Ready for TAKEOFF
Gas model has pep, but if you really want power, go for hybrid
YOUNTVILLE, CALIF. — I flew down to Atlanta this week to learn about a car — not the one I’m going to tell you about today, although there’s a connection — and as we sat on the runway at Toronto Pearson, the Delta Airlines pilot said this: “It could get a little bumpy on the flight down.”
Wrong. The flight turned out to be smooth as silk, and I thought: “Maybe this plane has got the adaptive suspension system that I was introduced to a week ago in California, where I’d gone to drive the brand new 2020 Lincoln Aviator. That drive experience was smooth as a baby’s bottom, too.”
Lincoln introduced the allwheel-drive, three-row, luxury mid-size Aviator SUV at last year’s New York International Auto Show, and the gasoline version is in showrooms now. The plug-in Aviator Grand Touring model, which combines internal combustion with advanced electric hybrid technology, will go on sale in the fall.
Before I get around to talking about what this vehicle is like to drive — and you’ll love it, by the way — I want to focus a bit on the hybrid version because it is, well, different. Most hybrids are geared for people to save money on gas and who want to protect the environment. Lincoln just wants to increase horsepower. And they are proud of it.
The gasoline version is powered by a twin-turbocharged 3.0-L V6 engine driven by a new, 10-speed automatic transmission that puts out 400 horsepower and 415 ft.-lbs. of torque.
The hybrid takes the samesize engine and transmission and adds an electric motor, which has a maximum output of 75 kilowatts, and a 13.6-kWh battery pack, both hidden under the floor, and that increases the horsepower to 494 and 630 ft.-lbs. of torque. Hold on, mother. But power is not all that Lincoln has got going for it in the Aviator. Let me return to talking about the suspension that kicked off this review.
The advanced suspension pairs pothole mitigation and road-preview technology to create a ride that adjusts to nearly any situation. That’s what Lincoln says in its bumph.
But know what? With a couple of exceptions — I mean, Napa Valley roads are pretty good — this turns out to be true. The acid test will come, however, if I should ever get to drive the Aviator in Nova Scotia or Manitoba on roads other than the Trans-Canada.
But how does advanced suspension work, anyway? Well, there are a dozen sensors monitoring motion, steering, acceleration and braking, among one or two other things. The sensors “read” the road ahead 500 times per second and can automatically adjust suspension settings up to 100 times per second.
That’s faster than you can blink.
Air Glide Suspension replaces traditional coil springs with guided air springs, enabling several pre-set ride heights for increased comfort. And Dynamic Lower Entry is just what it means: the Aviator drops down to make it easier for the driver to get in (although I didn’t notice this). Kind of like a kneeling bus.
Other technological marvels include Lincoln Co-Pilot360 driver-assist — which is standard, by the way — that includes pre-collision assist with automatic emergency braking, blind-spot detection with cross-traffic alert, a lane-keeping system, rear backup camera and automatic high-beam headlights as standard.
Anybody who reads my stuff knows I am a stickler for safety, though, so I recommend you shell out the extra money in order to get the optional Lincoln Co-Pilot360 Plus, which adds adaptive cruise control with traffic-jam assist and speed limit recognition that adjusts your speed accordingly. Evasive steering assistance (I like this one) steps in to lend a hand if you’re going to hit something and not even slamming on the brakes will save you. Reverse brake assist helps to stop the vehicle if you’re backing up and there’s something in the way. And active park assist removes the stress of parking by taking over just about everything — guessing whether you can squeeze your car into that tiny spot, steering, braking and so-on.
Now, some of this technology takes some getting used to. I would strongly advise anyone who buys one of these cars to go to a school parking lot on the weekend or some other place where nobody’s around to test this stuff out and get used to it. The park assistant, for instance, worked perfectly (and it is great), but the backing-up braking left something to be desired. This is not a critique, per se — I was probably to blame — but that’s why I urge everyone, whether it’s with the Aviator or any other new car, to learn the technology before taking the vehicle out on the road.
Talking about the road, there are five standard driving modes on the gas version and seven on the Grand Touring model: normal, conserve, excite (some automakers would call that one “Sport”), slippery and deep conditions (plus Preserve EV — that’s where battery power is saved for later — and Pure EV — designed to keep the car in all-electric mode in most conditions — on the Touring).
They are seamless, as in you can be driving along and turn the mode dial while in full flight and the vehicle just adjusts itself. We had a surprise off-road segment on our afternoon route — we were driving along on this side road and, suddenly, we rounded a curve to find the road interrupted by a gully — but I was able to turn the mode dial into Deep Conditions mode easily, and the Aviator handled the challenge with ease.
Every time I attend one of these automotive introductions, I find the automaker concerned to be trying just a wee bit too hard. This time, Lincoln told us all about using your cellphone as the key to your vehicle. This technology has been around for a few years now — I mean, cellphones can do just about everything, except maybe cook dinner — but Lincoln has taken it a few steps further. In addition to starting the vehicle, locking and unlocking it, etc., Phone as a Key, as it’s called — it has to be connected to the “Lincoln Way” app — can be used (among other things) to recall the positioning of your seat, side mirrors and so-on, and call back your favourite radio station after your teenagers borrow the car and change everything.
Now, if you lose your phone, which I did on a GO bus about two months ago (it happens), you can delete the app and/or disengage the other functions and then all of this won’t work. Meanwhile, the standard number of key fobs will be handed to you when you purchase your Aviator, so don’t worry that the phone is the only way this vehicle will work.
Finally, I must tell you about the infotainment, which is displayed on the now-obligatory pop-up screen. The Revel Ultima3D Audio System boasts 28 speakers around the cabin. Yup — 28. And there are three listening modes — stereo, audience and onstage. My driving partner, Jil McIntosh, who previously worked for Toronto Star Wheels, is a fan of grand opera and the symphony. I like listening to Sirius XM’s Fifties on Five when I’m out on the road. We couldn’t agree on what we’d listen to, but finally reached a compromise — which we listened to for about a minute because we were too busy talking. But that minute was enough to give this sound system a thumbs up.
Oh, before I forget, an optional wireless charging pad for cellphones is on the centre console, and there are a number of power outlets around the cabin. A Wi-Fi connection is standard.
OK, what is this SUV like to drive?
In a word, it’s a dream. The push-button transmission works like a charm, and once you get rolling, you have to keep an eye on the speedometer because it’s very easy to get going really quickly in this car and not realize it. The steering is prompt and the handling great. I couldn’t find an uncomfortable seat.
Now, I didn’t make it all the way back to the third row of seats, although I was assured the seats back there are comfy. I sat in the second row, though, and there was plenty of room for my knees and the bucket seat was comfortable.
Second-row bucket seats translate into seating for six; if you want room for seven, you can get a bench seat for the second row that has seatbelts for three.
With three rows of seats in a mid-size vehicle, there is not a lot of room for cargo in the back.
There’s some — you can go to the supermarket — but not a lot. Fold down that third row of seating, however, and things improve dramatically. Suitcases and golf clubs fit in easily.
I suggest that unless a family has a lot of kids, or the in-laws are always hitching a ride somewhere, the third row of seats will pretty much stay down all the time.
The gas model is in showrooms now and the suggested retail price (to start) is $69,000. The Grand Touring model will be out in the fall and the suggested MSRP for that one will be $81,000.