I remember being really enthusiastic about the Mercury Marauder, figuring it to finally be the super sled that I dreamed of – a big American car rear wheel drive, with a v8, that I could either car the family around with, have my wife sleep comfortably in the passenger side, and, when the kid’s at grandma’s, uh, do other stuff stuff on those bench rear seats.

But man, they only put 300hp engine in it, mated in such a way that it was pretty slow. They were close, but they executed just wrong. I like the lead sled concept, always have, but you can’t have a supposed performance car that loses to a Honda Civic. The cornering doesn’t matter – even, just 0-60 that’s not embarrassing, and don’t feel the road.

The 300C barely even registers on this comparison anyway. Compared to a Town Car, it drives like a cheap Mercedes.

The DTS is a FWD turd. I just drove a 2006 with 22K miles on it the other day that was falling apart literally and drove accordingly. Worn down climate control and radio knobs, blown struts, exhaust leak, and cabin noise rivaling my 1989 C1500. And what SOFT seats? The leather ones in the DTS I drove were comparable in softness to a concrete bench.

The Town Car’s sole remaining body-on-frame rear-wheel-drive sedan platform dates back to 1979, good for half a million miles, with unmatched crash test ratings, acres of hood and trunk, comfort of driving your living room sofa, how much more “yank tank” can you get than that?

Not that I’d know anything about “yank tanks”, I’ll go crawl back into my Roadmaster now.

I went from 4 years in a well-maintained 89 Cadillac Brogham into a 93 Crown Vic. The Vic is quieter, smoother, faster, handles better and gets better gas mileage. I can only imagine how much better the Town Car would be.

Along with my 1990 Town Car, I had a 1989 Caddy Brougham. The Caddy’s interior dated back to 1978 and while the 307 Olds-sourced engine had only 10 less hp than my 5.0L TC’s 150hp, it felt absolutely weak-kneed and gutless. The TC also got 17-18mpg city while the Caddy got anywhere between 8mpg (when I bought it) and 12.5mpg (when I finally replaced the carb on it, among other things). It looked good until the infamous plastic fillers disintegrated. The Caddy felt inferior to the TC in nearly every single way manageable. The LS400 I would pick up a year later just blew the both of them into the weeds.

The Town Car is probably the only vehicle on which the ersatz grille actually improves the appearance (until you get close enough to see the rest of the car…)

Nor would flatbed miles show up on the odo.

My own Northstar-derived mill is closing in on 55,000 trouble-free miles, still a youngster though not a pampered one. It’s not leaked a drop of any fluid nor had so much as a hiccup. Well, there was the matter of the lazy supercharger belt tensioner that was noticed during unrelated service and replaced gratis under warranty. I’ll report back as it rolls past 100K. -Phil

The miles on the AAA-supplied flatbed don’t count.

Several posts above indicate I would be lucky to get 100,000 out of a Northstar. Why?

Relax. I’ve seen 6 Cadillacs in the past year with over 200,000 miles on their still-factory-sealed Northstars unopened for any internal service whatsoever.

Phil

It might be difficult to remember now, but when the 1998 Town Car debuted the current styling, it turned heads and pulled a lot of 35 – 50 year old buyers into their first American car. The design has held up well, still distinctive and polished. That it doesn’t ape the tired utilitarian luxury car aesthetic of the Germans nor the bland visual signature of the Japanese shouldn’t be a criticism. A Town Car burbling with alacrity across Nebraska, up I-5, along the New York State Thruway or the Mass Pike is still an image of automotive serenity in stride.

I didn’t like the prior gen squared-off TC at all and its design was the least of it. The sloppy steering and frame flex were horribly out-of-date and unacceptable. But beginning with the 2003 model three refinements transformed the car: 1/ the front frame members are hydro-formed; 2/ steering is via rack & pinion; 3/ the rear solid axle is located by a Watts Link. Add mono-tube shocks with “performance” suspension option and further interior upgrades and the Town Car became something desireable, unique and quite well made.

I discovered this quite by surprise on a vacation that year when Hertz upgraded my rental free upon arrival. The handsome metallic deep red Town Car rolled out for me had less than 80 miles on the odo and the cream leather was unexpectedly supple and glove-like.

A modern Mercedes is not a notably comfortable car. A BMW even less so. A big Audi is confining and sterile. A Lexus surrenders too much participation. But after a couple of hours in the big Lincoln, I realized the ease of the car, and how it affected me. Soon I had fully embraced the “Zen of the Lincoln Town Car,” and I understood what Ford had been up to. You wouldn’t think of driving like Jack Baruth in this car, not because you can’t but because you just don’t want to. In a Town Car, you’re an adult. You find new consideration for your fellow man. You’re the big fish the school makes room for. You are unperturbed and imperturbable. You can drive precisely and vigorously, but why bother with the latter when the former is at hand. In fact, my 10 days with that car impressed me enough to return home and promptly by the highest-performance factory version of the platform, a 2004 Mercury Marauder. A little less Zen but still present, just at a higher cruiding speed.

The steering is communicative in the 2003 and later model years. The hyfro-formed front frame rails dramatically stiffened the platform. The Watts Link sharply improved the steering precision by eliminating the axle drift in hard cornering, allowing the stick axle to behave more like an IRS car. And the car could for awhile be ordered with upgraded dampers and a bit more stiffly sprung but even the base suspension was leagues ahead of the earlier cars. The base suspension floated but didn’t wallow. And at 6′3″ I fit, even with the seat height cranked to put my eyes nice and high in the car.

The Zen of the Lincoln Town Car encouraged serene driving. Not numb or uninvolved by any means. Once you grok the car, it’s entertaining and engaging for a long drive of the right kind. The bottom rung version of the 4.6L mod V8 has enough torque for the car to get out of its own way and while it’s not a top end breather and only musters today’s V6 horsepower, there’s no trouble cruising competently and quietly at 85mph. Today, the Town Car is the only passenger car to earn 5 stars in every crash test. It can be throttle steered; brakes are quite good; handling is predictable and unfussy. Want to make it stickier and more incisive? Upgrade the tires.

Regarding the transmission, four cogs are enough, in this case. All the magic in that Ford AOD-E is in judicious use of the O/D off button on the tip of the shifter.

There’s another thing. We drivers often completely neglect the experience of being a passenger in a car. Sure, the Town Car has the dorky shift selecter on the tree. But for a passenger, what passes for a luxury car in 2009 ain’t so luxurious. The driver’s sedan impresses much less when you’re not behind the wheel. Here, the Town Car still excels, old school B-o-F stick axle platform notwithstanding. Go ahead, roll with it for 400,000 miles. Even Alex will eventually come to understand the car.

Phil

Also, as others have said, you might not like the TC or its ponderous handling, but it is very good at its raison d’être, including excellent reliability.

I am not even sure the 300 has a “reason for being”, let alone be good at it.

I own a 07 Lucerne CXS with Northstar. Basically a Buick DTS (built on same line)

I REALLY need to get 150,000 miles minimum out of this car. I drive over 30,000/year and right now it is sitting at 62,000.

Several posts above indicate I would be lucky to get 100,000 out of a Northstar. Why? What’s the weakness? I’ve used synthetic since new and so far this car has had zero repairs other than one set of brake pads/rotors on the front last week.

If I can’t over maintain whatever the supposed weak link is, should I bail on it now, take the hit, and move on? Wasn’t planning on that until at least 150,000. My driving is 80% highway (that’s why I have averaged over 20 mpg since new.)

What do the best and brightest recommend?

But not the 300C.

BMW or Mercedes is probably the best cars, but i know the outcome on TTAC;
1.Cadillac
2.Chrysler
3.Lincoln Town Barge
4-8 Lexus and the Europeans.

Patriotism is not the same thing as “The Truth About Cars”, or is it?

Four door sedans and wagons only please! That was a by god American car, no excuses!

BTW my second car was a 1987 Olds Cutlass Supreme Brougham sedan with EVERY option, 307, 4-barrel q-jet, posi-trac, and miles of chrome. Stolen in Detroit, MI in 2000. Sigh, I miss that old tank.

I shouldn’t have been surprised because last year I looked semi-seriously into buying a new Grand Marquis until I found you basically can’t buy them any more in any trim other than “taxicab.”

This didn’t used to be the case. FoMoCo has been de-contenting the full sizers for several years. I saw a 2004 TC on eBay not too long ago that must have been one of the early cars with a built in nav system. The last Town Car Cartier was 2003.

Cadillac and Lincoln used to be innovative. They had features you couldn’t get on other cars. It would be so ridiculously simple for Ford to do better. Want more power? Well, the Mark VIII LSC got 290 HP out of the same block 15 years ago, so that shouldn’t be too hard to remedy. Want it to handle better? Start with the Panther cop car parts and tweak them a step or two more. Check. Want more gears in the tranny? Ok, add a couple, dammit, although personally I have never felt a shift in any TC I have driven, so how the devil would I know how many gears it has. Now create an option package that (a) includes every gee whiz thingie currently put only in the MK-Whatever crapmobiles and (b) adds the best of any other gee whiz thingies they put inside cars these days. Now put all this in the L (longer wheelbase) platform, because you are going to dress up the interior with the writing tables in back that fold into the front seatback, like some livery versions do and like the ‘66 Caddy Fleetwood. Oh, and by the way when you open the table it reveals a monitor screen, Slide open a waterproof cover on the table and there is a full keyboard. Wi-Fi is on. Next, offer the interior leather in some colors other than Bake-Oven Black, Catatonic Gray and Sleep-Inducing Saddle. Nothing too garish. Just a tasteful burgundy red, a deep blue, a darker green, and white. Maybe a few not-boring exterior colors too. Last but definitely not least, go through the interior and replace or cover EVERY piece of plastic with something else. Leather, wood, fabric or even metal, where you can get that past the safety gestapo. Once again, an excellent model would be any 1961-66 Cadillac or 1961-63 Lincoln Continental or 1964-65 Imperial. The goal is to make every square inch of the car exude CLASS like each of those role models does.

On the exterior, go back to the 1998-2002 front and rear styling which while not perfect at least says something other than “generic big car.”

If you do all that RIGHT, you will have something that could leave the Daimler Benz guys scratching their heads and saying “Let’s try slapping a Maybach badge on it and selling it for twice as much?”

And I have always thought the market truly reflexs consumer taste.
You can opinion poll yourself to death.
You can review all reviews until frozen to indecision.

But the real vote has always been sales, no matter what the professionals say.
And, if not mistaken, this yank tank Linciln has made Ford money.
Lots and lots of money.
Because the market bought it.

Last year the yank tank Lincoln was selling nearly 2000 per month!
Yes, its down to around 700 now, but it was solid for a long, long time.

Can the Caddy claim this?

No one wants the lincolns. They drive like boats, make the dts seem like a sports sedan. The escallade is like driving on stilts, they are frightening. By far, the requested drive is the DTS.

The dts has good suspension, quiet as a monastery, excellent large drivers car. Incidentally, my personal car is a VW Golf, which I also like alot. They are very different, tho. The dts is quiet adn reserved, the golf extorverted.

I am anxious to hear the next reports.

I have been driving big V8 rear drive luxocruisers for years. If you want to complain about the roadability of the Town Car, just spend some time in a GM C-body from the 80s. The panther feels like a sports car in comparison. I went from 4 years in a well-maintained 89 Cadillac Brogham into a 93 Crown Vic. The Vic is quieter, smoother, faster, handles better and gets better gas mileage. I can only imagine how much better the Town Car would be.

I also kind of like the look. This generation always reminded me of the 49-51 Lincoln Cosmopolitan.

Personally I love the 300C. Every time I see one, I love the design. It’s really a great looking car… IMHO.

But the old TC still has one attribute of a genuine yank luxocruiser – it is stone durable. None of this european “hi your scheduled maintenance was $6000″ nonsense.

It is a testament to this car that Ford has basically let it sit there with no attention since about 1992, and it is still in this 3 way competition for ultimate Yank Tank.

With some upgrades, the long wheelbase Panther frame and front suspension could take on the big Lexus. It just needs some real power, a modern transmission and some looks. If the current car had the Chrysler’s engine and suspension, it would be a contender.

I remember that – it was like the apocalypse. “The Last of the Mohicans” was the title of one article I read back in early ‘96, celebrating the B-Body.

In fact, my old man saw the end coming early and bought a 1994 Roadmaster wagon to tow his boats with. LT1/ 4L60E, 3.73 Posi rear end, dual exhaust, tranny cooler, and a 5000# tow rating.

PS – The panther platform hasn’t been rated to tow anything more than 2000# in at least a decade, maybe two. (IIRC) Not that it couldn’t, but Ford won’t rate it to do so.

Over the years since, the Crown Vic has filled the shoes of the former Caprice, et al, lovers and now this platform is going the way of the dinosaur. I better buy that 2009 LE Crown Vic on ebay while I still can.