QOTD: Lincoln Continental Vs. Cadillac CT6 - Pick Your Poison
Today’s Question of the Day isn’t our typical lighthearted, open-ended Choose Your Own Adventure inquiry. It’s serious business, pitting two serious flagship sedans against one another.
At the end of this post, you’ll have to choose: Lincoln Continental, or Cadillac CT6?
Though several large sedans remain on offer from luxury brands today, the vast majority no longer wear American badges on the grille. By virtue of being new models, and at the top of the price lists for their respective brands, the Lincoln Continental and Cadillac CT6 must duel for the patriotic American customer. Said customer does not want a Lexus badge, and is unwilling to shop at German lots. Key to this customer, both sedans are made in the United States, in different zip codes of a state called Michigan.
First, a few rules for good measure:
- The trims will be specified below, so our competitors match (relatively) on a dollar and trim basis.
- You must choose either the Continental or the CT6 as your new ride of choice, and preferably inform us as to why.
- Suggestions of any other vehicles as “substitutions” are invalid, and will likely face ridicule.
Your competitors are outlined below.
Competitor One: Lincoln Continental
Ranging from $44,720 to over $68,000, the Continental is available in a front-wheel or all-wheel-drive configuration.
Selection:
- $59,340 Continental Reserve
- 3.0-liter twin-turbo V6
- All-wheel drive
- 4,523 pounds
- 400 hp @ 5,750 rpm
- 16 mpg city / 24 mpg highway
Competitor Two: Cadillac CT6
The CT6 range is at a price disadvantage against the Continental, as it starts at $53,795, and ranges to over $87,000 in top trim. Opposite of the Continental, the CT6 comes in rear-wheel or all-wheel-drive.
Selection:
- $64,695 CT6 Luxury
- 3.0-liter twin-turbo V6
- All-wheel drive
- 4,085 pounds
- 404 hp @ 5,700 rpm
- 18 mpg city / 26 mpg highway
There they are — two big American cruisers. One is costly, lighter, longer, and more efficient. The other less expensive, heavier, wider, and wearing arguably better styling. Transverse front-wheel drive versus a longitudinal rear-wheel setup. Both vehicles loaded up with all the latest infotainment technology their makers can muster, with similar engines and power ratings.
Which one is taking up residence in your perfectly organized garage?
[Images: Ford Motor Company, General Motors]
Interested in lots of cars and their various historical contexts. Started writing articles for TTAC in late 2016, when my first posts were QOTDs. From there I started a few new series like Rare Rides, Buy/Drive/Burn, Abandoned History, and most recently Rare Rides Icons. Operating from a home base in Cincinnati, Ohio, a relative auto journalist dead zone. Many of my articles are prompted by something I'll see on social media that sparks my interest and causes me to research. Finding articles and information from the early days of the internet and beyond that covers the little details lost to time: trim packages, color and wheel choices, interior fabrics. Beyond those, I'm fascinated by automotive industry experiments, both failures and successes. Lately I've taken an interest in AI, and generating "what if" type images for car models long dead. Reincarnating a modern Toyota Paseo, Lincoln Mark IX, or Isuzu Trooper through a text prompt is fun. Fun to post them on Twitter too, and watch people overreact. To that end, the social media I use most is Twitter, @CoreyLewis86. I also contribute pieces for Forbes Wheels and Forbes Home.
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Hard choice. I prefer the CT6's styling, but after sitting in two of them - one at an auto show and the other via an Uber ride, I was not impressed with the quality of the interior materials. The Continental only gets interesting after you stuff it with options (Black Label Thoroughbred), but it has frumpish FWD proportions...why couldn't they have mounted the engine longitudally and give that longer hood. In photographs it looks like a blinged out Camry. But the CT6 is lighter, better handling I gather, and better economy, and the Panaray sound system is killer. So I'll say CT6, though tonight I might change my mind.
longitudinally...damn spell check.