MODELYEARINDEX

Which Land Rover Defender years to avoid

Across 2 scored model years, the 2020 model year carries the highest severity-weighted complaint rates.

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.

What owners report

The component groups most often named, with one representative report. These are unverified — allegations, not findings.

2020 D 44 reports · median 1,900 mi

  1. Lights & Visibility 14

    1. Head light escutcheon blocks light in direction of right or left turn. When turning, this leaves the corner in the dark. 2. The touch screen display is "white", and too bright when driving at night. Very distracting. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  2. Steering 5

    While driving on straight highway, the vehicle's lane keep assist feature which was turned off (the default position) activated automatically without driver input or warning and caused the steering wheel to turn and… owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  3. Engine 5

    Total brake and steering loss at 60mph ..I can send you the screen shots tomorrow/ november 23rd (prom the photos taken on my son's phone of the dashboard notice...plus a virtual ghost-like abrupt take over of lane… owner complaint filed with NHTSA

2 crash · 2 injuries

2021 C 31 reports

  1. Lights & Visibility 19

    We have two 2021 defender 110 se north american specification models and these do not have the smoked tail lights as are on another recall. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  2. Driver Assist 3

  3. Body & Interior 2

    The passenger a-pillar on the vehicle is not secure tight enough to the vehicle or the windshield allowing air to pass underneath the weather stripping that lies on the windshield. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

The best year for the Defender

Ranked by overall score among years with a full 60 months on the road.

2021 is the best-scoring Defender model year with a full 60 months on the road, at 66.3 out of 100 — a score that combines complaint rate, recall campaigns and open investigations.

Yearvs medianReportsGrade
2021 0.75× 31 C
2020 1.25× 44 D

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
24V450000 ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:OIL/LUBRICATION:FILTER/SCREEN 2023, 2024 2,013
23V137000 CHILD SEAT:VEHICLE TETHER ANCHOR 2023 812
21V499000 SEATS 2021 603
24E102000 EQUIPMENT 2020–2025 485

+ 3 further campaigns

How long do they last?

Complaint records show when problems get reported, not how long a car survives. Where owners gave an odometer reading, faults on the 2020 were reported at a median of 1,900 miles. Treat that as the point problems start being noticed, not a lifespan.

Common questions

Answered directly from this model’s record.

Which Land Rover Defender years should you avoid?
2020 carry the highest severity-weighted complaint rates of any Land Rover Defender model year measured over an identical 60-month window.
What is the best year for the Land Rover Defender?
2021 is the best-scoring Land Rover Defender model year with a full 60 months on the road, at 66.3 out of 100. The score combines complaint rate, recall campaigns and open investigations.
How many recalls does the Land Rover Defender have?
15 distinct recall campaigns are on record across all scored Land Rover Defender model years. A recall is a matter of record: the manufacturer filed a defect report with NHTSA.

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