Best Lincoln Years to Buy by Model
The best Lincoln years to buy: the 2010 Navigator, 2015 MKX and 2009 MKZ — the cleanest federal complaint records for each model. Years to skip include the 2008 MKX and 2020 Aviator. Based on 2,072 NHTSA owner complaints across 6 Lincoln models, rated model year by model year.
Source: NHTSA owner complaints, recall campaigns & service bulletins · Updated 2026-11-07 · By CarWhere Research · How we rate model years
Best Lincoln years, model by model
| Model | Best years | Years to skip | Years on record |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln Navigator | 200820102014 | 20182019 | 18 (2008–2025) |
| Lincoln MKX | 20142015 | 2008201120132016 | 18 (2008–2025) |
| Lincoln MKZ | 20092010 | 201320162017 | 12 (2009–2020) |
| Lincoln Aviator | No standout year yet | 20202022 | 6 (2020–2025) |
| Lincoln Nautilus | No standout year yet | 2019 | 7 (2019–2025) |
| Lincoln Corsair | No standout year yet | 2020 | 6 (2020–2025) |
Verdicts are each model’s own, rated against that model’s history; counts behind them are raw federal filings, not adjusted for sales volume.
The cleanest year for each Lincoln model
2010 Lincoln Navigator: 16 NHTSA owner complaints on record · all best-rated years: 2008, 2010 and 2014 · Best Navigator years →
2015 Lincoln MKX: 19 NHTSA owner complaints on record · all best-rated years: 2014 and 2015 · Best MKX years →
2009 Lincoln MKZ: 0 NHTSA owner complaints on record · all best-rated years: 2009 and 2010 · Best MKZ years →
Years to skip, in detail
Frequently asked questions
What are the best Lincoln years to buy?
By model: Navigator 2008, 2010 and 2014; MKX 2014 and 2015; MKZ 2009 and 2010. Each matches that model's own best-years page, built from NHTSA owner-complaint and recall records.
Which Lincoln years should I skip?
By model: Navigator 2018 and 2019; MKX 2008, 2011, 2013 and 2016; MKZ 2013, 2016 and 2017; Aviator 2020 and 2022; Nautilus 2019; Corsair 2020. The full breakdown is on the Lincoln years-to-avoid page.
How are the best Lincoln years chosen?
Each model year's NHTSA owner complaints are weighted for severity, converted to a rate per year on the road and compared with the rest of that model's own history; the lowest rates among years with enough road time earn "best". Models not yet scored that way are ranked by combined NHTSA complaint and manufacturer service-bulletin volume. Full method at /research/years-to-avoid/methodology.