2015 Lincoln MKZ

Problems, Recalls & Reliability Report

Below Average

Quick Summary

The 2015 Lincoln MKZ has 100 owner complaints filed with NHTSA — that's 1.3x the segment average of 80. The most common issue is brakes problems (16% of all complaints), specifically: this car becomes uncontrollable on a snow road. it can't make a turn when you need it. it goes very unstable on a straight road. i wasn't able to stop on a red light , and i wasn't able to make a left turn, twice on one 12 miles trip. first i drove with little speed no more than 25 miles an hour, af.

1 crash report

100

Total Complaints

Recalls Issued

—/5

Safety Stars

1.3x

vs Segment Avg

Known Problems

BRAKES

16 complaints

16%

• THIS CAR BECOMES UNCONTROLLABLE ON A SNOW ROAD. IT CAN'T MAKE A TURN WHEN YOU NEED IT. IT GOES VERY UNSTABLE ON A STRAIGHT ROAD. I WASN'T ABLE TO STOP ON A RED LIGHT , AND I WASN'T ABLE TO MAKE A LEFT TURN, TWICE ON ONE 12 MILES TRIP. FIRST I DROVE WITH LITTLE SPEED NO MORE THAN 25 MILES AN HOUR, AF
• REAR BRAKE PADS AND ROTORS HAD TO BE REPLACED.
• I JUST HAD MY STATE INSPECTION IN JAN. ON 3.28.20, I GOT INTO THE CAR, STARTED IT. I PLACED THE CAR IN REVERSE, PUSHED ON THE BRAKE PEDAL AS I PARK ON A SLIGHT INCLINE. I FELT A RESISTANCE AND THE PEDAL WENT TO THE FLOOR. THE VEHICLE DID STOP. UNSURE OF WHAT HAPPENED, I PUT IT IN PARK AND I APPLIED

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500💥 1 crashes

“THIS CAR BECOMES UNCONTROLLABLE ON A SNOW ROAD. IT CAN'T MAKE A TURN WHEN YOU NEED IT. IT GOES VERY UNSTABLE ON A STRAIGHT ROAD. I WASN'T ABLE TO STOP ON A RED LIGHT , AND I WASN'T ABLE TO MAKE A LEFT TURN, TWICE ON ONE 12 MILES TRIP. FIRST I DROVE WITH LITTLE SPEED NO MORE THAN 25 MILES AN HOUR, AF”

— NHTSA complaint filing

ELECTRICAL

15 complaints

15%

• IN 20K MILES ENTIRE CAR STOPPED WORKING AFTER IN GARAGE OVER WEEKEND AND NO LIGHTS WERE ON, NO ISSUE WAS FOUND INITIALLY BUT BATTERY WAS CHANGED ONCE IN A NEW CAR IN LESS THAN 2 YEARS. CAN CAN SHUT OFF IN THE MIDDLE OF DRIVING?
• THIS VEHICLE HAS BEEN IN SERVICE 14 TIMES IN 16 MONTHS FOR VARIOUS INTERMITTENT ELECTRICAL AND SENSOR PROBLEMS. IT WAS PURCHASED NEW IN JUNE 2015 AND CURRENTLY HAS 14K MILES. IT HAS SEVERAL MAJOR ISSUES BUT THE TWO SAFETY RISKS ARE: 1) THE DRIVER SEAT IS SUPPOSED TO AUTOMATICALLY RECLINE AND THE STE
• 4 TIMES SINCE CAR WAS BRAND NEW I HAVE HAD TO CONTACT DEALER AND CORPORATE LINCOLN ABOUT THE SAME VERY DANGEROUS REOCCURRING PROBLEM. THEY CONTINUE TO NOT BE ABLE TO FIX. THE PROBLEM HAPPENING,AND AGAIN TODAY IS THAT THE AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT GOES ON AND THE AIR CONDITIONING STOPS WORKING AND THE POW

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

“IN 20K MILES ENTIRE CAR STOPPED WORKING AFTER IN GARAGE OVER WEEKEND AND NO LIGHTS WERE ON, NO ISSUE WAS FOUND INITIALLY BUT BATTERY WAS CHANGED ONCE IN A NEW CAR IN LESS THAN 2 YEARS. CAN CAN SHUT OFF IN THE MIDDLE OF DRIVING?”

— NHTSA complaint filing

DRIVER ASSIST/CAMERAS

8 complaints

• I tried to start my car this morning. It would not start. There was a loud popping noise, the headlights started flashing and a red box popped up on the control panel with the words brake failure. It was fine yesterday. There is a recall on the brake hoses. I called the dealership I bought the car f
• The contact owns a 2015 Lincoln MKZ. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 23V162000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) and 22V011000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the parts to do the recall repairs were not yet available. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclose
• The electronic parking brake engages on its own and locks causing the rear tire to lock while driving which then causes friction and the tire to smoke heavily which could cause fire or bad accident. I have replaced caliper, caliper actuator, rotor, brake pad, wheel speed sensor, wheel bearing and no

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

“I tried to start my car this morning. It would not start. There was a loud popping noise, the headlights started flashing and a red box popped up on the control panel with the words brake failure. It was fine yesterday. There is a recall on the brake hoses. I called the dealership I bought the car f”

— NHTSA complaint filing

OTHER

7 complaints

• IN 20K MILES ENTIRE CAR STOPPED WORKING AFTER IN GARAGE OVER WEEKEND AND NO LIGHTS WERE ON, NO ISSUE WAS FOUND INITIALLY BUT BATTERY WAS CHANGED ONCE IN A NEW CAR IN LESS THAN 2 YEARS. CAN CAN SHUT OFF IN THE MIDDLE OF DRIVING?
• NO DISCERNING ISSUES LEADING UP TO THE TIRE FAILURE, IT'S BEEN MULTIPLE FAILURES, INDUCES BY POTHOLES OR ROAD GRATES YOU WOULD NORMALLY ENCOUNTER WHILE DRIVING. IN 2 INCIDENTS THE SIDEWALLS OF THE TIRES FAILED COMPLETELY RIPPING THE TIRE SIDEWALL OPEN. ONE SIMPLY JUST FLATTENED THE TIRE, AS OF NOW,
• IN UNDER 4 YEARS/50K MILES BATTERY HAS BEEN CHANGED 4 TIMES. EVERY TIME THE CAUSE IS A BAD BATTERY AND NOT A DRAW. THERE IS AN UNDERLYING ISSUE WITH THE MKZ ELECTRICAL ARCHITECTURE. DEALER SAYS THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM.

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

— NHTSA complaint filing

AIR BAGS

7 complaints

• 4 TIMES SINCE CAR WAS BRAND NEW I HAVE HAD TO CONTACT DEALER AND CORPORATE LINCOLN ABOUT THE SAME VERY DANGEROUS REOCCURRING PROBLEM. THEY CONTINUE TO NOT BE ABLE TO FIX. THE PROBLEM HAPPENING,AND AGAIN TODAY IS THAT THE AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT GOES ON AND THE AIR CONDITIONING STOPS WORKING AND THE POW
• WHILE CAR IS IN MOTION THE AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT SUDDENLY GOES ON AT THE SAME TIME THE AIR CONDITIONING GOES OFF AND WILL NOT GO BACK ON. SIMULTANEOUSLY THE RADIO AND POWER WINDOW AND POWER SEATS AND POWER MIRROR STOP WORKING. TO DATE THIS HAS HAPPEN APPROXIMATELY EIGHT TIMES.
• SEAT BELT SENSOR DOES NOT COME ON ALL THE TIME WHEN SEAT IS OCCUPIED, HORN DOES NOT WORK ALL THE TIME. I WAS INFORMED THAT THIS COULD BE A MAJOR PROBLEM IF LEFT UNREPAIRED. I CANT SEEM TO GET MY LOCAL LINCOLN DEALERSHIP TO FIX THE PROBLEM WEITHER ITS A MODULE OR SOMETHING ELSE.

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

“4 TIMES SINCE CAR WAS BRAND NEW I HAVE HAD TO CONTACT DEALER AND CORPORATE LINCOLN ABOUT THE SAME VERY DANGEROUS REOCCURRING PROBLEM. THEY CONTINUE TO NOT BE ABLE TO FIX. THE PROBLEM HAPPENING,AND AGAIN TODAY IS THAT THE AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT GOES ON AND THE AIR CONDITIONING STOPS WORKING AND THE POW”

— NHTSA complaint filing

Estimated Repair Costs

BRAKES(~50K mi)

$500

ELECTRICAL(~50K mi)

$500

DRIVER ASSIST/CAMERAS(~50K mi)

$500

OTHER(~50K mi)

$500

AIR BAGS(~50K mi)

$500

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

🔍 Pre-Purchase Inspection Checklist

Based on 100 owner complaints for this specific year, here's what to check or ask about:

☐
BRAKES: THIS CAR BECOMES UNCONTROLLABLE ON A SNOW ROAD. IT CAN'T MAKE A TURN WHEN YOU NEED IT. IT GOES VERY UNSTABLE ON A STRAIGHT ROAD. I WASN'T ABLE TO STOP ON A RED LIGHT , AND I WASN'T ABLE TO MAKE A LEFT TURN, TWICE ON ONE 12 MILES TRIP. FIRST I DROVE WITH LITTLE SPEED NO MORE THAN 25 MILES AN HOUR, AF
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
ELECTRICAL: IN 20K MILES ENTIRE CAR STOPPED WORKING AFTER IN GARAGE OVER WEEKEND AND NO LIGHTS WERE ON, NO ISSUE WAS FOUND INITIALLY BUT BATTERY WAS CHANGED ONCE IN A NEW CAR IN LESS THAN 2 YEARS. CAN CAN SHUT OFF IN THE MIDDLE OF DRIVING?
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
DRIVER ASSIST/CAMERAS: I tried to start my car this morning. It would not start. There was a loud popping noise, the headlights started flashing and a red box popped up on the control panel with the words brake failure. It was fine yesterday. There is a recall on the brake hoses. I called the dealership I bought the car f
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
OTHER: IN 20K MILES ENTIRE CAR STOPPED WORKING AFTER IN GARAGE OVER WEEKEND AND NO LIGHTS WERE ON, NO ISSUE WAS FOUND INITIALLY BUT BATTERY WAS CHANGED ONCE IN A NEW CAR IN LESS THAN 2 YEARS. CAN CAN SHUT OFF IN THE MIDDLE OF DRIVING?
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
General: Get a pre-purchase inspection from an independent mechanic ($100-$200)