2003 LS Sport V8 - Great overall package

Author's Rating:

Pros: Great ride and handling, lots of features at a good value.

Cons: Interior has too much metallic finish and vinyl quality is sub par.

The Bottom Line: 
Definitely a viable alternative to some higher priced cars. If you don't buy cars for their snob appeal, then there is little reason not to consider the LS seriously.

Author's Review
So I bought a 2003 LS V8 Sport package, with a few more options. Sticker price (in Arizona) was $42800, but there were lots of discounts, rebates, etc, that made the purchase price $36000 (including HID lamps, rear sonar, tri-coat paint, traction control). The out-the-door price was $40,000 with wood trim, LoJack, window tint, tax, & license. Comparatively, that’s not bad for the car, except for the huge depreciation that these cars suffer. Before I review the LS, a little background is in order. I’ve been driving 3 different Nissan 300ZX cars since 1983 and I wanted the same great ride and handling but in a 4-door sedan. The cars that I considered and drove were Cadillac STS, Infiniti G35 sedan and coupe, and used BMW 540. The Infiniti sedan is a very fine car, but I am not crazy about the styling. The coupe is even better, but the ride is very jittery and harsh. I think Infiniti has gone overboard trying to make its cars “sporty”. The BMW ride and handling is great, but beyond that it does not offer much for the money. In fact, even if you buy a new BMW there are options that are simply not available. Also, the maintenance cost of a BMW without warranty is a killer. As for the STS, I love the styling, but GM has a long way to go in the quality department: the dealer’s test car had trim and weather striping falling off, switches not working, A/C barely cold, etc.

The Lincoln LS.
The purchase experience was as good as I’ve seen with Infiniti and Acura. I had plenty of time to drive several different cars over a 2-day period and there was no heavy sales pressure. The dreaded “meeting with the finance manager” was painless and quick, with a minimal of paperwork.

The Exterior.
The exterior styling is not stunning by any means, but it’s elegant, clean, conservative and well proportioned, without any weirdness, such as the CTS. The car looks best in black or the dark blue or green exteriors, but most colors look good. The overall dimensions are compact so that it’s easy to park and fit in a so-called 2-car garage, unless your other car is a Deville or an Expedition. The HID headlights are well aimed so that they should not blind on-coming drivers. The doors open smoothly and close solidly with the proverbial “thud”. The hood is made of aluminum and has a light feel opening, but does not close easily in that it might take a couple of tries. The engine compartment is dressed up with lots of plastic covers and easily accessible and color-coded caps for oil, water, etc. The battery is in the trunk to distribute vehicle weight. That should also keep the battery cleaner and cooler. The trunk is good size, except that it might be a bit shallow for full size luggage. The trunk door hinges are unfortunately the gooseneck luggage crushers that are always disappointing in a luxury class car. The trunk compartment is lined with a soft fuzzy material and has release pull-chords for the gas filler door and for releasing the folding rear seat backs. The spare tire is full size, sitting below a partition under the trunk floor. The battery is next to the spare tire. An unusual feature is that the two windshield wipers are of different sizes – the right side is larger.

On the topic of "fit-and-finish" here are a few details if you are picky: There are spot welds on the perimeter of the trunk opening and on the underside of the welds there are some sharp metal edges. Most likely your hands would not come into contact with this, but I have never found this type of thing on a Japanese car. Another item is that the rubber bumpers on the trunk door are painted over with the car's finish - when you paint pliable rubber it starts chipping and looks like hell. The rear end of the headliner is held in place with stick-on Velcro tape. In the Arizona heat anything that's glued doesn't work well. Obviously these are manufacturing short cuts that help reduce cost, but this is the sort of thing that gives American cars a bad reputation.

The Interior.
At first glance the interior does not appear plush or luxurious. This impression comes from too much of the metallic (aluminum) finish. But that’s the current trend in many cars and personally I’m not too crazy about it. You can dress up the interior with the real wood trim on the doors and steering wheel. Otherwise the interior is in good taste and well organized. The front seats are thick and supportive and covered with nice quality perforated leather. For my preference, I would have liked the seats to be a bit softer on the seating surface. The front seat head rests are huge and actually form a part of the complete seat back. Both front seats have power controls that allow for plenty of adjustment. Fitting in the driver’s seat is made easy because the steering wheel telescopes and tilts and so do the foot pedals. Leg room in the front is reasonable and I’m 5-11. The foot wells may be a bit narrow for people who like to spread out or are horizontally expansive. One annoying "feature" is the placement of speakers inside the foot well on the side of the transmission tunnel (speakers pointing at your feet). The problem is that your knee or thigh comes to rest on this hard uneven surface, both in the driver and passenger sides. Besides, my feet don't listen to music. The front seats can be both heated and cooled. The cooling happens by blowing cool air through the perforations. From the rear seat perspective, the front head rests can block the rear passenger view. But the rear seats are raised (stadium seats), which help with the view. The rear seats are also covered in perforated leather and there is a center armrest with two cup holders. I think the rear seats are too hard and would be uncomfortable for long trips. Leg room in the back can get tight, depending on how far back the front seats are moved. There is room under the front seats for the rear passenger toes. Also, since the rear seats are raised, the passenger tends to seat upright, allowing for more leg room.

The dash is very well laid out and logical – certainly much better than the BMW. The controls are easily accessible and visible. There’s standard dual zone A/C, in dash 6-CD changer two power accessory plugs, compass in the rear view mirror, rain sensing wipers, and other goodies. The electronic parking brake, located in the center console, is a nice touch. The front cup holders in the front are located in the center console and are very practical. As for interior storage, there is plenty of room: the compartment under the center arm rest is deep and has coin holders, the glove box is relatively big, there is a utility tray in the dash, and there are map pockets in the doors. There are also pockets behind the front seat backs, which allow easy storage of a large map book because the seat back panels are recessed. The standard radio has great sound and 6 speakers (4 in the front). At night, all the controls are lit, even the ones on the steering wheel (cruise and radio). The automatic transmission gear selector is a straight up-and-down slot and has the SelectShift (manual) selector in a parallel slot to the right. I mention this because I’ve read a “professional” review on the Web saying that the gear selector is difficult to use – that’s nonsense. My only complaint about the interior is the quality of the vinyl used on the dash, door panels and the center arm rest. In this price range there should be either much better quality vinyl or at least some leather inserts in the door panels and leather covered center arm rest. This is unfortunate because I know that the look and feel of the vinyl used in the Taurus is much better! And if you are getting wood trim, make sure it's factory installed wood and not dealership installed.

On the Road.
The Lincoln LS drives great. The ride is smooth and comfortable and the interior noise level is well muted. The handling is wonderful and precise. My car came with 17-inch 235/50 VR Michelins. With both engines the acceleration is brisk, but of course the V8 has more pick up at all speeds. Making quick lane changes and sharp turns feels secure (the car has traction control). Driving on rough roads is controlled well, in that the vibrations are minimal and the noise is muffled. The turning radius is excellent. Braking is controlled electronically so that even if you slam on the brakes the progression is smooth. I haven’t measured the acceleration to five decimal places, but the LS’s acceleration is similar to that of BMW 540 or Infiniti G35 – more than good enough for the drive to work. I also haven’t tried to test the top speed, but I’ll leave such useless tests to car magazines.

Conculsion.
This car doesn’t get enough recognition or advertising. The overall package is very competitive and the ride, power, and handling come very close to BMW 540. Beyond the handling characteristics, this is a better car than the BMW, which can cost as much as $20k more. If it weren’t for the depreciation, this car would be a bargain, given its qualities and features. I don’t yet know about its long term reliability, but based on all the information available on the internet, I can conclude that the reliability is no worse than European cars, better than GM cars, and its maintenance costs will be less than the others. This car comes with 4 years of roadside assistance and 3 years of free routine maintenance.

After a few months of use:
The ceiling headliner is tacked on with glue, so in a hot climate (e.g. AZ) the glue melts and the headliner hangs loose. The dealer can't fix it because it's a basic design flaw. The steering wheel can make a whinning notice when turned in normal use and can get very annoying. Dealer says that's the way it's supposed to be!