Lincoln Aviator crossover to take flight in 2019

NEW YORK -- Lincoln hopes a new three-row crossover, the Aviator, can help ignite sales again -- this time in the popular large luxury utility segment.

It will become the brand's fourth SUV or crossover and debuts as Americans continue to forgo sedans in favor of light trucks. 

The brand introduced what it called a "production preview" of the Aviator on Wednesday, ahead of the New York auto show here. The vehicle sits on a new rwd platform and comes in either gasoline or plug-in hybrid form.

Executives say the Aviator -- a sibling of the Ford Explorer -- is the "epitome" of Lincoln design, and the vehicle's styling includes an updated mesh grille described as an inverse of the face worn by the Navigator, Continental and other Lincolns. It will come standard with the brand's new Lincoln Co-Pilot360 suite of driver-assist technologies.

The Aviator, scheduled to go on sale in 2019, is expected to retain most of the preview model's features.

"The Aviator is really the best expression of how elegant Lincoln can be," Joy Falotico, who became head of Lincoln this month, told reporters. "It's the most warm, human and personally crafted vehicle we've done to date."

The Aviator nameplate, which Lincoln discontinued in 2005, returns at an important time for the brand. Lincoln is trying to reach 300,000 global sales by the end of the decade and will rely heavily on utility vehicles to get there. In addition to the recently redesigned Navigator, freshened MKC and upcoming Nautilus (which replaces the MKX), Lincoln will add another utility vehicle, besides the Aviator, by 2020.

"It's time for Lincoln's next act," Falotico said. "For us it's about delivering the vehicles our customers want, no matter what the silhouette is going to be."

With the Aviator, Lincoln is targeting new millennial customers in an increasingly popular segment.

Medium-sized luxury utilities account for a quarter of all luxury SUVs, Lincoln says, making it the largest segment of the premium vehicle market. Lincoln said automakers sold more than 585,000 medium utilities last year, and they expect the segment to grow 20 percent over the next few years.

The Aviator will come standard with a twin-turbocharged gasoline engine. A plug-in hybrid variant, which uses the same engine, is optional. Officials declined to discuss battery range or performance figures.

Inside, the Aviator will offer the same 30-way adjustable seats used on the Navigator and Continental, and a 12-inch digital cluster, Wi-Fi and multiple charging ports will be standard.

Lincoln will debut a "phone as a key" feature on the Aviator. Customers can download the Lincoln Way app and use their smartphone to lock, unlock and start their vehicle. If the phone's battery dies, Lincoln says a backup pass code can be entered on the exterior keypad to enter the vehicle, and the center touch screen can be used to start the engine.

Lincoln Co-Pilot360 comes with automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection, blind spot information system with cross-traffic alert, a lane-keeping system, reverse camera and auto high-beam lighting.

A reverse brake assist system, which automatically brakes if an obstacle gets in the way while backing up, also is offered.

Ford officials declined to comment on production details, but the Aviator is expected to be built at the Chicago Assembly Plant, which also makes the Explorer and the slow-selling Taurus sedan.

Lincoln said its design team looked to birds, planes and ballerinas as inspiration for the Aviator. The vehicle is meant to mimic the in-flight gesture of planes, with the rear angled lower than the front.

It features a long, horizontal undercut line running on each side from headlight to taillight. The side body panels feature a pronounced curve that adds depth depending on the viewer's perspective.

David Woodhouse, Lincoln's design director, said he wanted the Aviator to be elegant, not aggressive.

"Too much in the marketplace these days we see this feeling of attack from our competitors," he said. "We don't want to be about attack, we want to be about seduction. We want to be more about Monica Bellucci than Predator."