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2022 Lincoln Navigator priced at just $5 more than last year

The 2022 Lincoln Navigator still isn't listed on the Lincoln site at the time of writing, but Ford Authority says it has a price — one you'll not be surprised to hear is higher than that of the 2021 Navigator. The 2022 Navigator Standard sets the baseline with an MSRP of $76,710, or $78,405 with destination, a trifle of an up-charge at just $5 more than last year's trim. After that, premiums for the tech and feature updates given to the new Navigator climb quickly except in the case of the lengthened Standard L in rear-wheel-drive guise. That trim comes down by $200 on its MSRP, going up overall by $200 because of the updated destination fee, totaling $81,400.    2022 Navigator prices and their differences from last year are: Standard: $78,405 ($5) Standard L: $81,400 ($200) Reserve: $89,100 ($4,955) Reserve L: $91,770 ($4,760) Standard 4WD: $81,405 ($735) Standard L 4WD: $84,400 ($530) Reserve 4WD: $91,440 ($1,760) Reserve L 4WD: $94,465 ($4,785) Black Label 4WD: $104,675 ($4,725) Black Label L 4WD: $107,720 ($4,570) All Navigators will benefit from Lincoln Enhance, the brand name for Lincoln's over-the-air software update capability, and the improved Amazon Alexa integration that can respond to more natural language. The substantial rises on the Reserve and Black Label trims pay for ActiveGlide and CoPilot360 2.0. ActiveGlide is the advanced driver assistance tech that allows hands-free highway driving if the right conditions are met (it's known as BlueCruise on Fords). Using adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go capability, lane centering and traffic sign recognition, the system can be activated on more than 130,000 miles of divided highways in North America. To help ensure hands-free doesn't turn into attention-free, ActiveGlide monitors the driverÂ’s head and eye positions with a driver-facing camera. Lincoln Co-Pilot360 2.0 bundles more ADAS like forward collision warning, pedestrian detection, and dynamic brake support, and for 2022 adds Intersection Assist and Active Sense Park Assist 2.0. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Ford's J Mays feels vindicated by Fusion reception

It's hard to think back now, but the same man overseeing the design of the 2013 Ford Fusion also presided over a rather lackluster period in Ford design, highlighted by vehicles like the Five Hundred and Freestyle. With the redesigned Fusion receiving high praise, J Mays tells Automotive News that he feels vindicated from criticisms suggesting he's not a daring enough designer.
When Mays took over as lead of design in 1997, he admits to having quite an ego ("My head would barely fit through the door some days. I've long since gotten over myself") and the workload to match. With the Blue Oval's portfolio full of premium brands like Aston Martin, Jaguar, Land Rover and Volvo at that point, along with the bread-and-butter Ford, Lincoln and Mercury models, Mays certainly had quite the challenge.
It was in the mid-2000s that Mays took over just the premium brands, and took on the new title of Chief Creative Officer. At the time, Mays endured some criticism for looking backwards to retro styling, rather than setting a new standard for American car design - criticism that Mays says he is free from with the all-new Fusion.

Ford Explorer problems gutted third-quarter sales

In early September, the Detroit Free Press published a feature noting numerous problems Ford's having with the 2020 Explorer and 2020 Lincoln Aviator launches. Issues with both SUVs, built at Ford's Chicago Assembly Plant, were so rife and dire that the automaker was trucking the vehicles 275 miles away to Michigan for repairs. Bloomberg reported earlier this month that Explorer's third-quarter sales dropped 48 percent compared to the previous model in 2018, with dealers unable to get enough units on lots for customers. Nor is the snafu over: Automotive News reports that another "batch of about 2,500 Explorers in need of repairs" arrived recently in Michigan, and sales through the first nine months of 2019 are down 31 percent. Sales dips during model changeovers are to be expected as old inventory gets sold down and new production ramps up, but this is different. Ford U.S. sales boss Mark LaNeve told Bloomberg earlier this month, "We’ve got adequate inventory in our stores. For Q4, availability wonÂ’t be an issue. WeÂ’ll be able to hit our stride with Explorer starting now." It's hard to know whether that's true, with thousands of Explorers still piling into Michigan; the batch AN mentioned represents about 5 days of sales during an average month in 2018, before the drawdown and interruptions hampered matters. And when Consumer Reports tested the Ford Explorer it bought this summer, it titled the review, "2020 Ford Explorer drives nicely but has many flaws / Poor interior quality and a high price overshadow the SUV's improvements."   On top of that, the AN piece mentions a new impediment to uncorking the Explorer sales stream: Worker strife in the Chicago plant. Allegedly, "Roving groups of workers are intimidating other employees, creating a hostile environment, the people said. ThatÂ’s driving up turnover and leaving some vehicle assembly unfinished, contributing to the company having to complete the work at the Michigan factory or at dealerships, the people said." Ford's been fined twice before for the same kinds of issues at its plants, once in 1999, again in 2017, but a spokesperson said Ford isn't aware of any such problems now. The pressure otherwise has got to be unpleasant for everyone on the Explorer team, from CEO Jim Hackett down. The automaker was meant to be "turning the corner" in April, but as of now, shares are down, credit rating is down, earnings are down.