford-escape-ford-made-you-a-porsche-macan-1420757750310/ To me it has always looked like a Porsche Macan in front and the new RAV4 in the back. Anyone else? Did anyone see the front of the Aston Martin DBX? It also resembles that!

The same person who told me a year ago in Detroit that suicide doors would show up on Continental (and they did) and that the Mustang platform was made available to Lincoln told me more last week at NAIAS. There will be a coupe and sedan version of the Mustang-derived, rear-drive model. He said NY Auto Show should be very interesting for Lincoln. It may be the debut of a concept or production Corsair or I'm thinking that this new rear-drive model which would replace the MKZ could be the big thing in New York.

I follow Ford and Lincoln on both Facebook and Twitter and noticed that there have been no posts on any of their social media sites since April 20! This is odd considering they have consistently posted at least once daily on all platforms. Does anyone know why this is happening? I did check YouTube and they have posted a lot in the past week which is unusual.

1. Lincoln Aviator Concept will be at NYIAS with the production model coming sooner than NYIAS 2019. 2. The mid-cycle refresh of the Continental will have suicide doors!!!! This was a shocker to me but he assured me this was being worked on as we speak... 3. Ford has relinquished the current Mustang platform to Lincoln for them to do with as they wish... Mark X anyone? As all MK names disappear by 2020.

An update on the repair. I picked up the car on Thursday after 38 days! Everything was working fine except one thing. I discovered that the power sun shade for the roof would one touch open but will not one touch close using either the shade button or the close button in the overhead console. You can close it all the way by holding down the button. Using the lock button on the keyfob is no problem. It one touch closes like normal. So I took the car back today and the service manager has asked the sublet tech to fix it today. They said it needs programming and/or calibration.

So here's an update on this ordeal. Last Thursday, 12/21 they received the motor and cables for the side that was determined to be broken. Today I received news that they installed the parts and tested it, it worked fine but when they restarted the vehicle, the other side motor and cable wouldn't operate and couldn't retain the program or memory, whatever that means. Now they're saying they will order the other side cable and motor and have to replace it. So it will take another several days or week. The dealership is Lindsay Ford in Wheaton, Maryland and the sublet repair shop is Paymer and Phillips in Laurel, Maryland. The new service manager told me that he's been there for a month and worked for a Cadillac dealer that NEVER sublet this type of repair and did it all in house. He is saying that he will work on expediting this and also will never send a vehicle to a third party ever again! The vehicle is certified used with a 6 year/100K mile bumper to bumper warranty. They had to submit photos to make the warranty claim which took time also. The extended warranty has a $100 deductible which he waived because I said I wouldn't pay it. I told the manager that they should be paying me for this miserable and unnecessary experience.

I appreciate your advice! I know for sure that it sat for at least a week or more at the sublet repair shop and no work was done on it. The reason no one seems to be in a hurry now is because I'm in a dealer owned loaner and not a rental car costing them money. The service guy even said as far as he's concerned they did their part because they're honoring the warranty and providing a free loaner car, so why rush it. He did assure me that this specialty shop are the experts but later admitted that they had never seen an MKZ roof before but they did all kinds of re-upholstery, leaks, sunroofs, convertibles, etc.

I've never had a problem with this Ford dealer in over 6 years of warranty repairs and maintenance/recalls. The dealer I bought it from is over 30 miles away, whereas this Ford dealer is only 1 mile away! LOL There are other Lincoln dealers closer than 15 miles to me. The thing is I figured even though this roof is a unique Lincoln feature, they have Ford models with Panoramic roofs.

Maybe my mistake was to take it to the closest Ford dealer which is one I've been going to for several years now rather than the nearest Lincoln dealer further away!

At 60,000 miles my 2013 MKZ panaromic roof started making a creaking and grinding noise when opening and closing. Fortunately it has an extended warranty until 100,000 miles and 6 years from purchase. I took it to my nearby Ford dealer who said they would have to have the car for a day or 2 to fix it. At the end of the first day, they said they would have to send it to a specialty repair shop to figure out the problem and fix it. It took 2 weeks for them to diagnose, get warranty repair approval and now the parts are on order. Fortunately they gave me a free of charge loaner car! This ordeal began on 11/27/17, over 3 weeks ago. I'm just not sure now if this is taking so long because of the dealership and their sublet repair facility or is it because Ford was so strict on verifying the damage and repair. The service dept. told me they had to take everything apart and send photos to Ford before they would give approval for such a presumably expensive repair under warranty. They told me they had to order a new motor and new cables, essentially the entire mechanism and assembly that moves the glass roof. Has anyone else experienced such a failure or please share your thoughts and suggestions. They've had my car so far for 18 business days, which is an inconvenience but I'm relieved that there are no charges that I have to pay out of my pocket!

Also, those who don't follow Lincoln products as closely as we do think that my 4 year old MKZ is "the new Lincoln?!" Lincolns don't sell enough for the average mainstream car buyer to know how a 3 year old car differs from a brand new one. It takes non-enthusiasts years to notice a "new" model just as it's about to be refreshed. I have friends who buy a model the last year before a complete redesign or MCE and don't even know their new car will be "old" in less than a year. At least they get a good price on it! Hopefully...

I imagine the Aviator will return as a shrunken down version of Navigator, which I would seriously consider as my next Lincoln! Navigator is too big for me too but Aviator will be just right...