It's no secret that the Lincoln Navigator shares its mechanical bones with the Ford Expedition, but as the Navigator formula continues to evolve, direct tactile connections to its corporate sibling are harder than ever to find. That's especially true of the current model, which was redesigned for 2025. Unsurprisingly, the year after a full redesign brings few changes, but the 2026 Navigator is still worth revisiting, which is what Yahoo! Autos did this past summer when it tested a Navigator Reserve trim. Stivers Lincoln tells you what the publication discovered.
In today's SUV-focused world, the Navigator essentially serves as the flagship of the Lincoln lineup, much like the original legendary Continentals once did sixty-some years ago. It is big and powerful, and can carry plenty of people and things, but the focus from bumper to bumper is on comfort and refinement. With price tags hovering around the six-figure mark, the Navigator isn't exactly attainable to everyone – but it does return quite a bit of refinement, comfort, and capability for the money.
Under the hood of all Navigators is a twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V-6 engine producing 440 horsepower and 510 lb-ft of torque, paired with a 10-speed automatic and standard four-wheel drive. Yahoo describes it as “plenty powerful, giving ample support on the highway and providing ample getup for aggressive launches on surface streets.” The Navigator may not deliver the roar of a V-8, but the whole point of a vehicle of this stature is not to hear the engine at all. In addition, on all interstates and most cross-country highways, you don’t have to drive the vehicle either, thanks to the standard BlueCruise hands-free highway driving system, which can even change lanes automatically.
Instead, drivers and passengers alike simply enjoy the serenity of the cabin, with quilted perforated leather seats that look particularly inviting in Hot Chocolate or Afterglow color schemes. On the Reserve trim, the front seats feature 24-way adjustment, heating, ventilation, and massage functions. The Black Label trim adds 6 more seat adjustments for a total of 30, putting even the most sophisticated executive office chairs to shame.
The eye-catcher, however, is the 48-inch pillar-to-pillar line-up of screens along the base of the windshield, which is designed to minimize eye diversion from the road ahead. These displays provide full driver-centric information, both navigation and audio system info, camera displays to assist in parking, and additional information for the front passenger. They are a bit far to reach, so they are controlled by an 11.1-inch touchscreen in the center of the dash. The steering wheel’s rather ovoid shape enables full above-the-rim visibility of the driver display without the abrupt corners of a flattened upper or lower rim.
Elsewhere in the cabin, there is ambient lighting, a panoramic moonroof, a 28-speaker Revel audio system, and a unique “Rejuvenation” feature which, as Yahoo describes, “releases scents and puts meditative scenes like waterfalls on the screens, all reinforce the luxurious feel.”
On the more practical side, the second-row seats can be either a 3-seat bench or two-seat “captain’s chairs.” That is shared with almost every 3-row SUV, so the Reserve and Black Label models also offer the "PowerPitch and Slide" captain's chairs, which feature heating, ventilation, and massage functions. At 42.0 inches, the second-row seats provide plenty of legroom for adults, but the third-row seats actually have more, with 43.5 inches.
Behind the third row of seats is 22.9 cubic feet of cargo space. That grows to 69.9 cubic feet with the third row seat down. For full cargo mode with the second- and third-row seatbacks folded, Navigator provides up to 107.0 cubic feet of space. All these figures grow considerably with the available long-wheelbase Navigator L models.
All this space and luxury is wrapped in an exterior design that emphasizes restraint and elegance from bumper to bumper. As Yahoo! states, “In contrast, the Cadillac Escalade has grown more severe to the point it's an almost brutalist design, and Lincoln's elegant lines offer a refreshing exercise in simplicity.
Yahoo! author sums up his Navigator Reserve review with the following: “I consider the Navigator to be near the top of the large luxury SUV segment. I think it's more tasteful than its archrival, the Escalade, though the Cadillac has outsold it nearly two-to-one in 2026, and the Escalade is better than ever. I put both a cut above the Infiniti QX80 and Jeep Grand Wagoneer in this highly competitive arena.”
If a full-size luxury SUV is on your wish list, the Lincoln Navigator simply must be shopped; the place to do that shopping is Stivers Lincoln of Montgomery. Visit Stivers Lincoln of Montgomery for your Navigator test drive.
