Can a Lincoln Navigator Quell the Adrenaline Rush From a Ford Mustang GTD?

• The Ford Mustang GTD is an 815-horsepower track-focused sports car.
• The Lincoln Navigator is a massive luxury barge that focuses on quiet, comfy serenity.
• I sampled both during this year's Monterey Car Week — with my heart rate as a barometer.

I've always had a low resting heart rate. It's the sort of thing that raises the eyebrows of every medical assistant checking my vitals during my annual physical, and a condition that made me wonder if maybe I was a poor subject for a unique demonstration of the spectrum of Ford Motor Co.'s product offerings at this year's Monterey Motorsports Reunion.

The Reunion is an annual gathering of vintage, historic or otherwise notable race cars at Laguna Seca — one of my favorite events of the year at one of my favorite places on the planet. This year, though, was shaping up to be particularly exciting, as I was offered a hot lap around the track in the brand-new 815-horsepower Ford Mustang GTD with its pushrod suspension and massive adjustable rear wing.

But the experience wouldn't stop there. I was also offered an opportunity to sample Rejuvenate mode in a shiny new Lincoln Navigator, which, for the record, has 440 horsepower and an adaptive suspension but sadly not a hint of active aerodynamics.

Put your finger in this

It's normal to get fitted for some safety gear before heading out for an on-track demo at an event like this. Helmets are de rigueur, but before I was allowed on track in the Mustang GTD, I was subjected to a safety check of a different sort: a pulse oximeter.

This is the little finger clip you've probably experienced at the doctor's office, displaying your heart rate and the percentage of oxygen in your blood. An average resting heart rate for a man of my age is around 80 beats per minute. I clocked in at 68. 

"Is your heart rate usually a little low?" they asked.

It is, I said. In fact, you can usually find me ticking over at around 50 bpm. I guess I was excited for what was to come. 

Helmet fitted, I was ushered into the passenger seat of a jet black 2025 Mustang GTD, which should be able to get from 0 to 60 mph in just over 3 seconds. That's about how much time I had to buckle my seat belt and introduce myself to my driver before he hit the gas and sent us hurtling toward Turn 11, the tight left-hander that leads to Laguna's long, meandering front straight.

This was Jenson Altzman behind the wheel, a Ford Performance Junior driver and pilot of the Gradient Racing Mustang GT3 in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. He gave me a quick rundown of his racing résumé as we seemed to catch air over the crown on that front straight. As he slammed on the brakes for the subsequent Andretti hairpin, sending me lurching into my seat belt, he began a lap-long sales pitch of what sets this Mustang apart.

While deftly slinging the GTD through the corners and then down the iconic Corkscrew, Altzman sang the praises of the carbon-ceramic brakes ("they'll actually outlive the car"), the supercharged V8 ("power is certainly not an issue") and the rear pushrod suspension, which I could see working hard behind me thanks to a window thoughtfully placed in lieu of rear seats. All these elevate this everyman Mustang into something special, and it delivered a wild ride around an epic track.

But what did it do to my heart rate? After Altzman completed our lap, I staggered my way back into the paddock area while fumbling to get my helmet off. On went the pulse oximeter again. My new rate? 78. Not exactly Zone 5 cardio, but a significant increase for me.

Rejuvenation

The Lincoln Navigator was idling in the paddock waiting for my entry. With a few taps, I engaged Rejuvenate mode, shut the door and leaned back in the driver's seat. My heart may not have been pounding in my ears, but I was definitely still full of adrenaline, not only from the lap but also just in general from being in the pits. It was odd to now be cocooned in this giant SUV, which did an admirable job of blocking out the motorsports fanfare.

There are three Rejuvenate modes to choose from: Waterfall, the Elements and Aurora Borealis. I'd chosen the latter, and so the sweeping 48-inch-wide display that runs the full width of the dashboard started swimming with green lights, gradually evolving to a beautiful mountain sunrise. A few calming tones played through the 28-speaker Revel Ultima sound system, while the comprehensive massaging driver's seat reclined, then did its best to work away whatever stress points I'd gained while hanging on for dear life in the passenger seat of the GTD.

After 5 minutes, it was time to test again. The result? 67 bpm. No, not a massive change, to be fair, but lower than the start. More importantly, I felt calm and, yes, rejuvenated, despite having already spent the better part of four hours walking the track, including a hike up to the Corkscrew and back.

My ticker may not have deviated far from normal, but as the poor technicians who administered my last stress test can attest, it takes an awful lot to get my heart beating faster. Regardless, it was a sublime experience, from manic Mustang to masterful massage, proving that sometimes, like a hot sauna followed by a cold plunge or sweet fruit followed by sour cheese, the extremes of the spectrum are best sampled in sequence. 

Photos by Tim Stevens