The Lincoln Motor Company has nowhere to go but up, and the new 2015 MKC is critical to the automaker’s revitalization plan. Following last year’s launch of the redesigned MKZ midsize luxury sedan, the 2015 Lincoln MKC is a compact luxury crossover suv aimed straight at established players in a growing segment that includes the Acura RDX, Audi Q5, BMW X3, Cadillac SRX, Infiniti QX50, Lexus NX, Mercedes-Benz GLK Class, and Volvo XC60.
To see if the MKC has what it takes to convince small luxury suv shoppers to swing by a Lincoln dealership, I headed to Santa Barbara, Calif., for a day that included hundreds of miles as a driver and passenger. As it turns out, the MKC is a well-rounded crossover, one more suited to certain types of driving than others, and to certain types of lifestyles than others.