[Haichuan Pinche] Piloting all the way and exploring the unknown scenery. Lincoln Navigator's Long-axis Travel Notes in Northwest China

In May this year, at the end of the epidemic, I made an appointment with my friends in the northwest. However, due to repeated epidemics, the trip was postponed to September. But what is a trip to Qinghai? Or Gansu? After careful consideration, Zhang, a friend far away from Zhangye, finally gave it to Amway. He told me that it would be boring for you to go where everyone goes. Why don't you come to Zhangye and take you to some undiscovered places and become famous? This is a yearning for an unknown journey.

To go to the northwest, it is natural to choose a suitable self-driving model, and a four-wheel drive SUV is the basic requirement. Of course, if it is a full-size SUV of a luxury brand, it will be the perfect choice. When I learned that Lincoln happened to have one. When the pilot's long-axis version had a test drive, I did not hesitate to book it. Although I may have to run a few more miles, I really can't resist the temptation of such a luxury SUV with the largest size available in China.

In fact, I've always liked driving Lincoln Navigator, a full-size SUV, because they are spacious enough and have a lot of space, and I won't feel wronged if I stay in the car for more than ten hours. In addition, most of them are comfortable and quiet, and the comfort of long-distance driving is the most important; The most important thing is that the engine power is strong enough, even if cruising at high speed, the engine speed will not be too high, and it will run fast and quietly; Of course, their suitcases are also very big, which can hold all the luggage needed for a long journey and everything that can be bought at any time on the road.

A traffic accident happened in Lu Yu before coming out of Hongqiao Airport and Shanghai boundary. The traffic in front of me is endless, which just gives me a chance to enjoy the Ruiwei audio equipped with the long-axis version of the navigator. To tell the truth, at present, every Lincoln stereo is good, not to mention the top long-axis navigator, 20 speakers, 1 100 watt surround sound. At least, I have unusually harsh ears for the sound and have no complaints.

With wonderful music, time always flies. At present, the traffic is gradually dispersed and we are heading for our destination again. From Shanghai all the way west, we arrived at Zhangye. Of course, it is impossible to reach more than 2000 kilometers in one day. We plan to have a rest in Xi 'an, the ancient capital. This road is mainly expressway, which is very suitable for full-size SUV cruising such as pilot's long-axis version. The power of this car is absolutely commendable. This Lincoln Navigator long-axis version uses the same 3.5-liter turbocharged gasoline V6 engine as the basic version, with a maximum horsepower of 387 HP and a peak torque of 680 N? Meters, even though the long-axis version of the car body is heavy, but due to the extensive use of aluminum alloy materials, even the 5.6-meter-long car body, the weight of the long-axis version of the navigator is controlled within a very reasonable range, so the acceleration performance is beyond my expectation. I thought that the 3.5 machine would not perform well when driving such a huge body, but the actual performance was really refreshing.

Of course, it must be mentioned that Lincoln has done an excellent job in isolating and suppressing engine noise. I still remember the test drive of the old pilot: most of the engine sounds, including the noise of the electronic fan, will be transmitted to the carriage, but for the one in front of me, I can hardly hear any sound from the engine compartment, which is completely in line with Lincoln's emphasis on "private quiet cockpit." Here, I want to give a compliment to Lincoln's NVH engineer.

On the night of shooting outside Xi 'an Bell Tower, I took a good look at the long-axis version of the navigator. The new style of Yao Xing 3D water tank grille is the unified symbol of the new Lincoln family. The 22-inch wheel hub and hidden B, C and D columns design, together with the blue body, make it the sexiest full-size SUV in the night sky. However, no matter how hard the designer tries, he can't hide the oversized body of the navigator's long-axis version. Its body length has exceeded 5.6 meters and its width and height are infinitely close to 2 meters. Against the background of the bell tower, the navigator's long-axis version looks big, not stupid, and more elegant. I think even if Tang Huang Ming is near-re-embodiment, I'm afraid I have to choose this car as the "imperial chariot".

With it on the road for a few days, I have to admire that the space of this car is really spacious. The body length of 5657 mm is 302 mm longer than that of the standard navigator, and the wheelbase of 3342 mm is also 230 mm longer than that of the standard navigator. Therefore, it is not an exaggeration to say that its carriage space is the largest on the market at present. The two independent seats in the second row are invincible, which not only refers to their almost luxurious space position, but also can control many functions such as entertainment system, air conditioning system, seat heating and ventilation, sunroof sunshade opening and closing through the control panel on the central armrest box, which is almost comparable to the existence of the first-class rear seats in Mercedes-Benz Maibakh.

Of course, the place that really reflects the space advantage of this long-wheelbase full-size SUV is actually the luggage space behind the third row and the third row. To say how much space there is in the third row, I can only say that its spatial index appropriately exceeds the second row of medium-sized SUV; As for the luggage space, all the luggage of three people can be properly loaded without putting down the third row of seats. The minimum luggage space of 722 liters is larger than the maximum luggage space of many mid-size cars. This is the charm of full-size long-axis SUV. On the way, no matter how much luggage you took when you set out, no matter how many things you bought along the way, it can bring you back.

After arriving in Zhangye, our first stop was the ancient Great Wall in Ming Dynasty. In Gansu's generation, the ancient Great Wall is not scarce and can be seen in many places, but it will take some time to find a well-preserved one. Unlike the ancient Great Wall near Beijing, which is majestic, solid and tall, most of it is built of rammed earth, which is far from our impression of the Great Wall. However, the arid climate in the northwest has kept them alive for hundreds of years without collapse, and it is extremely real because there is no modern restoration.

While the photographer was taking pictures, I took a close look at the navigator's long-axis car. There is no doubt about the consistent American luxury style, because at this level, Lincoln does not need to learn from anyone, because it is the most luxurious brand. Even so, I can see that the new navigator hopes to re-establish his height in the full-size luxury SUV class and strive to win the favor of more consumers in China.

The whole set of interior in the cab is showing its avant-garde luxury concept in the best way: fashion but not impetuous, luxury but not kitsch, and the materials used are all great. Three different textures of top Napa leather, silky piano paint panel and soft Alcantara leather roof fabric are boldly combined. The 10 inch touch screen on the center console meets the needs of the times, and all kinds of buttons and knobs are much less than the previous generation, which should be about half less visually. The standard seat can be electrically adjusted in 30 directions. No matter what your body shape is, you will soon find a driving position that suits you. Once I find a suitable position, this comfortable and inclusive feeling will make me never want to leave this seat again, not to mention the dying functions of heating, ventilation and massage, which will make my old belt suffering from lumbar disc herniation get infinite care during long-distance driving.

Not far from where we filmed the ancient Great Wall, there was an almost abandoned ancient village that aroused our interest. Lao Zhang, the tour guide, told me that this is a good place he discovered a few years ago-Xiakou Town. Although it is dilapidated now, historically, it is a very important post station of the ancient Silk Road and the only place where the ancient Central Plains passed to the western regions. It has a cool throat, locked in Jinchuan, and its military geographical position is very dangerous. Unfortunately, most people have moved away now, and the last few households in the ancient village have moved to a new village not far from here. The former prosperity of Xiakou has long since ceased to exist, but the prosperity and noise of a thousand years ago can still be felt above the gatehouse at the entrance of the village.

From the dilapidated ancient village to the comfortable carriage, there is a feeling of crossing the ancient and modern in an instant. The ancients took the Silk Road by camel. Now, we have the long-axis version of Lincoln Navigator. A huge body like the Navigator's Long Axle Edition is just suitable for the sparsely populated northwest region. In contrast, the long-axis version of the driving navigator is somewhat stretched in crowded cities such as Beijing, Guangzhou and Shenzhen. However, no matter where it is, it is the focus of attention.

During the next two days in Zhangye, we drove nonstop to several places, including Le Kang Grassland, an alpine meadow that is very similar to Nalati, and the special-shaped valley that combines Danxia and Ya Dan landforms. On the whole, there are many surprises. Especially on the winding mountain road into the leisure grassland, I found the other side of the navigator's long axis version.

After entering the valley of Le Kang grassland for several kilometers, I began to regret it, because this road is full of mountain roads, winding and narrow, and full of sharp and slow bends. Walking on it with the long-axis version of the navigator is very worrying. If I were driving a traditional American full-size SUV at this time, I believe I would explain it in ten corners, but now I am driving a new generation of long-axis navigator, sitting on the first all-aluminum lightweight body in the field of American full-size SUV, plus six modes of driving selection system, which can make me more confident to deal with the next 100 corners.

The previous generation navigator was a steel body with girders, with a light and net weight of 3 tons. Although this generation has retained the girder structure, the body embedded in it has been changed to aluminum, saving hundreds of kilograms alone. In addition, the girder connection methods of the two generations of cars are slightly different. The old model adopts the traditional soft link mode, and the new model adopts the rigid link mode, which is similar to the semi-loaded structure of Discovery 3 and Discovery 4 in earlier years. It not only continues the high rigidity of the non-loaded body, but also takes into account the good handling performance of the loaded body, killing two birds with one stone.

Secondly, in order to make customers in China like this model better, engineers are allowed to use stiffer suspension and spring, as well as steering pumps and valves that can bring more acute steering feeling. The end result of this is a more positive and important impact on steering. Walking on the mountain road, you can feel that the long-axis version of the navigator shows a tendency of oversteering when turning slowly. This feature will make the cart more sensitive, and when the speed is accelerated to a certain extent, it will become understeer, which can enhance stability and safety. This generation of navigators have a reliable sense of control when dealing with sharp turns and slow turns. Unlike the previous generation, they are timid when turning sharply, and the driver's self-confidence is obviously enhanced.

In addition, its body roll is well controlled, and the new navigator can turn in a balanced posture that does not match his size and weight. If that's all, it's too small. In the braking part, the long-axis version of the navigator also performed very well, and will never nod as frequently as other large American full-size SUVs. Excellent body handling ability and braking performance make the navigator have the flexibility comparable to the SUV with smaller body size, which is quite different from the traditional American SUV in our impression. The handling performance of the new generation models has been improved obviously.

In addition to feeling the handling performance of the pilot's long-axis version, after driving for so long, I found that as a driver, I never missed any beautiful scenery, the space and vision of new pilots, which I have to mention. The interior landscape of a full-size SUV is always unique. The height difference between the seat and the window is just right, neither too high nor too shallow, which just allows you to look up and enjoy the scenery outside the window. In other words, it's hard for you to feel similar on other SUVs. This unique feeling has not changed since the first generation of navigators.

The biggest surprise of this trip came from the Alien Valley in Sunan County, which is only a few tens of kilometers away from the most famous colorful Danxia scenic spot in Gansu, but because there is no paved road, you can only take the wild road to come in. In this small valley, most of the unique landforms in the northwest are integrated, such as Danxia, Rongrong and Ya Dan, which are very similar to the miniature mixed versions of several national geological parks. The most rare thing is that the original scenery has been preserved here, and no roads and observation platforms have been built artificially. Therefore, you can not only drive in, but also enjoy the beautiful scenery along the way on foot in the valley, which is definitely worth staying for a whole day and even camping in it.

Walking on the unpaved road in the special-shaped valley, the pilot's long-axis version will have a unique sense of heaviness, which comes from the two thick girders under the car. All SUVs with girders can be classified as hard-core, but compared with lexus LX, which emphasizes off-road, the long-axis version of the navigator actually pays more attention to road driving performance, but it cannot be said that the long-axis version of the navigator is not competent for field work. In addition to the beam to ensure the strength of the car body, the pilot has six driving modes. In addition to the standard, sports and energy-saving modes, the other three modes are used to deal with off? Road conditions, such as wet and slippery mode, are suitable for waterlogged roads and sand, complex mode is suitable for snow or mud, and finally low-speed climbing mode is used to deal with some difficult and steep sections. I also forgot to mention that the traction capacity of this car is as high as 3.9 tons, so hanging a spacious and comfortable RV and taking a trip when you leave may be the true meaning of driving a long-axis version of the navigator.

The days on the road always pass very quickly. Before we have a good time, we should go back. On the way back, on the outskirts of Yinchuan, we met a buddy driving a plug-in hybrid version of Lincoln Flyer. From our rearview mirror, we can see that he has followed us for several kilometers. When we stopped in the service area, he naturally stopped the car and came over to talk to us. "Can I have a look inside this car?" "Sure" "It's so beautiful, I like the interior very much" "How much is this car?" "65,438+0,289,000 yuan, the price of online car rental", "That's not expensive, I thought it would cost two million" and "Try to exchange mine for this in two years" ...

After a short talk, I also got to know some about Lincoln owners in China. This may explain a phenomenon, that is, as the owner of Lincoln, he has a good brand loyalty, maybe he likes Lincoln's own luxury, maybe he is used to being served by Lincoln, or maybe it is other reasons. In short, once he becomes a consumer of this brand, it is difficult to take care of other brands. This reason may be difficult to explain clearly in one or two sentences, but it can be seen that even if Lincoln's time in China is not too long, it does not affect his unique position in the eyes of China consumers.

Now in China, consumers who are willing to spend millions of dollars on a car must be thinking the same question. What kind of car can you drive to make you feel good? If it's just to make people around you think you're doing something. There may be many such choices. Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Audi and Porsche can all play the same role, but for a small number of people, they prefer a low-key feeling, but they also like different luxury lifestyles and enjoy themselves better. Then the brand Lincoln and the long-axis navigator are just right for such a group of people.

This article comes from car home, the author of the car manufacturer, and does not represent car home's position.