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George; I know what the window sticker says, but real world doesn't bear it out. The Escalade I used for my vacation this month got 12.5mpg highway. My Navigator got that in the city, and 17 on the highway. Also, my Navigator felt quicker, so horsepower be damned, they don't get better mileage than the Navigator.....
Get a second opinion.....
It only needed a $27 Oxygen sensor.
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Chintan Talati
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Steve, Host
Steve, Host
I am looking at buying a used navigator. I need the in's and outs of this vehicle. We currently have a 99 escalade and looking to get into the 2000's. We just feel the lincoln looks better and from what we have heard has better options. Looking at 02 to 04 model year and possibly 05 if they are truly better. So if you guys could share some knowledge I would be greatful. Also, if you guys are in the market for a mercedes SL I can give you the in's and outs since I did a ton of research befor buying.
Thanks in advance
Forget the '02 and prior. '03 marked an important redesign which gave the Navigator it's new beautiful interior AND a big improvement in ride and handling with Independent rear suspension (IRS). IRS also allowed for the fold-flat third row, which is power fold on most (all?) models). It was either 05 or 06, forget which, which introduced the 6 speed automatic.
Coincidentally, I just posted my 2004 Navigator Ultimate for sale last night. If you're in California Bay Area and want to talk, send me an email. I would seriously recommend the '04 over the '03 just on grounds of they worked a couple bugs out. Also, the navigation system in the 04 (and late-build 03s) is better than previous as it uses DVD not CDs.
It is a great vehicle. RIdes and handles much better than you'd think. At 27000 miles I've had Zero trouble with mine. Hate to sell it, but family finances dictates it.
Good luck finding what you want.
The 6 speed transmission went in the 05 model year. And it's a significant improvement, if you can afford an 05. Makes the engine really peppy.
My 03 was a great truck. Took it to 36,000 miles and turned it in at lease end. The only reason I didn't get a third one (I still want one really badly) is fuel costs.
Gas was starting to spike at the time, and I didn't want to obligate myself for another 3 years on one, since I already own another SUV. If gas stablizes at a reasonable cost, (I didn't complain until it went over $2.50), I'd have another one toot sweet!
I know there is a towing capacity page.
Good truck too, I had 2 of them.
Dealerships in my area hold "consumer test drive events" like this all the time. It's just a sales event disguised in a "car-show" type atmosphere.
I'm surprised the above post hasn't been removed. Either way, this Navigator forum gets relatively few posts so I doubt you'll get much response.
Tell the folks at Coutler Caddy, nice try -- though.
As to the Lincoln Navigator -- I just saw some some detailed interior pics and I'm left sadly under whelmed. The instrument gage is being made to purposely look "retro" and I think that's a BIG mistake.
With the huge "teenage braces" grill on the front and the "old-school" interior of this redesigned SUV, I just don't see it being a big hit.
If you could combine the new escalade's interior look with a slightly toned-down exterior AND fold-flat 3rd row you'd have my "PERFECT" SUV.
My opinion in a nutshell is; This is the last car Lincoln has to offer that measured up to being a Lincoln. And they've screwed it up royally, inside and out. Geeeeez!!! What else could they do to Oldsmobile this brand??
Maybe some of that Lexus Mojo will find its way to Lincoln Products.
I'm a fan of the Navigator and I want it to succeed, but with this new design I find myself hoping it tanks so that they'd redesign it in a hurry.
Who knows, maybe people will love the changes? I assume Lincoln spent LOTS of money on consumer testing before they made these changes. Maybe when I see this beast up close and personal at the car show next month I'll change my tune.
frank
If the dealer is willing to keep working on it, have them compare it to another new or used Navigator on the lot and see if it does it.
I know the Expeditions had a similar problem with the coil packs - I think it was a leaky hose that damaged it. It's worth checking.
You have to find a dealer willing to fix it. You can use any dealer for warranty work, so try a different one. Explain the situation to the service manager. I'm sure you can find a dealer willing to fix it.
I had a similar experience on my new 03 Navigator. The A/C would blow cold, then hot intermittantly. The dealer said, no codes, nothing wrong. So, I got the service manager to go for a ride. In less than a mile, he admitted, this is just not acceptable, and agreed to find out what was wrong. It was a bad expansion valve. No codes were thrown, but they fixed it. No future issues.
Try another dealer. I know it's a pain, but you have to.
Pictures don't do this truck justice. The interior upgrades are so amazing they have to be SEEN and FELT in person in order to be appreciated.
The new leather is so soft and supple -- a HUGE upgrade for my tastes. The new captains chairs feel better than my lounge chair at home!
The new wood trim looks VERY classy. All the doors and trays open smoothly and with a luxurious touch.
Even my biggest gripe about this redesign (the teenager-with-a-mouth-full-of-braces-look of the new front end) looks MUCH classier in person.
I've just GOT to add this beast to my test drive list for next year. Overall, this truck was the one vehicle that surprised me the most at the Miami Beach car show.
I guess the Ford designers DO know what they're doing after all!!!!!
Take a look at this car inside and out in person guys -- I think you will be very pleasantly surprised!
Also, in this class 300hp is not enough anymore, end of story.
Meybe the quality of marterials is better than before, but the design of the interrior looks like Lincoln took a step BACK, not forward. The previous interrior was, IMO, the best Ive seen on any vehicle, in terms of design and layout. The only thing was the small nav sreen and a few missing features.
This truck does look better than what they had at the show, it looks classier. Honestly though, I wish the ford team good luck trying to sell it.
I also don't know what happened to the Hurricane Engine project, that would make Lincoln competitive with Caddy again. Probably budget cuts....
Sometimes I think this company would be better off without the Ford family input. May be time to sell it.
Fields was also responsible for making side curtain airbags standard on the Fusion/Milan. His mantra is to stop decontenting and cutting costs and start adding features and options instead to get more profit.
Now that Bill Ford has stepped aside and is letting Fields and Mullaly run things Ford will be fine. I think they'll be profitable in 2 years and start gaining back some of the lost market share.
The new seats as well as the center stack improvements in the look/feel department really did impress me, though.
The little chrome "Navigator" accents on the door pulls were a nice touch, too.
I can certainly see this truck continuing to be a "love it or hate it" product. Me, I'm all over the place, at first I hated it, now I love it, tomorrow....???
Still want to test drive though to see if they made it quieter and smoother than the 03 I once had.
It stayed at the dealer a week while they changed the "suspension module". It was smooth sailing after that.
Is the truck giving you any warnings on the instrument panel? The warning might only come on when you experience the trouble so keep a look out for one. Does the problem happen at a specific time (speeding up, slowing down, after a speed bump, etc)?
Generally, the mechanics have to be able to duplicate the problem or at least get the computer to spit out an error, otherwise they have "nothing" to fix.
I'm surprised they wrote the "visual impairment" thing on the invoice. Even if it's true, a simple "no problem was found" would have sufficed.
Have them check the TSB (technical service bulletin)like akirby suggested. Document when the problem happens and how often.
This problem sounds serious enough that you may want to let the dealership keep the truck a few days so they can drive it themselves. Perhaps you can work out a deal to get a free loaner for those days? A Lincoln dealer will usually go to great lengths to keep you happy.
Good luck!
To those ends, we will be shutting down the general make/model discussions and work exclusively with specific issues. This requires us to populate the make/model subsections with relevant, interesting and timely topics. Rather than having the hosts simply create boilerplate topics for each make/model, we feel that you, the owner, the make/model enthusiast and the prospective buyer can best judge what those topics should be.
You can help by adding a discussion (it's easy!) or suggesting one here.
To add a discussion, click on the last link in the "You are here" line at the top of this page. That will take you to the topic page for this make/model. Review the list of topics and click on the "Add discussion" link when you've decided what topic you'd like to add. Follow the directions and you're done! Feel free to add more than one. Just avoid duplicating existing topics and try not to make it TOO specific!
Your help and continued participation in the Forums is greatly appreciated! Thanks.
Oh, and did I mention I was towing an appx 8000 pound toy-hauler RV the whole way? Zero problems with the Navigator, though the toy hauler blew 3 tires over the course of 6000 miles. THat was fun. My total expenditure for lodging over the 3 weeks was $30.04, thanks to the RV. My total expenditure for gasoline was too much to talk about. With the 8000 lbs on the back, 10 mpg is a lofty goal. Gasoline costs across the country are just too screwy to understand. Here in Cal where much of the gas is refined etc, premium was close to $3.00/gallon when I left. It stayed in the $2.75-3.00 range until I got to Kansas, IIRC, when it dropped below $2.50. In the southern states like KY and TENN it was down to $2.25 or so. I think the least I paid was $2.08 in KY.
I really love this truck. Unfortunately unless I get a job soon, it HAS to go.
You're going to *be shutting down the general make/model discussions and work exclusively with specific issues* ?? And this is supposed to HELP? After all this time you have been jumping on posters for starting new topics which do nothing but clutter up the selection menus, now you are telling us to do exactly that - clutter it all up- AND you're going to remove the individual vehicle discussions? So now instead of going to a "Lincoln Navigator" discussion, I must choose from tens to hundreds of topics like "Lincoln Navigator guages - pre 2007" or "Lincoln Navigator guages 2003-2006" or "Lincoln Navigator cup holder locations" as examples??? THis will truly be a mess. Well, this site has gone straight downhill since it first began so I'm not surprised. It used to be easy and informative. Now it is a nightmare to get information about a vehicle without jumping from one page to another, (and don't forget to select a COLOR or we won't tell u any more about the car) being inundated with ads and links to competitive vehicles etc. But at least the discusson boards have been helpful and easy-to-use. Until now. What took you all so long to get around to screwing these up anyway?
All IMHO of course.
Let's pick this up in Lincoln Navigator: Meet the Members!. Feel free to visit Forums Software! Your Questions Answered... for information on the restructuring.
tidester, host
You'll find a number of discussions listed at the top level of this group: Lincoln Navigator. When you are ready to post, please check the discussion list there for the appropriate discussion to post in. If there doesn't appear to be a discussion for the issue or problem you have, feel free to create one. We can deal with accidental duplication of topics as things progress.
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Thanks for your understanding and help in making this group a great resource of information for Lincoln Navigator owners!
tidester, host
tidester, host