Brand makes strong return to its luxury roots
WHISTLER, B.C.— Ever since the Town Car was discontinued almost a decade ago, most Lincolns have been little more than Fords dipped in gold.
Contrast that with domestic archrival Cadillac, which started building more-or-less exclusive Caddy models away back in 2003 with the original CTS.
Lincoln’s renaissance began with the rebirth of the Continental for the 2017 model year.
And while today’s subject, the 2018 Lincoln Navigator SUV, shares more than a few screws and bolts with its Ford cousin Expedition, it is another attempt to move Lincoln into a sphere of its own.
It is on sale now, starting at a breathtaking $87,500. The Navigator is available in two sizes — massive and ultra-massive — the difference being a 230-millimetre wheelbase stretch, largely to the benefit of rearseat legroom.
Somehow, that stretch results in the so-called Navigator L being 301 mm longer than its shorter brother. Not sure where those extra 71 mm come from.
Navigator is offered in two trim levels in Canada, Select and Reserve, in each of the two wheelbases.
If you happen to look at U.S.-based websites (I know you wouldn’t, but just in case), you may spot references to a “Black Label” edition. No, not homage to a long-extinct brand of beer, but a range-topping version we won’t be getting in Canada.
The body is mostly aluminum like the F-Series pickup truck (and Expedition), but like its cousin, it’s bolted onto a steel frame in traditional truck fashion.
Weight savings, however, are marginal — model-for-model, the new Navigator weighs about 90 kilograms less than its predecessor, and at nigh on 2,750 kg overall, is no contender for the featherweight crown.
Still, the 3.5-litre, twin-turbo V-6 engine with power upped to 450 horses at 5,500 r.p.m., and maximum torque of 510 pound-feet at 3,000 r.p.m. provides surprisingly peppy performance through the new 10speed automatic transmission.
We only get switchable four-wheel drive in Canada; the Yanks can still order a rear-drive Navigator, although why, I cannot imagine.
That peak horsepower rev number may never be reached in normal driving, because the transmission keeps the revs as low as possible in the search for decent fuel consumption.
I’ll leave it to you to decide if14.9/11.3 L/100 km city/highway is decent; presumably for a vehicle like this, low fuel consumption won’t be a prime purchase motivator.
Neither, you would expect, would nimble handling. But as we discovered with Expedition in the Malibu hills last fall, the Navigator gave a decent account of itself on the curves and hills which comprise pretty much all the roads around Whistler.
Ride quality felt softer than I remember in the Expedition, but you would expect that in a Lincoln.
But first, you have to get into this thing. Fortunately, the vehicles I drove were the Reserve trim level, which have automatically deploying power running boards. (Seriously, isn’t this nature’s way of telling you the vehicle is way too big?)
Once up there, you are greeted with a pretty nice interior, with perhaps one glaring exception. Cowhide everywhere, except on the door trim panels which are probably your first “touch points” in the truck. These are relatively nasty pieces of vinyl in all but the Black Label edition where they’re also leather, but, as noted, Canada doesn’t get that model.
The seat adjustment system in my test trucks had about a million posi- tion choices — well, 30, but it feels like a million when you first step in — and in two days of driving, I never felt comfortable with how to select just the right settings. Presumably more time — and as usual these days, a long evening spent perusing the owners manual — will help you sort this out.
The middle and third rows offer adult-size accommodation, which is surprisingly comfortable. And there’s loads of room for cargo, especially if you fold down some or even all of the middle and rear seats.
For some time now, Lincoln has put the transmission selection function into a series of push buttons on the dashboard. In those earlier models, I found this awkward. But just to show you I can be flexible, I have grown to realize that you typically employ this function twice per trip — once when you fire the truck up, again when you shut it down. Why then make that the most accessible control in the vehicle?
Dashboard and centre console space is the most expensive real estate in any vehicle. Every designer wants a chunk of it for their specific component — radio, cup holders, storage space for purses and cellphones, whatever. Best to leave it to them to fight it out; the driver can always change gears manually via steering column shift paddles, if that is their wont.
You can choose how the Navigator behaves on the road via the drive selector button, which offers six settings — “Normal,” “Conserve” (as if ), “Excite,” “Slippery,” “Deep Conditions,” “Slow Climb,” and “Deep Sand.”
These settings modify such things as throttle, transmission and steering response, traction control, and electronic stability control to suit the various conditions. Each setting is accompanied by a unique graphic on the dash, e.g., a spinning globe for “Conserve,” and a pair of tail lights disappearing into the distance for “Excite.” Hey, the interior designers have to have their fun, too. Frankly, I couldn’t tell all that much difference among the various settings, but then we didn’t get to play in the mud.
As with Expedition, “Normal” is pretty much “abnormal” — far too soft. “Excite” in Navigator, akin to “Sport” in Expedition, actually was my favourite selection; firmer but nowhere near as harsh, and providing much better control of that huge body.
Lincoln knows that the closest most Navigator owners will get to off-roading will be backing the truck up in a muddy horse trailer parking lot, but nothing is more embarrassing than getting stuck in a place like that. Speaking of backing up, one thing I bet a lot of Navigator owners will take advantage of is again borrowed from Expedition — the “Pro Trailer Back-Up Assist” feature. Once you get it set up, a knob on the dashboard allows you to steer your trailer so your boat hits the water, not the railing of the dock.
Experienced trailer backer-uppers will have to unlearn all they ever knew about backing up a trailer, but once you get used to it, you’ll fall in love.
Another interesting data tidbit — Navigator’s maximum towing capacity is listed as 3,810 kg, Expedition’s is 4,173.
The difference may be that a Navigator weighs more than a comparable Expedition, so that presumably takes away some of the latter’s addon weight-handling capacity.
All the mod cons are on hand, including on-board Wi-Fi, Apple CarPlay, and Android Auto. As we discovered in Expedition, one area where Ford has to improve is the legibility of its SatNav maps. The chosen ‘road’ is tiny, and virtually indistinguishable from the other roads on the map.
I have barely scratched the surface of all the goodies Navigator offers. If you can think of it, Navigator’s designers probably did, too.
In sum then, Navigator generally accomplishes the goals those designers set out for it — it’s a massive, upscale SUV for those who aren’t shy about letting their neighbours know they’re doing pretty well in whatever their chosen field may be.
Not perhaps my, um, barrel of tea, although as noted previously, I once owned a Suburban (with four kids, I had no choice).
But Navigator is surprisingly capable and undeniably luxurious. If it’s what you want, Lincoln will be more than happy to sell you one.