Lincoln Navigator Problems by Model Year
NHTSA recorded 1,357 consumer complaints across the 28 model years of the Lincoln Navigator (1998–2025) that have at least 5 complaints. 1998 has the most, with 192. Across all years, the part named most often is electrical system (199 mentions). Pick a model year below to see its parts, mileage, recalls and service bulletins.
Best and worst Navigator years →
All Navigator model years
Years with fewer than 5 complaints are not listed. The score compares years of the same model, allowing for the era and for how long each year has collected complaints: 50 is a typical year, lower means fewer complaints. It is not adjusted for sales volume.
| Year | Complaints | Median mi | Recalls | TSBs | Score (50 = typical) | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 13 | 2,500 | 6 | 169 | — | Too new |
| 2024 | 16 | 12,350 | 7 | 97 | — | Too new |
| 2023 | 7 | 43,200 | 8 | 149 | — | Too new |
| 2022 | 21 | 57,000 | 14 | 186 | — | Rising |
| 2021 | 33 | 19,700 | 12 | 147 | 82 · More | Rising |
| 2020 | 32 | 50,742 | 13 | 194 | 50 · Typical | Rising |
| 2019 | 85 | 70,000 | 10 | 153 | 73 · More | Rising |
| 2018 | 52 | 57,500 | 12 | 165 | 56 · Typical | Rising |
| 2017 | 32 | 87,000 | 5 | 111 | 12 · Fewer | Rising |
| 2016 | 25 | 79,500 | 4 | 119 | 1 · Fewer | Rising |
| 2015 | 21 | 66,500 | 4 | 70 | — | Rising |
| 2014 | 17 | 86,000 | 0 | 53 | — | Falling |
| 2013 | 14 | 20,000 | 0 | 60 | — | Not enough data |
| 2012 | 12 | 30,000 | 3 | 57 | — | Not enough data |
| 2011 | 9 | 86,300 | 0 | 34 | — | Not enough data |
| 2010 | 16 | 77,000 | 0 | 33 | — | Stable |
| 2009 | 10 | 66,057 | 1 | 28 | — | Not enough data |
| 2008 | 30 | 60,000 | 2 | 27 | 17 · Fewer | Stable |
| 2007 | 45 | 70,000 | 2 | 27 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 2006 | 60 | 73,750 | 3 | 34 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 2005 | 48 | 60,000 | 0 | 76 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 2004 | 86 | 66,500 | 0 | 55 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 2003 | 127 | 72,500 | 0 | 57 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 2002 | 32 | 90,000 | 1 | 16 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 2001 | 81 | 78,000 | 3 | 16 | Not compared (before 2008) | Rising |
| 2000 | 109 | 75,000 | 4 | 16 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1999 | 132 | 85,060 | 5 | 13 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 1998 | 192 | 98,060 | 5 | 10 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
Parts named most often, all years
Counts add up complaint mentions across the listed years. A complaint can name several parts.
- Electrical system199 18%
- Transmission and drivetrain178 16%
- Suspension161 15%
- Tires159 15%
- Brakes111 10%
- Engine cooling97 8.9%
- Vehicle speed control95 8.7%
- Engine88 8.1%
Example complaints
One per model year, chosen for length and detail. Personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
2012: “My 2012 Navigator started to act weird the wrench signal appeared,my speedometer not working,the RPM went very high,no power on my SUV,maybe 5mph the most,and the information screen shows no gas,while I have 1/2 tank,checked amd recalls and shows nothing,but a mechanic told me that the is a tbs recall for this transmission models,hope to hear from you thanks.”
NHTSA complaint #11330384, filed 2020-06, 103,000 miles2014: “The speedometer would intermediately stop working. When this is happening it would have a loss in power or begin to misfire. We have now stopped driving the vehicle because it down shifted extremely hard at road speed while along side another vehicle. The wife was extremely scared and I am afraid it will happen again and cause damage to the transmission.”
NHTSA complaint #11245854, filed 2019-08, 106,000 miles2017: “My vehicle is a 2017 Lincoln Navigator. The Backup Camera works maybe 50% of the times that I attempt to back up. I understand that Lincoln has a recall on other Lincoln vehicles for this issue, but not for the Navigator. The Cross Traffic Alert does not work. In combination, attempting to back up has a real potential for a vehicle crash or pedestrian injury, especially in parking lots, for drivers of the Lincoln Navigator. Thank you.”
NHTSA complaint #11541058, filed 2023-08, 217,686 milesOther Lincoln models
3,298 complaintsLincoln Continental
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821 complaintsLincoln MKC
603 complaintsLincoln Aviator
490 complaints
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 27, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate. Methodology