Nautilus is a good name. MKX not so much. So we applaud Lincoln for using the midmodel refresh of their midsize SUV to change its name to Nautilus for the 2019 model year.

And we further applaud the promises that all letters-only names will be phased out. MKC will be short-lived, and MKZ is also on its last legs. "We'll do it with other products in the future, one at a time," said Robert Parker, head of Lincoln global sales and marketing. "A few years from now we won't have letters."

For years Lincoln has been criticized for its naming strategy. Even though executives such as Lincoln President Kumar Galhotra knew there was backlash, he was unprepared for the kudos the brand received when the MKS full-size sedan replacement brought back the Continental name. The name change resonated well in the U.S., but Lincoln's alphabet soup was particularly challenging in China, where Ford started selling the luxury brand a few years ago. Sales have grown from 11,670 in 2015 to 32,588 last year and should reach about 55,000 this year, Galhotra said.

"We understand how much people like names," Parker said. It hit home when he was on an airport shuttle in Detroit and a couple on the bus were arguing over the correct name of their own car—a Lincoln. "I thought maybe there is something to this." It is also easy to abandon MKS, MKX, MKZ, and MKC because there was no normal hierarchy to the letters.

And no—just because there is now a Navigator and a Nautilus, all Lincoln SUVs do not have to start with "N," Parker confirmed. The days when all Ford-brand SUVs started with "E" are gone with the past executives who made those decisions.

"It was the right time to do it," Parker said. When the 2019 Nautilus goes on sale next spring, it will be new from the A-pillar forward and will sport the new grille from the Continental, MKZ, and Navigator.

Lincoln's best-seller in the U.S. now has a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, more open storage such as a flow-through compartment under the center console with a rubber mat adorned in Lincoln logos, a 22-position seat, and the Revel sound system with the choice of 13 or 19 speakers. Overhead is the panoramic sunroof from the Continental. It will also be on future Lincolns.

Five of the six wheel options are new, and there are new themes and materials for the high-end Black Label Nautilus.

Although the greenhouse sheetmetal remains the same, Lincoln played with the seats, including their height and track, to get more rear-seat headroom and legroom. The rear seat folds flat with the press of a button. There is not a three-row version of the Nautilus, not even for China, where there is a three-row Ford Edge.

Safety technology includes pre-collision assist, blind-spot monitoring, lane departure warning, park assist, and lane centering. The new evasive steer assist uses cameras and radar to gauge the potential of a rear-end collision and apply more aggressive steering to avoid a crash. If the driver does not initiate evasive steering, the Nautilus will apply emergency braking.

The Nautilus keeps the 335-hp 2.7-liter twin-turbocharged V-6 but replaces the standard 3.7-liter V-6 with the 245-hp, 2.0-liter EcoBoost engine. The six-speed automatic transmission is replaced with a new eight-speed unit. The all-wheel-drive system is applied as needed, which should improve fuel economy, Parker said.

The popularity of SUVs continues unabated. The segment continues to steal car sales in the U.S., and Ford estimates SUVs will represent more than 70 percent of total China sales by 2024. The new Navigator is starting to ship to dealers now.