2022 Land Rover DEFENDER

Problems, Recalls & Reliability Report

Average

Quick Summary

The 2022 Land Rover DEFENDER has 82 owner complaints filed with NHTSA — that's 1.0x the segment average of 80. The most common issue is electrical problems (29% of all complaints), specifically: my vehicle had been at the land rover south bay service department from 11/3/21 to 11/10/21 because the suspension fault indicator had come on the prior week and the air suspension had temporarily failed. in addition, it occasionally does not start when i press the start button with my foot depressi.

2 crash reports 2 injuries

Total Complaints

Recalls Issued

—/5

Safety Stars

1.0x

vs Segment Avg

Known Problems

ELECTRICAL

24 complaints

29%

• My vehicle had been at the Land Rover South Bay Service department from 11/3/21 to 11/10/21 because the suspension fault indicator had come on the prior week and the air suspension had temporarily failed. In addition, it occasionally does not start when I press the start button with my foot depressi
• I purchased a 2022 V8 after waiting about a year to get the vehicle. It mostly has been a good car until recently. I was pulling into my garage, which has a downhill grade, and there was ice on the surface of the driveway and subsequently slid into the corner of my garage going no more than 3-5 mph.
• There were two separate issues. First was the battery dying once 4 months after purchase and again about 12 months after purchase. Both times we were lucky we were not out and about 4 wheeling like we normally do. Second is very recent about 18 months after purchase. Both the coolant feed and retu

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500💥 2 crashes

“My vehicle had been at the Land Rover South Bay Service department from 11/3/21 to 11/10/21 because the suspension fault indicator had come on the prior week and the air suspension had temporarily failed. In addition, it occasionally does not start when I press the start button with my foot depressi”

— NHTSA complaint filing

VISIBILITY

14 complaints

17%

• Windshield spontaneously cracked while parked (no impact). Crack was near top center and runs across the safety camera system. Crack was also instantaneously 1.5 foot long and partially obstructs driver's view. Scheduled for inspection by dealership - police, insurance has not been involved. No wa
• Easily cracked windshield. Less than 30 days owned and a small pebble cracked my windshield.
• Windshield cracked spontaneously while washing. No chips, no damage and hand washed vehicle. Crack is blocking visibility and starts at top of windshield and spiders into 3 cracks.

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500

“Windshield spontaneously cracked while parked (no impact). Crack was near top center and runs across the safety camera system. Crack was also instantaneously 1.5 foot long and partially obstructs driver's view. Scheduled for inspection by dealership - police, insurance has not been involved. No wa”

— NHTSA complaint filing

OTHER

10 complaints

12%

• My windshield broke in only owning this car 30 days I hear from other people that this is there 3 time replacement. I think this is a design issues and should be looked into.
• My windshield spontaneously cracked. No impact, just a sudden cracking noise and the crack appeared shortly thereafter. I was in the car at the time. No impact with anything was noted. (I have had chips many times and this was not that sound). The crack starts at the lower midline of the windshiel
• For the SECOND time, my windshield cracked in the upper right corner with no impact. The second time, I wasn’t even driving! The crack looks nearly identical, even as it runs. I paid for a new windshield the first time because they insisted that a rock hit me, although none of the people in the ca

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500

“My windshield broke in only owning this car 30 days I hear from other people that this is there 3 time replacement. I think this is a design issues and should be looked into.”

— NHTSA complaint filing

LIGHTING

7 complaints

• 1. Both rear taillights extinguish when a bright light if flashed at them. The taillights will not come back on until you power cycle the vehicle. I am able to replicate this issue with a handheld flashlight. 2. At night if my taillights are not visible, then this can be hazardous to the safety of
• Vehicle daytime running lights burn-out prematurely, after about a year or two. Common issue - Land Rover often will replace the entire headlight only for the lights to burn out again. This is happening so often Land Rover headlamps are months back-ordered. See this thread: [XXX] INFORMATION RED
• The headlight/daylight running lamps are known to burn out on these. Mine has burnt out and wont go back on. These are LED's where the LED is not going bad but the LED assembly is getting too hot and burning itself out. This is know issue with LandRover (they even have a special service bulletin [XX

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500

“1. Both rear taillights extinguish when a bright light if flashed at them. The taillights will not come back on until you power cycle the vehicle. I am able to replicate this issue with a handheld flashlight. 2. At night if my taillights are not visible, then this can be hazardous to the safety of ”

— NHTSA complaint filing

DRIVER ASSIST/CAMERAS

6 complaints

• My vehicle had been at the Land Rover South Bay Service department from 11/3/21 to 11/10/21 because the suspension fault indicator had come on the prior week and the air suspension had temporarily failed. In addition, it occasionally does not start when I press the start button with my foot depressi
• I started my vehicle as usual, everything looked ok except “lane assist not available!” was showing on the driver's screen, and when I wanted to drive away, the steering wheel was unresponsive, but I could drive the vehicle forward and in reverse. Also, the main interactive display was slightly dim
• Power steering failed upon starting the car after 12 hours of non use. The lane assist light came on saying it was unavailable. Upon first starting it did not move in drive or reverse but was able to after a few restarts but the steering was still failing. I am worried about the steering failing w

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500

— NHTSA complaint filing

Estimated Repair Costs

ELECTRICAL(~50K mi)

$500

VISIBILITY(~50K mi)

$500

OTHER(~50K mi)

$500

LIGHTING(~50K mi)

$500

DRIVER ASSIST/CAMERAS(~50K mi)

$500

Estimates based on average reported repair costs. Actual costs vary by location, shop, and severity.

🔍 Pre-Purchase Inspection Checklist

Based on 82 owner complaints for this specific year, here's what to check or ask about:

☐
ELECTRICAL: My vehicle had been at the Land Rover South Bay Service department from 11/3/21 to 11/10/21 because the suspension fault indicator had come on the prior week and the air suspension had temporarily failed. In addition, it occasionally does not start when I press the start button with my foot depressi
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
VISIBILITY: Windshield spontaneously cracked while parked (no impact). Crack was near top center and runs across the safety camera system. Crack was also instantaneously 1.5 foot long and partially obstructs driver's view. Scheduled for inspection by dealership - police, insurance has not been involved. No wa
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
OTHER: My windshield broke in only owning this car 30 days I hear from other people that this is there 3 time replacement. I think this is a design issues and should be looked into.
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
LIGHTING: 1. Both rear taillights extinguish when a bright light if flashed at them. The taillights will not come back on until you power cycle the vehicle. I am able to replicate this issue with a handheld flashlight. 2. At night if my taillights are not visible, then this can be hazardous to the safety of
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
General: Get a pre-purchase inspection from an independent mechanic ($100-$200)