Lincoln Navigator Cargo Test: How Much Fits Behind the Third Row?

• The new Lincoln Navigator has 21.6 cubic feet of space behind the third row.
• That's less than the Cadillac Escalade's published cargo volume.
• Our real-world test shows how much it can store back there.

Here is the Navigator's cargo area. It's pretty darn big back there. Before we get to the bags, though, there are a few cargo-related details to discuss.

The Navigator, like its corporate sibling, the new Ford Expedition, features this terrific split tailgate design. Both parts are power-operated. I owned a second-generation BMW X5 with this feature and absolutely loved it. Not only does the tailgate prevent loose items from falling out while loading, it also provides a handy place to sit that isn't covered in road gunk. I also discovered that it's a perfect place to change a diaper while on a road trip. 

Next up, as you can see here, the cargo floor is at an angle. What's lurking down below to cause that?

Well, lifting out the carpeted floor panel reveals this slab of plastic. What's its deal?

It's a shelf! No, wait, it's a table. No, wait again, it's both! This is a cool, handy feature that pairs well with the tailgate. The Ford Bronco Sport offers something very similar, though I must say the plastic used for the drop-down brackets is way more Ford than Lincoln. They're flimsy and feel like they'll break easily. 

As you can see here, the cargo area becomes flat when you remove the shelf/table and slide the floor back into its lower position. For the purposes of this test, though, I decided to leave the shelf/table under the angled floor to see how the Navigator would perform. I'd remove the shelf/table and lower the floor if necessary. Spoiler alert: It wasn't necessary, so I didn't. 

OK, let's get to the bags. Here's some nice boilerplate information about the bags I use and their dimensions. There are two bags you'd definitely have to check at the airport: Big Gray (26 inches long x 16.5 inches wide x 12 inches deep) and Big Blue (26 x 16.5 x 10). There are three roll-aboards that usually fit as carry-ons: Medium Tall (24 x 14 x 9), Medium Wide (23 x 15 x 9) and the smaller Green Bag (21 x 14 x 9.5). Finally, there's everyone's favorite Fancy Bag (21 x 12 x 11), a medium-size duffle.

Lincoln Navigator, welcome to the club. It joins the small number of three-row SUVs that can hold all of my bags behind the third row and maintain sufficient visibility. 

That last caveat is important, because while the Chevy Tahoe could technically hold these same bags ...

... I deemed that the Fancy Bag was too close to the roof to satisfy the test's visibility/safety requirement. I went with the Edmunds Golf Classic Duffel bag in its place for the official result. 

However, even if I allowed the above formation to be the Tahoe/Escalade's official result, you can see in the above photo of the Tahoe that the area is narrower than the Navigator's. My two biggest bags are lying next to each other in the Lincoln; they couldn't do that in the Tahoe/Escalade. 

Furthermore, that's not all she wrote for the Navigator. 

With a little more help from Photoshop, I can show you that I could swap out the Fancy Bag for a second green roll-aboard if I had one. Therefore, it definitely beats the Tahoe/Escalade despite them having what should be a significant on-paper advantage of 3.9 cubic feet.

Why is the Navigator in reality better? Lincoln's inclusion of that "full upright" figure leads to me to believe that Ford, at least, suspects that GM is using such a method to measure its third-row-up cargo capacity. Of course, even the Navigator's "full upright" figure of 22.9 cubes falls short of the Chevy/Cadillac one.

Whatever the reason, though, the conclusion remains that the Navigator can fit more behind its third row than a Tahoe and, presumably, an Escalade. It still trails the Jeep Grand Wagoneer, which had as much of an advantage in my testing as its 27.4-cubic-foot spec would suggest.