diff --git a/news/changelog-1.6.md b/news/changelog-1.6.md
index 1cc2c74f1d..828da29752 100644
--- a/news/changelog-1.6.md
+++ b/news/changelog-1.6.md
@@ -71,6 +71,7 @@ All changes included in 1.6:
 
 ### Websites
 
+- ([#8932](https://github.com/quarto-dev/quarto-cli/issues/8932)): Escape render ids in markdown pipeline to allow special characters in sidebars/navbars, etc.
 - ([#10616](https://github.com/quarto-dev/quarto-cli/issues/10268)): Add a `z-index` setting to the 'back to top' button to ensure it is always visible.
 
 ### Quarto Blog
diff --git a/src/core/markdown-pipeline.ts b/src/core/markdown-pipeline.ts
index ba609be5ac..c1705a4a3d 100644
--- a/src/core/markdown-pipeline.ts
+++ b/src/core/markdown-pipeline.ts
@@ -3,7 +3,10 @@
  *
  * Copyright (C) 2020-2022 Posit Software, PBC
  */
+import { base } from "acorn/walk";
+import { decodeBase64, encodeBase64 } from "encoding/base64";
 import { Document, Element, Node } from "./deno-dom.ts";
+import { decode } from "https://deno.land/std@0.93.0/encoding/base64.ts";
 
 export interface PipelineMarkdown {
   blocks?: Record<string, string>;
@@ -98,10 +101,12 @@ export function processMarkdownRenderEnvelope(
 const markdownEnvelopeWriter = (envelopeId: string) => {
   const renderList: string[] = [];
   const hiddenSpan = (id: string, contents: string) => {
+    id = encodeBase64(id);
     return `[${contents}]{.hidden .quarto-markdown-envelope-contents render-id="${id}"}`;
   };
 
   const hiddenDiv = (id: string, contents: string) => {
+    id = encodeBase64(id);
     return `\n:::{.hidden .quarto-markdown-envelope-contents render-id="${id}"}\n${contents}\n:::\n`;
   };
 
@@ -126,7 +131,8 @@ const readEnvelope = (doc: Document, envelopeId: string) => {
     const el = node as Element;
     const id = el.getAttribute("data-render-id");
     if (id) {
-      contents[id] = el;
+      // convert the array to a string
+      contents[new TextDecoder().decode(decodeBase64(id))] = el;
     }
   };
 
diff --git a/tests/docs/smoke-all/2024/10/17/issue-8932/_quarto.yml b/tests/docs/smoke-all/2024/10/17/issue-8932/_quarto.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..e734d436bc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/docs/smoke-all/2024/10/17/issue-8932/_quarto.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,22 @@
+project:
+  type: website
+
+website:
+  title: "issue-8932"
+  navbar:
+    left:
+      - href: index.qmd
+        text: Home
+      - about.qmd
+  page-footer:
+    center:
+       - text: 'Project "created"'
+
+format:
+  html:
+    theme: cosmo
+    css: styles.css
+    toc: true
+
+
+
diff --git a/tests/docs/smoke-all/2024/10/17/issue-8932/about.qmd b/tests/docs/smoke-all/2024/10/17/issue-8932/about.qmd
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..07c5e7f9d1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/docs/smoke-all/2024/10/17/issue-8932/about.qmd
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+---
+title: "About"
+---
+
+About this site
diff --git a/tests/docs/smoke-all/2024/10/17/issue-8932/check_stray_div.lua b/tests/docs/smoke-all/2024/10/17/issue-8932/check_stray_div.lua
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..7d483b38b8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/docs/smoke-all/2024/10/17/issue-8932/check_stray_div.lua
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+function Str(str)
+    if string.find(str.text, ":::") then
+        crash()
+    end
+end
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/tests/docs/smoke-all/2024/10/17/issue-8932/index.qmd b/tests/docs/smoke-all/2024/10/17/issue-8932/index.qmd
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..6b33eff6ad
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/docs/smoke-all/2024/10/17/issue-8932/index.qmd
@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+---
+title: "issue-8932"
+filters:
+  - check_stray_div.lua
+---
+
+This is a Quarto website.
+
+To learn more about Quarto websites visit <https://quarto.org/docs/websites>.
diff --git a/tests/docs/smoke-all/2024/10/17/issue-8932/styles.css b/tests/docs/smoke-all/2024/10/17/issue-8932/styles.css
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..2ddf50c7b4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/docs/smoke-all/2024/10/17/issue-8932/styles.css
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+/* css styles */