Compare the2025 Lincoln AviatorVS 2025 Honda Pilot

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics

Safety

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Both the Aviator and Pilot have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Aviator 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 Pilot’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.

The Aviator has standard Post Collision Braking, which automatically apply the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Pilot doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

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

Both the Aviator and the Pilot have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, 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, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors and available all wheel drive.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety does 40 MPH moderate front offset crash tests on new cars. In this updated test, results indicate that the Aviator is much safer than the Pilot:

	Aviator	Pilot
Overall Evaluation	GOOD	MARGINAL
Structure	GOOD	GOOD
	Driver Injury Measures
Head/Neck Rating	GOOD	GOOD
Chest Rating	GOOD	GOOD
Thigh/hip Rating	GOOD	GOOD
Leg/foot Rating	GOOD	GOOD
Leg Forces L/R	360/495 pounds	517/674 pounds
Restraints	GOOD	GOOD
	Rear Passenger Injury Measures
Head/Neck Rating	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
Chest Rating	GOOD	GOOD
Thigh Rating	GOOD	GOOD
Restraints	ACCEPTABLE	MARGINAL

Warranty

The Aviator comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck. The Pilot’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

Lincoln’s powertrain warranty covers the Aviator 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Honda covers the Pilot. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 6 years or 70,000 miles. Coverage on the Pilot ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

Reliability

The Lincoln Aviator’s engine uses a cast iron block for durability, while the Pilot’s engine uses an aluminum block. Aluminum engine blocks are much more prone to warp and crack at high temperatures than cast iron.

The Aviator has a standard “limp home system” to keep drivers from being stranded if most or all of the engine’s coolant is lost. The engine will run on only half of its cylinders at a time, reduce its power and light a warning lamp on the dashboard so the driver can get to a service station for repairs. The Pilot doesn’t offer a lost coolant limp home mode, so a coolant leak could strand you or seriously damage the truck’s engine.

Engine

The Aviator’s 3.0 turbo V6 produces 115 more horsepower (400 vs. 285) and 153 lbs.-ft. more torque (415 vs. 262) than the Pilot’s 3.5 DOHC V6.

As tested in Motor Trend the Lincoln Aviator is faster than the Honda Pilot:

	Aviator	Pilot
Zero to 60 MPH	5.4 sec	7.1 sec
Quarter Mile	14.1 sec	15.5 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	97.7 MPH	91.9 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Aviator AWD gets better fuel mileage than the Pilot TrailSport 4WD (17 city/25 hwy vs. 18 city/23 hwy).

The Aviator has 1.7 gallons more fuel capacity than the Pilot (20.2 vs. 18.5 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

Brakes and Stopping

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

The Aviator stops shorter than the Pilot:

	Aviator	Pilot
60 to 0 MPH	124 feet	127 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Aviator’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Pilot (275/40R22 vs. 265/60R18).

The Aviator’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 Pilot EX-L’s standard 60 series tires. The Aviator’s optional tires have a lower 40 series profile than the Pilot Sport/Touring/Elite/Black Edition’s 50 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Aviator has standard 20-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the Pilot EX-L. The Aviator’s optional 22-inch wheels are larger than the 20-inch wheels on the Pilot Sport/Touring/Elite/Black Edition.

Suspension and Handling

The Aviator has standard front and rear gas-charged shocks for better control over choppy roads. The Pilot’s suspension doesn’t offer gas-charged shocks.

The Aviator has a standard driver-adjustable suspension system. It allows the driver to choose between an extra-supple ride, reducing fatigue on long trips, or a sport setting, which allows maximum control for tricky roads or off-road. The Pilot’s suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

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

The Aviator has vehicle speed sensitive variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Pilot doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

The Aviator’s drift compensation steering can automatically compensate for road conditions which would cause the vehicle to drift from side to side, helping the driver to keep the vehicle straight more easily. The Pilot doesn’t offer drift compensation steering.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Aviator’s wheelbase is 5.3 inches longer than on the Pilot (119.1 inches vs. 113.8 inches).

The Aviator’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (51% to 49%) than the Pilot’s (55.3% to 44.7%). This gives the Aviator more stable handling and braking.

The Aviator AWD handles at .80 G’s, while the Pilot Elite pulls only .78 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Aviator AWD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Pilot TrailSport (27.1 seconds @ .69 average G’s vs. 27.9 seconds @ .66 average G’s).

For greater off-road capability the Aviator has a 1.4 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the Pilot (8.7 vs. 7.3 inches), allowing the Aviator to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Aviator’s minimum ground clearance is .4 inch higher than on the Pilot TrailSport (8.7 vs. 8.3 inches).

Passenger Space

The Aviator has 1 inch more front headroom, 2 inches more front legroom, .1 inches more front hip room and .9 inches more rear hip room than the Pilot.

Cargo Capacity

Pressing a button automatically lowers the Aviator’s second row seats and pressing a button automatically lowers or raises the third row seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Pilot doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

Towing

The Aviator’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Pilot’s (5000 vs. 3500 pounds).

Servicing Ease

The Aviator uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Pilot uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

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

Ergonomics

If the windows are left open on the Aviator the driver can close them all from a distance using the remote. On a hot day the driver can also lower the windows the same way. The driver of the Pilot can only close 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 Aviator’s exterior PIN entry system. The Pilot doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system.

The Aviator’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 Pilot’s standard manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

To help drivers avoid possible obstacles, the Aviator has standard cornering lights to illuminate around corners when the turn signals are activated. The Pilot doesn’t offer cornering lights. The Aviator also has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle.

The Aviator’s standard outside mirrors include heating elements to clear off the mirrors for better visibility. Honda only offers heated mirrors on the Pilot EX-L/TrailSport/Touring/Elite/Black Edition.

The Aviator has standard front air conditioned seats and offers them optionally in the second row. This keeps the passengers comfortable and takes the sting out of hot seats in summer. The Pilot doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats for the second row.

The Aviator has a standard heated steering wheel to take the chill out of steering on extremely cold winter days before the vehicle heater warms up. A heated steering wheel is only available on the Pilot TrailSport/Elite/Black Edition.

The Aviator (except Premiere) offers optional massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the Pilot.

The Lincoln Aviator has a standard Homelink wireless remote control system for garage door operation and device management, conveniently located on the driver’s visor. Homelink® eliminates the need for separate garage door openers and associated risks of losing, breaking, or having dead batteries. Homelink® is only available on the Pilot EX-L/TrailSport/Touring/Elite/Black Edition.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Lincoln Aviator has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. Only the Pilot EX-L/TrailSport/Touring/Elite/Black Edition offers wireless charging.

The Aviator (except Premiere)’s optional Active Park Assist Plus can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. The Pilot doesn’t offer an automated parking system.