MODELYEARINDEX

Land Rover Defender

320 complaints across 2 scored model years and 15 recall campaigns.

Which years to avoid

Ownership label · Land Rover Defender Full report
D
Grade 2020–2021
2020 vs model median 1.3×
Model median3× median
Lights & Visibility 14
Steering 5
Engine 5
Avoid

2020

Best

2020 · 2021

Year by year

Severity-weighted complaints filed in each model year’s first 60 months on the road, so every year is measured over an identical window.

Year Complaint volume vs median Reports Grade
2020
1.25× 44 D
2021
0.75× 31 C
2022 P
2.54× 88 F
2023 P
2.59× 101 F
2024 P
1.17× 40 D
2025 P
0.54× 16 B

P — provisional. These years have not completed 60 months on the road, so their totals are incomplete and they are excluded from the verdict.

Recalls

15 campaigns on record.

Campaign Component Model years Units affected
26V389000 AIR BAGS:FRONTAL 2020–2025 250,857
26V248000 ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:PROPULSION SYSTEM:DC/DC CONVERTER 2020–2024 170,169
21V668000 SEAT BELTS:FRONT:RETRACTOR 2021 32,687
25V016000 BACK OVER PREVENTION:SOFTWARE 2023, 2024 28,370
21V584000 EQUIPMENT:OTHER:OWNERS/SERVICE/OTHER MANUAL 2020, 2021 7,027
23V044000 ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:OIL/LUBRICATION 2020–2023 6,724
22V523000 SEAT BELTS:PRETENSIONER 2022, 2023 4,927
21V435000 EXTERIOR LIGHTING:TAIL LIGHTS 2020–2022 2,622

+ 7 further campaigns

Others in Midsize SUVs

Same body and size class. Each grade describes that model against its own history — these are not ranked against each other.

Model Years to avoid Grade
Acura MDX
20162020
C
Audi Q7
20172021
C
Audi Q8
2019
C
BMW X5
20112021
D
BMW X6
none flagged
C
Chevrolet Traverse
20102011
C
Dodge Durango
20112012
C
Dodge Journey
20142015
C

How this was calculated

Every model year is scored over an identical window: complaints filed with NHTSA during the first 60 months after that model year went on sale. Without this, older cars look worse purely because they have had longer to accumulate reports.

Limitations. Complaints are unverified reports submitted voluntarily by owners; they are allegations, not findings, and reporting rates vary between models. Model years with fewer than 60 months on the road are marked provisional and excluded from verdicts. Cross-model comparison is withheld pending production-volume data.

Full methodology · Sources · Data vintage August 9, 2026

Working 2020 Defender
Complaints in window
44
Severity-weighted
62
Model median (weighted)
49
vs model median
1.25×
Recall campaigns (weighted)
7
Open investigations
0
Score 53.7 D