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2018 Lincoln Navigator Review | 900 miles in mid-century opulence

PORTLAND, Ore. — Driving the 2019 Lincoln Navigator on my usual 80-mile evaluation route just wouldn't be sufficient. The quick jaunt through downtown Portland and out into wooded mountain roads couldn't possibly do justice to a vehicle intended for the literal long haul. All those seats; all that cargo space; all that comfort and opulence. What the Navigator needed was a road trip, so I took two of them — within five days, over 900 miles and a grand total of 20 hours and 17 minutes in the 24-way power-adjustable, massaging, ventilated saddle. The first journey would be from Portland down to Bend, Ore., and then working my way gradually back through central Oregon backroads. This included winding two-lane highways where the Navigator's excellent adaptive cruise control system maintained its distance (and my sanity) when stuck behind parades of Outbacks, before the 450-horsepower EcoBoost V6 of Raptor fame could dispatch them from across the dotted yellow line. Enough really can't be said about how masterful this engine is — so smooth, so powerful and so quiet. It's perfect for a Lincoln. It also got 20 mpg over the course of the full 900 miles, which compares to the EPA's 21 mpg highway rating. Pretty good given the mountainous terrain and the liberal throttle applied to keep up with a pair of substantially sportier cars I was trailing as part of a photo shoot. Not that the Navigator was really able to keep up with anything once the road got tighter and twistier through the lava fields of the Willamette National Forest. Though I still concur with my initial praise of the Navigator's independent rear suspension and steering that "provides consistent, appropriate and reassuring weighting," there's no getting around the laws of physics. This is a gigantic land craft pushing three tons that's best kept at a relaxed pace – also perfect for a Lincoln. As for the ride, which disappointed during my Navigator first drive in Southern California, the "omnipresent nervousness" I reported didn't really materialize on better pavement in Oregon and later in Washington. True, it's not quite as supple as a unibody Range Rover or Mercedes GLS would be, but it doesn't suffer from the near constant vibration over even the smallest bumps you get in a Chevy Suburban or GMC Yukon XL. On the subject of comfort, though, those 24-way front seats can't be ignored.

2020 Lincoln Navigator now has an option for chrome haters

If you've ever seen a new Lincoln Navigator, you know that there was no restraint when the designers started adding chrome. But it seems Lincoln realizes not everyone wants to drive a rolling mirror ball, so it's adding a Monochromatic Package to the 2020 Lincoln Navigator. The package is pretty simple, it coats items such as the grille, side vents and other trim in the body color, rather than shiny metal. It's only available in three colors — white, gray and black — and only on the Reserve trim level. Lincoln has made some other updates to the Navigator that benefits every trim level. Power running boards, heated and cooled front seats, wireless phone charging, and the latest version of the CoPilot360 suite of safety features are all standard. The latter includes blind-spot monitoring, lane-keep assist, pedestrian detection, automatic emergency braking and automatic high-beam headlights. Also included as standard is Lincoln's Phone as Key system, which allows your phone, well, to work as your key. You can also control things remotely, and even enable other people's phones to work as a key on a regular basis or just during specific times, in case you need to lend access. The 2020 Navigator will arrive at dealers this November. Pricing has not been announced yet, but it should be available shortly before the on-sale date.

2019 Lincoln Nautilus replaces the MKX, adds a price increase and tech

The 2019 Lincoln Nautilus forms the next step in Lincoln's overhaul. Replacing the crossover formerly known as the MKX — the brand's best-seller in the U.S. — the Nautilus gets all-new sheetmetal from the A-pillar forward. This includes a mesh grille and chrome accents that bring the midsize CUV in line with the Continental sedan and Navigator full-sized SUV. A new base engine and more standard equipment help pad a price increase, the Nautilus starting at $40,340, plus $995 destination, for $41,335 total. That's a $1,305 price bump over the MKX, and just $255 short of the starting price of the crosstown rival Cadillac XT5. Optional all-wheel drive adds $2,495. The "Premier" appellation for the entry-level model goes away — it's now just Nautilus. The Select, Reserve and Black Label trims carry over. Lincoln said the new interior bestows best-in-class headroom and legroom. The standard model comes with 10-way power seats, a 12.3-inch digital dash, an eight-inch infotainment display with Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and Sync 3, and 18-inch wheels. The $45,540 Select adds leather seats, heated steering wheel, navigation, and LED fog lights. The $49,870 Reserve puts climate control in those seats, a panoramic roof overhead, a 13-inch Revel audio system all around, and 20-inch wheels below. The $57,890 Black Label upgrades to Venetian leather seats and Alcantara headliner, a 19-speaker Revel Ultima stereo, and 21-inch aluminum wheels, plus a host of exclusive interior materials, and anytime car washes. The standard engine goes down in power: the 2.0-liter, twin-turbo, four-cylinder EcoBoost puts out 245 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque, replacing the 3.7-liter V6 that got 303 hp and 278 lb-ft. Yet the old 3.7-liter made do with a six-speed automatic, while all Nautilus models get Ford's new eight-speed automatic, and the EcoBoost comes with start/stop. The optional engine, available on Select, Reserve, and Black Label trims, remains a 2.7-liter twin-turbo V6 with 335 hp and 380 lb-ft, and costs a further $2,070. The Nautilus introduces Lincoln Co-Pilot 360 to the range, which bundles features such as automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection, a backup camera, and blind-spot information with cross-traffic alert. You can play around with all the options on the Nautilus configurator. While you're there, spare a thought for the MKZ sedan and MKT crossover.