Lincoln Aviator

The Lincoln Aviator was a luxury mid-size sport utility vehicle (SUV) produced by the Ford Motor Company's Lincoln luxury division. It was introduced in for the 2002 model year, and production ended in 2005. The Aviator was built exclusively at Ford's St. Louis Assembly plant in Hazelwood, Missouri. Its direct competitor, which is also based on a light truck platform, was the Lexus GX. Other rivals include mid-size and full-size crossover vehicles such as the Cadillac SRX.

Prices for the Aviator ranged from US$39,940 for the base rear wheel drive (RWD) model to US$ 42,890 for the top of the line all wheel drive (AWD) model.

The 4.6 L DOHC Modular V-8 from the Ford Mustang was the standard engine. It produced 302 hp (225 kW) for the Lincoln version.

Lincoln played up the similarity to the Navigator full-size SUV with magazine ads that read, "Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Especially when it's yourself you're imitating." The Aviator seemed to have been met with relatively positive press coverage.^[1]

While the Aviator's styling borrowed cues from its big brother, the Navigator, it also looked similar to the very widespread Ford Explorer that it shared a platform with. Also working against the Aviator was that it was priced similar to the larger and relatively popular Ford Expedition, though the Ford SUV was marketed to themiddle class while the Lincoln was marketed to the upper middle class. Indeed,Car and Driver magazine said in a comparison test, in which the Aviator tied for fifth place, that only the car's high price and lack of certain features held it out of contention for the top spots.^[2]

Despite the initial praise, the Aviator was a poor seller for Lincoln—with many hypothesizing that its all-too-familiar looks were to blame—and was quickly discontinued in August 2005. Originally, the Aviator was supposed to be on hiatus for the 2006 model year and reappear based on the CD3 platform the next year. However, Ford scrapped the Aviator name, opting to instead name its official successor the MKX. The MKX was unveiled at the 2006 North American International Auto Show and went on sale in December 2006 as a 2007 model. The Aviator came with a standard V-8 engine while the MKX is equipped with Ford's Duratec V-6 engine. The Aviator also had a larger seating capacity as well as a larger towing capacity thus making the MKX not a true successor to the Aviator.

The Aviator was sold alongside the Mercury Mountaineer, another clone of the Ford Explorer. When the Aviator was discontinued, Ford offered luxury standard and optional equipment on the third generation Mountaineer to offer the luxury SUV buyers a choice between the capable Mercury and the Lincoln MKX.

The last Lincoln Aviator rolled off the assembly line on August 19, 2005

Sales[edit]

Calendar Year	American sales
2002[3]	1,856
2003	29,517
2004[4]	23,644
2005	15,873
2006[5]	1,711

Lincoln Aviator
Overview
Manufacturer	Ford Motor Company
Production	2002–2005
Assembly	Hazelwood, Missouri, USA
Body and chassis
Class	Mid-size luxury sport utility vehicle
Body style	5-door SUV
Layout	Front engine, rear-wheel drive / four-wheel drive
Platform	Ford U1 platform
Related	Ford Explorer Ford Sport Trac Mercury Mountaineer
Powertrain
Engine	4.6 L 32-valve, 4-valve-per-cylinderDOHC Modular V-8
Transmission	5-speed 5R55E overdrive automatic
Dimensions
Wheelbase	113.7 in (2,888 mm)
Length	193.3 in (4,910 mm)
Width	73.9 in (1,877 mm)
Height	71.9 in (1,826 mm)
Chronology
Successor	Lincoln MKX (officially) Lincoln MKT (full-size, seven-passengerCUV) Mercury Mountaineer third generation(luxury version of the Ford Explorer)