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Photos to go with Lincoln MKZ road trip story. Car is parked in front of the Mount Engadine Lodge (referred to in story) and surrounded by mountain sheep in the Kananaskis region of Alberta.Doug Firby for The Globe and Mail

Kids who grow up in the country are more skillful drivers because they have to be. Unplowed snow-choked roads in winter and rutted gravel paths in summer provide the challenge – and ultimately, the joy – of piloting two tonnes of steel, Dukes of Hazzard-style.

Those memories of reckless rural youth came rushing back while pushing an unlikely object down an untamed path, in the back country of Alberta, named Smith-Dorrien Highway.

Photos to go with Lincoln MKZ road trip story. Car is parked in front of the Mount Engadine Lodge (referred to in story) and surrounded by mountain sheep in the Kananaskis region of Alberta. Doug Firby for The Globe and Mail Doug Firby

The surprising thing about this trip was the car itself. Much as I expected my Lincoln MKZ to wallow like a drunk at a carnival as I pushed it across a bed of marble-sized gravel, it held rock-solid and straight. With the windows tight against the cloud of dust, the car conveyed a sense of quiet calm at odds with the external assault on its refined urban dignity.

Here, truly, was a brawler dressed up in a tux.

We were headed to an out-of-the-way sanctuary called Mount Engadine Lodge, a beautiful Rocky Mountain boutique facility that overlooks a marshy meadow where moose love to play at dusk. Like most good things in life, getting there isn't easy.

Although the MKZ may not seem to be the obvious choice for such a venture, it has both agility and technology that make it more versatile than its dressy exterior suggests. One of my favourite tools was the "lane keeping aid" – which applies steering torque to keep you pointed in the right direction on this gravel torture-track. This feature, combined with BLIS (blind spot information system) – which uses radar to spot cars when you can't – allowed me to drive with a freer spirit than anyone should on a treacherous mountain road.

This MKZ came equipped as a hybrid, pairing a 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine and electric motor combination with the first continuously variable transmission I've tried that actually didn't over-rev during acceleration. Bonus: The mileage was ridiculously good, averaging 6.0 litres/100 km as I climbed up and slipped down curvy mountain roads – some of them mercifully paved.

"The system does change how people drive," Carole Wilson, marketing manager for Lincoln, says.

But, seriously. A Lincoln? Ford pondered scrapping the once-geriatric label, but ultimately decided to preserve a name that's been in the marketplace for more than 90 years, with an established dealer network.

The division's researchers developed a psychographic profile of people they wanted to appeal to, Wilson says: "Cultural progressives," discerning, creative and visionary. Add in an adventurous spirit, a dash of social responsibility and voila! – Lincoln had created a distinct target market. It also built a new design studio in Dearborn, Mich., for the luxury brand.

The MKZ is the first product borne from that studio. Critics accuse it of being too mechanically similar to its poor cousin, the Fusion, and less than true luxury on the finishing details. Wilson says customer feedback is influencing future design: "We're on a journey."

The next stop for the brand is the MKC SUV, and third may be a production version of the Continental concept car that has been doing the auto show circuit.

Who is the target? Owners of BMW 3s? Acura TLXs? Lexus ISs?

"We're really not focusing on the competitors," Wilson says. "We're focusing in on the customer and responding to their needs." Her mantra: Quality. Design. Personal service.

The division is reporting a 27 per cent improvement in sales year-to-date. Not bad, but also from a modest 4 per cent market share. The company is encouraged enough to press on.

Returning home from my mountain paradise, I jam on the breaks to avoid a herd of mountain sheep who obviously can't read road-crossing signs. No problem. The 18-inch Michelins barely notice. Calm, quiet and composed.

This may not yet be the best car in its class, but it's understandable what Lincoln is trying to do. The brand truly is travelling its own road.

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