Compare the2027 Lincoln Navigator L VS 2026 Chevrolet Suburban

For enhanced safety, the front and second-row seat shoulder belts of the Lincoln Navigator L 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 Chevrolet Suburban doesn’t offer pretensioners for its second-row seat belts.

The Navigator L 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 Suburban 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.

The Navigator L’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Suburban doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the Navigator L and the Suburban 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, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, around view monitors, rear cross-path warning and available all-wheel drive.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Lincoln Navigator L is safer than the Chevrolet Suburban:

	Navigator L	Suburban
OVERALL STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Leg Forces (l/r)	23/39 lbs.	152/161 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
Chest Compression	.4 inches	.6 inches
Neck Injury Risk	35%	47%
Neck Stress	155 lbs.	272 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	271/178 lbs.	333/811 lbs.

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

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Lincoln Navigator L is safer than the Chevrolet Suburban:

	Navigator L	Suburban
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	23	25
Chest Movement	.5 inches	.7 inches
Abdominal Force	108 lbs.	111 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	61	88
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	13 inches	14 inches
HIC	134	239
Hip Force	569 lbs.	764 lbs.

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

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

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

The Navigator L’s corrosion warranty is unlimited miles longer than the Suburban’s (unlimited vs. 100,000 miles).

For smoother operation, better efficiency and fewer moving parts, the Navigator L has an overhead cam design, rather than the old pushrod design of some of the engines in the Suburban.

The Navigator L’s 3.5 turbo V6 produces 85 more horsepower (440 vs. 355) and 127 lbs.-ft. more torque (510 vs. 383) than the Suburban’s standard 5.3 V8. The Navigator L’s 3.5 turbo V6 produces 20 more horsepower (440 vs. 420) and 50 lbs.-ft. more torque (510 vs. 460) than the Suburban’s optional 6.2 V8.

As tested in Motor Trend the Lincoln Navigator L is faster than the Chevrolet Suburban 5.3 V8:

	Navigator L	Suburban
Zero to 60 MPH	5.7 sec	7.6 sec
Quarter Mile	14.3 sec	15.7 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	95.4 MPH	89.6 MPH

On the EPA test cycle the Navigator L gets better mileage than the Suburban:

			MPG
Navigator L
	RWD	3.5 turbo V6	16 city/23 hwy
	AWD	3.5 turbo V6	15 city/22 hwy
Suburban
	RWD	5.3 OHV V8	15 city/20 hwy
		6.2 OHV V8	15 city/19 hwy
	AWD	5.3 OHV V8	14 city/19 hwy
		6.2 OHV V8	14 city/18 hwy

For better stopping power the Navigator L’s standard front brake rotors are larger than those on the Suburban:

	Navigator L	Suburban
Front Rotors	13.8 inches	13.5 inches

The Navigator L stops shorter than the Suburban:

	Navigator L	Suburban
60 to 0 MPH	125 feet	127 feet	Motor Trend

For better traction, the Navigator L has larger standard tires than the Suburban (275/50R22 vs. 265/65R18).

The Navigator L’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 50 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Suburban’s standard 65 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Navigator L has standard 22-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the Suburban.

The Navigator L has standard front and rear stabilizer bars, which help keep the Navigator L flat and controlled during cornering. The Suburban’s suspension doesn’t offer a rear stabilizer bar.

The Navigator L has 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 Suburban doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

The Navigator L’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 Suburban doesn’t offer drift compensation steering.

The Navigator L Black Label handles at .75 G’s, while the Suburban Z71 4WD pulls only .67 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Navigator L Black Label executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 4.5 seconds quicker than the Suburban Z71 4WD (26.4 seconds @ .25 average G’s vs. 30.9 seconds @ .5 average G’s).

For greater off-road capability the Navigator L has a 1.2 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the Suburban (9.2 vs. 8 inches), allowing the Navigator L to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The Navigator L is 4.4 inches shorter than the Suburban, making the Navigator L easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The Navigator L uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The Suburban doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

The Navigator L has .4 inches more front hip room, .4 inches more rear hip room, .5 inches more rear shoulder room, 6.8 inches more third row legroom, 2 inches more third row hip room and 1.5 inches more third row shoulder room than the Suburban.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the Navigator L’s middle and third row seats recline. The Suburban’s third row seats don’t recline.

Flexibility is maximized at the game, campground or a drive-in theatre in the Navigator L when its optional tailgating rear seats are deployed, allowing people to sit facing out of the tailgate. (Do not use while vehicle is in motion.) The Suburban doesn’t offer tailgating seats.

The Navigator L’s rear cargo window opens separately from the rest of the tailgate door to allow quicker loading of small packages. The Suburban’s rear cargo window doesn’t open.

Maximum trailer towing in the Chevrolet Suburban is limited to 8200 pounds. The Navigator L 4x4 offers up to a 8700 lbs. towing capacity.

The Navigator L’s front and rear power windows all open or close with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside of the car. The Suburban’s rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to close them fully.

If the windows are left open on the Navigator L the driver can close all of them from a distance using the remote. On a hot day the driver can also lower the windows the same way. The driver of the Suburban can only close the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

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

The Lincoln Navigator L has power folding mirrors that offer unparalleled convenience while maneuvering in tight places or parked. With the mirrors folded it’s easier to walk past and help prevent parking damage. The mirrors can be quickly unfolded when the driver is ready to leave. Power folding mirrors costs extra on the Suburban and aren't offered on the LS.

The Navigator L has standard heated front, second and third row seats (third row heated seats optional on Black Label), which keep the driver and passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Chevrolet doesn’t offer heated seats in the third row of the Suburban.

The Navigator L Reserve/Black Label has standard front air conditioned seats and the Navigator L offers them optionally in the second row. This keeps the passengers comfortable and takes the sting out of hot seats in summer. The Suburban doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats for the second row.

The Navigator L 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 costs extra on the Suburban.

The Navigator L has standard massaging front and rear seats (rear massaging seats optional on Reserve/Black Label). Massaging seats aren’t available in the Suburban.

The Navigator L’s standard oscillating air vents move back and forth and distribute air evenly inside the vehicle, making everyone more comfortable. The Suburban doesn’t offer oscillating vents.

The Lincoln Navigator L 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. Chevrolet charges extra for Homelink® on the Suburban and isn’t available on the Suburban LS.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Lincoln Navigator L has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. Only the Suburban LT/RST/Z71/Premier/High Country offers wireless charging. The Navigator L also offers Qi charging in the second row seat. The Suburban doesn’t offer wireless charging in its second row seat.

A group of representative automotive journalists from North America selected the Navigator as the 2018 North American Truck of the Year. The Suburban has never been chosen.