4 Best & Worst Lincoln Corsair Years (Stats & Examples)

The Lincoln Corsair is a luxury compact SUV that hit the market at the end of 2019. The 2020 model year was the first – and it’s still being produced.

While there is a lot to love about the SUV, some model years are better than others.

You’ll want to consider the best years and the years to avoid. This can ensure you get a great driving experience.

Plus, it can save you money on maintenance and repairs over the life of the vehicle.

The Best and Worst Years for Lincoln Corsair:

The best years to shop for the Lincoln SUV include 2021, 2022, and 2023. The model year that you should avoid is the 2020 Corsair.

The Lincoln Corsair only has four model years available at the moment.

What Lincoln Corsair Years Are the Most Reliable?

The Lincoln Corsair has a lot of great features. It is a compact SUV with a beautiful exterior design and a luxury interior. It is well-known for its quiet interior as well as its many standard features.

It hasn’t been on the market long, only showing up at the end of 2019 for a 2020 model year debut.

It’s one of the more popular models among Lincoln car owners and buyers.

Reliability is all about the features that are available for you as well as affordable upkeep.

A few years have been identified as reliable because they aren’t known for their issues or high repair bills.

There’s no telling how many future model years there will be. It’s estimated that Lincoln will end production in 2025. Meanwhile, you should know more about Lincoln SUVs and whether they hold their value or not.

2021 Corsair

The 2021 Corsair is part of the first generation. It’s the second year of production, so some of the original issues were worked out.

Although there were no significant changes, there were just enough to make it more reliable.

First, it won the Top Safety Pick from the IIHS. This tells you that it’s a safe vehicle – and much of that is because of all of the standard safety equipment.

The vehicle performed well in crash tests on the driver and passenger sides.

It’s the first year with a plug-in hybrid powertrain. It’s part of the Grand Touring model – a new trim level for the lineup. Obviously, this also allows you to get premium fuel economy.

The Corsair is powerful but it’s not exactly sporty. Still, it does have a turbocharged four-cylinder engine. And if you upgrade to a higher trim level, you can also get more horsepower.

There were a few hiccups with the Corsair in the 2021 model year, and that includes five recalls. While that is a lot, it’s only on certain vehicles – so it’s unlikely that all five would ever affect a single trim level.

The recalls affected such systems as:

• electrical wiring,
• engine cooling,
• and fuel system.

The 360-degree camera was also a part of one of the recalls.

The good thing about a recall is that the manufacturer acknowledges the problem and provides a repair at no cost to you.

As for other repairs, there aren’t any of concern.

That means that you can focus on preventative maintenance as the primary cost of ownership. The Corsair is anticipated to get 200,000 miles on the engine with ease.

It’s the first year where the reviews really focus on the elegance.

There’s a striking appearance on the outside. And within, only the best materials are used. It makes you feel as though you’re in a more expensive SUV than you really are.

A few 2021 used models can be found, too.

This can save you a bit of money off the MSRP of a new model. Plus, they will generally have low miles. Just be sure to get a VIN report so you know the vehicle’s history and any repairs that were made.

2022 Corsair

The 2022 Corsair is when the compact SUV starts to hit its stride.

It earns a 2022 Top Safety Pick from the IIHS for the trim levels with LED projector headlights.

Additionally, it is ranked $4 as a luxury compact SUV by US News & World Report.

The number of recalls is certainly going down. There were only two recalls for the 2020 model year.

One recall had to do with engine cooling because engine oil and fuel vapor could be released into the engine compartment. The other had to do with the traction battery on the hybrid model.

The benefits you’ll get in the 2022 are similar to the 2021.

The main difference comes from how the option packages have changed to reflect what people are buying.

When you want dependable, it is clear that the Corsair has finally figured out how to give you more of what you want. More standard features are available. And what doesn’t come standard is usually available for a price in one of the packages.

There are three trim levels:

• Standard,
• Reserve,
• and Grand Touring.

And the Grand Touring is when you can get the plug-in hybrid option, too.

The Co-Pilot360 Plus is an option that will give you:

• surround-view cameras with washers,
• evasive steering assist,
• parking sensors,
• and even an automated parking system.

It offers convenience for only about $2500 more.

The reviews show how much people are enjoying the 2020 model year, too. It has a fancy design, a quiet interior, and a strong turbo four-cylinder engine.

The plug-in hybrid is also considered to be quite fuel efficient.

The only downside that people have is that the touchscreen is small.

Depending on the features you want, the cost can also add up quickly.

Still, it’s one of the more reliable model years. You can find them new and used. Used ones won’t provide you with much of a cost savings. The few miles that will be on can be seen as breaking the SUV in so that the kinks have been worked out.

2023 Corsair

The 2023 Corsair is the newest model year with a lot to offer.

Although it’s still part of the first generation, Lincoln did a few things to offer a refresh.

When you want reliability out of the Corsair, this is the year to be impressed. There’s a larger touchscreen, which was a complaint in previous years.

Additionally, there’s more digital instrumentation.

Lincoln also added ActiveGlide, which is the hands-free highway driving system. This is the first year where you can find it in the Corsair.

A few new interior choices have been added. While it’s not a part of reliability, it does add to the aesthetic so you can get a more personalized feel.

The features start to get a bit expensive, but the Corsair is the cheapest way to enjoy a Lincoln SUV.

The MSRP starts a $39,885.

If you want to upgrade to the Grand Touring where there’s a plug-in hybrid powerplant, that MSRP will rise to $54,580.

There are no recalls on the 2023 model year, though it is still new. We’re hoping that issues from some of the older models have simply been resolved.

Of course, if there is a recall, it’s a repair that doesn’t cost you anything – just the time to take it to get fixed.

You’re unlikely to find any used models. However, new allows you to be the first person to break it in. it also means that you know the entire vehicle’s history.

Before we move on, it’s also worth taking a look at the Lincoln Nautilus and what years to buy.

What Lincoln Corsair Years Should You Avoid?

You want to buy a new or used Corsair that doesn’t lead to constant problems. Therefore, you need to do your model research and know what years to avoid.

It’s important to know that the Corsair replaced the MKC on the market. This is because Lincoln wanted to move away from three-letter model names.

As such, the Corsair improved upon the MKC. What this means for you is that many of the issues found in the MKC were eliminated.

While there are still model years to avoid, none are going to create nightmares for you. The same goes for the bigger Lincoln Aviator generations.

2020 Corsair

The 2020 Corsair model is the one model year that should be avoided. All of the others are newer – and therefore have some issues.

Now, to be fair, the Corsair in 2020 is still a good year. It’s simply the first year and the first generation.

Most of the issues were worked out when the Corsair was still known as the MKC.

One of the reasons why it’s not as reliable is because of four recalls. It’s a high number. The only good thing is that a recall means that the manufacturer covers the repairs. There’s no out-of-pocket expense for you to get the problem fixed.

The recalls focus on a few different issues. This includes a failing video output for the 360-degree camera as well as electrical connections for the rearview camera.

Another recall focuses on an issue with the automatic transmission having missing or loose bolts.

Finally, the other recall affects the coil springs on the suspension. There may not be enough clearance on the rear springs between the rear toe link bracket, causing the coil springs to break.

The 2020 model year also has a high MSRP without a lot of standard features. It means that you have to spend more in order to get the features you want. That can get expensive quickly.

There’s a standard feel to the drive – it’s not sporty at all. That means that even though it’s a compact SUV, it drives more like a truck.

Additionally, there’s no hybrid option in the 2020, which means that you simply have to deal with the low fuel efficiency found within the trim levels that are available.

Essentially, the 2020 Corsair entered the market as a replacement for the MKC. It didn’t offer anything new so that it could compete with the other compact SUVs in the market.

Some of the used models of this model year can have low mileage. It can save you some money but not enough to deal with the less-than-stellar package that you’ll get.

When you can, skip this model year in favor of anything newer than 2020.

You’ll get more for your money and enjoy your time behind the wheel a lot more.

What Are Some Typical Problems with the Lincoln Corsair Models?

The Lincoln Corsair is a relatively new vehicle on the market.

With it being new, there haven’t been a lot of problems.

Many problems it could have had were discovered in the older model of the MKC.

Now, the most issues are based on recalls.

That being said, most of the typical problems include:

• Electrical system issues
• Camera sensing capabilities
• Problems with the fuel delivery module

If you want to know more about some of the problems with the Corsair, check out our more in-depth article on typical problems of the Lincoln compact SUV.

Back To overview of best/worst years for Lincoln.

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ⓘ  The information in this article is based on data from National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recall reports, consumer complaints submitted to the NHTSA, reliability ratings from J.D. Power, auto review and rating sites such as Edmunds, specialist forums, etc. We analyzed this data to provide insights into the best and worst years for these vehicle models.