In the luxury car market, most of the competition in the A-class, B-class and even C-class car segments belongs to the "internal competition" of the BBA, especially in the high-end fields such as A-class and B-class, most of the things that can be left for the Japanese and American systems are left with cold residues, and only Lexus ES can steal a certain space to compete with it in the C-class market with a positioning slightly lower than that of the same level of BBA.
It is also this kind of mainstream market competition situation that makes us think that from brand power to product power, American and Japanese luxury models are difficult to achieve and BBA. However, in addition to the three types of "volume segments" mentioned above, brands such as Lincoln and Lexus can play a tie with the BBA in the top level of the competition, such as the Lincoln Navigator of the full-size SUV model we want to see here.
In the past one or two years, Lincoln, which settled in Chang'an, has introduced three different SUV models of adventurer, navigator and aviator in the domestic end of the joint venture, and their Chinese name is actually the successor of the navigator.
As early as 2005, when the Lincoln brand was first displayed to Chinese consumers in the showroom of Ford Motors, the 2004 navigator appeared in our field of vision, when the navigator with a length of more than 5.2 meters had already carried reverse images, cruise control, rear LCD screen and car TV, and was presented with a 5.4L V8 engine, just reversing images, car TVs, body lengths, large-displacement eight cylinders, etc. It is enough to make the 2006 Mercedes-Benz GL Class ashamed of itself.
Exterior design
Now the navigator in the lens is the third time to enter China, and its price threshold has reached 1.098 million yuan, which is nearly 100,000 yuan higher than the BMW X7.
Compared with the BMW X7, Mercedes-Benz GLS class to maintain the family design, the design difference between the navigator and the pilot is actually more significant, the iconic sunken shield grille is the symbol in the front of the car, the staggered middle net is also integrated with the brand logo, with the double standard composed of the edge of the hood, which repeatedly emphasizes the brand recognition at the same time, will also highlight the flagship identity of the vehicle.
But in addition to this family-style shield logo, the Navigator's split headlights appear wider than the same SUV deflector in terms of long-range light cavity, and lincoln chose a more straight and concise approach to the through bumper, chassis encirclement and body line, all of which are working hard to strengthen the vehicle's hardcore body style.
From another point of view, in addition to the flat straight lines of the vehicle, its suspended roof structure and thick through taillights will ensure that the body is visually "stable and not bloated".
Dimensions
What can be seen is that whether it is the BMW X7 or the Mercedes-Benz GLS Class, they are lagging behind the navigator in terms of size specifications.
The body size of the Lincoln flagship reached 5355/2073/1937mm, and the relatively regular body structure of the frame structure made this already dominant appearance appear more and more massive. On this basis, the navigator also provided a long wheelbase version, 5657/2073/1934mm of the body is difficult to have a vehicle out of the right, 3342mm wheelbase will also surpass Rolls-Royce Cullinan in one fell swoop, so that BMW X7, Mercedes-Benz GLS class in front of it into a "petite" cute.
Interior design and on-board configuration
The luxury of the cabin has always been the top priority of the flagship SUV, and the United States is dominant in this regard.
The layout of the center console is known for its practicality, the 10.0-inch touch screen is relatively small, but it is pushed to the very top of the center console, and from this touch screen, the air conditioning outlet, common function buttons, the air conditioning console and the "double door" wooden armrest box form a visual penetration here, dividing the main and passenger cockpits into two. And through the left and right front guard decoration table is also not lacking in a sense of design, with a large number of decorative walnut boards or mercerized nickel trim, 7-color atmosphere lights, multi-zone automatic air conditioning and other accessories and functions, the grade in the cabin is indeed not low.
In addition, the navigator also has a 30-way adjustable premium leather seat, and the front row is covered with massage, the rear seat provides LCD multimedia; the leather electric steering wheel is also covered with full power memory, the exterior mirrors, sunroof, pedals are all electric; plus the 20-speaker Revel Ruiwei sound, front multi-layer sound insulation + rear windshield and active noise reduction system, this luxury does make the Ashkenazi ashamed.
Unfortunately, the pilot's assisted driving system is really not good, only up to the level of L2 automatic driving, in the domestic 200,000 yuan can be easily done.
Powertrain and chassis suspension
Mechanical hardware, the Navigator is equipped with a 3.5T V6 twin-turbo engine (285kW/680N·m) and matches the 10AT gearbox jointly developed by Ford and GM in the transmission, and the basic power specifications have been higher than the BMW X7 xDrive40i and Mercedes-Benz GLS 450, especially the peak torque of up to 680N·m and the small inertia turbine in the twin turbo, which will allow the vehicle to achieve a better start.
More importantly, although the current navigator is not as full of lateral stabilizer bars and air spring suspension accessories as more than a decade ago, the independent suspension system composed of front double wishbones + rear multi-link rods is still supported by a variable suspension system, and the overall control feedback is not at all like driving a big car; and more specially, the navigator is still made of non-load-bearing body structure, the advantages of the girder and the overall rigidity are incomparable to BMW, and the multi-road driving pleasure will therefore become a major advantage.
Write at the end
The 2020 Navigator we see today is the fourth generation of the family, and although it has not become a retractable pedal, gull-wing door opening and closing "Transformer" like the concept car at the 2016 Los Angeles Auto Show, it can occupy a significant advantage on different levels in front of the new BMW X7 or the old Mercedes-Benz GLS class. Although Lincoln's brand power, that is, market recognition is far less than the BBA, the navigator can be in the hard position, so that the invisible rich who understand the car and want to keep a low profile are loved, which proves the comprehensive strength of the vehicle.