Reliability & cost of ownership
Land Rover Defender Reliability & Common Problems
How reliable is the Land Rover Defender? Compare every model year side by side — NHTSA recalls, owner complaints, and crash-test stars — then open the year you're shopping for a full reliability and repair-cost forecast.
Land Rover Defender problems by model year
6 recall entries and 250 owner complaints on file across 9 model years, sourced from the federal NHTSA database.
| Year | Recalls | Complaints | NCAP stars | Full report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 Defender | 0 | 11 | No NCAP test | Reliability forecast → |
| 2024 Defender | 0 | 19 | No NCAP test | Reliability forecast → |
| 2023 Defender | 0 | 72 | No NCAP test | Reliability forecast → |
| 2022 Defender | 0 | 64 | No NCAP test | Reliability forecast → |
| 2021 Defender | 0 | 33 | No NCAP test | Reliability forecast → |
| 2020 Defender | 6 | 46 | No NCAP test | Reliability forecast → |
| 2003 Defender | 0 | 1 | No NCAP test | Reliability forecast → |
| 2002 Defender | 0 | 3 | No NCAP test | Reliability forecast → |
| 2001 Defender | 0 | 1 | No NCAP test | Reliability forecast → |
Most-complained-about components
Owner complaints filed with NHTSA against the Land Rover Defender, grouped by the component each complaint names — the fastest read on where this model gives trouble.
- electrical system82 complaints
- visibility/wiper51 complaints
- exterior lighting37 complaints
- engine27 complaints
- steering25 complaints
- unknown or other23 complaints
- power train16 complaints
- lane departure11 complaints