Reliable Auto DB

2023 Land Rover Defender reliability

Is it reliable?

NHTSA's file on the 2023 Land Rover Defender holds 0 complaints after 4 years, a rate of 0 per year. Defender years here cluster close together — the other years’ median is 0 complaints per year. NHTSA has 10 recalls on file, including DC/DC converter, Frontal, and Back-over prevention, software.

2020 Land Rover Defender
Photo by DeFacto, resized from the original. Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0
Complaints

0

Per year

0

Recalls

10

Years on the road

4

Next to 2022 and 2024

The 2022 Defender has 0 complaints, 0 per year, and the 2024 has 0 complaints, 0 per year. The 2023 has about the same number of complaints per year as the 2022. The 2023 has about the same number of complaints per year as the 2024.

The complaint rate is complaints filed in this year’s first 3 years on the road, divided by however many of those years have passed. Recalls are a separate count. The numbers are for the US-market 2023 Land Rover Defender. How we count. Data as of .

Recalls (10)

Recall DC/DC converter 2026-09-17 · NHTSA campaign 26V599000
Summary Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC (Land Rover) is recalling certain 2019-2024 Land Rover Range Rover Sport, 2020-2024 Land Rover Range Rover Evoque, Land Rover Range Rover, Land Rover Discovery Sport, Land Rover Defender, 2021-2024 Land Rover Range Rover Velar, Jaguar E-Pace, F-Pace, and Land Rover Discovery vehicles. The DC-DC converter may malfunction due to an electrical overload that can occur during high power demand. Additionally, a software error can cause the DC-DC converter to stop functioning at vehicle start-up under certain circumstances. Failure of the DC-DC converter will result in the loss of 12-Volt system charging and can lead to complete loss of drive power and exterior lighting.
Remedy Dealers will update the vehicle software, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk are expected to be mailed November 13, 2026. Additional letters will be sent once the final remedy is available. Owners may contact Land Rover's customer service at 800-637-6837. Land Rover's number for this recall is E008. This recall expands previous NHTSA recall number 26V248.
Recall air bags, frontal 2026-06-12 · NHTSA campaign 26V389000
Summary 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.
Recall DC/DC converter 2026-04-17 · NHTSA campaign 26V248000
Summary 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). Insufficient electrical load balancing during times of high demand can lead to a current overload condition and malfunction of the DCDC converter. 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 Dealers will update the central software, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed June 17, 2026. Additional letters will be sent once the final 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.
Recall back-over prevention, software 2025-01-16 · NHTSA campaign 25V016000
Summary Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC (Land Rover) is recalling certain 2023 Discovery Sport, 2023-2024 Defender, and 2023 Range Rover Evoque vehicles. The touchscreen in the center console may go blank at vehicle startup, resulting in the rearview camera image not displaying as intended. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 111, "Rear Visibility."
Remedy Dealers will update the touchscreen software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 3, 2025. Owners may contact Land Rover's customer service at 1-800-637-6837. Land Rover's number for this recall is N972.
Recall Equipment 2024-12-06 · NHTSA campaign 24E102000
Summary 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.
Recall engine and cooling, engine, oil and lubrication, filter 2024-06-17 · NHTSA campaign 24V450000
Summary Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC (Land Rover) is recalling certain 2023-2024 Defender, 2024 Discovery, Range Rover, Range Rover Sport, and Range Rover Velar vehicles. The oil filter housing can crack and leak oil into the engine compartment.
Remedy Dealers will replace the filter housing, oil filter, and o-rings, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 27, 2024. Owners may contact Land Rover customer service at 1-800-637-6837. Land Rover's number for this recall is N908.
Recall hydraulic brakes, critical fasteners 2023-11-22 · NHTSA campaign 23V789000
Summary Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC (Land Rover) is recalling certain 2023 Land Rover Defender 130 vehicles modified for the TRek Off-Road Competition. The brake calipers may not be reinstalled properly, allowing the brake calipers to detach.
Remedy Dealers will reinstall the brake calipers, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed January 18, 2024. Owners may contact Land Rover customer service at 1-800-637-6837. Land Rover's number for this recall is N848.
Recall child seat, tether anchor 2023-03-02 · NHTSA campaign 23V137000
Summary Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC (Land Rover) is recalling certain 2023 Land Rover Defender 130 vehicles equipped with third-row seats. The third-row seatback latch may not latch properly, reducing the strength of a child seat installed to the top tether.
Remedy Dealers will inspect and replace the third-row seat frame and components, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 24, 2023. Owners may contact Land Rover customer service at 1-800-637-6837. Land Rover's number for this recall is N768.
Recall engine and cooling, engine, oil and lubrication 2023-02-02 · NHTSA campaign 23V044000
Summary 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.
Recall seat belts, pretensioner 2022-07-21 · NHTSA campaign 22V523000
Summary Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC (Land Rover) is recalling certain 2022-23 Land Rover Defender, Discovery, Discovery Sport and 2022 Range Rover Sport and Range Rover Velar vehicles. The driver and front passenger seat belt pretensioners may be damaged, which can cause the seat belts to not properly restrain occupants.
Remedy Dealers will inspect and replace the front seat belt assemblies, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed September 16, 2022. Owners may contact Land Rover customer service at 1-800-637-6837. Land Rover's number for this recall is N720.

Complaints by component (0 total)

No complaints on file with NHTSA for this model year.

NHTSA crash ratings

Version Overall Front Side Rollover
2023 Land Rover Defender 110 SUV 4WD Not rated Not rated Not rated Not rated
2023 Land Rover Defender 130 SUV 4WD Not rated Not rated Not rated Not rated
2023 Land Rover Defender 90 SUV 4WD Not rated Not rated Not rated Not rated

Stars are how this vehicle did in NHTSA crash tests. They are a safety result, separate from the complaint record. Not rated means that test was not run for this version.

Fuel economy

Trim Engine Transmission Drive City Hwy Combined Annual fuel cost
Defender 110 2L, 4-cyl Automatic (8-speed) Four-wheel drive 17 20 18 MPG $4450
Defender 110 5L, 8-cyl Automatic (8-speed) Four-wheel drive 14 19 16 MPG $5000
Defender 110 MHEV 3L, 6-cyl Automatic (8-speed) Four-wheel drive 18 23 20 MPG $4000
Defender 130 P300 MHEV 3L, 6-cyl Automatic (8-speed) Four-wheel drive 17 21 19 MPG $4200
Defender 130 P400 MHEV 3L, 6-cyl Automatic (8-speed) Four-wheel drive 17 21 19 MPG $4200
Defender 90 2L, 4-cyl Automatic (8-speed) Four-wheel drive 18 21 19 MPG $4200
Defender 90 5L, 8-cyl Automatic (8-speed) Four-wheel drive 15 19 16 MPG $5000
Defender 90 MHEV 3L, 6-cyl Automatic (8-speed) Four-wheel drive 18 23 20 MPG $4000

Specs and fitment

L663 Defender, 2020–present
Body styles SUV
Oil 0W-20 (engine dependent; capacities vary) , 7.4 qt capacity
Tire size 255/70R18, 255/65R19, 255/60R20, 275/45R22 (trim dependent)

Known issues for this generation

Recall 23V-044 covers certain 2020-2023 Land Rover Defender vehicles among other Land Rover models: the engine cam carrier oil channel may be blocked, which can lead to an oil leak and increase fire risk near an ignition source. Dealers inspect and replace the cam carrier and related components as necessary. The campaign's published unit count is shared across Range Rover Sport, Range Rover, Defender, Discovery, and Velar years listed. Recall 21V-435 covers certain 2020-2022 Defender X vehicles with smoked rear light assemblies: a voltage spike can cause turn signals, brake lights, and tail lights to fail; dealers replace the rear light assemblies. Recall 26V-389 covers certain 2020-2026 Defender vehicles among other Land Rover models: the driver's air bag clockspring connector may corrode so the air bag may not deploy as intended; dealers apply protective lubricant gel to the connector terminals.

Compare

Previous year 2022 Land Rover Defender Next year 2024 Land Rover Defender See every Land Rover Defender model year →

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2023 Land Rover Defender reliable?

NHTSA's file on the 2023 Land Rover Defender holds 0 complaints after 4 years, a rate of 0 per year. Defender years here cluster close together — the other years’ median is 0 complaints per year. NHTSA has 10 recalls on file, including DC/DC converter, Frontal, and Back-over prevention, software.

Is the 2023 Land Rover Defender more reliable than the years next to it?

The 2022 Defender has 0 complaints, 0 per year, and the 2024 has 0 complaints, 0 per year. The 2023 has about the same number of complaints per year as the 2022. The 2023 has about the same number of complaints per year as the 2024.

Has the 2023 Land Rover Defender been recalled?

The 2023 Land Rover Defender has 10 recalls on file with NHTSA. See the recalls table on this page for dates, components, and remedies.

How many complaints have owners filed about the 2023 Land Rover Defender?

Owners have filed 0 complaints about the 2023 Land Rover Defender with NHTSA.

What mpg does a 2023 Land Rover Defender get?

EPA-rated combined fuel economy for the 2023 Land Rover Defender is 18.4 MPG. See the fuel economy table on this page for city and highway figures by engine and transmission.

What oil does a Land Rover Defender (L663) use?

Engine-dependent specs cite 0W-20 with about 7.4 qt capacity on common U.S. setups; always confirm viscosity and fill in the manual for your engine code.

What tire sizes fit the modern Defender?

Trim-dependent OE sizes include 255/70R18 through 275/45R22; check the door placard rather than assuming one size for every Defender trim.

Which NHTSA recalls mention the Land Rover Defender?

Campaigns on file include 23V-044 (cam carrier oil channel), 21V-435 (smoked rear lights on Defender X), and 26V-389 (driver air bag clockspring connector); several share unit counts across multiple Land Rover models.