Viking

When looking for a replacement car to drive in the winter, AWD was a must, but white was a preference. I was looking at Buick, Cadillac CTS, Mercedes and Lincoln. I did not think I was going to find the Lincoln MKZ to be the car to fill all my requirements, but I am totally happy with it. The Buicks I found had really nice Pearl White, the CTSs were also a Pearl White, and the Mercedes were very close to the Lincoln, but there was something wrong with every one of them. The Lincolns, most of them, were too high mileage and too far away to just go look. This Lincoln was local and was perfect mechanically, with really low mileage, as well as having a very favorable CarFax report. Sometimes, rarely, things happen because they were meant to.

My Opinion Only.... The Platinum White sets a luxury car apart from all the other cars on the road. Even the little white ones and the white pickups. White adds class to a luxury car. I do also like Lincoln's Burgundy Velvet, if that is what they call it. It is gorgeous, but I think it only comes on Aviators or the other SUVs. Again, My Opinion Only... others may have different ones.

This is where I found my posted information

You can likely go a long way with the car acting like this. If the oil pressure light goes off when the revs come up, then you still have oil pressure. A while back (a long while) I had a 1964 Ford pickup that was like this. When it got hot, the oil light would flicker, and when quite hot, it would come on full time. I drove that truck probably 25K miles like that. I sold it one morning to a stranger, when it was cool outside. He was a mechanic. I told him about it, so he pulled the engine and did the mains and the truck probably went another 100K for him. If you get no oil light on the highway, drive the car. Oh, and unless you have a good personal relationship with the Service Manager at the dealership, it is not in their best interest to tell you this stuff, or possibly they do not even know this stuff. Modern mechanics are not the mechanics of old. I only know this due to my being a millwright/mechanic. Just thinking more about all this, and a burnt or frayed wire from the sensor could be limiting signal (that is the easiest least expensive and probably hardest to find problem - need an Ohm meter for the wiring) Another thing you can try - if you are using 5W20 oil - try 10W30. Ford does not like to recommend additives, but Rislone for higher mileage engines can do wonders, as can Marvel Mystery Oil. I do not normally recommend additives as synthetic oils (which I do recommend) have everything in them and do not sludge up engines. You say you use the car for highway, and business, so I doubt you have a dirty engine unless you are not doing oil changes, but the Rislone for high mileage engines can bolster the viscosity, as can heavier weight oil. Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

If the dealer did the pressure test on "cold start" but did not check it when it was hot, then they really cannot tell you for certain that everything is fine. The oil pump could be leaking down when hot. Also, the main bearings could be worn, allowing oil pressure to read low when hot. If the oil in this engine has been changed regularly, then there is little likelyhood that the oil passages are somewhat clogged, which could prevent a good reading at your oil sensor. If this is not so, perhaps a crankcase cleaner for a couple of hundred miles, followed by another oil change, might be in order. If everything is good there and the engine is clean, then worn main bearings, or the oil pump are reasonable assumptions.

Extended drain intervals beyond 10K miles are not recommended by Ford, nor recommended for any of their oils. There are only three companies that recommend change intervals longer than 10K miles. These are Amsoil (full synthetic only), Mobil 1 (Extended drain specific) and Redline. These names are in alphabetical order rather than recommendation order. My owners manual specifies Synthetics in a 5W20 weight, but the car is a 2012, so I do not know what the manuals suggest in newer years. I became a synthetic oil enthusiast in 1975, and have used the three mentioned, as well as Rotella T6 for my diesel truck. My motorcycles love the stuff, my cars have always run flawlessly with it (yes I know, the oil does not necessarily benefit the way an engine runs) and my diesel starts in Canadian winters. This alone was enough to keep me on synthetics. As was mentioned above, engines do not fail due to oil related problems. They only fail due to absence of oil, so check your oil and keep it topped up. Synthetics evaporate much less than conventional oils, so it is not likely that, between oil changes, a person would have to add oil. Conventionals on the other hand, in very warm climates, could leave you a quart down or even more between changes if 10K miles is the target. If using conventional oils, I believe I would not go longer than 5K miles between changes, and with synthetics, I will go the 10K. To extend beyond 10K, for me, and recommended by companies such as Amsoil, an additional filtration system needs to be installed, and oil analysis should be performed. When these conditions are met, the belief is that Synthetics can be run as long as 25,000 miles between changes (OR ONE YEAR), with the filters being changed at 12,500 miles "OR ONE YEAR". That final three words really tell me that oil changes are necessary at regular intervals regardless of what else is done to get the car through the year. If a person drives 20 to 25K per year, then synthetics are definitely the way to go. Otherwise, just change your oil and you will be good to go. I will still stick to synthetics.

Almost two months since I bought this, and about a thousand kms (625 miles). I have never purchased a used car that was as tight as this one. No rattles, no road noise, doors close beutifully. Fusionff, you are correct. Thanks for the welcome, guys.

All good information Smokestone, thank you. I already love it. I had a top of the line Nissan Murano, fully loaded, and the electrics were starting to give me headaches. I fixed them all last summer and put brand new brakes all around, but no longer felt any love for it, so I flogged it (priced it low and sold it) and the person who got it is ecstatic. I had been looking for a "nicer to ride in and drive" for a while (looked at Cadillac CTS, Buick, Mercedes and Genesis, as well as Lincolns, and this MKZ showed up at a used car dealer near me. I went and looked at it and it was pristine. Up here, we do not find pristine 8 yr old cars with low mileage. This car was not winter driven, I am sure. I took it for a drive and it so far outclassed the Cadillac, Buick and Genesis that I immediately loved it. It is every bit the equal to drive and ride in that the Mercedes C Class was. And it was priced seven thou less than the C Class, which was the same year. The local Ford/Lincoln dealer had a 2013 on his lot with the same mileage, and wanted eight thou more for it. The used car dealer had a carfax report on this car and I was amazed at the care it has had. I ran the VIN through my local dealership for Ford/Loncoln and it came up the same as the carfax. Suffice to say, the car is tight, runs beutifully, and was just what I wanted. I cannot believe how nicely the doors close and how little effort it takes. If I saw this car on a showroom floor and did not know its age, I would think it new. Part of the deal when I bought it was brand new tires of my choice, and new brakes all round. (pads, calipers and rotors) and safety certified. The only thing that doesn't work is the CD player. It is jammed. However, as it takes USB sticks, I am not disappointed. These Ford 6-CD loaders have been a problem with every one I have ever had. In fact, when I bought my F250 Superduty, I pulled out the brand new deck and replaced it with an Alpine. If I ever sell the truck, I will put it back in, and it will still be brand new, and still working. Nuff B.S. outta me for this go. Oh, Smokestone - what color is your MKZ. Ford has always had problems with silver.

I am a bit late to this party (like a year, LOL) but I agree with the NO FREE ADVERTISING. I have removed every dealer sticker from every vehicle I have ever owned, within about a week of purchase. As well, we have some dealers who give free plastic license plate holders with their name on them. I remove them as well. If I want License plate holders, I get them with the Auto Name on them, as for instance "Lincoln" for this car.

2012 Lincoln MKZ Base with Sport Appearance package. 18" 10 spoke rims with 225/45R18 Michelin Cross Climate tires. All wheel drive, V-6, 3.5L. 83,000 kms (about 52K miles). I like the grill on this model better than the newer ones, and as I am an old fart, the lack of tech in it is refreshing. It has just enough. I got rid of a Nissan Murano to get this, and I could not be happier.

Removing this post, as after being here a while, I realized that this is a Hybrid thread and I do not qualify, LOL

These are most excellent when temps are up and down. If the windows are left cracked a bit, it also prevents interior frosting of the glass surfaces, without rain, freezing rain or snow getting into the vehicle. In California where it never rains or freezes this would be a non sequitur, but here in the frozen white north, they are invaluable. NOTE: We had a nice sunny day, so I installed the new Vent Visors on my 2012 MKZ. They look good and fit perfectly. Can now leave windows cracked when temps are going to drastically drop, which prevents internal window frosting.

Well, I hate hitting deer with cars or motorcycles, but I do like to eat them. All God's critters have their place - right beside the Potatoes and Veggies on my plate.....

Probably the newest tire to the Michelin line which provides true all weather performance is the "Four Season" Cross Climate. We get winter, and often have snow on the road where I live, so I just put a set of these on the MKZ All Wheel Drive model that I just bought for winter driving. I have had them a couple of weeks now, and I am really impressed with their performance in all conditions. We have had temps as low as -25 C, (about -15 F), a foot of snow, the remainder of that snow after plows were done, black ice on the highways after melt from the sun but cold temps and dry pavement. All were taken in stride with these tires. I do not expect to get more than about 35K miles out of these tires, but they sure are as I could wish while they are still viable. On my wifes car, we have Pirelli Ice Zero for winter but they do not stay on for summer. The Cross Climates are every bit as good as the Pirellis are, and both have the snowflake and mountain peak indicating that they are for winter use. Another tire that I contemplated before buying the Cross Climats was the Nokian WRG84, from Finland which is another "Four Season" tire. It is from Finland, so I think they can be trusted to provide at least the winter end of the four season. They were not available to me at the time, so I bought the Cross Climates which were. To the best of my knowledge, these two tires are the only true "Four Season" tires available in Canada, and perhaps in North America. Europe probably has more variety, as they have more widely dissimilar conditions closer together than we do here in Canada. IE: from the Autobahn to the Swiss Alps in under an hour.

AFAIK, I only have one USB port, in the center console. As mentioned above, this car has no NAV, just the basic 9 speaker stereo system with 6 CD changer (which also does not work, by the way). Yes, I formatted the stick before loading the music, but I could do it again, I suppose. Thanks for responding. It gives me a place to start. On the upside, the FM radio sounds pretty fine. BINGO - the stick was formatted NTFC so I dumped it and formatted it FAT32, Reloaded the songs and presto change-oh, I have music. Gotta have tunes to drive by, LMAO. Thanks kramf411.

Hi Guys. 2012 MKZ without Nav. I tried to play tunes from a 1 Gig memory stick, with all songs MP3 format and all in the root directory. Any hints if the USB stick needs to be of a certain size, or if the music needs to be loaded differently? I searched here for this for an hour or so, and cannot think of any new ways to word my search - found nothing. I read a few pages of this section of the forum, also with no luck.

I private messaged you the VIN, bbf2530. I appreciate the assist. Viking

Hi people. New here. I realize this is an older discussion, however, perhaps I can get some enlightenment anyway. The MKZ I just bought has the Sport Appearance package, (2012) which appears to be the same as the Summer Handling Package. My question is - how does a person go about generating a car's "as built" data with the VIN? Is this something only available to dealers? Thanks.

I have put Vent Shades on every vehicle I have ever owned, and have just purchased a pair for the MKZ I just bought. Seeing as it is winter here, it will have to be a very nice sunny day in order to install them. That, or I wait for spring as I am not graced with a garage with heat. Ford had these made as well as Bug Shields back a few years, for Lincoln MKZ cars, but have discontinued them. Can still get the vent shades as well as AVS and other aftermarket, but the bug shields are totally non existent now.

I bought a 2012 AWD MKZ for Canadian winters and realize that I may just be my own mechanic for it. I checked Helm and no service manuals are available any longer. Is there anyone out there who has moved on from this year and has a manual for sale? Thanks in Advance. Viking

Hi. I bought an AWD Lincoln MKZ to drive in the winter, and if it is nice, I will also drive it in summer. It has the Sport Appearance Package.