Cars of the Moment- V

I like the cars that aren't the obvious choice, the well-kept secrets of the automotive world.  For example,  I love the 2011 Saab 9-5.  I think it's an incredibly attractive, well-designed car that not only has the stuff to be a competitive performer, but it also has a sense of history and character that is missing in many new cars. Unlike some luxury makers (cough BMW cough), Saab isn't trying to reinvent itself anymore.  It is focusing its efforts on what has made it the quirky-sexy carmaker it is:  turbocharging, cockpit-inspired interiors, and unusual, hatchback-esque styling.

Another fringe carmaker I'm in love with is Jaguar.  Again, they are a small, left-field choice in the luxury world, but if you haven't been paying attention, they have been building some of the sexiest vehicles in the world for the last few years.  Autoblog.com states it well: "The brand is only alive today because it has sold the automotive equivalent of sex."  The company's tagline, "This is the new Jaguar," resonates with me.  The company is casting off delusions of being a heavyweight fighter like Mercedes-Benz and instead aiming for a more individualistic persona.  I'm a total sucker for their new ad campaign as well.  This spot from a few years ago has me caught hook, line, and sinker.

I've already professed my love for the brash, thoroughly American Cadillac CTS-V, but what of Cadillac's counterpart, Lincoln?  I must admit, Lincoln seems to play American Lexus while Cadillac chases the BMWs and Audis of the world, but somehow, I love Lincolns so much more than their sterile Japanese counterparts.  Again, Lincoln is capitalizing on a history of luxury and style with their cars, bedazzling them with chrome accents and a baleen-whale grille inspired by the 1939 Continental.  In that regard, Lincoln already has a leg up on Lexus, as the luxury arm of Toyota Motor Co. has only been around since 1989.  And in spite of each Lincoln's basic bones being the same as that of a more pedestrian Ford variant, the luxury brand seems to have imbued their cars with enough character to distinguish them from their lesser brethren.  The same cannot be said of many Lexus models.

The 1941 Continental, above, and the 2009 MKZ, below.  

While I can't honestly and definitively say that a Lincoln would be my first choice in a luxury car, I'd definitely recommend one to my father or less aggressive friends as an alternative to a Lexus or Mercedes-Benz.  And I can unequivocally state that, at least without driving one, I'd much rather have a Jaguar, Cadillac or Saab over their Teutonic counterparts.

Buying a Lexus, Mercedes-Benz, or BMW is the easy, obvious choice.  Just made your first half-million?  Better get down to the Mercedes dealer to pick up that E550 like the one your neighbors just bought.  Planning on retiring to Arizona?  Go on, go buy yourself a new Lexus RX350.  Still trying to prove something about yourself?  There's a BMW M3 with your name all over it.  Like I said, easy.

But if, like me, you like to do things the hard way, I can point you to one of a few intriguing options...