FaultScore

2020 Lincoln Aviator driver assist problems

28 of the 169 complaints about the 2020 Lincoln Aviator are about the driver-assist systems — 17% of everything reported for this model year. Half of the failures with a mileage on record happened before 79,000 miles.

B

28

Complaints

0

Crashes

0

Fires

0

Injuries

Exactly what failed

Back Over Prevention 6 21.4%
Camera 6 21.4%
Warnings 4 14.3%
Automatic Emergency Braking 4 14.3%
Camera System 2 7.1%
Adaptive Cruise Control 2 7.1%
Warnings 2 7.1%
Assist 1 3.6%
Warning 1 3.6%

What owners said

Filed with NHTSA, in their own words.

Florence, AZ

BACK OVER PREVENTION: WARNINGS

To Whom It May Concern, Please see attached formal notice regarding recurring defects, safety-related recall issues, Certified Pre-Owned representations, and financing concerns associated with my 2020 Lincoln Aviator Reserve VIN [XXX] . This matter involves: • recurring suspension and electrical concerns; • safety-related rearview camera/SYNC recall issues; • repeated dealership repair activity; • diminished reliability and value; • Certified Pre-Owned reliance; • and unresolved manufacturer-level concerns despite extensive servicing history. Please escalate this matter immediately to executive customer relations and manufacturer review. I am requesting: • a formal manufacturer investigation, • preservation of all records associated with this VIN, • and review for buyback, goodwill compensation, warranty relief, or other global resolution options. Please confirm receipt and provide a case number immediately. Sincerely, [XXX] [XXX] [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA complaint #11736923 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Florence, AZ

FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS

I am filing a safety complaint regarding a 2020 Lincoln Aviator Reserve VIN [XXX] involving recurring safety-related electrical and visibility concerns. The vehicle has experienced repeated service-related issues involving suspension systems, electrical inspections, camera/display concerns, and manufacturer customer satisfaction programs. Most significantly, the vehicle is subject to an active manufacturer safety recall involving the SYNC/rearview camera display system. The recall states that the rearview camera image and display may become inverted or flipped, impairing rear visibility and increasing crash risk. This defect directly impacts driver visibility and safe vehicle operation while reversing. The vehicle has undergone repeated dealership servicing and diagnostic evaluations, yet the broader operational and safety concerns remain unresolved. The vehicle was also sold as a Lincoln Certified Pre-Owned vehicle, creating reasonable reliance that the vehicle met enhanced inspection and safety standards. I believe the recurring nature of these defects, combined with the active recall and repeated repair activity, demonstrates a broader safety-related defect pattern warranting regulatory review and investigation. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA complaint #11736924 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Port Saint Lucie, FL

FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING

while moving in reverse, the vehicle automatic breaking system engages on and off giving a jerking movement of the car and makes you feel like you hit something. Once the vehicle is placed into Drive mode the same thing happens with the breaking system. because of this the check vehicle lights come on and gives a "Hill start assist warning" also "Pre-collision Assist Not Available". Also all wheel drive mode is not available and the drive mode selection no longer works. Took the car to the Lincoln dealership and they said it is a known problem and that there is a TSB out on this issue. The vehicle has only 66,000 miles on it and it is out of warranty. How can there not be a recall on this issue? They said they need to replace two shafts in the front end costing $5,000.

NHTSA complaint #11729043 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Tell City, IN

LANE DEPARTURE: WARNING

Backup camera is not working properly and the lane departure system doesn’t work

NHTSA complaint #11721228 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Tell City, IN

LANE DEPARTURE: ASSIST

Backup camera is not working properly and the lane departure system doesn’t work

NHTSA complaint #11721228 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Chicago, IL

BACK OVER PREVENTION

See attached document for complaint.

NHTSA complaint #11685955 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Fort Myers, FL

BACK OVER PREVENTION: WARNINGS

I don't know the component or system that failed but sometimes when I am parked and put my car into reverse, the brakes lock up but my car will roll backwards. I have to either jam both feet on the brake pedal or quickly shift the car back into park and turn the car off and restart it. This usually will correct the problem. It feels like the brakes are locked and they are really hard to press. I drop kids off at school and this has happened in the parking lot several times with children walking behind me as I am getting ready to leave. I no longer am able to pull in forward to spots and have to back in to avoid reversing with people/cars behind me. I would rather hit a curb then potentially roll into a person or another car. I've taken it to the Lincoln dealership and they were not able to reproduce it or diagnose anything with it. Nothing shows up on their system as an error. It happens infrequently but I've owned the car since Nov 2024 and it's happened at least 10 times. My husband thinks its an electronic issue because it corrects itself when the car is restarted. It also randomly allows me to turn the wheel but the wheel does not turn back to 12. It stays at 3 but drives straight. This also is corrected by turning off the car and restarting. It has also been looked at by the dealership without any fixes.

NHTSA complaint #11680022 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Fort Myers, FL

FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING

I don't know the component or system that failed but sometimes when I am parked and put my car into reverse, the brakes lock up but my car will roll backwards. I have to either jam both feet on the brake pedal or quickly shift the car back into park and turn the car off and restart it. This usually will correct the problem. It feels like the brakes are locked and they are really hard to press. I drop kids off at school and this has happened in the parking lot several times with children walking behind me as I am getting ready to leave. I no longer am able to pull in forward to spots and have to back in to avoid reversing with people/cars behind me. I would rather hit a curb then potentially roll into a person or another car. I've taken it to the Lincoln dealership and they were not able to reproduce it or diagnose anything with it. Nothing shows up on their system as an error. It happens infrequently but I've owned the car since Nov 2024 and it's happened at least 10 times. My husband thinks its an electronic issue because it corrects itself when the car is restarted. It also randomly allows me to turn the wheel but the wheel does not turn back to 12. It stays at 3 but drives straight. This also is corrected by turning off the car and restarting. It has also been looked at by the dealership without any fixes.

NHTSA complaint #11680022 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

at 79,000 miles Madisonville, LA

BACK OVER PREVENTION

The contact owns a 2020 Lincoln Aviator. The contact stated that while reversing, the vehicle independently engaged the automatic braking feature and the vehicle stopped. The contact stated that there were no objects behind the vehicle. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent and there was no warning light illuminated. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle was locking all the doors independently with the key fob still inside the vehicle. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent. The contact stated that during one of the failures, her infant child was locked inside the vehicle and she and her other children were forcibly pulling on the door handles on all four doors. The contact stated that the vehicle side view mirrors at one point folded inward and the passenger front door unlocked, the other doors remained locked. The contact also stated that while cold starting the vehicle, the vehicle was making an abnormal rattling sound coming from the engine compartment. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact had taken the vehicle to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the rear-view camera needed to be replaced, that the rattling sound was due to a failure of the catalytic converter and that exhaust fumes were entering the cabin of the vehicle. The contact had not noticed the odor, but her children had complained of a gasoline odor in the rear of the vehicle. The vehicle was repaired; however, the contact stated that the vehicle had another electrical and mechanical failure. The manufacturer was informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 79,000.

NHTSA complaint #11639614 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Bessemer, AL

BACK OVER PREVENTION

The contact owns a 2020 Lincoln Aviator. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V368000 (Back Over Prevention) however, the part to do the repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.

NHTSA complaint #11635066 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Merrimack, NH

BACK OVER PREVENTION: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA

Most current recall has not been fixed. Vehicles displayed screen goes black with no warning, leaving no access to front or rear parking cameras, also leaving no access to GPS while in use. I have several videos of this incident occurring and have sent to dealer, brought to dealer while occurring and they deny any problems even though their employees, and the owner have seen this occur after they claim the recall was repaired. Lincoln corporate will not get involved. Dealer claims it is my cell phone, even though it occurs with any cell phone connected.

NHTSA complaint #11624332 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Burlington, IA

FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING

Pre collision assist warning, service advance track, 4 wheel drive fault all these codes showed up at the same time. Also the cheap fabric liners in the wheel wells are tearing under normal driving conditions

NHTSA complaint #11592869 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Burlington, IA

FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS

Pre collision assist warning, service advance track, 4 wheel drive fault all these codes showed up at the same time. Also the cheap fabric liners in the wheel wells are tearing under normal driving conditions

NHTSA complaint #11592869 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Glendale Heights, IL

FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS

Driving down the road and all of a sudden multiple warnings come on the dash. They include : Service AvanceTrac, pre collision assist not available, 4WD fault service required, and Hill start assist not available. These warning all clear upon restart but will come back at random times. I joined a forum for this vehicle and a lot of owners are reporting this issue.

NHTSA complaint #11591999 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Raceland, LA

BACK OVER PREVENTION: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA

Lincoln had a recall on the rear view camera in 2021 which I completed that did not remedy the issue of blue screen in place of the camera. They released another recall and have continuously delayed it as they have no remedy so my vehicle is left without a functioning rear view camera.

NHTSA complaint #11552137 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Wendell, NC

BACK OVER PREVENTION: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA

Rear camera blue screen. Screen intermittently blacks out.

NHTSA complaint #11546069 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Payson, UT

BACK OVER PREVENTION

The contact owns a 2020 Lincoln Aviator. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V735000 (Back Over Prevention), 22V953000 (Seat Belts) and 23V342000 (Back Over Prevention) however, the parts to do the recall repairs were not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repairs. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

NHTSA complaint #11540327 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Macomb, MI

FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS

My warning light stating a AWD malfunction has occurred has gone off 4 times, along with warnings for malfunctions in precollision assist and hill climb assist and the light has come on 4 times for each of these. When driving these lights come on and when the AWD malfunction light comes on the car drives very loose and I do not seem to have firm control over the steering and i feel like the car wants to swerve and I do not feel safe driving .

NHTSA complaint #11523476 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Macomb, MI

FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING

My warning light stating a AWD malfunction has occurred has gone off 4 times, along with warnings for malfunctions in precollision assist and hill climb assist and the light has come on 4 times for each of these. When driving these lights come on and when the AWD malfunction light comes on the car drives very loose and I do not seem to have firm control over the steering and i feel like the car wants to swerve and I do not feel safe driving .

NHTSA complaint #11523476 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Woodland, CA

FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL

AWD, Adaptive Cruise Control, infoTrac, and Collisiom assistance lights continue going off while on freeways. Have brought in several times in less than a year and I can’t imagine that the ABS module is the issue as they reinstalled and it didn’t work along with replacement of numerous sensors. Please look into this

NHTSA complaint #11514979 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Greensburg, PA

BACK OVER PREVENTION

The contact owns a 2020 Lincoln Aviator. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V022000 (Back Over Prevention) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was made aware of the issue. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

NHTSA complaint #11514627 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Woodland, CA

FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL

AWD sensors repeatedly are going off then disappearing after car is turned on and off. Happens in City mostly but has triggered while driving on the highway. Caused all ability to use cruise control to deactivate. It also shows the down hill assist fault error.

NHTSA complaint #11512103 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Yuma, AZ

BACK OVER PREVENTION: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA

My Aviator doesn't start the first time I push the start engine button anytime after I fill up the tank. It takes it about 5 times of me hitting the start engine button before it finally turns over. Before then, it just sounds like wants to start, but doesn't. I am once again taking it back to the dealership to have the back up camera looked at. Before it would work sporadically, now when I put the car in reverse, it just shows a solid blue screen. And I always get an error message about rear assist not working. I've tried troubleshooting it, but still nothing works. Additionally, the presets for XM radio do not stay when set. This infotainment center does not function efficiently and has delays and no memory.

NHTSA complaint #11510578 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Orlando, FL

BACK OVER PREVENTION: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA

Backup camera turns to blue screen when the vehicle is put into reverse.

NHTSA complaint #11466546 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Leesburg, VA

BACK OVER PREVENTION

This vehicle has been recalled at least twice for a faulty rear camera system. When vehicle is put in reverse the image on the screen flips so bad you cannot see what is behind you. The previous recalls were for this, we had it in the shop twice before the 2 recalls plus the two recalls (4 times) and cannot get a properly working rear camera. This is a safety issue because we rely on the camera for blind spots during reverse and to see behind this large vehicle. Ford cannot figure out how to fix.

NHTSA complaint #11446837 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Harrisburg, PA

BACK OVER PREVENTION: CAMERA SYSTEM

The rear view camera does not always work. Sometimes it is just a blank green screen with the guide lines. This happen many times but not always. The software to update the image processing module software has been done.

NHTSA complaint #11428670 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Belmont, NC

BACK OVER PREVENTION: CAMERA SYSTEM

Built at Chicago Plant October 2019 purchased Sept 30, 2020. Multiple and ongoing instances where back up camera when put into reverse goes to a blue screen and you cannot see what is behind you in the back up camera. it also cant assist in advising you there is oncoming traffic. APMI completely replaced and several software updates. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE Radio and info screen will freeze up passenger doors would not open - switches replaced windows would not roll down - shop reprogrammed

NHTSA complaint #11427279 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Staten Island, NY

BACK OVER PREVENTION: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA

Rear backup camera tuns to blue screen when the vehicle is put into reverse. Also rear brake assist works sometimes. Vehicle was turned into service for previous rear camera recall, but condition has returned.

NHTSA complaint #11427154 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Other 2020 Lincoln Aviator problems

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