2020 Lincoln Aviator

Price as tested: $91,000

Engine/Power/Torque: 3.0 Twin Turbo with Electric Assist. 494 horsepower/630 ft/lbs!!!!

0-60: 5.0

Text/Photographer/Video: Yousef Alvi and Lincoln

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It’s amazing what a week can do.  Last week, I reviewed the Cadillac XT6 and it was almost great.  Just a few issues kept it from being a class leader but I was convinced this was close to being a segment defining vehicle…until I drove this 2020 Lincoln Aviator. This is the new segment king.  This is the 2020 Lincoln Aviator!

The Aviator nameplate has been used off and on by Lincoln for decades.  It was meant to be the baby brother to the Navigator and it showed. Not quite good enough was it’s unfortunate mantra, an inbetweener in every sense of the word and it showed. Not quite powerful enough, spacious enough or luxurious enough. It just existed off and on throughout the years. That changed this year.

A new found energy is bringing Lincoln back to life. It started off with the brilliant redesign of the Navigator a few years back and it leads to this Aviator. A complete brand overhaul is in our midsts. No longer is Lincoln going to be just badge engineered Ford vehicles. No longer is Lincoln going to be peddled just to fleet agencies without a care about the modern consumer. No longer is Lincoln going to be a punchline. They are serious about building class leading vehicles and it shows.

Yes it’s still a platform mate to the Explorer but it is no longer compromised by marketing forces.  It is a solidly built and engineered vehicle.  It’s one of the very few three row crossovers that feels special.  What makes it so special?  

It’s a vehicle with very few compromises.  

• You want space?  It has it in all three rows.  

• You want cargo room along with space?  It has 18.3 cubic feet behind the third row

• You want efficiency?  It will drive up to 45 mph on all electric alone.  

• Okay how about performance?  Almost 500 hp, 630 ft/lbs of torque…does that answer your question?  

• Yeah but it’s a Lincoln…how is the build quality?  Honestly, one of the best out there.  

Let’s concentrate on that last part for a second.  Build quality.  It is the Achilles heel for any American manufacturer. Their interiors always have a whiff of being great but the good enough ethos would always win out.  Case in point, the XT6.  Heavy, solid controls.  Beautiful finished interior and quiet as a tomb at any given speed…BUT exposed bolts going into the third row.  And capacitive controls that just don’t work.  Along with the misleading 400 badge…all add up to that good enough philosophy. Good but not great.

The Aviator on the other hand, eschews the good enough ethos. It’s going for greatness and it shows.  Interior is not just good for a Lincoln.  It’s not just good for an American brand.  It’s good for a Lexus.  It’s good for a Mercedes!  It’s phenomenal.  Taking the crown of ‘the best American interior I have ever sat in’ from the XT6 the Aviator doesn’t just beat it…it’s obliterates it. 

The doors click open like a vault in Fort Knox, the controls feel heavy and expensive, the wood looks and feels luxurious and the quality of the leather on the dash is better than some seats in its competitors.  It’s outstanding.  

That doesn’t stop on the second row either.  You have a full color, high resolution, touch screen display for your HVAC, entertainment and seating controls.  The materials are still first rate and seats are supremely comfortable.  Third row seating is a bit flat but it will fit a full size adult with no issues.  Overall the interior is class leading.  

Styling wise, the Aviator is modern, graceful, svelte and sporty all at the same time.  It’s everything the Navigator isn’t.  The Navigator is designed to flaunt road presence and driveway bravado.  The Aviator is designed to ooze out athleticism, style and luxury.  

That carries on to the way the Aviator drives.  It the perfect mix…of well everything.  It’s fast (like stupid quick fast) but the speed will quickly turn into luxurious velocity.  It will handle decently well but not at the risk of ruining the ride quality.  The Aviator is not trying to be an AMG or a Porsche Cayenne but it is also not trying to be a boring at the same time.  The Aviator is designed to offer the perfect amount of almost hilarious performance, wrapped in a sumptuous and beautifully styled package that doesn’t scream at you.  It just coddles you.  It envelopes you.  It surrounds you with ease along with performance.  

It’s everything the XT6 wasn’t.  It’s everything the XT6 is but better.  It’s everything that Lincoln needs to be today.  It’s the new segment leader.  It’s the new class leader.  It’s the new 2020 Lincoln Aviator.