Fifth-Gen 2025 Lincoln Navigator Black Label Is Just a Subtle Facelift in the CGI World

When getting the facts straight, it turns out the lesser-known and slow-to-be-loved Lincoln Navigator appeared before its nemesis – the Cadillac Escalade. The former was introduced to the world as a full-size luxury SUV based on the Ford Expedition (in turn, a three-row SUV based on the F-150 truck) in 1997 as a 1998 model year and has reached its fourth iteration back in 2017, two decades later, as 2018 model year.

Meanwhile, the better-selling Caddy Escalade arrived in 1998 for the 1999 model year to fight the influx of luxury SUV rivals like the Mercedes-Benz M-Class (now GLE), Land Rover Range Rover, or the ubiquitous Lexus LX. However, everyone knows its main target for sales demolition was Ford's 1998 release of the Lincoln Navigator. And what do you know – slowly but steadily, Caddy's Escalade gained a cult following and is now rocking the fifth-generation styling since early 2020.

Even more so, although Ford pledged to bring a Lincoln Navigator EV to market, the only one that's a firm promise is the 2025 Cadillac Escalade IQ with GM's Ultium technology onboard. Oh, and not to mention the brawny Cadillac Escalade-V! So, what about Lincoln? What is it going to do about the Navigator to make it more enticing?

As it turns out, not much, at least in the real world. Over there, the 2024 Lincoln Navigator comes with new stuff like expanded Blue Cruise driver assistance availability, whereas the trim range encompasses the Premiere, Reserve, Reserve L, and two Black Label models. Even the outrageously ritzy Navigator Black Gold Edition is a forbidden fruit as the swanky full-size luxury SUV is a China-only affair.

Luckily, the rumor mill will always come to the rescue – or at least the part of it that belongs to the imaginative realm of digital car content creators. As such, Dimas Ramadhan, the virtual automotive artist behind the Digimods DESIGN channel on YouTube, has taken upon himself the daunting task of revealing an all-new, fifth-generation Navigator SUV.

Inspired by the way Lincoln is slowly but steadily evolving the classic styling of its SUV models and probably aiming to further refine the recipe proposed by the second-generation, China-made Nautilus mid-size SUV, the pixel master also adopted a full-width LED bar style for the unofficial Navigator design project. On the other hand, the rear is now a lot more traditional as there's no LED bar but rather a couple of stand-alone taillights shaped like wings.

Unfortunately, although the author envisioned this new iteration with the flagship Black Label attire on, it fails to make a lasting impression – it's more like a subtle facelift rather than an all-new generation, possibly mainly because the profile looks completely unchanged. However, beauty is always in the eye of the beholder, so you're allowed to like it!