2025 Land Rover DEFENDER: complaints, problems and recalls
Explore the records behind recurring owner reports.
Key facts
12 owner complaints analyzed
1 distinct recall campaigns
Not available median reported failure mileage
Scope: 2025 model year. Data snapshot: . 0 complaints include usable failure mileage.
Most common problems
Visibility/Wiper is the most frequently named component, appearing in 7 of 12 complaints (58.3%). A complaint can name multiple components.
| Topic | Matching reports | Share of complaints |
|---|---|---|
| Electrical and battery issues | 2 | 16.7% |
| Transmission and shifting | 1 | 8.3% |
| Engine operation | 1 | 8.3% |
| Steering behavior | 1 | 8.3% |
Topic matches use published keyword rules. They describe mentions, including negations or comparisons, and do not confirm a diagnosis. Read the matching rules.
Component breakdown
Number of unique complaints naming each component. Top eight shown.
| Category | Count |
|---|---|
| Visibility/Wiper | 7 |
| Power Train | 3 |
| Electrical System | 2 |
| Engine | 1 |
| Fuel/Propulsion System | 1 |
| Steering | 1 |
| Unknown Or Other | 1 |
Visibility/Wiper: 7; Power Train: 3; Electrical System: 2; Engine: 1; Fuel/Propulsion System: 1; Steering: 1; Unknown Or Other: 1
Reported problems by failure mileage
Complaint counts in mileage bands. These are not failure rates per vehicle or mile.
| Category | Count |
|---|---|
| Under 25,000 | 0 |
| 25,000 to 49,999 | 0 |
| 50,000 to 74,999 | 0 |
| 75,000 to 99,999 | 0 |
| 100,000 to 149,999 | 0 |
| 150,000 and above | 0 |
Under 25,000: 0; 25,000 to 49,999: 0; 50,000 to 74,999: 0; 75,000 to 99,999: 0; 100,000 to 149,999: 0; 150,000 and above: 0
No usable failure mileage is recorded. 12 complaints have missing, zero or invalid mileage.
Complaints over time
Year the complaint was filed, not the vehicle model year or incident year. The snapshot year is partial.
| Category | Count |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 2 |
| 2026 | 10 |
2025: 2; 2026: 10
Pattern summary
Visibility/Wiper leads the component reports. Electrical and battery issues appears in 2 complaint narratives. Transmission and shifting appears in 1 complaint narratives. Engine operation appears in 1 complaint narratives. Use these patterns to inspect individual reports and prepare questions for a mechanic.
Calculated from recorded counts. An AI narrative has not been published for this selection.
Examples from the source records
Examples provide context, not a representative sample or a verified diagnosis.
Owner report 11672321 · 2025-07-09 (July 9, 2025)
Front Windshield has cracked. Defender has less than 10K and has only been driven on city roads and highway. No offroad. Chip left of center occurred from pebble while driving on Freeway back February. Took vehicle to Safelite for repair within a week. Two months later Chip expanded into a lateral crack extending nearly two feet towards passenger side. Crack is now extending towards driverside almost 10" Land Rover claims Defender is made for offroad but there appears to be the windshield is structurally weak.
Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 11672321 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 11690159 · 2025-09-28 (September 28, 2025)
I was driving on [XXX] In Sarasota County, Florida, at approximately 70mph I witnessed flames coming from passenger rear portion of the car, I pulled over and jumped out at the interior was filled with smoke. In less than 15 minutes the car completely burned to nothing but black molten metal. The vehicle was purchased new, had been on order for over 5 months and had approximately 1,300 miles on it, and was only approximately 45 days in my possession. The vehicle was inspected by police and fire department, it has been towed to the local Land…
Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 11690159 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 11708566 · 2026-01-03 (January 3, 2026)
The transfer case on my new 2025 LR Defender 130 went out at 5,000 miles. This unit distributes power to the axles. I was told that if I continue to drive it, it could seize up, possibly leading to a loss of control of the vehicle. Land Rover is aware that they installed a bad batch of transfer cases on their new vehicles. They have the batch number(s), and have apparently issued a 'service bulletin,' but not a recall. Nor did they contact owners to let them know of this problem proactively. Given the potential danger in the failure of this uni…
Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 11708566 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 11709570 · 2026-01-08 (January 8, 2026)
I had the car while driving loss of power then engine light came on. Dealer twice checked and stated no issue until they tested and found that the replacement of the Hybrid battery system was issue. I've found this same issue with Converter system showing up with others on the facebook 'The New Defender Owners' group. It seems to be a larger issue JLR is not telling people about that has been issue over a couple years.
Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 11709570 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 11717995 · 2026-02-14 (February 14, 2026)
The DC converter went bad and within 30 seconds while driving on the highway I got a battery warning and then the car went into neutral and stopped and went into park and the car turned off in the middle of the road and couldn’t be moved at all. Luckily some cops came and protected the car from behind until a tow truck came. The part needed is out of stock and may not be in stock for months!
Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 11717995 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 11718508 · 2026-02-17 (February 17, 2026)
While driving on Back Rd in New Hampshire at approximately 30 mph on Saturday, Feb 14, the vehicle suddenly lost power steering assist and simultaneously shifted into neutral. I received warning messages and immediately lost propulsion. Luckily, there was no traffic on the road with me, but that is not always the case on this particular road. I had to manually steer the vehicle without power assist and muscle it to the side of the roadway. The vehicle was disabled in the road and required towing. The vehicle has approximately 5,400 miles and …
Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 11718508 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 11721273 · 2026-03-01 (March 1, 2026)
Driving down the road and my windshield spontaneously cracked. No road debris, no rock, no trauma or accident.
Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 11721273 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 11726310 · 2026-03-23 (March 23, 2026)
30 years of car ownership have never had a chipped or cracked windshield. 2025 Land Rover Defender has had 3 rock chips in a year and now a 20" crack from very minor impact from a pebble. This windshield has a design flaw and is extremely fragile.
Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 11726310 at NHTSA ↗
Recall history
1 distinct campaigns affect this selection. Announcement dates below are different from vehicle model years. A campaign may cover multiple years.
26V389000 · Air Bags:Frontal
Reported: 2026-06-12 (June 12, 2026)
Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC (Land Rover) is recalling certain 2020-2026 Land Rover Defender, 2021-2026 Discovery, and 2022-2026 Range Rover vehicles. The driver’s air bag clockspring connector may corrode, which can cause the air bag not to deploy as intended.
Consequence: An air bag that does not deploy as intended increases the risk of injury in a crash.
Remedy: Dealers will apply a protective lubricant gel to the driver’s air bag connector terminals, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed August 3, 2026. Owners may contact Land Rover's customer service at 800-637-6837. Land Rover's number for this recall is D120.
NHTSA campaign record ↗