Sumptuous comfort, practical utility, technological wizardry, ease of entry/egress, a commanding driving position, social status and, for the manufacturers, solid profits: mid-size luxury SUVs offer a generous helping of all these things, and it’s a formula that’s proven nearly irresistible for today’s car buyers. Little wonder then that the segment has become crowded with worthy rivals.

After sitting near the bottom of the mid-size luxury SUV sales heap for the past few years, Lincoln’s MKX has been completely redesigned for 2016 and, as the numbers show, it has emerged a winner: as of the end of April, Canadian year-to-date sales for the MKX are up 95.5 percent compared to the same period last year (1,087 units versus 556 in 2015), and the April 2016 numbers are up 156 percent over last year (335 units versus 131 in April 2015). It’s an increase unmatched by any of MKX’s mid-size competitors, even the new-to-market Mercedes-Benz GLE, which managed a YTD increase of 45.9 percent compared the outgoing M-Class (mind you, Lincoln wouldn’t mind having Mercedes-Benz’s overall numbers, with 2,649 of the German manufacturer’s mid-size SUV’s sold so far in 2016). U.S. sales numbers reveal a similar trend, with MKX sales nearly doubling over the first four months of 2016, from 5,325 units to 9,829 units.

The new second-generation 2016 MKX follows all of Lincoln’s current design cues, and as such it doesn’t stray far from the overall look of its predecessor. Its lines are crisper and more accomplished, however, and to my eye it’s an undeniably better-looking machine than the first-generation MKX. Overall it bears a strong resemblance to its compact MKC sibling, and is certainly a lot more conservative and understated than the wild-looking Lexus RX, which has been the luxury mid-size SUV segment’s sales leader for the past few years.

Underpinning the new MKX is Ford’s CD4 platform (as used in the current Ford Fusion, Ford Edge and Lincoln MKZ) with integral link rear suspension and adaptive steering, replacing the previous CD3 platform. Power for the base MKX is from a 3.7L V6 generating 303 hp and 278 lb-ft of torque, hooked up to a six-speed automatic transmission and, in Canada, driving all four wheels via Lincoln’s on-demand AWD system (U.S. models are available in FWD or AWD). New for 2016 (and as fitted to my test car) is an optional turbocharged 2.7L V6 EcoBoost engine generating a stout 335 hp and an impressive 380 lb-ft of torque.

Inside, the MKX has been knocked in the past for too closely resembling the mass-market Ford Edge on which it’s based, although in some ways this might merely be a testament to how good the Edge can be in upper level trims. For 2016 Lincoln has worked to further differentiate the two vehicles. Some of the efforts are clearly visible – where the Edge has a plastic-lined cargo compartment the MKX gets carpet, for instance, and as you approach the doors the MKX greets you with a Lincoln badge puddle light – while other efforts are less visible but equally important, such as the increased use of sound deadening and active noise-cancelling features.

A second opinion: 2016 Lincoln MKX Test Drive

Interior materials include a stitched leather dash, padded leather arm rests and console bin lid, and cloth-wrapped A and B pillars, all highlighted in my test vehicle with aluminum and polished metal trim (and no piano black in sight!). There remain some low-rent plastics at the door lowers and bottom portion of the console, but Lincoln isn’t alone here so I’m not sure it’s fair to knock the MKX for these material choices. There’s decent interior storage with a big console bin, a closable gadget cubby, and clever (if somewhat difficult to access) hidden shelves below the console.

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