Ever since Lincoln introduced the latest generation of the Continental and Navigator a few years ago, the company has been impressing us with new products that are stylish, luxurious, and have real names instead of ABC-this and XYZ-that.

The latest vehicle to get a real name is the all-new Lincoln Corsair, which replaces the MKC. Last week we had the opportunity to review a 2020 Lincoln Corsair Reserve, below are my thoughts on this newly redesigned compact luxury CUV.

2020 Lincoln Corsair Canadian Prices

For the 2020 model year, the Lincoln Corsair is offered in two trims, Standard and Reserve. The Standard trim starts at $44,700 and the Reserve starts at $50,500. With all the options ticked, I was able to option one out for $67,000 before taxes and destination charges.

Our review 2020 Lincoln Corsair had a sticker price of $68,925, this price included Destination & Delivery charges of $2,100 and the options below:

• Premium Leather Beyond Blue – $850
• Equipment Group 202A – $11,350
  • Elements Package
  • Heated/ventilated front seats
  • Heated steering wheel
  • Heated rear seats
  • Rain sensing wipers
  • Windshield wiper de-icer
  • Lincoln Co-Pilot 360 Plus Package
  • 360-degree camera
  • Active Park Assist Plus
  • Adaptive cruise control with TJA
  • Technology Package
  • Remote start system
  • Dynamic handling package
• All-weather floor mats – $175
• Beyond Blue Interior Package – $750
• Head-Up Display – $1,500
• Reserve Appearance Package – $1,600

The starting price is quite reasonable, but if you want all the bells and whistles, you have to pay. Which is the norm in most of the luxury car industry.

2020 Lincoln Corsair Engines

The 2020 Lincoln Corsair is offered with two engine choices. The base engine is a turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-4, producing 250 horsepower at 5,500 rpm and 280 pound-feet of torque at 3,000 rpm (on premium fuel), this is the same engine found on the top of the line 2020 Ford Escape, which the Corsair is based on. The second engine is a 2.3-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder, producing 295 horsepower at 5,500 rpm and 310 pound-feet of torque at 3,000 rpm (on premium fuel). Power is sent to all four wheels via an 8-speed automatic transmission.

The 2.0-liter engine is rated at 11.1/8.1/9.8 L/100 km in city/highway/combined driving, while the more powerful 2.3-liter engine is rated at 11.1/8.2/9.8 L/100 km, which not much of a fuel consumption penalty.

Driving

Our review Corsair came with the more powerful 2.3-liter engine, which is a blast to drive. It is fast off the line and the 310 lb-ft of torque will have you passing slower cars in no time. I was quite surprised by how nice the 4-cylinder felt, it’s powerful and quiet, even under heavy acceleration, you don’t hear much noise. The Corsair comes with five driving modes, but these not your regular modes, they have special names like Excite and Conserve, and regular names like Normal, Slippery, and Deep Conditions.

I wasn’t expecting much handling wise, since this is a cross-over, but it’s surprisingly good; our review car did come with the adaptive suspension. The suspension is soft but not floaty, driving on rough roads is no problem and smooth roads make the ride feel like you’re riding on air.

The transmission is responsive enough, although I wasn’t fully sold on the “Piano Key Shifter”. The steering feel is numb, but that’s the norm nowadays in most cars and even more so in CUV/SUVs.

Styling

The 2020 Lincoln Corsair is substantially better looking than the MKC, in my humble opinion. The MKC was an alright looking vehicle, but it didn’t feel premium. The Corsair, on the other hand, looks premium from the outside and inside, my first impressions were very positive when I saw it in person. It’s hard to explain, but to me the Corsair felt “European”.

The exterior styling in now in line with the rest of Lincoln’s line up, it could be mistaken for the bigger Nautilus, and looks like a baby Aviator, which looks like a baby Navigator.

Interior

Lincoln has really been “knocking it out of the park” with their interiors, which began with the company’s resurgence when they first introduced the Lincoln Continental a few years ago, the same approach was applied to the Navigator and other new Lincoln vehicles.

The interior on the 2020 Lincoln Corsair is an elegant place to be, with our optional blue interior, it felt very nautical-themed. The first thing I noticed was the “Perfect Position” 24-way front seats, which have become quite famous and I’m a huge fan of them. There is so much adjustability available in these seats that any sized driver should be able to find a comfortable seating position, after much tinkering with all the adjustments (tip: once you find the perfect position, make sure to put it in the memory for future use). These seats are heated and cooled and come with massage function.

Sitting in the driver’s seat, you’re greeted with a 12.3” digital cluster display (optional), which comes with crystal clear graphics and will display a variety of info depending on the driver’s needs, although I would have like more customizable layouts.

To the right of the steering wheel is an 8” LCD touchscreen, which seems quite small for some reason; maybe because it’s more of a square (4:3 ratio) vs a more rectangular shape (16:9 ratio)? The screen is responsive and has crisp graphics, the output from the 360 degrees cameras is clear. Below it is the “Piano Key Shifter”, which I wasn’t totally a fan of as I mentioned above, but maybe after using it for a while it’ll become normal? Below this section is climate setting, with a lot of buttons, which makes it very easy to set the temperature to your desired level without having to go through multiple screens on the infotainment system. Below this are is a storage area for phones and other knickknacks, our Corsair also came with wireless charging.

The interior on the 2020 Lincoln Corsair is extremely comfortable and great place to spend time in, it will make those long commutes bearable. There is a good amount of leg and head room for all occupants, even though this is a compact CUV. The interior is also very quiet and all the materials feel top notch. The interior is a much better execution compared to the MKC, which looked similar to Ford products, hopefully Ford starts using Lincoln’s interior styling elements in their upcoming vehicles, which there should be a lot of.

Technology/Safety/Convenience Features

The 2020 Lincoln Corsair doesn’t disappoint when it comes to luxury, technology, safety, and convenience features, albeit at a price. Our review 2020 Lincoln Corsair Reserve was the top of the line model with most of the available options, so we were quite pampered by all the bells and whistles, below is a list of all the features available on the 2020 Corsair:

• All-Wheel-Drive (AWD)
• Traction Control
• Hill Start Assist
• Auto Start-Stop Technology
• Auto Hold
• Adaptive Suspension
• Active Grille Shutters
• Dual-zone Climate Control
• Intelligent Access with Push-Button Start
• Piano Key Shifter
• Active Noise Control
• Lincoln Connect
• Lincoln Way App
• Auto-dimming Mirrors
• Frameless Interior Rearview Mirror
• Power Tilt/Telescoping Steering Column with Memory
• One-Touch-Up-Down Front and Rear Windows
• Remote Start System
• 12V Powerpoints (2)
• Lincoln Co-Pilot360
• 6.5″ (or optional 12.3″) Colour Cluster Display
• Post Impact Braking
• Phone As A Key (optional)
• Wireless Charging Pad (optional)
• 360-Degree Camera (optional)
• Heated Steering Wheel (optional)
• 110V/150W AC Power Outlet (optional)
• Evasive Steering Assist (optional)
• Forward Sensing System (optional)
• Reverse Brake Assist (optional)
• Smart-Charging USB ports (2)
• USB ports (2)
• SYNC 3
• 8″ LCD Touchscreen
• Voice-Activated Touchscreen Navigation System
• Revel Audio System with 14-speakers
• SiriusXM Radio
• 10-way (24-way optional) power front seats
• Heated front seats
• Ventilated front seats (optional)
• Heated rear seats (optional)
• Auto High Beam Head Lights
• Blind Spot Detection with Cross-Traffic Alert
• Hands-Free Liftgate
• LED Automatic Headlamps with LED Signature Lights
• Lane-Keeping System
• LED Taillights
• Panoramic Vista Roof
• Reverse Sensing System
• Easy Fuel Capless Fuel Filler
• LED Fog Lamps
• 19″ Wheels
• 20″ Wheels (optional)
• Active Park Assist Plus (optional)
• Adaptive Cruise Control with Traffic Jam Assist includes Stop-and-Go, Lane Centering and Speed Sign Recognition
• Rain-Sensing Wipers (optional)
• Pre-Collision Assist with Automatic Emergency Braking
• AdvanceTrac with Roll Stability Control
• Rear View Camera
• Tire-Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS)

Thoughts on the 2020 Lincoln Corsair

After spending a week reviewing the 2020 Lincoln Corsair Reserve, I was quite impressed with the vehicle; it’s a huge improvement on the MKC and gives consumers that are looking for a compact luxury CUV another option. People looking at the BMW X3, Audi Q5, Range Rover Evoque, and quite a few others definitely need to test drive the Corsair.