INDIANAPOLIS — On Aug. 6, 1956 while on tour in Miami, Elvis Presley bought a Continental Mark II. The white over beige leather luxury coupe was one of the most expensive cars in America that year and Elvis, per usual, bought it on a whim. But the guy who barely kept cars long enough to change their oil before giving them away, kept the Mark II until 1976, the year before he died. I suspect he’d gift lots full of the 2024 Lincoln Corsair Grand Touring plug-in hybrid.
Fancy Ford or little Lincoln?
Before it arrived, I was looking at the window sticker for this Lincoln Corsair – essentially a Ford Escape that’s been sent to finishing school and endowed with a power cord. “How in hockey sticks does a Ford Escape get to nearly $70 grand?” I asked myself loudly. Yet, spending time in the Corsair and enjoying it without churning fossils proves a compact crossover with all the Navigator’s style and luxury makes sense.
It definitely cribs the Navigator’s design cues with Lincoln’s trademark “horseshoe” grille, floating sloping roof, wrap-around windows, and 20” alloy wheels. A smoke chrome grille, dual chrome exhaust tips, and panoramic roof add bling. Lincoln’s current SUV design cues clearly hearken from when Ford owned Range Rover, but work especially well on the compact Corsair. It looks nothing like a Ford!
That’s also true of the interior where soft leather, 24-way adjustable front seats with split lower cushions, push-button gear selector, and 13.2-inch infotainment touchscreen dominate the view. Look closer to find heated/ventilated front seats, heated rear seats, heated steering wheel, and flatscreen instrument cluster. Connect wirelessly via Apple CarPlay or Android Auto and toss your phone in the console to charge wirelessly too. Active noise cancellation allowed every note of the Revel audio system to ring true.
Lincoln didn’t scrimp on advanced safety systems either. Drivers enjoy a large head-up display, hands-off parallel/perpendicular parking system, and adaptive cruise. Going further is a full suite of crash avoidance systems that include automatic emergency braking, lane keep assist, blind spot warning and rear cross path detection.
EV driving without hassle
For those who are curious about driving an EV, but aren’t quite ready to give up gasoline, the plug-in hybrid powertrain makes a lot of sense. There’s a 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine, batteries, and motors that deliver 28 miles of electric range after which the engine fires up and carries on its merry way. Lincoln rates it 266 horsepower combined for quick acceleration. Expect 80-MPGe all-in or 33-MPG combined when away from a plug.
Driving the Corsair is more like piloting a baby Navigator than upscale Ford. For starters, ours came with Ford’s BlueCruise hands-off cruise control system that makes sure drivers are paying attention to the road, but allows them to relax. The suspension is tuned more for comfort than ripping up backroads, but the adaptive suspension adjusts in real time to soak up city streets, waft down the highway, or stiffen up for backroad romps. Better still, all-wheel-drive keeps it moving with grace no matter the weather.
Beyond the Mark II, Elvis owned a Continental limousine in the ‘60s, drove a Mark III around 1970, and gave away Mark IVs to anybody he liked in the ‘70s. Compared to his Mark II’s $113,000 inflation-adjusted price, the Lincoln Corsair starts at an affordable $38,830, rising to brazenly lofty $67,180 for our fully stoked PHEV. That’s a fortune for a fancy Ford, but merely expensive all this baby Lincoln offers if you can get beyond Lincoln’s stuffy brand image. Competitors include the Alfa Romeo Tonale PHEV and Lexus NX Plug-in Hybrid.
Storm Forward!
Send comments to Casey at AutoCasey@aol.com; follow him on YouTube @AutoCasey.
Likes
- Luxury interior
- Upscale style
- Electric driving
Dislikes
- Ugly grille
- Brand perception
- Expensive price
2024 Lincoln Corsair GR PHEV
Five-passenger, AWD SUV
Powertrain: 2.5-liter I4, Li-ion batteries
Output: 266hp (combined)
All-electric range: 28 miles
Suspension f/r: Adap. Ind/Ind
Wheels f/r: 20”/20” alloy
Brakes f/r: regen disc/disc
Fuel economy: 80-MPGe/33-MPG comb.
Assembly: Louisville, KY
Base/as-tested price: $38,830/67,180
