Compare the2024 Land Rover DiscoveryVS 2023 Lincoln Nautilus

Both the Discovery and Nautilus have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Discovery has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Nautilus’ child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Discovery. But it costs extra on the Nautilus.

Both the Discovery and Nautilus have rear cross-traffic warning, but the Discovery has Rear Traffic Braking (automatically applies the brakes) to better prevent a collision when backing near traffic. The Nautilus’ Cross-Traffic Alert doesn’t automatically brake.

The Discovery’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Nautilus doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the Discovery and the Nautilus have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras and rear cross-path warning.

The Discovery’s corrosion warranty is 1 year longer than the Nautilus’ (6 vs. 5 years).

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Land Rover vehicles are better in initial quality than Lincoln vehicles. With 5 fewer problems per 100 vehicles, JD Power ranks Land Rover higher than Lincoln.

The Discovery’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder produces 46 more horsepower (296 vs. 250) and 15 lbs.-ft. more torque (295 vs. 280) than the Nautilus’ standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder. The Discovery P360’s optional 3.0 turbo/supercharged 6-cylinder hybrid produces 20 more horsepower (355 vs. 335) than the Nautilus’ optional 2.7 turbo V6.

As tested in Motor Trend the Discovery P360 3.0 turbo/supercharged 6-cylinder hybrid is faster than the Lincoln Nautilus turbo 4 cyl.:

	Discovery	Nautilus
Zero to 60 MPH	6.6 sec	7.3 sec
Quarter Mile	15.2 sec	15.6 sec

The Discovery has 5.8 gallons more fuel capacity than the Nautilus (23.8 vs. 18 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The Discovery has a standard locking fuel door which locks and unlocks with the power locks. The fuel filler door is not lockable on the Nautilus. A locking fuel door helps prevent fuel theft and vandalism, such as sugar in the tank.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Land Rover Discovery higher (7 out of 10) than the Lincoln Nautilus (6). This means the Discovery produces up to 1.1 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Nautilus every 15,000 miles.

For better stopping power the Discovery P360’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Nautilus:

	Discovery P360	Nautilus
Front Rotors	14.4 inches	13.8 inches
Rear Rotors	13.8 inches	12.4 inches
Opt Rear Rotors		13.6 inches

The Discovery’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Nautilus are solid, not vented.

For better traction, the Discovery has larger standard tires than the Nautilus (255/55R20 vs. 245/60R18). The Discovery’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Nautilus (285/40R22 vs. 265/40R21).

The Discovery’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 55 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Nautilus’ standard 60 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Discovery has standard 20-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the Nautilus. The Discovery’s optional 22-inch wheels are larger than the 21-inch wheels optional on the Nautilus.

The Discovery offers an optional full size spare tire so a flat doesn’t interrupt your trip. A full size spare isn’t available on the Nautilus; it requires you to depend on a temporary spare, which has mileage and speed limitations, or roadside assistance and a tow-truck.

The front and rear suspension of the Discovery uses air springs for a smoother, controlled ride than the Nautilus, which uses coil springs. Air springs maintain proper ride height and ride more smoothly.

The Discovery has a standard automatic front and rear load leveling suspension to keep ride height level with a heavy load or when towing. The Discovery’s height leveling suspension allows the driver to raise ride height for better off-road clearance and then lower it again for easier entering and exiting and better on-road handling. The Nautilus doesn’t offer a load leveling suspension.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Discovery’s wheelbase is 2.9 inches longer than on the Nautilus (115.1 inches vs. 112.2 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Discovery is 1.8 inches wider in the front and 1.7 inches wider in the rear than on the Nautilus.

The front grille of the Discovery uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Nautilus doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Discovery has standard seating for 7 passengers; the Nautilus can only carry 5.

The Discovery has 1.4 inches more front hip room, 1.5 inches more front shoulder room, .1 inches more rear hip room and .5 inches more rear shoulder room than the Nautilus.

Flexibility is maximized at the game, campground or a drive-in theatre in the Discovery when its optional tailgating rear seats are deployed, allowing people to sit facing out of the liftgate. (Do not use while vehicle is in motion.) The Nautilus doesn’t offer tailgating seats.

The Discovery’s cargo area provides more volume than the Nautilus.

	Discovery	Nautilus
Third Seat Folded	45 cubic feet	n/a
Third Seat Removed	n/a	37.2 cubic feet
Second Seat Folded	74.3 cubic feet	68.8 cubic feet

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

	Discovery	Nautilus
Length to seat (3rd/2nd/1st)	11.5”/43.4”/76.9”	n.a./41.5”/75”
Max Width	55.6”	45”
Min Width	47.24”	45”
Height	33.6”	31”

The Discovery’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Nautilus’ (5925 vs. 1500 pounds). Maximum trailer towing in the Lincoln Nautilus is only 3500 pounds. The Discovery offers up to a 8200 lbs. towing capacity.

Trailer Stability Assist (TSA) is standard on the Discovery, using the Dynamic Stability Control sensors to detect trailer sway, then uses individual brakes to counteract any swaying and help keep the tow vehicle and trailer steady. A trailer sway program costs extra on the Nautilus.

The engine in the Discovery is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Nautilus. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because there are no rear spark plugs and the accessory belts are in front.

Unlike the driver-only memory system in the Nautilus, the Discovery SE has a passenger memory, so that when drivers switch, the memory setting adjusts the driver’s seat, steering wheel position and outside mirror angle and the front passenger seat also adjusts to the new passenger’s preset preferences.

The Discovery offers an optional heads-up display that projects speed and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Nautilus doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

The power windows standard on both the Discovery and the Nautilus have locks to prevent small children from operating them. When the lock on the Discovery is engaged the driver can still operate all of the windows, for instance to close one opened by a child. The Nautilus prevents the driver from operating the rear windows just as it does the other passengers.

The Discovery’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Nautilus’ standard manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

Heated windshield washer nozzles are optional on the Discovery to prevent washer fluid and nozzles from freezing and help continue to keep the windshield clear in sub-freezing temperatures. The Nautilus doesn’t offer heated windshield washer nozzles.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Discovery has a standard rear fixed intermittent wiper with a full on position. The rear wiper standard on the Nautilus only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The Discovery offers available headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The Nautilus doesn’t offer headlight washers.

When the Discovery is put in reverse, both rearview mirrors tilt from their original position. This gives the driver a better view of the curb during parallel parking maneuvers. Shifting out of reverse puts the mirrors into their original positions. The Nautilus’ mirrors don’t automatically adjust for backing.

Optional air conditioned front and second row seats keep the Discovery’s passengers comfortable and take the sting out of hot leather in summer. The Nautilus doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats in the rear.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Land Rover Discovery has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. Only the Nautilus Reserve/Black Label offers wireless charging.