Reliable Auto DB

2019 Lincoln Nautilus reliability

Is it reliable?

The 2019 Lincoln Nautilus has 102 complaints with NHTSA after 8 years, or 13 per year. That is the most complaints per year among the 6 Nautilus years on this site. NHTSA has 8 recalls on file, including Instrument cluster, Lane-keep steering assist, and Back-over prevention, software.

2019 Lincoln Nautilus
Photo by Kevauto, resized from the original. Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0
Complaints

102

Per year

13

Recalls

8

Years on the road

8

What owners report

The complaints owners file most often name Electrical system (29 of 102), then Powertrain (28) and Engine (15). Those filings include 2 that report a crash.

Next to 2020

The 2020 Nautilus has 33 complaints, 1 per year. The 2019 has more complaints per year than the 2020.

The complaint rate is complaints filed in this year’s first 3 years on the road, divided by however many of those years have passed. Recalls are a separate count. The numbers are for the US-market 2019 Lincoln Nautilus. How we count. Data as of .

Recalls (8)

Recall electrical system, instrument cluster 2026-06-09 · NHTSA campaign 26V372000
Summary Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2019 Ford Mustang, Lincoln Nautilus, and Lincoln Navigator vehicles previously repaired incorrectly under recall number 19V076. At vehicle start-up, the Instrument Panel Cluster Assembly (IPC) may not function, showing a blank display. As a result, these vehicles fail to comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 101, "Controls and Displays."
Remedy Dealers will reprogram the Instrument Panel Cluster Assembly (IPC) software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 13, 2026. Owners may contact customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 26C27. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will become searchable on NHTSA.gov on July 6, 2026.
Recall Lane-keep steering assist 2026-06-09 · NHTSA campaign 26V377000
Summary Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2019 Lincoln Nautilus vehicles previously repaired incorrectly under recall number 19V031. The lane center assist system may not adequately detect if a driver has their hands off the steering wheel for a prolonged period of time.
Remedy Dealers will update the power steering control module software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 8. 2026. Owners may contact customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 26S44. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will become searchable on NHTSA.gov on July 6, 2026.
Recall back-over prevention, software 2025-06-27 · NHTSA campaign 25V442000
Summary Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2018-2022 Transit Connect, 2019-2020 MKZ, MKX, Edge, Continental, F-150, Nautilus, Fusion, 2019-2023 Ranger, Mustang, 2020-2021 EcoSport, Expedition, Navigator, 2020-2022 Escape, F-250 SD, Corsair, 2020-2023 Aviator, Transit, 2020-2024 Explorer, 2021-2024 Bronco Sport, and 2022-2024 Maverick vehicles. A software error may cause the rearview camera to display a blank image, or the image may remain on the display after the backing event has ended.
Remedy Dealers will update the rearview camera software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed September 4, 2025. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 25S72.
Recall powertrain, automatic transmission 2020-09-10 · NHTSA campaign 20V550000
Summary Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2019-2020 Edge, Transit Connect and Lincoln MKX and 2020 Escape and Lincoln Corsair vehicles. The start/stop accumulator endcap may have missing or loose bolts.
Remedy Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the start/stop accumulator, free of charge. The recall began September 23, 2020. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 20S49.
Recall seats, front assembly, power adjuster 2020-07-17 · NHTSA campaign 20V414000
Summary Ford Motor Company, Inc. (Ford) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Lincoln MKX and 2019-2020 Nautilus vehicles equipped with 16-way electric tilt seats. The seat cushion frame edge may contact the wire harness when the seat occupant uses the tilt function of the seat, potentially damaging one or more wires within the harness, which can result in either inadvertent deployment of the air bag or nondeployment of the air bag in the event of a crash.
Remedy Ford will notify owners, and dealers will install protective flocking tape onto the exposed edge of the 16-way seat cushion frames, and inspect the wire harness for damage, and repair or replace it as needed, free of charge. This recall began August 12, 2020. Owners may contact Ford/Lincoln customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 20S37.
Recall electrical system, instrument cluster 2019-02-11 · NHTSA campaign 19V076000
Summary Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2019 Ford Mustang, Lincoln Nautilus, and Lincoln Navigator vehicles. At vehicle start-up, the Instrument Panel Cluster Assembly (IPC) may not function, showing a blank display. As a result, these vehicles fail to comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 101, "Controls and Displays."
Remedy Ford has notified owners, and dealers will reprogram the Instrument Panel Cluster Assembly (IPC), free of charge. The recall began March 8, 2019. Owners may contact customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 19C03.
Recall Lane-keep steering assist 2019-01-14 · NHTSA campaign 19V031000
Summary Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2019 Lincoln Nautilus vehicles. The Lane Center Assist system may not adequately detect if a driver has their hands off the steering wheel for a prolonged period of time.
Remedy Ford has notified owners, and dealers will update the Power Steering Control Module software, free of charge. The recall began on January 25, 2019. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 19S02.
Recall air bags, frontal 2018-11-14 · NHTSA campaign 18V806000
Summary Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2019 Lincoln Nautilus vehicles that are not equipped with Adaptive Front Steering. The plastic cover on the driver frontal air bag module may detach during air bag deployment.
Remedy Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver air bag module, free of charge. The recall began December 7, 2018. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 18S38.

Complaints by component (102 total)

Electrical system
29
Powertrain
28
Engine
15
Steering
8
Seat belts
5
Fuel and propulsion system
4
Electronic stability control (ESC)
3
Speed control
3
Wheels
3
Air bags
2
Back-over prevention
2
Exterior lighting
2
Forward collision avoidance
2
Service brakes
2
Communication
1
Engine and engine cooling
1
Structure
1
Suspension
1
Tires
1
Visibility
1
Visibility and wipers
1
Show 13 more Show less
Crash-flagged

2

Fire-flagged

0

Injury reports

0

Death reports

0

Complaints filed per year

1620191420209202142022142024252025202026
Excerpts from recent NHTSA complaint filings
  • "Transmission jerking/ stuttering in lower gears under 35 mph."
    Unknown or other · filed 2026-09-16
  • "The contact owns a 2019 Lincoln Nautilus. After several days of rain, there was moisture inside the vehicle. The contact detected a foul odor and discovered water on the floorboard. A box in the rear of the vehicle was…"
    Steering, Visibility · filed 2026-09-02
  • "The car has started a jerking motion when it is at a stop sign, stop light, or and nu prolonged stoppage of the vehicle. It is worse when I have the auto-stop-start feature turned on. This started roughly 3 months ago."
    Powertrain · filed 2026-08-24
  • "My 2019 Lincoln Nautilus (equipped with the 8F35 8-speed automatic transmission) has developed a severe, hazardous low-speed transmission shudder and hesitating vibration, primarily occurring under 35 mph. This vehicle…"
    Powertrain · filed 2026-08-24
  • "There is a class action lawsuit regarding the transmission on my vehicle. The transmission is shuddering. My mechanic alerted me of the lawsuit, Lincoln Mercury has not put out a recall, but is aware of the problem.…"
    Engine · filed 2026-08-20

NHTSA crash ratings

Version Overall Front Side Rollover
2019 Lincoln Nautilus SUV AWD 5 stars 5 stars 5 stars 4 stars
2019 Lincoln Nautilus SUV FWD 5 stars 5 stars 5 stars 4 stars

Stars are how this vehicle did in NHTSA crash tests. They are a safety result, separate from the complaint record. Not rated means that test was not run for this version.

Fuel economy

Trim Engine Transmission Drive City Hwy Combined Annual fuel cost
Nautilus all-wheel drive 2.7L, 6-cyl Automatic (8-speed) All-wheel drive 19 26 21 MPG $3100
Nautilus all-wheel drive 2L, 4-cyl Automatic (8-speed) All-wheel drive 20 25 22 MPG $2950
Nautilus front-wheel drive 2.7L, 6-cyl Automatic (8-speed) Front-wheel drive 20 27 22 MPG $2950
Nautilus front-wheel drive 2L, 4-cyl Automatic (8-speed) Front-wheel drive 21 26 23 MPG $2800

Specs and fitment

Nautilus (CD4), 2019–present
Body styles SUV
Oil 5W-30 (2.0L turbo or 2.7L turbo V6) , 5.5 qt capacity
Tire size 245/60R18

Known issues for this generation

Recall 24V635000 covers certain 2021-2022 Lincoln Nautilus vehicles (with Bronco, F-150, Edge, Explorer, and Aviator) equipped with a 2.7L or 3.0L Nano EcoBoost engine whose intake valves may break while driving, which can cause engine failure and loss of drive power; dealers perform an engine cycle test and replace the engine as needed. Recall 20V414000 covers certain 2019-2020 Nautilus vehicles (with 2016-2018 MKX) equipped with 16-way electric tilt seats where the seat cushion frame edge may contact and damage the wire harness; dealers install protective flocking tape and inspect the harness. Recall 25V442000 covers certain 2019-2020 Nautilus vehicles among a large multi-model rearview-camera software campaign; dealers update rearview camera software.

Compare

Next year 2020 Lincoln Nautilus See every Lincoln Nautilus model year →

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2019 Lincoln Nautilus reliable?

The 2019 Lincoln Nautilus has 102 complaints with NHTSA after 8 years, or 13 per year. That is the most complaints per year among the 6 Nautilus years on this site. NHTSA has 8 recalls on file, including Instrument cluster, Lane-keep steering assist, and Back-over prevention, software.

What are common problems with a 2019 Lincoln Nautilus?

The complaints owners file most often name Electrical system (29 of 102), then Powertrain (28) and Engine (15). Those filings include 2 that report a crash.

Is the 2019 Lincoln Nautilus more reliable than the years next to it?

The 2020 Nautilus has 33 complaints, 1 per year. The 2019 has more complaints per year than the 2020.

Has the 2019 Lincoln Nautilus been recalled?

The 2019 Lincoln Nautilus has 8 recalls on file with NHTSA. See the recalls table on this page for dates, components, and remedies.

How many complaints have owners filed about the 2019 Lincoln Nautilus?

Owners have filed 102 complaints about the 2019 Lincoln Nautilus with NHTSA.

What mpg does a 2019 Lincoln Nautilus get?

EPA-rated combined fuel economy for the 2019 Lincoln Nautilus is 22 MPG. See the fuel economy table on this page for city and highway figures by engine and transmission.

What oil does a Lincoln Nautilus take?

5W-30 for the 2.0L turbo or 2.7L turbo V6; capacity about 5.5 qt—confirm in the owner’s manual for your engine.

Is there an EcoBoost engine recall on the Nautilus?

Recall 24V635000 covers certain 2021-2022 Nautilus vehicles (with Bronco, F-150, Edge, Explorer, and Aviator) with 2.7L or 3.0L Nano EcoBoost engines whose intake valves may break.