Lincoln's huge Navigator Concept has falcon-wing doors like the Tesla Model X
NEW YORK — Lincoln just unveiled a humongous Navigator Concept — complete with falcon-wing doors — that looks more Tesla than it does Lincoln. Though, I suspect that's the idea.
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Granted, Lincoln didn't directly crib Elon Musk's full-size SUV; it massaged some of its own DNA into the thing. That means, according to Lincoln, a lot of the design was inspired by luxury sailboats. While I don't necessarily see that, it does look yacht-y, if you know what I mean.
The Navigator Concept is powered by Lincoln's 3.5-liter, 400-horsepower V6. Lincoln claims the honking crossover utilizes "smart new technologies" to ensure its sure-footedness on the road.
While that's all well and good, what I find most interesting — aside from those falcon doors, of course — is the number of screens inside the cabin. It appears the four rear passengers have all been given their own widescreen display mounted in the headrest of the seat in front of them.
In the way back, Lincoln designers have developed a special cubby space for the driver's wardrobe, which is kinda neat. Certainly, Xzibit and the rest of the Pimp My Ride crew would be proud.
Intriguingly, Lincoln says drivers of the Navigator Concept can choose different drive modes that change many characteristics of the car, including steering, suspension and "noise levels." I presume, by noise levels it means exhaust sound and not how loud, say, road noise is inside the cabin.
Although I am intrigued, surprised and mildly delighted by this truck, I can't help but feel like it's missing something. Like I said in the intro, due to the falcon-wing doors, it definitely screams Model X. However, it's not quite as stylish or sexy as the Tesla.
The rest of the Navigator Concept is pretty pedestrian. Really, it feels like someone had a big, shoot-for-the-moon idea but was squashed and overruled by conservative higher-ups. And if Lincoln wants to rediscover its mojo, including design elements popularized by another brand isn't going to do it.
