mmarshall

From the point of view that you and I take, I agree.....it shouldn't make a difference. I myself, for example, don't necessarily care if a dealership isn't as plush as the Ritz Carlton. That makes little difference to me, as I buy a car, not a dealership. But, of course, the dealership has to have competent service facilities, and many people in today's pampered society have come to expect a lot of things, taken for granted, that would have been unthinkable or unfeasible for a dealership years ago.

Agreed.....the FWD issue is way overdone. Engineers have all but eliminated torque steer today, and the average American driver and/or American Road/Interstate speeds are usually not high enough to where the superior high-speed handling conditions of RWD generally come into play. We're not talking about the German Autobahns, which is where the big Mercedes and BMW RWD sedans make their forte.


You, me, and Steve, though, have actually seen the car up close....that may or may not be true of some others who think it is DOA. My experience has been that, while videos, write-ups, articles, and forum-chat helps, there really no substitute for a personal inspection or test-drive. And Steve had a point when he said that the limo and livery businesses are going to go ape-*** over this car. I fully agree.

SW17LS

That may very well be lol.

One thing thats interesting is most of the videos that are static reviews on YouTube are from fleet companies or if you listen to the "reviewer" talking, they're clearly looking at the car from a fleet perspective. I think Lincoln knows that this car is really a car thats aimed at fleet sales.

I agree, they're much more apt to go for a CT6 than they are a Continental.

Thats just it though, you're not a luxury car consumer. People who like luxurious things, value luxurious things, and buy luxurious things want the luxury experience that goes along with them. Its not only about the quality of the thing, its about the way the thing makes you feel and the dealership is a big part of that.

Even me, as jaded as I am, as accustomed to high end cars as I am...if I told you I didn't like the way the Lexus dealer makes me feel when I go in there I'd be lying. Part of the whole reason I spend what I spend on a car is that its a symbol of my success, its a validation of my efforts and my work, and the fact that the sales manager and the salesman always seek me out and greet me when I come in there for service, the surroundings, the clientele that is around me is part of that. Its why I prefer to shop for clothing at Nordstrom vs Sears. I like the quality of the product, but I like the surroundings I'm in too. Anybody who buys luxury items and tells you they don't enjoy that is lying to you.

If they really want to be that "luxury" brand, they have got to have the proper surrounds in which to showcase their product, sell their product, and service their product. Thats really important.

You mentioned the Ritz Carlton. Ever stayed in one? Whats special about a Ritz Carlton? Is the hotel very nice? Amenities nice? Locale nice? Yes...but there are other equally nice hotels that don't command the same price. What is special about a Ritz Carlton? Its the service, and the way they make you feel. Its unlike any service you will receive from a hotelier elsewhere. The closest I've come is actually Disney...

The guy wearing the Ford or Hyundai polo who just sold a Fiesta or an Elantra can't offer you that.

Toys4RJill

I think RWd does matterNot sure what a few others have to say. I have a few members on my ignore list

mmarshall

With the Verano being dumped from the U.S. market, my next purchase (or lease) may very well be something from what you would call the "luxury" category. It was the only car on the market under 30K (even under 25K for base versions) that gave you the refinement and comfort that many other more expensive entry-level luxury cars did....and soon it will be gone.

I was just using it as a figure of speech, or metaphor, on the issue of dealerships, referring to fancy buildlings in general. No, I'm not an expert on the Ritz Carlton.

But the guy in a Hyundai polo shirt could sell you a superb Genesis. .

SW17LS

He can he can sell me a Genesis, but will he be able to attract someone to Genesis that doesn't have the knowledge and open mind that I have? That's the question.

Wandl

While in Detroit for an overnight trip, I saw my first Continental in the wild and it looked good! I live close to a Lincoln dealership here in TX and am surprised I haven't seen more of them around. Dealerships have plenty of inventory as per lincoln.com and autotrader,
Purely gut feel, but I suspect
a) They'll wait till later in 2017 to do a full on marketing blitz
b) Lincoln already did a marketing blitz no one noticed (their youtube channel used Ben Fargen for a bunch of new videos on Feb 8th.....yep, I didn't know who Ben was either)
c) Lincoln getting outmaneuvered by the Genesis/Caddy CT6/Audi/BMW crowd

With all due respect, I don't think Lincoln was going to expect CTS-like numbers here, they had a low bar with MKS volumes. I just figured with all the $$ invested in the design of the Continental, there would be a little more fanfare by now, especially given how mmarshall's review did highlight this is actually a pretty decent car.

mmarshall

Lincon's general image has been in the doldrums for years...and it often takes the public years to change that image, even if and when the companies themselves actually build better products. An excellent example is Hyundai and Kia.....they haven't built what I would call junk for roughly 15 years or so (and generally make excellent products today). But there are still people today, with their heads stuck in the sand, who won't even go look at one, much less purchase or lease one. Lincoln's image, likewise, is not going to change overnight, although, unlike Hyundai and Kia, several Lincoln products (mostly SUVs) still have reliability issues. The long-term reliability of the new Continental, of course, remains to be seen.

On the Continental, one change that I would not be surprised to see Lincoln make next year would be to dump the silly and redundant push-button inside door-releases and go back to a traditional pull-handle. They are right at knee-height for some people, awkward to reach and press, and, of course, add one more electronic device to fail or break down. There is an emergency manual override, if needed, to get the doors open...but even it is not readily or easily reached without some awkward moves. My guess is that will probably be the first feature on the Continental to change.

Aron9000

^ I hope they change that interior button door latch, as you are right, it is a gimmick, and a dangerous one IMO if you crash the vehicle and it doesn't work. Imagine you crash the car, you wake up in a grog only to find its on fire. Door latch "button" doesn't work, you're in a panic, you gotta remember where that emergency lever is, your passenger in the front seat has no idea there even is an emergency lever. People panic, somebody will get incinerated with this stupid design IMO. It wouldn't surprise me if this exact scenario hasn't happened to some poor sap who owns a Corvette. They've used a very similar "button" with an emergency release on the floor system like the Lincoln since 2005.