There is an old adage in the tech industry “innovation is good, but not at the cost of functionality”. This means that you need to do what your customer bought the product for really well, first, then you can make the experience unique and innovative.

This is true for Google and Search and Apple and the iPod. This is also true for Bose and consumer audio but the same cannot be said for Ford Sync. Although the product has some innovative features, when it comes to being a luxury audio system it is an poor alternative to Bose or Harmon Kardon systems you see in European luxury vehicles. Indeed the Ford Sync audio system is symbolic of Lincoln cars in general, poor substitutes to the real luxury car product from BMW, Mercedes Benz, Landrover, Lexus and others.

I currently have the Lincoln MKX and have the onerous task of driving round Vancouver. The car/SUV/crossover is Lincoln’s latest effort to make itself relevant to the luxury car market however like all previous Lincoln products it misses the mark.

The problem with Lincoln can be summed up thus: From the outside it looks like a Lincoln and from the inside it looks like a Ford. The MKS is a derivative of the Ford Edge (and probably Mercury Something). Unlike Cadillac who felt strongly in order to compete with the Japanese and Europeans they needed to have  unique platforms, interiors and importantly feel, Ford and Lincoln still feel that Fords with leather can pass as luxury cars.

However what is most troubling is the Microsoft enabled audio system dubbed the Sync. Like the MKX itself, it feels and looks like a mainstream product that you would expect with the standard Delphi/Chevy audio system in a Chevy Cobalt. The look is average and the layout is standard. When it comes to the more sophisticated features of the system, they are shrouded in mystery. I found it almost impossible to figure out the speech system worked, where the sat radio system was and what exactly we were listening too. I found the screen too small for the functionality at hand.

Quite simply the Ford/Microsoft Sync system does not measure up to the likes of Harmon Kardon, Bose or Infinity. It is a competent mainstream audio product that has some fancy features to support iPods, speech recognition and Satelite radio. In other words the Sync Audio system would be at home in a Hyundai Accent or Pontiac Sunfire, which means it does not belong in a car that competes with BMW, Mercedes Benz or even Cadillac.

The Lincoln deserves the Ford Sync audio package, they both pretend to be luxury products in a market that demands more from their cars.

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