2021 Land Rover Defender: problems, recalls and reliability
9 recalls and 37 owner complaints on record; the weakest area is visibility/wiper (34% of complaints).
Data updated weekly · 3 new complaints in the last 90 days · latest recall Jun 2026
All counts are reports filed with NHTSA in the United States - US market only, not worldwide totals.
Common problems
Computed from 37 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for this exact model year.
“The contact owns a 2021 Land Rover Defender. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 26V248000 (Electrical System); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure.”Owner report · Electrical System · Aug 2026
“Both daytime running lights failed simultaneously. Not covered by warranty and told that they would cost >$5,000 to repair. There have been hundreds of these reported and it should be a recall”Owner report · Exterior Lighting · Feb 2026
“Headlight DRL Failure - it's safety issue. this is known issue with defenders but when I contacted local dealer in Atlanta area, they refused to replace it without me paying $3200.”Owner report · Exterior Lighting · Dec 2025
Show 7 more owner reports
“The halo headlight went out, and I have an extended warranty that supposedly doesn't cover it. After researching, this seems to be a national event. The headlights need to be recalled and the manufacturer needs to be held accountable.”Owner report · Exterior Lighting · Oct 2025
“Vehicle suspension fault detected light turned on. Vehicle keeps adjusting on its own while on the freeway in traffic. Feels like it stalls. Hear popping noise. Vehicle only had 14k miles and was never used for off roading.”Owner report · Suspension · Mar 2025
“a random crack appeared without incident in the front window and proceeded to progress across rapidly where repair was not an option.”Owner report · Visibility/Wiper · Jun 2024
“The windshield of the vehicle had a crack form from the upper passenger corner down to the middle of the glass then turning towards the middle of the glass. It is about 16 inches long and the temperature was a modest 85 degrees F.”Owner report · Visibility/Wiper · Apr 2024
“The passenger side headlight is malfunctioning. The halo and outer bulbs do not come on which disables the daylight running lights and reduces the effectiveness of the headlight at night. There is no warning light or message indicating the failure. The vehicle has been inspected by the manufacturer's dealer and they confirmed that the headlight is faulty. I feel like this issue should be repaired by the manufacturer and at their expense. My research has shown that this is a common issue in this vehicle and is reason for a recall.”Owner report · Exterior Lighting · Nov 2023
“Ever since I purchased my Defender back in 2021, the instrument cluster automatically dims. Usually when at dusk or dawn, the cluster dims so much, it is impossible to read with sunglasses, and very poorly lit without sunglasses. I have the dimmer switch set to the brightest setting, but it still automatically dims despite being set to the brightest.”Owner report · Exterior Lighting · Oct 2023
“Headlamps are faulty. Replaced the drivers side at almost the end of the 49k miles and after about another 900 miles, the passenger side went out. There is a defect with these lights and they're back ordered through the UK. Police have told me that I have a headlight out and there is nothing I can do about this.”Owner report · Exterior Lighting · Aug 2023
Recalls - 9 campaigns
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.
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.
Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC (Land Rover) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Defender X vehicles equipped with smoked rear light assemblies. A voltage spike, triggered by a bright light shining on the rear of the vehicle, can cause the turn signals, brake lights, and tail lights to fail.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the rear light assemblies, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed September 27, 2021. Owners can contact Land Rover customer service at 1-800-637-6837. Land Rover's number for this recall is N598.
Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC (Land Rover) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Land Rover Defender vehicles equipped with 6-cylinder engines. The Powertrain Control Module (PCM) may unexpectedly switch off while the vehicle is in motion, resulting in an engine stall with no warning.
Remedy: The Connected Diagnostic Services (CDS) and the Over-the-air (OTA) diagnostics functionality will be disabled, either by a dealer or through an OTA update, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 28, 2021. Owners may contact Land Rover customer service at 1-800-637-6837. Land Rover's number for this recall is N599.
Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC (Land Rover) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Land Rover Defender vehicles. The owner's manual incorrectly states that the third-row seating is equipped with LATCH child seat restraints with top tethers. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 225, "Child Restraint Anchorage Systems."
Remedy: Land Rover will mail owners the correct information to insert into the owner's manual, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on September 23, 2021. Owners may contact Land Rover customer service at 1-800-637-6837. Land Rover's number for this recall is N601.
Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC (Land Rover) is recalling certain 2021 Defender 90 vehicles equipped with manually-adjustable front seats. The front seat track end-stop bracket may become deformed, which could prevent the seat from locking into place.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the front seat tracks, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on October 28, 2021. Owners may contact Land Rover customer service at 1-800-637-6837. Land Rover's number for this recall is N609.
Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC (Land Rover) is recalling certain 2019-2023 Range Rover Sport, 2020-2023 Range Rover, Defender, 2022-2023 Discovery, and 2023 Range Rover Velar vehicles. The engine cam carrier oil channel may be blocked, which can lead to an oil leak.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect and replace the engine cam carrier and related components as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 29, 2023. Owners may contact Land Rover customer service at 1-800-637-6837. Land Rover's number for this recall is N763.
Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC (Land Rover) is recalling certain 2020-2025 Land Rover Defender vehicles equipped with Raised Air Intake (RAI) aftermarket accessory equipment, with part number VPLEP0543. The raised air intake may not be secured properly, which can allow the intake to detach from the vehicle.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect, and if necessary, remove and reinstall the RAI accessory, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed February 20, 2025. Owners may contact Land Rover customer service at 1-800-637-6837. Land Rover's number for this recall is N964.
Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC (Land Rover) is recalling certain 2021 Range Rover, 2022 Range Rover Sport, 2020-2021 Range Rover Velar, Discovery Sport, 2020-2022 Discovery, and Defender vehicles. The seat belt automatic locking retractors may deactivate early, which can prevent the child restraint system from securing properly.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect and replace the seat belt assemblies as necessary, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed October 20, 2021. Owners may contact Land Rover customer service at 1-800-637-6837. Land Rover's number for this recall is N630.
Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC (Land Rover) is recalling certain 2021-2024 Land Rover Range Rover Velar and Land Rover Discovery, 2020-2023 Land Rover Range Rover Evoque, 2019-2024 Land Rover Range Rover Sport, 2020-2024 Land Rover Range Rover, 2020 Land Rover Discovery Sport, 2020-2024 Land Rover Defender, 2021-2024 Jaguar F-Pace, and 2021-2022 Jaguar E-Pace mild-hybrid electric vehicles (MHEVs.) The DC-DC converter can fail due to an internal fault in the boost control microchip. A failure of the DC-DC converter will result in a loss of 12-Volt system charging and can lead to complete loss of drive power and exterior lighting.
Remedy: The remedy for this recall is currently under development. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed June 17, 2026. Additional letters will be sent once the remedy is available. Owners may contact Land Rover's customer service at 800-637-6837. Land Rover's numbers for this recall are D126 and H575.
Specifications
Factory options offered for the 2021 model year, decoded from the NHTSA vPIC database. Individual vehicles have one of each.
How other years compare
Check your exact Defender by VIN
Recalls and equipment differ between individual vehicles. Decode your VIN to see what applies to yours.
Open VIN decoderFrequently asked questions
Is the 2021 Land Rover Defender reliable?
NHTSA has 37 owner complaints and 9 recall campaigns on record for the 2021 Land Rover Defender. The most complained-about area is visibility/wiper (34% of complaints).
At what mileage do 2021 Land Rover Defender problems usually appear?
Half of the complaints that mention mileage were filed at 35,000 miles or less.
Does the 2021 Land Rover Defender have open recalls?
9 recall campaigns have been issued, the latest concerning air bags:frontal. Check your specific vehicle by VIN - recall repairs are free at franchised dealers.
Source: NHTSA recall campaigns and owner complaints (public domain). Counts reflect reports on file and are not a defect rate.