So what's up with Lincoln-Mercury this year?

The new Lincoln MKS four-door sedan, that's what.

This car personifies Lincoln throughout: quiet, low key, yet attractive styling, touches of classic heritage design points, and plenty of technology.

The exterior design is a breath of fresh air for Lincoln, though it does not have the same slab-sided classic look of Lincolns of the early sixties. Instead, it has some heritage design elements such as a waterfall grille that is similar to designs of the 1930s and 1940s Lincoln models. But there are not so many things harkening back to the past that the car loses its contemporary focus.

There's the sleek sweep of polished chrome that graces the semi-fastback, and a tasteful rear end that says "Lincoln" with its jewelry-like taillights and an overall profile that says luxury sports sedan.

The MKS is loaded with new technology. You can get into it by lightly touching a combination of colors hidden into the car's window pillar. A highly polished chrome button on the dash brings the engine to life.

There's a "next generation" voice-activated navigation system that has a Sirius Travel Link System with weather and other data, and more than 150 hours of music. The system can even upload personal pictures and can provide a listing of the lowest gasoline prices and directions to the station.

But that's not all. The adaptive headlights swivel to help you with nighttime driving, and the automatic high beams switch to a more intense light if there's no oncoming traffic. And the "cap-less" fuel filler system means no more messes, fumes and lower evaporative emissions.

I suspect it will be the interior that will sell this car. It's roomy, the back seats are heated, and the entire presentation is contemporary and elegant. You can even order a glass roof that extends back to the rear seat.

On the road, the MKS steering feels perfectly balanced with none of the sloppiness associated with big Lincolns of the past. The MKS is far more athletic than you might suspect, with flat cornering and surprisingly fast acceleration from the 3.7-liter V-6 that produces 273 horsepower. It's rated 16 to 17/24 to 28 miles per gallon, depending on whether you have a front-wheel-drive or all-wheel-drive model.

The big news here is that there's an "EcoBoost" V-6 with twin direct injection that will put out more than 300 horsepower while promising better fuel economy and reduced emissions.

Price range for the MKS is $38,465 to $40,355.

Over at Mercury, the Sable gets some new paint colors, but that's about it. Prices for this full-size sedan range between $25,000 to $30,000, and they come in both front-wheel-drive and all-wheel-drive models. Power comes from a 3.5- liter, 263-horsepower V-6.

I think of Sable as sophisticated, with a low-key, elegant appearance.

The car features a clean design that focuses on Mercury's signature satin aluminum waterfall grille, with beautiful jeweled projector beam headlamps that sweep up over the front fenders. Additional visual highlights at the front of the vehicle include new chrome surrounds for the fog lamps and bright, satin aluminum caps on the side mirrors.

Around the back, look for a striking new LED taillamp design, which follows the current trend toward the use of white lenses with a red underlay for taillamps.

Sable's version features predominantly white lenses with red accent stripes. The new rear fascia has a cutout for the chrome tips on the dual-exhaust system, a visual cue that suggests more power under the hood. A chrome strip on the bottom edge of the deck lid provides a finishing touch.

My favorite Mercury, though, is the Milan. Yeah, I know. They target women in their advertisements. So what? It's a really cool looking, rich appearing sedan that makes the best of some styling differences with the Ford Fusion.

Inside you'll find a rich two-tone interior with lots of chrome and aluminum, and it's a far departure in this vein from the Fusion.

Another important point: The Milan and its stable mate, the Ford Fusion, have been honored numerous times for being the safest, highest quality family cars on the road.

Milan comes in either front-wheel drive or all wheel-drive versions, and can be had with either a 2.3-liter, 160-horsepower four-cylinder engine, or a 3.0-liter, 271-horsepower V-6. Fuel economy ranges from 16 to 20/24 to 28 miles per gallon. Prices range from $20,035 to $27,010.