2015 Lincoln MKZ: problems, recalls and reliability
11 recalls and 79 owner complaints on record; the weakest area is electrical system (12% of complaints).
Data updated weekly · 1 new complaint in the last 90 days · latest recall Oct 2025
All counts are reports filed with NHTSA in the United States - US market only, not worldwide totals.
Common problems
Computed from 79 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for this exact model year.
“The contact owns a 2015 Lincoln MKZ. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V695000 (Back Over Prevention); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted and confirmed that the part was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure.”Owner report · Back Over Prevention · Aug 2026
“The contact owns a 2015 Lincoln MKZ. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V695000 (Back Over Prevention); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the rearview camera was inoperable while in reverse(R). The dealer was contacted and related the failure to the recall. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. 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 failure mileage was approximately 134,000.”Owner report · Back Over Prevention · Jan 2026
“While in reverse of my vehicle, the back-up camera display either goes completely black, displays an error message or glitches turning itself on/off at random. Referencing recall "25v695" this recall has been on notice with no follow up since I received the notification letter on October 2025. This is a very high safety risk when in reverse potentially causing a crash with other vehicles, striking nearby objects or worse.”Owner report · Electrical System · Oct 2025
Show 7 more owner reports
“The contact owns a 2015 Lincoln MKZ. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V695000 (Back Over Prevention); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that while reversing, the back-over prevention displayed a brief image, nearly causing the vehicle to crash on several occasions. The dealer was contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.”Owner report · Back Over Prevention · Sep 2025
“The contact owns a 2015 Lincoln MKZ. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V695000 (Back Over Prevention); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that while reversing, the rear-view camera intermittently displayed a distorted image, and the message "Camera Unavailable - Please Contact the Dealer" was displayed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by the dealer or an independent mechanic. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 79,000.”Owner report · Back Over Prevention · Sep 2025
“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 nothing has fixed the issue”Owner report · Forward Collision Avoidance · Sep 2025
“While driving vehicle the engine shut down for no apparent reason. Light came on said do not attempt to drive, not safe. Was able to get car to a safe area. Was able to restart and get the car home. Brought the car to the dealer, said battery was dead, found water in the truck where the battery is located”Owner report · Engine · Sep 2025
“Rearview camera is displaying a distorted image and is sometimes black, with no image, when reversing. This happened for about a month until I paid for replacing the rearview camera. I want to be reimbursed but no parts are available for over 9 months and I can't get a refund unless parts are available. This is way beyond a reasonable amount of time.”Owner report · Visibility/Wiper · Jul 2025
“The contact owns a 2015 Lincoln MKZ. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed into the garage, the steering column made a grinding sound while turning off the vehicle. The contact was unable to adjust the steering wheel up and down into position. An unknown dealer and a secondary dealer, Keller Ford (1073 Cadillac Ln, Hanford, CA 93230), were made aware of the failure, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 92,000.”Owner report · Steering · May 2025
“The contact owns a 2015 Lincoln MKZ. The contact received a notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V695000 (Back Over Prevention); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the rearview camera occasionally displayed a distorted image while in Reverse(R). No warning light illuminated. The local dealer was contacted; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 70,000.”Owner report · Back Over Prevention · Jan 2025
When filing, owners marked a crash in 4 of these complaints and injuries in 0 - self-reported to NHTSA, not verified accident statistics.
Recalls - 11 campaigns
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2015-2019 Flex, 2015 Explorer, Lincoln MKT, Lincoln MKZ, 2015-2016 C-Max, Escape, Taurus, 2016 Fusion, 2018-2019 Taurus, 2019 Lincoln MKT, Fiesta, and 2020 Mustang vehicles. The rearview camera may display a distorted, intermittent, or blank image when the vehicle is in reverse.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect and replace the rearview camera as necessary, free of charge. This will be a phased campaign, with the remedy becoming available in different phases based on model and model years. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on October 25, 2025. Additional letters will be mailed once the final remedy is available on each phase. Mustang owner notification letters were mailed January 2, 2026. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 25SA9. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on October 14, 2025.
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2013-2018 Fusion and Lincoln MKZ vehicles. The front brake hoses may rupture and leak brake fluid.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the front brake hoses, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 27, 2023. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 23S12.
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2014-2015 Fiesta, 2014-2016 Fusion and Lincoln MKZ vehicles sold, or ever registered in Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Washington, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands. A component within the door latches may break making the doors difficult to latch and/or leading the driver or a passenger to believe a door is securely closed when, in fact, it is not.
Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and Ford or Lincoln dealers will replace the side door latches, free of charge. The recall began September 21, 2020. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 20S15.
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2014-2018 Lincoln MKZ and Ford Fusion vehicles. The steering wheel retaining bolt may loosen allowing the steering wheel to detach while driving.
Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the steering wheel bolt with a longer bolt, free of charge. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 18S08.
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2014-2015 Fusion, Lincoln MKZ, and 2015 Mustang vehicles originally sold or ever registered, in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia and Hawaii. Exposure to certain environmental conditions, such as high temperatures, high humidity, and salt air can cause the brake pedal bumper to corrode and separate from the brake pedal.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the brake pedal bumpers and clutch pedal bumpers, free of charge. Interim owner notification letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on March 4, 2022. Owner notification letters were mailed on June 13, 2022. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 22S02.
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2013-2016 Ford Fusion vehicles manufactured November 2, 2012, to July 31, 2014, and 2013-2015 Lincoln MKZ vehicles manufactured November 14, 2012, to July 31, 2014. In the event of a crash, heat from the deployment of a seat belt pretensioner may cause a front seat belt anchor cable to fail.
Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will apply a protective coating to the seat belt cable, free of charge. The recall began May 16, 2017. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 16S42.
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2015 Fusion and Lincoln MKZ vehicles. In the event of a crash, heat from the deployment of a seat belt pretensioner may cause a front seat belt anchor cable to fail.
Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will apply a protective coating to the seat belt cable, free of charge. The recall began September 9, 2019. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 19S25. Note: This recall is an expansion of a recall 16V-875.
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2013-2016 Ford Fusion and Lincoln MKZ, 2015-2016 Ford Edge, and 2016 Lincoln MKX vehicles originally sold, or currently registered in Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. Road salt or other contaminants may corrode the electric power steering gear motor attachment bolts.
Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the steering gear motor bolts and apply a wax sealer. If any of the steering gear motor attachment bolts are broken or missing, a new steering gear will be installed in the vehicle. These repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began October 18, 2019. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 19S26.
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain Replacement Headlamps, part number DP5Z-13008-T and DP5Z-13008-V, sold for use with 2013-2016 Lincoln MKZ vehicles. The headlamps may have an improper beam pattern and incorrect horizontal adjustment, the side markers may not illuminate and DOT markings may be missing. As such, these headlamps fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 108, "Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment."
Remedy: Ford will notify vehicle manufacturers, and dealers will inspect the headlamps, and replace the headlamps, as necessary, free of charge. Additionally, Ford will instruct dealers to return all improper headlamps and not to install them on any vehicles. The recall began June 3, 2020. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 20C10.
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2013-2015 Ford Fusion and Lincoln MKZ vehicles manufactured February 3, 2012, to March 20, 2015, and 2015 Ford Edge vehicles manufactured February 26, 2015, to February 28, 2015, and originally sold, or currently registered in, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin and the District of Columbia. In the affected vehicles, snow or water containing road salt or other contaminants may corrode the electric power steering gear motor attachment bolts.
Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will apply sealer and replace the steering gear motor bolts as required. If one or more of the steering gear motor attachment bolts are broken or missing, a new steering gear will be installed in the vehicle. These repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began on June 24, 2015. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 15S14.
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2015 Lincoln MKZ vehicles manufactured February 17, 2014, to March 19, 2015, and equipped with daytime running lights (DRL). In the affected vehicles, the parking lights do not reduce their light output from a DRL level when used in conjunction with the headlights. As such, the light output may exceed the the permissable amount allowed by Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 108, "Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment."
Remedy: Ford has notified owners, and dealers will update the lighting control software, free of charge. The recall began on May 8, 2015. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for the recall is 15C02.
Trouble codes owners mention
OBD-II codes that appear in NHTSA complaints about this car.
Specifications
Factory options offered for the 2015 model year, decoded from the NHTSA vPIC database. Individual vehicles have one of each.
How other years compare
Check your exact MKZ 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 2015 Lincoln MKZ reliable?
NHTSA has 79 owner complaints and 11 recall campaigns on record for the 2015 Lincoln MKZ. The most complained-about area is electrical system (12% of complaints).
At what mileage do 2015 Lincoln MKZ problems usually appear?
Half of the complaints that mention mileage were filed at 56,000 miles or less.
Does the 2015 Lincoln MKZ have open recalls?
11 recall campaigns have been issued, the latest concerning back over prevention: sensing system: camera. 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.