Home · 2020 Land Rover Defender · Complaints

What 48 owners told NHTSA about the 2020 Land Rover Defender

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (48)Crash / fire / injury (2)Lights (16)Electrical system (9)Engine (7)Steering (7)Visibility & wipers (7)Body & structure (5)Brakes (3)Transmission & drivetrain (2)Backup camera & sensors (1)Lane Departure (1)

9 of 48 complaints match · Electrical system · clear filters

Jun 23, 2026Electrical systemLights

I own a 2020 Land Rover Defender and have experienced a failure of the LED halo ring/daytime running light within the headlight assembly. The LED ring stopped functioning even though the headlight assembly has not been damaged, modified, or involved in any accident. This failure affects the vehicle's visibility and appearance and may create a safety concern because the daytime running light is no longer operating as intended. I contacted the dealership regarding the issue, but I was informed that the repair is not covered under warranty, despite similar LED halo and DRL failures being reported by other Defender owners. I am requesting that this issue be investigated, as it appears to be a defect in the headlight assembly rather than normal wear and tear.

NHTSA ODI 11746088

Apr 23, 2026Electrical system

While I was driving, the vehicle shut down unexpectedly. I was sliding sideways across the road on ice on the side of a cliff and luckily was able to stop the vehicle before going off the side of the mountain. I had to entirely restart the vehicle to begin driving again.

NHTSA ODI 11733249

Jan 23, 2026Electrical system

The DC to DC converter for the Hybrid 48v Electrical system has failed. This puts the vehicle at risk of a fire. The part is backordered for a significant amount of time, and there are many others in this situation.

NHTSA ODI 11712928

Jan 8, 2026SteeringElectrical systemEngine

The DC/DC converter is failing on the vehicles regularly. This results in the vehicle losing power and shutting down while driving. I own this vehicle and while it hasn’t happened yet, I constantly fear that it will. With the common knowledge and frequency of this occurrence, Land Rover should fix as a recall to ensure the safety of all customers. Please push for this. Thank you.

NHTSA ODI 11709603

Oct 10, 2025SteeringElectrical systemFire

While using the heated steering wheel function on my 2020 Land Rover Defender, the steering wheel began to overheat significantly after being turned on for a short time. The surface temperature became so hot that it burned and discolored the leather, releasing a strong burnt smell. This overheating poses a serious fire hazard and could easily burn the driver’s hands during operation. This issue compromises driver safety because the steering wheel is an essential control part of the vehicle. If the driver’s hand is burned or the leather catches fire, it could result in loss of control of the vehicle. There were no warning messages or lights before or during the incident. The problem has occurred multiple times and can be reproduced when the heated steering wheel function is activated. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request. I believe this is a critical safety defect that should not occur under normal operation and could potentially affect other vehicles of the same model.

NHTSA ODI 11692533

Feb 22, 2024Transmission & drivetrainElectrical systemEngine

My car does not fall under the VINs specified in recall N599 but is exhibiting the same unsafe conditions. At a rolling stop in traffic the car asks me to manually select a gear (while in Drive) and then shuts off the engine. The engine then will not restart and I am in unsafe conditions in intersections. I have brought the car to the dealership several times to resolve this and it continues to worsen. It has become a daily event and is now back at the delaership where they have told me it is not affected by this recall but clearly exhibits the same issue as described in that recall. This is a MAJOR SAFETY issue! The car shuts off without warning and wont restart. This is engine electrical system and transmission related. It drains the battery and leaves the car inoperable

NHTSA ODI 11573495

May 9, 2022Electrical systemEngine

Engine light came on while at a stop light, engine faltered completely and car stalled. Would not restart. Shifted car into Park and tried multiple times to restart, finally got it restarted. Rolled forward per the flow of traffic and engine died again in the middle of the intersection putting me directly in harm’s way. Multiple lights including engine light and dash warnings appeared. Pictures attached. This is a major safety issue, the car died and I could not move it forward. I was almost hit and could not get the car restarted, not once but twice. I have owned the car for less than one week, and it’s been back in the shop now twice. The first time ( Wednesday) was also for electrical issues, including sensor issues.

NHTSA ODI 11463932

Feb 26, 2022SteeringElectrical systemEngine

I was driving at a speed of 66 miles when the engine died, the cluster showed a red triangle and showed an alarm setting message. Steering wheel vibrate and I could not moved. This event last around 3 seconds and the alarm disappeared and the engine came back.

NHTSA ODI 11454234

Sep 8, 2020Electrical system

WHILE DRIVING MY VEHICLE AT HIGH SPEEDS ON AN INTERSTATE, THE BATTERY WARNING LIGHT ACTIVATED. BEFORE I WAS ABLE TO PULL THE VEHICLE OVER THE AIR CONDITIONER I'LL PROBABLY BEGIN TO STOP WORKING. FOLLOWING THIS, A SERIES OF MULTIPLE WARNING LIGHTS ACTIVATED. THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT ACCELERATE AND I WAS FORCED TO PULL OVER. FOLLOWING THIS, THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT ACTIVATE WHATSOEVER. ALL POWER WAS LOST. I COULD NOT SHIFT GEAR. THE CAR REQUIRED A TOW TO THE LOCAL DEALERSHIP.

NHTSA ODI 11353875

Working with the data? Download all 48 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 20, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2020 Land Rover Defender verdict →