wildcatgoal Posted February 17, 2015 Share Posted February 17, 2015 Guys/gals - I'm new here. I'm strongly considering an MKZ hybrid. I had a 2014 CLA 250 with their version of hazelnut leather and dark gray exterior. That POS was a psuedo-lemon (and a royal POS for the money in general) so I got rid of it (luckily for only a teensy loss) mid last year and went back to a truck. Now I'm regretting that because my gas bill is ridiculous. I really loved the dark brown leather interior color combo of my CLA but the main difference is that the a-pillar and roof of the CLA is a very dark gray vs. the MKZ's being the same as the dune leather color (light beige), more or less. I was curious if anyone has any real life photos of the interior of their MKZ with the HAZELNUT interior? I haven't been able to find one at a dealer to look at in person due to my schedule (nearest one is 1 hr away; all local ones have dune or black interior) and the fact that I really do not like to set foot on a dealership unless I have to - dealing with car sales people is a ripe recipe for me losing my sanity. I've seen every picture I could find online and they're all tiny, professional, or poor lighting. I just want to see if the roof/a-pillar vs. hazelnut combination looks good. Otherwise I'll negotiate for a black leather one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty Boltz Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 My daughter has a 2014 C250. She hasn't had any trouble with it. My 2008 MKZ compares favorably with her C250. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drolds1 Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 I considered Hazelnut when I ordered my 2014. My dealer did have them in stock but we found it to be much darker than we imagined it would be. I ended up going with Dune because I prefer light interiors. Yes, you have to clean the leather more frequently, but I've been doing that for decades. I had a 1972 Cutlass with white (vinyl) interior. Anyway, here is a decent picture of a 2013 with Hazelnut showing the A-pillar color, provided they haven't changed the trim colors. Robert Iggy Cerami 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Iggy Cerami Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 Also have the dune and leather cleaner in the trunk :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wildcatgoal Posted February 19, 2015 Author Share Posted February 19, 2015 (edited) My daughter has a 2014 C250. She hasn't had any trouble with it. My 2008 MKZ compares favorably with her C250. The C250 is a tried and tested reliable car overall, although one of my 7 different C250 loaners I had got a check engine light when I had it and spit out black exhaust. Dealership tried to blame me for that but luckily I got a gas receipt for 93 octane premium at the BP... otherwise who knows what they would have tried. Someone probably put their mixed yard machine gas in it to refill the tank! There are a lot of very cheap vehicle owners in the Atlanta area. Buying used is scary to me here... But, to correct you, I had a CLA 250. The CLA is different than the C-class. It's the class below and much different (and much better looking, IMO). It had been out in Europe for approximately 2 years but as a hatchback and under a different name so there is no excuse for all of the "first year German growing pains" that 2014 owners in the USA have experienced except maybe they started making them in Hungary (new plant). I wasn't the only one who had a CLA that would just randomly lose power - there are numerous NTSB complaints filed noting very similar issues (engine power cutoff, rattling) and Consumer Reports damn near quoted my complaint in their long-term reliability write-up (supporting my opinion that they really don't do much for "reviewing" like they lead you to believe... but that could just be that my rendition of the issue was of journalistic quality - probably was... if I do say so myself). Anywho... I drove the hour and a half up to the dealership yesterday that had the hazelnut interior example in stock and I liked it in the sense that it is "different than black and not light like dune". I think it'd be better if it was a bit less diareha brown and more of a saddle brown (bit lighter, less trim pieces with the same color, too) but... it is what it is. So I will probably go with it. I have a dealership down the bare bone (I hope) on one but I will have to order it, which I could care less about. I have another car that I use for commuting while I wait. I am also now looking at the Camry and Avalon Hybrids. I want above all fuel economy. I did the math and if I hadn't bought my truck, excluding the cost of insurance, I could have bought a base model Tesla for the same net monthly cost as my truck (that means factoring in gas, tax rebate, and monthly payments). I have also considered VW TDIs but I just can't get over how ugly everything but the new Golf is in the VW linup and I'm not interested in that kind of hatchback. Someone at VW needs to fire the guy/gal responsible for designing the back end of their sedans, pronto. Although, the Passat is nice overall - I'm baffled as to why Passat TDIs are not used as livery vehicles or upscale taxis... they'd be perfect and they aren't that expensive. Hell if I was an Uber driver or had a family to haul around (but refusing to buy an SUV or minivan) a Passat would be in the top 3. But it's just me and my dog... oh, and the occasional date. I can't find any direct comparison of the Toyotas vs. the Lincoln because they're technically in different classes, but I don't agree. The Avalon is easily a direct competitor at a lesser price to the MKZ (and there's little reason to "step up" to the Lexus E-class from it). Unfortunately it isn't nearly as good looking to me, but... wouldn't hurt to save $5K to acquire essentially the same meaningful features and get, probably, a more reliable car with, probably, much higher resale value. Alas... I'm one of those that tends to pay for style in vehicles over straight value... hmmph. Edited February 19, 2015 by wildcatgoal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty Boltz Posted February 19, 2015 Share Posted February 19, 2015 The C250 is a tried and tested reliable car overall But, to correct you, I had a CLA 250. The CLA is different than the C-class. It's the class below and much different Indeed! You get what you pay for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Iggy Cerami Posted February 19, 2015 Share Posted February 19, 2015 Wildcatgoal...I am on my second MKZ.. had a 13 hybrid traded it in with 34,311 miles a lifetime 40.7 MPG for a 15 MKZ 3.7 V6... I just love the car and all the extras that you can get for the money .. With that said my previous 4 cars going back over 20 years have all been S-Class Mercedes... Never any major problems... I just fell in love with the MKZ looks... I can say that the MKZ can hold its own on handling and ride comfort to the Mercedes...... So if you are looking for a Hybird the MKZ is were you want to be Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveB_TX Posted February 20, 2015 Share Posted February 20, 2015 So if you are looking for a Hybird the MKZ is were you want to be Truer words were never spoken! :) 1984Poke, robertlane and Robert Iggy Cerami 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robertlane Posted February 22, 2015 Share Posted February 22, 2015 Wildcatgoal...I am on my second MKZ.. had a 13 hybrid traded it in with 34,311 miles a lifetime 40.7 MPG for a 15 MKZ 3.7 V6... I just love the car and all the extras that you can get for the money .. With that said my previous 4 cars going back over 20 years have all been S-Class Mercedes... Never any major problems... I just fell in love with the MKZ looks... I can say that the MKZ can hold its own on handling and ride comfort to the Mercedes...... So if you are looking for a Hybird the MKZ is were you want to be It's great to read these testaments for owners coming from other brands and repeat MKZ buyers. :thumbsup: Robert Iggy Cerami 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1984Poke Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 (edited) I've had a 2013 MKZ-Hybrid since mid-June 2013 on a three-year lease so I'm now about 15 months away from having to decide what to do. I really, really, really like this MKZ-Hybrid. It's my 3rd Lincoln (2007 MKZ, 2009 MKS, and now 2013 MKZ-Hybrid). It's sharp-looking, it handles well and rides well, I like its many nice features (I ordered it loaded), and I've become truly spoiled by the mileage I get with it--so much so that I'm not sure whether I'll ever buy a non-hybrid car again. My only real gripes: not much room (especially headroom) in the back seat (of course, I don't sit there!) and I would like the interior materials to be a little more upscale (something that I think has been addressed with the newer models, I believe). Were it not for the fact that I think the already-determined price for me to buy it at the end of the lease is higher than I think I want to pay (and the fact that I really like driving a new vehicle every few years), I would seriously consider just buying it at the end of the lease in 15 more months. Honestly, if I can negotiate a better end-of-lease purchase price (I don't know if that's even possible), I think that would make up my mind for me and I would just purchase it. I really like this car, I currently think I would be quite happy to continue driving it for a few more years, and I am not looking forward to having to wrestle with the "what do I do?" decision that is looming on the horizon in little more than a year. If you get one, I truly hope you'll like yours as much as I like mine. (Sorry, I guess this isn't really what you were asking about, but I still hope you found my input helpful.) Edited March 20, 2015 by 1984Poke Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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