Compare the2024 Audi SQ7VS 2023 Lincoln Navigator

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Recommendations

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front and second-row seat shoulder belts of the Audi SQ7 have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Lincoln Navigator doesn’t offer pretensioners for its second-row seat belts.

The SQ7’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Navigator doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

Both the SQ7 and Navigator have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The SQ7 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 Navigator’s 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 SQ7. But it costs extra on the Navigator.

A passive infrared night vision system optional on the SQ7 Prestige helps the driver to more easily detect people, animals or other objects in front of the vehicle at night. Using an infrared camera to detect heat, the system then displays the image on a monitor in the dashboard. The Navigator doesn’t offer a night vision system.

For better protection of the passenger compartment, the SQ7 uses safety cell construction with a three-dimensional high-strength frame that surrounds the passenger compartment. It provides extra impact protection and a sturdy mounting location for door hardware and side impact beams. The Navigator uses a body-on-frame design, which has no frame members above the floor of the vehicle.

Both the SQ7 and the Navigator have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact 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, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, around view monitors and rear cross-path warning.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Audi SQ7 is safer than the Lincoln Navigator:

	SQ7	Navigator
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	13 inches	13 inches
Spine Acceleration	40 G’s	47 G’s
Hip Force	557 lbs.	569 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the SQ7 is 3.6% to 5.1% less likely to roll over than the Navigator.

Warranty

The SQ7’s corrosion warranty is 7 years longer than the Navigator’s (12 vs. 5 years).

Reliability

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Audi vehicles are more reliable than Lincoln vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Audi 4 places higher in reliability than Lincoln.

Engine

The SQ7’s 4.0 turbo V8 hybrid produces 60 more horsepower (500 vs. 440) and 58 lbs.-ft. more torque (568 vs. 510) than the Navigator’s 3.5 turbo V6.

As tested in Motor Trend the Audi SQ7 is faster than the Lincoln Navigator:

	SQ7	Navigator
Zero to 60 MPH	3.6 sec	6.8 sec
Quarter Mile	12.1 sec	15.2 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	111.8 MPH	91.7 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

Regenerative brakes improve the SQ7’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Navigator doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

The SQ7 has a standard locking fuel door which locks and unlocks with the power locks. The fuel filler door is not lockable on the Navigator. A locking fuel door helps prevent fuel theft and vandalism, such as sugar in the tank.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the SQ7’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Navigator:

	SQ7	Navigator
Front Rotors	15.8 inches	13.8 inches
Rear Rotors	13.8 inches	13.2 inches

The SQ7 stops much shorter than the Navigator:

	SQ7	Navigator
70 to 0 MPH	155 feet	185 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	111 feet	132 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the SQ7 has larger tires than the Navigator (285/40R21 vs. 275/55R20).

The SQ7’s tires provide better handling because they have a lower 40 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Navigator Standard’s standard 55 series tires. The SQ7’s tires are lower profile than the Navigator’s optional 45 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the SQ7 has standard 21-inch wheels. Smaller 20-inch wheels are standard on the Navigator Standard.

Suspension and Handling

The SQ7 offers active sway bars, which help keep it flat and controlled during cornering, but disconnect at lower speeds to smooth the ride and offer greater off-road suspension articulation. This helps keep the tires glued to the road on-road and off. The Navigator doesn’t offer an active sway bar system.

The front and rear suspension of the SQ7 uses air springs for a smoother, controlled ride than the Navigator, which uses coil springs. Air springs maintain proper ride height and ride more smoothly.

The SQ7 offers an available adjustable active suspension system, which counteracts cornering forces actively, limiting body roll and improving handling and stability. Lincoln doesn’t offer an active suspension on the Navigator.

The SQ7 has a standard automatic front and rear load leveling suspension to keep ride height level with a heavy load or when towing. The SQ7’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 Navigator doesn’t offer a load leveling suspension.

The SQ7 Premium Plus handles at .91 G’s, while the Navigator Black Label 4WD pulls only .74 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The SQ7 Premium Plus executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 3.2 seconds quicker than the Navigator Black Label 4WD (25.2 seconds @ .76 average G’s vs. 28.4 seconds @ .61 average G’s).

Chassis

The Audi SQ7 may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 400 to 550 pounds less than the Lincoln Navigator.

The SQ7 is 10.4 inches shorter than the Navigator, making the SQ7 easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The SQ7 is 7.9 inches shorter in height than the Navigator, making the SQ7 much easier to wash and garage and drive (lower center of gravity).

Unibody construction lowers the SQ7’s center of gravity significantly without reducing ground clearance. This contributes to better on the road handling and better off-road performance and stability. In addition, unibody construction makes the chassis stiffer, improving handling and reducing squeaks and rattles. The Navigator doesn’t use unibody construction, but a body-on-frame design.

Passenger Space

The front step up height for the SQ7 is 2.4 inches lower than the Navigator (18.6” vs. 21”). The SQ7’s rear step up height is 4.3 inches lower than the Navigator’s (18.7” vs. 23”).

Servicing Ease

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Audi service is better than Lincoln. J.D. Power ranks Audi 8th in service department satisfaction (above the industry average). With a 11% lower rating, Lincoln is ranked 12th.

Ergonomics

The SQ7’s power window, power lock, power mirror and cruise control switches are lit from behind, making them plainly visible and easier to operate at night. The Navigator’s cruise control switches are unlit, making them difficult to find at night and operate safely.

Heated windshield washer nozzles are standard on the SQ7 to prevent washer fluid and nozzles from freezing and help continue to keep the windshield clear in sub-freezing temperatures. The Navigator doesn’t offer heated windshield washer nozzles.

Laser headlights, optional on the SQ7 Prestige, produce their light by firing blue lasers through phosphorus, a process that uses one-half the power of the Navigator’s LED headlights. Laser headlights can have double the range of LEDs with a much smaller surface area.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The SQ7 Prestige offers available headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The Navigator doesn’t offer headlight washers.

To better shield the driver and front passenger’s vision, the SQ7 has standard dual-element sun visors that can block glare from two directions simultaneously. The Navigator doesn’t offer secondary sun visors.

A manual rear sunshade and rear side window sunshades are optional in the SQ7 to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The Navigator doesn’t offer a rear or rear side window sunshades.

When the SQ7 is put in reverse, the passenger rearview mirror tilts from its original position. This gives the driver a better view of the curb during parallel parking maneuvers. Shifting out of reverse puts the mirror into its original position. The Navigator’s mirror doesn’t automatically adjust for backing.

The SQ7 Prestige’s Park Assist Plus can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. Remote Park Assist Plus will park and retrieve your car remotely: press a button and watch it park itself. This is ideal for tight locations. The Navigator’s automatic parking system does not offer parking by remote control.

Recommendations

The Audi Q7/SQ7 outsold the Lincoln Navigator by 46% during 2022.

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