I had a chance to climb around a redesigned 2015 Lincoln Navigator at the Chicago Auto Show, and it's so nice to sit it that it might be a more viable competitor to GM's full-size SUVs than we originally thought.
The seats have that absurd cushiness I remember from from the SUVs of my childhood; big, bountiful armchairs that you could get lost in among the cache of pens and quarters.
Most automakers have abandoned that in favor of firmer seats, the general consensus being hard seats are actually less fatigue inducing over long periods of time.
That may be true, but a Lincoln Navigator's natural habitat is the triangle between Whole Foods, Starbucks, and home. Even in LA traffic that doesn't usually equate to endurance-driving seat time.
I only sat in the Navigator for a few minutes, but I could have hung out a whole lot longer had I not been shooed out by Lincoln's detailing staff. Screw what "research" says about seat design.
The rear captain's chairs have a Range Rover style center console that's as robust as the one in front and even the third row, which electronically folds flat, wasn't unreasonable for my 6' self.
The vast expanse of flat wall in the front passenger's face is a little awkward and the gauge cluster is a little too Tron for me, but my butt and back were fans of their experience for sure.
If you're looking for your next enormous SUV, sit in the new Navigator before you brush it off over its brace-face. After all, you're going to spend more time in the driver's seat than you are staring at the grille.