Compare the2023 Lincoln NautilusVS 2022 Porsche Cayenne

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Nautilus are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Cayenne doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Nautilus’ standard lane departure warning system alerts a temporarily inattentive driver when the vehicle begins to leave its lane and gently nudges the vehicle back towards its lane. A lane departure warning system costs extra on the Cayenne.

The Nautilus has a standard blind spot warning system which uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. A system to reveal vehicles in the Cayenne’s blind spot costs extra.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Nautilus has a standard rear cross-path warning system, which uses sensors in the rear bumper to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. Rear cross-path warning costs extra on the Cayenne.

Both the Nautilus and the Cayenne have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, rearview cameras, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its available headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Nautilus the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2022, a rating granted to only 169 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Cayenne has not been tested, yet.

Lincoln’s powertrain warranty covers the Nautilus 2 years and 20,000 miles longer than Porsche covers the Cayenne. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 6 years or 70,000 miles. Coverage on the Cayenne ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are almost 4 times as many Lincoln dealers as there are Porsche dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Nautilus’ warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Nautilus first among midsize premium suvs in their 2022 Initial Quality Study. The Cayenne isn’t in the top three in its category.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Lincoln vehicles are better in initial quality than Porsche vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Lincoln above average in initial quality. With 33 more problems per 100 vehicles, Porsche is rated below average.

On the EPA test cycle the Nautilus gets better mileage than the Cayenne running its gasoline engine:

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Lincoln Nautilus uses regular unleaded gasoline (premium recommended for maximum performance). The Cayenne requires premium, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

The Nautilus has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The Cayenne doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Lincoln Nautilus higher (6 out of 10) than the Porsche Cayenne (3 to 5). This means the Nautilus produces up to 23.4 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Cayenne every 15,000 miles.

In an emergency stopping situation, many drivers don’t press the brakes with enough force to stop the vehicle in the shortest distance. The Nautilus has a standard brake assist system to detect emergency braking situations (by how hard and how quickly the brake pedal is pressed) and then automatically apply maximum braking immediately in order to help prevent a collision. The Cayenne doesn’t offer a brake assist feature.

The Lincoln Nautilus may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 400 to 1150 pounds less than the Porsche Cayenne.

The Nautilus is 3.7 inches shorter than the Cayenne, making the Nautilus easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The Nautilus uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The Cayenne doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

The Nautilus has .9 inches more front headroom, 1.7 inches more front legroom, .2 inches more rear headroom and 2.5 inches more rear shoulder room than the Cayenne.

The Nautilus has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the Cayenne with its rear seat up (37.2 vs. 27.2 cubic feet). The Nautilus has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Cayenne with its rear seat folded (68.8 vs. 60.3 cubic feet).

The Nautilus’ cargo area is larger than the Cayenne’s in every dimension:

Pressing a button automatically lowers the Nautilus’ rear seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Cayenne doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

The Nautilus 2.7 Turbo can be flat towed on all four wheels (dinghy towed), allowing recreational vehicle owners to bring it with them on the road. When they reach their destination, the Nautilus can be unhitched and driven around locally. The Cayenne can’t be towed flat on the ground.

The Nautilus has a standard remote vehicle starting system, so the vehicle can be started from inside the driver's house. This allows the driver to comfortably warm up the engine before going out to the vehicle. The climate system will also automatically heat or cool the interior. The Cayenne doesn’t offer a remote starting system.

The Nautilus’ standard easy entry system raises the steering wheel and glides the driver’s seat back, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. An easy entry system costs extra on the Cayenne.

If the windows are left open on the Nautilus the driver can close them all at the outside door handle or from a distance using the remote. On a hot day the driver can also lower the windows the same way. The driver of the Cayenne can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Nautilus’ exterior PIN entry system. The Cayenne doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its Porsche Connect can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Nautilus has standard extendable sun visors. The Cayenne doesn’t offer extendable visors.

The Nautilus Reserve/Black Label offers an optional 115-volt a/c outlet in the cargo area, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The Cayenne doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

The Nautilus is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Cayenne doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

Insurance will cost less for the Nautilus owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Nautilus will cost $2595 to $12785 less than the Cayenne over a five-year period.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Lincoln Nautilus will be $23510 to $80295 less than for the Porsche Cayenne.

The Lincoln Nautilus/MKX outsold the Porsche Cayenne by 37% during the 2022 model year.