2022 Lincoln Navigator First Drive: Watch the Road!?

lucid air Full OverviewOne of the best things I've done in my career was scoring the world's first drive review of the Lucid Air electric sedan. It was a big moment, one that I'm still amazed happened. That said, the headline-grabbing part of the two days I spent driving an Air Dream Edition R—that we drove from Los Angeles to San Francisco and then some on a single charge—didn't go the way I wanted. Oh, in terms of the sheer traffic and interest that first drive generated, it couldn't have gone any better. But to achieve the impressive range that we did, my co-driver (and Lucid CEO Peter Rawlinson) did the unimaginable. We went the speed limit. Oh, the humanity! Truth be told, going 70 in a 70-mph zone freaked me out, so I kept cranking it up to 72 mph. The thing made 966 horsepower, people! And 57 in a 55 sucks even worse. Fast forward 11 months and my assignment is to jet up to the Bay Area, grab the new 1,050-hp Air Grand Touring Performance, and drive it back to Los Angeles. All by myself. Speed limits? We don't need no stinking speed limits!About six months ago, after the Air took home our 2022 MotorTrend Car of the Year honors, Lucid gave me a quick opportunity to drive its Dream Edition P—that's the 1,111-hp version that's well and truly sold out. More interesting, however, was another car that was also there: a development mule of the Air Grand Touring. What was so special? The handling, specifically because of changes made to the front end. Driving the two back to back was fascinating. Sure, the Dream Edition P made more than 300 additional hp than the 819-hp Grand Touring, but I massively preferred how the latter felt. The improvement was apparent just leaving the parking lot.How the Lucid Air ImprovedTwo things made the difference. First, the front suspension received some new dampers. Second, the car's suspension software had been altered, adjusted, and improved. The story of the process is worth sharing. Lucid's director of chassis and vehicle dynamics, David Lickfold, Turo'd himself a 991.2 Porsche GT3 RS and spent a weekend driving the two vehicles. Just him, by himself, working until the wee hours of the morning. David would do a run in the Porsche, then one in the Lucid, pull over, plug his laptop into the latter, and tweak away. The results impressed the hell out of me. Naturally, I was looking forward to driving the 1,050-hp version of the Grand Touring.After a brief meeting with Lucid's head of design, Derek Jenkins, I left the company's Newark, California, headquarters with 87 percent of the Air GTP's battery charged. That meant I had a range of 388 miles, seeing as how the Performance variant of the Grand Touring only comes on 21-inch wheels and has an EPA range of 446 miles. The "regular" GT has a range of 469 miles on 21-inch wheels, or a whopping 516 miles on 19-inchers. As the crow flies, it's 359 miles from Lucid's headquarters to my house. However, my plan (that I'd spent about six adolescent seconds on) was to reverse the route we took the last time but go faster. Essentially, that meant heading down the 101 South until Paso Robles, taking advantage of an Electrify America location, then heading over to the 5 South for the bulk of the rest of the trip. What could possibly go wrong?Soul-crushing traffic, for one. (If I can diverge into a little provincial Hatfield and McCoy-style nonsense for a second, anyone from the Bay Area that says Los Angeles has bad traffic is projecting.) A drive that should have taken just over two hours to Paso Robles turned into a four-hour slog. By the time I got to the charging station, I was down to 162 miles of remaining indicated range. Which means I used 211 miles of range to cover 177 road miles. That's not actually bad, especially given I had the A/C set to "meat locker," the massaging seat going full bore, and the pretty damn great stereo cranked up to a high volume. And, yes, I also had the adaptive cruise (or Dream Drive as Lucid calls it) set to 84 mph and was enjoying occasional bursts into triple-digit territory when traffic would allow. Hey, the car makes 1,050 hp and I'm a doctor of automotive journalism, dammit. Besides, those Priuses parked in the left lane ain't gonna pass themselves.Charging-Station ChallengesThen the inevitable happened. All three chargers plopped incongruously in a Bank of America parking lot were occupied. I got out of the GTP and heard, "Hey, us and this car are ahead of you." I nodded at the Chevy Bolt owner and admired the Hyundai Ioniq 5 waiting behind him. Just then, the couple that was standing next to their VW ID4 threw their hands up in celebration. "It's working," the man said into his cell phone, presumably to the poor EA employee who'd just reset the charger, an all too common occurrence. "How'd you get it to work?" asked a flustered Kia Niro EV owner. Then a Ford F-150 Lightning pulled in and I made the decision to just go eat lunch. I had about 160 miles of range left, and there's a 350-kW Electrify America station a bit further south in Pismo Beach. The Electrify America app does tell you when all the chargers are in use; I stopped in Paso Robles specifically because the app had erroneously reported two chargers as available. Welcome to EV road trips using the nascent charging infrastructure.There's a back way to Pismo that offers a few miles of twisting roads, too, so I figured this would be the time to get some dynamic driving done. Look, the Air GTP is a monster. There's no other way to say it. To get its full capabilities, touch the on-screen button to activate Sprint mode to unleash full power and all 921 lb-ft of torque. The Air's default comfort drive mode is Smooth, a sportier mode is called Swift, and Sprint is like track mode. In Sprint, the suspension, braking, torque vectoring, throttle, and steering responses are all tweaked for maximum yeehaw. Not only can you use all 1,050 horses—a preposterous statement, I'm aware—but mein gott this thing sticks to the pavement when cornering. In fact, the more you treat it like a track car by using as much of the lane/road as possible, the happier and more impressive it is bounding from apex to apex. We've yet to weigh a Grand Touring Performance, but the "regular" Air Grand Touring clocked in at 5,266 pounds; figure this new car to be roughly identical. But, hand to heart, it feels like 1,000 of those pounds magically disappear when the Lucid is driven angry. Like a GT3 RS? Not quite, but perhaps like a 2.6-ton GT3 RS.Luxury LinerYeah, yeah—these Lucids make incredible power and Lickfold's chassis team has found a way to put it all down and make the big girl dance a jig. But Lucid vehicles are pitched as luxury machines. How's the luxury? I mentioned earlier that I had the air conditioning going full bore. This was because once I got south of a little farming town called Gonzales, the external temperature was 97 degrees Fahrenheit. For the time being all Lucid Airs have these massive glass roofs and in the sort of California sun I experienced on the drive, you just get cooked. I don't care how much UV-jamming, anti-solar whizbangery Lucid claims it's treated the glass with—it gets very warm. I've brought this up several times with several Lucid executives, including Rawlinson, and they acknowledge my point. The entry Pure model will only come with a steel roof, and the next-step-up Touring will make the glass canopy an option. So, that's nice if you want to save some dough and not have to wear a hat when it's sunny.Going beyond that peeve, the other negatives are minor. The lane departure warning graphic is overeager, the map takes five seconds before it fully loads, and sometimes the car needs 10 to 15 seconds to completely wake up when you first jump inside. But here's the awesome part about software-defined vehicles (SDVs). There's an over-the-air update (OTA) coming in a couple of months that will radically revise all of this. Just like that. Also, hot tip, when the integration's ready, owners will get Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, too.Enough with the bad stuff. The seats are incredible, not just because of the design and comfort, but because of how powerful the massage settings are. Like, dang man. A couple of the programs felt vaguely inappropriate—you have to love that. The materials are top shelf (especially the fabrics), the screens aren't too omnipresent, and the large lower screen can be stowed out of the way, which not only opens up a big, purse-size cubby but also reduces the amount of visual clutter fighting for your eyeballs' attention. I also love the physical temperature, fan speed, and volume switchgear. I find it luxurious not having to dig into a damn screen for every single little thing. Let's not forget that our buddy, Randy Pobst, just lost Pikes Peak because he couldn't easily access the Tesla Model S Plaid's fan.I pulled into the charging station in Pismo and—hooray!—found an open 350-kW charger. The car was showing 96 miles of range left. I plugged in and watched how the Lucid's 912-volt electrical architecture helps the battery just suck down the kilowatts. The juice was flowing into the car at speeds from 245 to 275 kW, adding 19 miles of range per minute. Five minutes later (another) Hyundai Ioniq 5 plugged in next to me and the charging speed was cut in half. Nineteen minutes later, the car had absorbed 205 miles worth of energy. The range read 301 miles as the battery was charged to 68 percent. Did I mention the Air charges faster than any other EV? I only had to drive about 175 more miles, so I figured I was good. Spoiler alert: I was good. I made it home with 49 miles of range left, plugged the GTP into my Rivian charger, and awoke to an 80 percent full battery (where'd I'd set the charging limit), meaning the GTP was good for 360 miles of driving. Well, if you're one of those go-the-speed-limit types.We don't give out our Car, Truck, or SUV of the Year trophies willy nilly. Despite what you may have heard, it's the most rigorous, repeatable, and labor-intensive process in the industry.  If a vehicle receives the Golden Calipers, it's earned them. Still, I always find it nice to go back and recheck our math. Spending a day with the Lucid Air Grand Touring Performance reminded me why I was so blown away by this machine that first time out. Nothing on earth has the power/range combo of this EV, and at this point in time, no other company's even close.Lucid isn't stopping there. It's creating a 360-degree luxury brand, where every aspect of the customer experience—from the website to the studios (Lucid-speak for showrooms) to the promotional photography—is curated in-house. The result is an epic brute in a suit, a car that effortlessly blends mid-century modern with a California ethos, a technological tour de force that obsoletes its competitors. And this is just the first Lucid—the Gravity SUV will be its second vehicle—and one that hasn't even been in production for a whole calendar year yet. I'm excited about what Lucid will dream up next. Hopefully I'll get to tell you about that one first, too.Looks good! More details?2022 Lucid Air Grand Touring Performance Specifications   BASE PRICE $180,500 LAYOUT Front- and rear-motor, AWD, 5-pass, 4-door sedan MOTORS 2 AC permanent-magnet electric, 1,050 hp/921 lb-ft (comb) TRANSMISSION 1-speed auto CURB WEIGHT 5,200-5,250 (mfr) WHEELBASE 116.5 in L x W x H 195.9 x 76.2 x 55.4 in 0-60 MPH 2.6 sec (MT est)  EPA CITY/HWY/COMB FUEL ECON 112/112/112 mpg-e (MT est)  EPA RANGE 446 miles ON SALE Now Show All

lincoln corsair Full OverviewThe 2021 Lincoln Corsair Grand Touring sounds like a losing proposition. Why pay Nautilus midsize SUV money for a compact SUV? Well, the Corsair's design for starters. The 2021 Lincoln Corsair's attractive curves gracefully slice through the luxury SUV noise—look elsewhere for angular or sporty styling. Now consider the Grand Touring model's plug-in hybrid powertrain, and the Corsair begins to make sense. This intriguing Lincoln is one refresh away from true excellence, but the Corsair Grand Touring already offers enough to steer open-minded shoppers away from Audi, Volvo, and Lexus dealerships.A Shrinking SegmentWith plug-in hybrid versions of the Mercedes-Benz GLC and BMW X3 discontinued for the U.S. market, only four players remain. Lexus burst onto the scene with the new NX450h+, Volvo has the long-running XC60 T8, Audi offers the Q5 TFSI e, and Lincoln sells the Corsair Grand Touring. All four deliver on the promise of plug-in hybrids—great efficiency like a hybrid, but with miles of electric-only range. Recharge them by plugging in at night, then set out the next day on EV-only propulsion once again. When it's time for a road trip, the SUV turns into a conventional hybrid; the gas-fueled engine takes you wherever you want to go. That's what makes plug-in hybrids so appealing. Despite their greater powertrain complexity, they can serve as an introduction to electric cars.If you aren't ready to try fully electric models, the Lexus NX350h also exists in this space. A standard non-PHEV hybrid, the NX350h undercuts the Lincoln and its direct competitors in price but can't match the flexibility a plug-in provides.Grand Touring = Best Performing Lincoln Corsair?Comfort and smoothness are higher priorities for Lincoln than sportiness, but who says you can't enjoy those qualities swiftly? The 2021 Lincoln Corsair Grand Touring (and essentially the unchanged 2022 model, which starts at $51,525 and would cost $62,125 similarly equipped) enter the plug-in compact luxury SUV segment with 266 hp from an Atkinson-cycle 2.5-liter I-4 and its electric motors. Acceleration to 60 mph takes 6.3 seconds, quicker than the base 250-hp Corsair 2.0 (7.3 seconds) and two tenths of a second ahead of the 295-hp Corsair 2.3. The Corsair Grand Touring's 6.3-second performance comes in hybrid mode; travel in EV-only mode, and responses are more leisurely unless you press the throttle all the way down—the Lincoln will then get the message and turn on the gas engine again.The 2021 Lincoln Corsair Grand Touring faces quicker competition outside of the Lincoln dealership. The last Volvo XC60 T8 Recharge we tested hit 60 in just 5.0 seconds. An updated model offered alongside the standard T8 Recharge version is said to shave a half second from that time, which would match a 2021 Audi Q5 plug-in hybrid we tested. The Audi hybrid reached 60 in only 4.5 seconds. As for the new NX450h+, a 5.5-second time means Lexus is still certifiably quick unless your other car is a Corvette or Tesla.What the Lincoln Corsair Grand Touring numbers don't tell you is how the engine sounds. For a luxury SUV, it's simply too loud. If you never drove the competition, you might never know to expect better, but of course we have—and we do. The Audi, for one, is quieter for around-town driving when the engine is on.Otherwise, the Corsair Grand Touring delivers on the unofficial Lincoln promise of quiet and comfortable cruising. An adaptive suspension is standard on the plug-in, and the ride quality is good, even on our test SUV's gorgeous 20-inch wheels. You'll experience slightly more body motions from the Lincoln than you might from the Audi, and the steering lacks feel. The Lincoln's planetary continuously variable transmission is smoother in everyday driving, however, and the brakes feel fine until the very end of their travel, when they pull back more than you'd expect. Drivers can get used to this Grand Touring quirk without much trouble, and no SUV in this four-vehicle segment has perfect brake feel. There's room for improvement, but Lincoln did a good job here.In 60-0-mph panic braking, the 2021 Lincoln Corsair Grand Touring comes to a stop in 115 feet, which compares to 131 feet for the 2022 Lexus NX450h+, 116 feet for the 2021 Audi Q5 plug-in, and 114 feet for the Volvo XC60 T8 Recharge. One note from our test team about the Lincoln: The brakes began to smell during this part of its time at the track, which involves four consecutive stops from 60 mph. In figure-eight testing, which evaluates braking, acceleration, handling, and the transitions in between, the Corsair fared surprisingly well for a luxury-first SUV. The Lincoln completed the MotorTrend course in 26.9 seconds at 0.64 g (average), far better than the 2022 Lexus NX450h (28.4 seconds at 0.57 g) and not much different from a 2020 Lincoln Corsair 2.3 (27.3 seconds at 0.67 g)On the road, the Corsair lacks the light and entertaining feel that defines the Ford Escape, one SUV the Lincoln shares its platform with. With Lincoln's focus on luxury, however, that's not a huge loss. Drive the Corsair Grand Touring sensibly, and the Lincoln remains in its element.Lincoln Range and Efficiency vs. Lexus, Audi, and VolvoRange is hugely important in a plug-in hybrid; models with greater range allow you more time to luxuriously glide along under electric power. The Lincoln has a 14.4-kWh lithium-ion battery pack and manages the second-best EPA-rated PHEV efficiency rating, behind only the Lexus. Electric-only range comes in at 28 miles, again second best to the class-leading Lexus. Volvo trails the pack in efficiency and EV range but is preparing another T8 Recharge model with a claimed 32 miles of EV range.Vehicle EV Range PHEV Efficiency, EPA Combined Efficiency as a Hybrid, EPA Comb. 2022 Lincoln Corsair Grand Touring 28 miles 78 mpg-e 33 mpg 2022 Lexus NX450h+ 37 miles 84 mpg-e 36 mpg 2022 Audi Q5 TFSI e 23 miles 61 mpg-e 26 mpg 2022 Volvo XC60 T8 Recharge 19 miles 57 mpg-e 25 mpg Show AllAfter your electric miles are up, the Lincoln's four-cylinder engine takes over seamlessly, and the luxury SUV operates as a hybrid. As with the competition, drive modes allow you to save your EV juice for later if you want. Put it all together, and the Lincoln can travel farther in EV or normal hybrid modes than the Audi and Volvo models presently rated by the EPA, but not as far as the Lexus.We just wish the Lincoln Corsair didn't have a worst-in-class 11.1-gallon gas tank. The tiny tank means you'll stop sooner on long highway road trips. But for day-to-day driving, the average luxury SUV customer will likely want the Lincoln's extra EPA-rated range over the electrifying speed of the Audi and Volvo. Once the updated XC60 T8 Recharge arrives in the U.S., the extra EV range may make it more of a player. The Corsair Grand Touring, however, undercuts that Volvo and others by thousands with its low-$50,000 base price. Our optioned-up test SUV carried an MSRP in the low-$60,000 range, like the Lexus and Audi but still below the Volvo.With the Lincoln, expect charging to take around 3.5 hours on a Level-2 240-volt charger, or 11 hours with a standard 110-volt outlet. As this is written, the Lincoln qualifies for a $6,843 tax credit. That's less than the $7,500 you can get for the Lexus and the 2022-model-year Audi but more than the Volvo's $5,419. (The new longer-range XC60 qualifies for the full $7,500.)Lincoln Luxury Inside Is a Mixed BagInside, the 2021 Lincoln Corsair's interior mostly justifies its $61,035 price, depending on what you seek from a luxury SUV. We still appreciate the Detroit Symphony Orchestra-sourced entry chimes and the soft material on the inside of the door pulls—the latter is a detail Lincoln and Lexus regularly get right. The center stack of controls might look intimidating at first, but over the course of our time with the SUV, we found them easy to use without even looking down. The Audi has a higher standard of interior quality, but more of the Lincoln's interior controls can be operated quickly, from volume and tuning to temperature and fan speed. That's thanks to the angle of the center stack—it's not completely vertical like so many other cars—and because of its mix of tabs and physical knobs.The biggest drawback inside isn't materials or the large Ford-sourced key fob. Rather, it's the tech. The Corsair's 8.0-inch screen isn't angled toward the driver the way the screens in the Audi and Lexus are, nor is it big enough to meet today's standards. No, bigger isn't always better, but in this case the size is a downer, whether you're using the split-screen display within Apple CarPlay or using the 360-degree camera system.Lincoln's 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster has style but could also use some updating. The configurable system's pared-back aesthetic looks premium, and there are even a couple plug-in hybrid-specific displays. Even so, we hope future Corsairs will display more characters in the audio display; with so much available screen space, the song title shouldn't cut off as often as it does. Elsewhere in this segment, we're not fans of the XC60's narrow, vertical infotainment touchscreen, but the 10.1-inch touchscreen in the Q5 and 14.0-inch touchscreen in the NX work well.In the Lincoln, you can sooth any tech frustrations with the available massaging seats. Thanks to the Corsair's lower base price, adding options still allows you—in terms of bang for your buck—to add even more options. That means it's easy to check the box for the massaging front seats and the superb 14-speaker Revel sound system. Also, despite the Corsair's smaller overall length compared to the others, it offers a good-sized 26.9 cubic feet of cargo space.The VerdictTry the Lincoln Corsair if you're comfortable driving a luxury vehicle that's no Lexus or Audi in terms of brand cachet. Where the Lincoln charts its own course in this segment is its clear focus on luxury, not sportiness—that's going to be a good thing for the right buyer. Although the Corsair Grand Touring lacks standout appeal in this foursome of SUVs, the Lincoln compensates for it with generally good scores almost everywhere else.Say it with us: There's no such thing as a perfect car. But if you can handle a small touchscreen and above-average engine noise, the Lincoln Corsair Grand Touring is worth considering, even against rivals from Audi, Volvo, and Lexus. We just can't wait for the refresh.Looks good! More details? 2021 Lincoln Corsair (Grand Touring AWD) SPECIFICATIONS BASE PRICE $51,485 PRICE AS TESTED $61,035 VEHICLE LAYOUT Front-engine, front/rear motor, AWD, 5-pass, 4-door SUV ENGINE 2.5L port-injected Atkinson-cycle DOHC 16-valve I-4 plus permanent-magnet elec motors POWER (SAE NET) 163 hp @ 6,250 rpm (gas), 67+48 hp (elec); 266 hp (comb) TORQUE (SAE NET) 155 lb-ft @ 4,500 rpm (gas), 173+111 hp (elec) TRANSMISSION Cont variable auto CURB WEIGHT (F/R DIST) 4,573 lb (54/46%) WHEELBASE 106.7 in LENGTH x WIDTH x HEIGHT 180.6 x 74.3 x 63.8 in 0-60 MPH 6.3 sec QUARTER MILE 14.8 sec @ 95.1 mph BRAKING, 60-0 MPH 115 ft LATERAL ACCELERATION 0.83 g (avg) MT FIGURE EIGHT 26.9 sec @ 0.64 g (avg) EPA CITY/HWY/COMB FUEL ECON 34/32/33 mpg (gas), 83/72/78* mpg EPA RANGE, COMB 430* mi ON SALE Now *EPA blended-PHEV (charge-depleting) mode testing, with vehicles set to their default drive and brake-regeneration modes. Show All

Nissan used the 2022 Chicago Auto Show to introduce a trio of concepts based on the 2022 Nissan Frontier compact pickup. All three truck concepts start with a crew cab format and essentially customize with Nissan and Nismo accessories, part of a larger goal of growing this side of the business.Arguably the most interesting part: the wheels on the 2022 Frontier Project 72X and Project Hardbody concepts that attracted a lot of attention.Nissan Frontier Project 72X SteeliesProject 72X is a modern take on the Datsun 720 pickup, introduced in 1979 as a bare-bones affordable truck, right down to its white steel wheels. We asked designer Hiren Patel, from Nissan Design America, how he resurrected the look for the Project 72X concept.Patel said the steel wheels date back to his original sketches. They looked cool so he started searching for some. "I was googling steel wheels from aftermarket stuff." To his surprise, he found a listing that showed the spare tire on the Nissan Xterra had the same bolt pattern. To his even greater surprise, he realized the Frontier used the same spare, he just wasn't aware of it since the tire is hidden under the truck. A happy find.The 17-inch spare (the original 720 had a 15-inch) was painted white, shod with PRO-4X tires, and were a perfect fit for the concept's simple, lean, fun and cheap theme—nothing outlandish. Project 72X was going for an old-school compact truck feel.Nissan Frontier Project Hardbody ConceptAnother concept, Project Hardbody, pays homage to the Nissan D21 "Hardbody" truck from the '89s and '90s. Again, Patel sketched a wheel design lightly lifted from the iconic 15-inch block-style wheels on the original Hardbody. "I wanted that look, it was so instantly recognizable, and make it modern."The designer started off looking at photos of the monoblock wheel—there were no original company blueprints to work with. "I wanted the look but did not want to copy it exactly," so maybe the lack of exact reference wasn't so bad.Patel bought himself a 1988 Pathfinder, a first-generation two-door version of the SUV, and it had the same 15-inch wheels. He added them to the concept sketch and the result was polarizing. Not everyone supported it. Patel persisted and when the first foam model was created with the three-spoke wheels, the doubters came onboard.For the concept, the design was for a larger and wider 17x8 inch wheel, designed using 3D modeling software and then milled from billet aluminum in the shop in the design studio. Six of them were made. One was sent for testing to test its strength and viability; the other five are on the concept with 33-inch tires.Will any of them be made available to the public? Patel says Nissan will use public feedback on all three Frontier concepts—the third is an overlander called Project Adventure—to help decide whether to put any of the concepts into production. Smart dealers might want to order extra spare rubber and invest in a can of white spray paint.