What 48 owners told NHTSA about the 2020 Land Rover Defender

We have had our vehicle for 3 years and had to replace our windshield twice from random cracks starting from the exterior windshield where it meets the body of the care. It has happened on its own, twice, which impact from any object. The cost of the windshield, as installed is over $2000 each time, and it is repeated occurrence with owners.

NHTSA ODI 11717917

2 windshields cracked within a 2 month period. Second windshield cracked about 45 days after installation with no evidence of any impact causing it. One morning I came out to my vehicle and there was a 6-8 inch crack starting at the bottom of the windshield. Have driven the same roads for 30 years and have never had issues with windshields and now 2 in a couple of months.

NHTSA ODI 11547487

My 2020 Defender has had three incidences of the windshield cracking due to the smallest pebble. The first two cracks, I had professionally sealed. The latest incident involved a pebble so small that I couldn't see it. In fact, the pebble was so tiny that a point of contact on the windshield can barely be observed. However, it caused the windshield to crack clear across the middle, impairing visibility and creating an unsafe driving experience. This is, I believe, the seventh Land Rover windshield that I have had the misfortune to have crack on me over the years. One Range Rover windshield cracked while sitting in the driveway with no projectiles involved. Another cracked in cooler overnight weather. These windshields are clearly defective and Land Rover is aware of the problem. This is why the dealership offers a very pricey windshield package as an option when you purchase the vehicle. I have called Land Rover corporate again in this instance because I'm fed up with paying $1800 to repair a defective bit of glass, only to have another crack appear and be forced to repair or replace that as well. Land Rover Corporate said that a pebble constituted "outside damage" and the windshield would not be covered under warranty. However, a driver does purchase a car under the presumption that the glass would be safe if struck by a tiny object or if taken through a car wash--as occurred with my previous Range Rover. Taken together, I do request that this consumer safety board review this issue as I know for a fact that I am not the only one concerned about the safety and reliability of the Land Rover windshields. Regards, [XXX] INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

NHTSA ODI 11491779

Driving along the road with no cars around, the windshield made a loud noise and a crack was formed coming from the passenger side A-pillar. The crack of course grew over time. No rock chip. Clearly a defective windshield. The dealer would not replace it under warranty even though it clearly started where a rock could not have chipped it..

NHTSA ODI 11435211

My windshield cracked with no apparent strike with under 5K miles on the vehicle. Researching this, LOTS of people experience broken windshields on Defenders and Land Rover products. There are lots of discussion in online owners' forums about the frequency of this and some notion that JLR uses glass that is thinner than other manufacturers.

NHTSA ODI 11433648

The contact owns a 2020 Land Rover Defender. The contact stated that while driving at 25 mph, she lost control of the vehicle and crashed into two mailboxes but the vehicle kept driving down a curved road onto the left lane. The brakes had failed to engage. The contact did not receive medical attention on the scene but later went to the hospital for injuries sustained. No police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to a towing yard then towed to a body shop where it remained. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the failure occurred after receiving the vehicle back from the dealer. The vehicle was originally taken to the dealer for the emergency brakes, lane departure, emergency steering, traction control warning lights, and cracked windshield. However, the dealer could not replicate the failure and only the lane departure software was updated and the windshield was replaced but not calibrated. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 7,434.

NHTSA ODI 11429431

I WAS AT A RED LIGHT AND COULD NOT TURN ON THE WINDSHIELD WIPERS DURING A RAINSTORM. I TOOK A VIDEO OF THE INCIDENT BUT IT IS TOO LARGE TO UPLOAD TO YOUR WEBSITE

NHTSA ODI 11364755