‘2 Dudes’ take the new Lincoln Navigator for a huge ride
The resurrection of the storied Lincoln (F) brand is well underway. Say what you will about the odd, yet kinda funny Matthew McConaughey ads, but at least we’re talking about the brand.
The first big move for Lincoln was debuting the new Continental. It was a well-received new debut, and one we also praised in our review.
Now the 2018 Lincoln Navigator is here—and it couldn’t have come sooner. The outgoing model was long in the tooth, and Lincoln was hemorrhaging sales to Cadillac (GM) in the large, luxury SUV segment for years.
With the new model in showrooms this January, Lincoln just revealed the Navigator posted its best sales figures in a decade. And this comes on top of the Navigator being named the 2018 North American Truck of the Year at the Detroit Auto Show only a few weeks ago.
With all the accolades and sales success, it was time to see what Lincoln had in its hands. My colleague Rick Newman and I tested out the 2018 Navigator in Black Label Destination trim (yes that’s a mouthful), meaning the model contained polished mahogany veneers and red Venetian leather, all wrapped in a Burgundy Velvet Metallic paint job.
We were both quite impressed with the interior and exterior. Lincoln has done a fine job completely renovating the old, hulking, tired-looking outgoing model.
Under the hood, you can forget about the old-school V8. Instead you have a high output version of Ford’s EcoBoost twin-turbo V6, which pumps out 450 hp and 510 lb-ft of torque. Lots of power, but this is still a huge, three-row large SUV tipping the scales at over 5,600 pounds (estimated).
With a price starting at around $95,000 for Black Label Destination trim, Lincoln is squarely aiming at the Escalades and Range Rover drivers of the world. Does the new, massive, yacht-like Navigator make the grade as the big rig for those in the luxury SUV set? Watch our video review to find out.
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Pras Subramanian is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. You can follow him on Twitter and on Instagram.
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