Compare the2025 Volvo XC40VS 2025 Lincoln Nautilus

The XC40’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Nautilus doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

The XC40 has a standard Whiplash Protection System (WHIPS), which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the WHIPS allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. At the same time the pretensioning seatbelts fire, removing slack from the belts. The Nautilus doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

When descending a steep, off-road slope, the XC40’s standard Hill Descent Control allows you to creep down safely. The Nautilus doesn’t offer Hill Descent Control.

Both the XC40 and the Nautilus have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, all wheel drive, 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, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors and available around view monitors.

The XC40’s corrosion warranty is 7 years longer than the Nautilus’ (12 vs. 5 years).

Volvo pays for scheduled maintenance on the XC40 for 3 years and 30,000 miles. Volvo will pay for oil changes, tire rotations, air filter replacements, cabin filter replacement, brake fluid replacement, inspections, and any other required maintenance. Lincoln doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the Nautilus. (Lincoln offers free mainteance on some Nautilus models.)

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Volvo vehicles are more reliable than Lincoln With 6 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks Volvo higher than Lincoln.

As tested in Car and Driver the Volvo XC40 is faster than the Lincoln Nautilus:

On the EPA test cycle the XC40 T5 gets better fuel mileage than the Nautilus 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder 8-speed Auto (23 city/30 hwy vs. 21 city/29 hwy).

The XC40 stops much shorter than the Nautilus:

The XC40’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.

The XC40 B5 Ultra handles at .85 G’s, while the Nautilus Black Label pulls only .77 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The XC40 B5 Plus executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.4 seconds quicker than the Nautilus Black Label (27.4 seconds @ .62 average G’s vs. 28.8 seconds @ .59 average G’s).

For greater off-road capability the XC40 has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Nautilus (8.1 vs. 7.9 inches), allowing the XC40 to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The Volvo XC40 may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 500 to 750 pounds less than the Lincoln Nautilus.

The XC40 is 1 foot, 6.4 inches shorter than the Nautilus, making the XC40 easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

A standard locking glovebox (which can’t be accessed with the valet key) keeps your small valuables safer in the XC40. The Nautilus doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

The XC40’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Nautilus’ (3500 vs. 0 pounds).

The XC40’s standard rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Nautilus has an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

The Volvo XC40 outsold the Lincoln Nautilus by 16% during 2023.