Nearly 37,000 Lincoln Navigators Recalled Over Phantom Passenger Seat Movement

Certain 2025 through 2027 Lincoln Navigators need a dealer software update that disables chauffeur mode to stop unintended front passenger seat movement.

2025 Lincoln Navigator

Photo by: Lincoln

Brian Potter

By: Brian Potter

Nov 12, at 7:55am ET

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Ford is telling nearly 37,000 Lincoln Navigator owners to watch their front passenger seat. A software glitch tied to the SUV's rear-seat controls can send that seat sliding forward, backward, or into recline with nobody touching a switch.

The recall covers select 2025–2027 Lincoln Navigator models built between November 9, 2023, and August 17, 2026. Owners should check their VIN now, since dealership notification letters are only beginning to go out.

Lincoln Navigator Recall Covers 36,994 SUVs

2025 Lincoln Navigator

2025 Lincoln Navigator

Photo by: Lincoln

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration lists the campaign as 26V691000, covering 36,994 Navigators. Ford's own records show three warranty claims and one field report tied to the glitch. So far, no crashes or injuries.

Affected VINs became searchable on NHTSA.gov on October 26, 2026, and Ford's internal recall number is 26S77. Owners can run their VIN through the agency's vehicle lookup tool to confirm their SUV is on the list before a letter even arrives.

This isn't Ford's only seat-related fix this year. The automaker issued a separate recall for seat belt issues on Expedition models, and Lincoln itself has dealt with unrelated drivetrain problems, including a recall over unexpected neutral shifts on the Nautilus and Corsair.

Ford's recall report, filed with regulators, traces the fault to communication between two onboard modules rather than a single faulty part.

Chauffeur Mode Is Behind The Seat-Movement Risk

2025 Lincoln Navigator

2025 Lincoln Navigator

Photo by: Lincoln

The Navigator's chauffeur feature lets someone in the second row adjust the front passenger seat from a center-console touchscreen, freeing up legroom for whoever is riding up front. It's a comfort perk built for exactly the kind of owner who buys a three-row Lincoln.

The problem sits in the Rear Audio Control Module, which can misfire and send a seat-adjustment command the Accessory Protocol Interface Module shouldn't be receiving. Ford describes the glitch in its filing as a communication error between interior electronic modules.

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A seat sliding or reclining unexpectedly can force the front passenger into an awkward position or push them into second-row riders.

Dealers will reflash both modules with updated calibration at no cost to the owner, and that update does more than patch the bug. Ford's filing spells out the trade-off: "the calibration patch disables the automated chauffeur mode feature to prevent any further ghost inputs from reaching the seat actuators." The convenience feature goes away for good.