Compare the2025 Audi Q5 SportbackVS 2025 Lincoln Nautilus

The Q5 Sportback’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.

When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Q5 Sportback’s standard Hill Descent Control allows you to creep down safely. The Nautilus doesn’t offer Hill Descent Control.

Both the Q5 Sportback and the Nautilus have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front 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.

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, and daytime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Q5 Sportback the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2023, a rating granted to only 121 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Nautilus has not been fully tested, yet.

The Q5 Sportback’s corrosion warranty is 7 years longer than the Nautilus’ (12 vs. 5 years).

The Audi Q5 Sportback’s engine uses a cast iron block for durability, while the Nautilus’ engines use an aluminum block. Aluminum engine blocks are much more prone to warp and crack at high temperatures than cast iron.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Audi vehicles are more reliable than Lincoln vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Audi 4 places higher in reliability than Lincoln.

The Q5 Sportback’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid produces 11 more horsepower (261 vs. 250) than the Nautilus’ standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

On the EPA test cycle the Q5 Sportback gets better fuel mileage than the Nautilus 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder 8-speed Auto (23 city/28 hwy vs. 21 city/29 hwy).

The Q5 Sportback offers a standard sequential manual gearbox (SMG). With no clutch pedal to worry about and a fully automatic mode, an SMG is much more efficient than a conventional automatic but just as easy to drive. The Nautilus doesn’t offer an SMG or a conventional manual transmission.

The Q5 Sportback’s launch control uses engine electronics to hold engine RPM’s precisely in order to provide the most stable and rapid acceleration possible, using all of the available traction. The Nautilus doesn’t offer launch control.

The Q5 Sportback’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.

The Q5 Sportback’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 Q5 Sportback Premium Plus/Prestige’s optional tires have a lower 40 series profile than the Nautilus’ optional 45 series tires.

The Q5 Sportback is 8.6 inches shorter than the Nautilus, making the Q5 Sportback 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 Q5 Sportback. The Nautilus doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

The Q5 Sportback’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Nautilus’ (4400 vs. 0 pounds).

The engine in the Q5 Sportback is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Nautilus. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because the accessory belts are in front.

The Q5 Sportback Prestige has a standard heads-up display that projects speed, navigation instruction and driver assistance information 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 Q5 Sportback’s standard Audi Advanced Key allows you to unlock the doors from any outside door handle, open the cargo door, and start the engine, all without removing the key from the pocket or purse. Intelligent Access standard on the Nautilus doesn’t offer a sensor on the rear doors, so you’ll have to reach a front handle to unlock the rear door.

Heated windshield washer nozzles are standard on the Q5 Sportback 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.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The Q5 Sportback Prestige has standard headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The Nautilus doesn’t offer headlight washers.

The Q5 Sportback’s standard rear view mirror and optional 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.

Consumer Reports® recommends the Audi Q5 Sportback, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Audi Q5 outsold the Lincoln Nautilus by over three to one during 2023.