| BUSINESSWEEK ONLINE : JUNE 28, 1999 ISSUE | ||||||||
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| BUSINESSWEEK LIFESTYLE
This Jag Lives Up to Its Looks Unlike earlier models, the Lincoln hybrid runs great Talk about auto envy. As I waited for a lunch partner in a seafoam-green Jaguar S-Type outside General Motors' Detroit headquarters, I was startled by a knock at my window. ''I saw your manufacturer's plate, and I had to tell you how much I love this car,'' gushed a GM office worker who assumed that I worked for Ford Motor (F), Jaguar's parent. ''I sure wish I could get an employee discount on this.'' Such is the seductive allure of Jaguar's latest creation. An intoxicating blend of old and new, the Jaguar S-Type redefines and reinforces the legendary automotive marque. Its doe-eyed headlights, undulating hood, and oval waterfall grill evoke the Jaguar Mark 2 of 40 years ago. But the new model is not afflicted with the flaws that plagued Jags of yesteryear. Take the electrical system. In the S-Type, it actually works. Given the new Jag's sensual shape and exhilarating power, it's hard to believe it shares a heart and skeleton with the Lincoln LS. Underpinning the S-Type and the LS is a mechanical platform engineered by Ford--the first to support both a Jag and a Lincoln. And each borrows the other's engine. The $42,500 Jaguar S-Type gets Ford's Duratec V6, a version of which also powers the $31,450 LS. The V8 edition of the LS, starting at $35,225, lifts its engine from the Jaguar XK8 sports car. A more powerful version of that engine is under the hood of the V8 S-Type, which starts at $48,000. The results of the partnership are better than I expected. The nimble Lincoln sports sedan is a distinct departure for the aged U.S. luxury brand. Not only does the LS drive more like a BMW than a Town Car, but it offers a stick shift--Lincoln's first manual transmission since the Truman Administration. And the LS's taut ride felt as responsive to me as an Audi and more spirited than a Mercedes or Volvo. The Jaguar's style sets it apart from staid Germans, such as Mercedes, and flawless but soulless Japanese cars, such as Lexus. Ford has taken a great risk by cross-breeding the British brand with a fallen icon. One Jaguar purist suggested the S-Type is not a ''real Jaguar.'' If he meant the S-Type goes from here to there without stalling, he's right. These days, Jaguar sits atop J.D. Power & Associates' quality ranking--a reversal from 10 years ago, when the brand was rated worse than the Yugo. VELVETY. Jaguar has Ford to thank for its quality overhaul. So I don't agree that the S-Type is diminished by sharing components with the Lincoln. The LS is not the same car as the S-Type. The Lincoln is made in America; the Jaguar in Britain. Each feels, drives, and looks like a different car. The Jag is elegantly curvy, while the LS's rakish styling seems equal parts BMW and Lexus. Which of these fraternal twins won my heart? Not since I drove a daffodil-yellow VW New Beetle have I received as many adoring glances as I did cruising in the new Jag. But the Jag's beauty is more than skin-deep. Its 281 HP V8 engine growls as it accelerates from 0 to 60 in 6.6 seconds. The velvety shifts of its 5-speed automatic transmission are barely perceptible. As the Jag pounced onto the highway, I sank into its leather seats and zoomed by mere mortal cars. Around corners, the S-Type slinked gracefully. Inside, Jaguar stylists took a modern approach, eschewing the traditional dark burled walnut for lighter, highly polished maple. The Deluxe Communications Package, a $4,300 satellite navigation system with voice-activated stereo and phone, seems derived from the Starship Enterprise. For $2,000, you can get the navigation system on its own. What's wrong amid the high-tech wizardry? Jaguar lost sight of a few basics, such as a legible clock. In daylight, just try to read the tiny, digital clock hidden on the dash. This glaring error comes from the company run by antique watch collector Jacques Nasser, who has deemed that clocks even in pedestrian Ford Focus compacts be fashionable. The LS is anything but pedestrian. It is an impressively engineered sedan that feels rock-solid. Its steering is precise, and its handling compares well with its German rivals. Unlike Lincolns of yore, it is also fun to drive. On a rain-slicked highway cloverleaf, the LS never faltered; on twisty roads, it displayed none of the listing and heaving typical of Lincoln land yachts. But the LS is no hot-rod Lincoln. The car's greatest shortcoming, particularly in the V6 manual version, is its lack of oomph. Ford's engineers put less horsepower in the V6 and V8 Lincolns than in the Jags by shrinking the displacement of the LS engines. The V8 LS, for example, is a 3.9-liter engine, while the V8 S-Type boasts a 4.0-liter powerplant. This might provide a point of distinction for each brand--but it works to the detriment of Lincoln. Indeed, the LS's five-speed manual gearbox is tight and responsive, but winding out the gears would be more pulse-pounding with more ponies under the hood. Still, both cars blaze new trails for their brands. The gorgeous S-Type is bound to win more buyers for Jaguar, especially since it's the first of its kind to go after luxury's middle ground, under $50,000. And even with its shortcomings, the sporty LS might finally give Lincoln a car someone without gray hair would be proud to own. BY KEITH NAUGHTON _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ BACK TO TOP |
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RELATED ITEMS This Jag Lives Up to Its Looks TABLE: Jaguar S-Type TABLE: Lincoln LS TABLE: Rivals to the Lincoln...and the Jaguar PHOTO: 2000 Jaguar S-Type PHOTO: 2000 Lincoln LS INTERACT E-Mail to Business Week Online | |||
