Three Honest Answers
The Best Used Navigator Years, by What You Are Optimizing For
There is no single right answer here, because "best" changes depending on whether you are protecting a budget, chasing the newest cabin, or trying to land in the sweet spot between the two. These are the three picks and what each one gets you.
2022 to 2024
Fourth generation, updated
The refresh year and the two behind it. Same aluminum body and twin-turbo V6 as the earlier cars, with the cabin technology brought up to date. This is the version most people picture when they picture a modern Navigator.
- 3.5L twin-turbo V6, 440 hp, 510 lb-ft
- 10-speed automatic
- 13.2-inch SYNC 4 screen, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
- Hands-free highway driving available
2018 to 2021
Fourth generation, early
The generation that changed the Navigator, at its lowest cost of entry. The aluminum body, the 10-speed and the 30-way seats all arrived in 2018, so you are giving up screen size and driver-assist features rather than the substance of the vehicle.
- 3.5L twin-turbo V6, 450 hp, 510 lb-ft
- 10-speed automatic
- Smaller center screen, wired phone integration
- Perfect Position seats available
2025 onward
Fifth generation
The full redesign, built around the 48-inch panoramic display that runs the width of the dash. These are barely used, so many are still inside their original factory coverage and the mileage is usually low.
- 3.5L twin-turbo V6, 440 hp for 2025
- 10-speed automatic
- 48-inch panoramic display
- Standard and long-wheelbase Navigator L
Inventory turns over constantly and a used Navigator rarely sits long, so check the current used Navigator listings or call us and we will tell you honestly whether the year you want is realistic this month.
Year by Year
What Each Navigator Era Gives You
The Navigator has had two moments that reset the shopping conversation: the 2018 redesign and the 2022 technology update. Knowing where those two lines fall is most of what you need to shop this SUV intelligently.
| Model years | Generation | Engine | What defines it |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 to 2017 | Third generation, late | 3.5L twin-turbo V6, 380 hp | The last of the older body and interior. Cheapest way into the nameplate, and a different vehicle in feel from everything after it. |
| 2018 to 2021 | Fourth generation | 3.5L twin-turbo V6, 450 hp, 510 lb-ft | The redesign. Aluminum body, 10-speed automatic, a cabin that finally matched the price, 30-way Perfect Position seats available. |
| 2022 to 2024 | Fourth generation, updated | 3.5L twin-turbo V6, 440 hp, 510 lb-ft | 13.2-inch SYNC 4 screen, wireless phone integration, hands-free highway driving. Ten horsepower less on paper and no difference you can feel. |
| 2025 onward | Fifth generation | 3.5L twin-turbo V6, 440 hp for 2025 | Full redesign around the 48-inch panoramic display. Newest hardware, smallest supply on the used market. |
One note on the 450 to 440 horsepower change in 2022. It is a rating change, the torque figure did not move, and nobody has ever identified it from the driver's seat. Do not let it decide a purchase.
Standard or Navigator L
Both wheelbases exist across all these years, and the long-wheelbase Navigator L adds roughly a foot of length, almost all of it behind the third row. If you regularly carry seven people and their luggage at the same time, the L is the version to hold out for. If you do not, the standard car is easier to park at the Governor's Square lot and rides identically. Used L examples are scarcer, so plan on waiting for one.
Same Reserve trim on either side of the 2022 technology update. Compare the center screens. Both photographed on our Clarksville lot in September 2026 (99,202 miles, stock 91708B; 97,645 miles, stock 91726A). Vehicles pictured may no longer be available.
Before You Sign
What to Check on Any Used Navigator
A full-size luxury SUV has more to go over than a sedan, and most of it is checkable in a twenty-minute test drive if you know where to look.
- Service history on the turbo V6. This engine wants its oil changes on schedule. A documented history is worth more than a low odometer reading with no paperwork behind it.
- The 10-speed at highway speed. Get it onto I-24 and hold a steady 65. Shifts should be quiet and decisive, with no hunting between gears on a flat road.
- Adaptive dampers over rough pavement. Find a stretch of broken surface and listen. The ride should be settled, with no knocking from the corners.
- Tires and wheel size. Many Navigators ride on 22-inch wheels. Check the tread depth and the date codes, because replacing that set is a real number and it is easier to negotiate before you buy than to discover afterward.
- Every seat, every function. Run the Perfect Position seats through their full range, fold and raise the third row, and try the second-row moves. These are the features you paid for.
- Screens and cameras, all of them. Wake the center screen, pair a phone, run the 360-degree camera, open and close the panoramic roof.
- An inspection by people who know the brand. Our technicians work on Lincolns every day. Book an inspection before you buy, whether the vehicle is ours or somebody else's.
If you are trading something in, get a trade estimate before you come in and you will spend the visit driving rather than waiting.
Questions We Get Asked
Used Navigator Buying Questions
What is the best year for a used Lincoln Navigator?
2022 to 2024, for most buyers. Those years carry the fourth generation's aluminum body, 3.5L twin-turbo V6 and 10-speed automatic, plus the 13.2-inch SYNC 4 screen, wireless phone integration and hands-free highway driving that the earlier cars do not have.
Which used Navigator years are the best value?
2018 to 2021. That is the same generation as the 2022 to 2024 cars, with the same aluminum body, 450-horsepower twin-turbo V6 and 10-speed automatic. What you give up is screen size and some driver-assist equipment, not the substance of the vehicle.
What changed on the 2022 Lincoln Navigator?
The technology, mostly. The 2022 refresh brought a 13.2-inch SYNC 4 touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and hands-free highway driving. The 3.5L twin-turbo V6 was rerated from 450 to 440 horsepower with torque unchanged at 510 lb-ft.
How is the 2025 Navigator different from the 2024?
It is a full redesign. The 2025 fifth-generation Navigator is built around a 48-inch panoramic display running the width of the dash, with a reworked interior and a 440-horsepower version of the same 3.5L twin-turbo V6. Used examples are scarce and usually low-mileage.
Should I buy a standard Navigator or a Navigator L?
Take the L if you regularly carry a full third row and luggage at the same time, because the extra length is almost all cargo space behind that row. Otherwise the standard wheelbase is easier to park and rides the same. Used L examples come up less often, so expect to wait for one.
How many miles is too many on a used Navigator?
Documented maintenance matters more than the odometer on this vehicle. A well-kept example with full service records and a healthy test drive is a better buy than a lower-mileage one with no history. Have any candidate inspected before you commit.
What should I inspect on a used Navigator before buying?
Service history for the twin-turbo V6, the 10-speed's shift quality at highway speed, the dampers over rough pavement, tire tread and date codes on those 22-inch wheels, every seat function, and all the screens and cameras. Our technicians work on Lincolns daily and can inspect one for you.
Do you have used Lincoln Navigators in Clarksville?
Our used inventory changes weekly and Navigators do not sit long. Check the used Lincoln Navigator listings on our site, or call 931-632-4844 and tell us which years you are open to. We will let you know what is here and what is coming.
Come See It
Come Look at One in Clarksville
You can read about generations all afternoon. Twenty minutes in the driver's seat of two different model years settles it faster.
Where we are
2655 Trenton Rd, Clarksville, TN 37040. We have been at this corner of Clarksville since 1946, which makes us the oldest dealership in the city.
Sales
Call 931-632-4844. Sales is open Monday through Saturday, and opening and closing times vary by day, so check current hours before a late visit. You can also send us a note and we will call you back.
Service
Our technicians work on Lincolns every day, and we will inspect a used Navigator for you whether or not you are buying it from us. Call the service desk at 931-343-4566 or book online.
Directions
We are just off Trenton Road, a few minutes from Exit 4 on I-24. Get hours and directions.
Find the Right Navigator Year
Tell us which years you are open to and we will watch for one, rather than talking you into whatever is on the lot today.
Jenkins and Wynne Lincoln | 2655 Trenton Rd, Clarksville, TN 37040 Used vehicles pictured were photographed on our Clarksville lot in September 2026 and may no longer be available.