26 of the 391 complaints filed about the Land Rover Defender are about the steering — 7% of everything owners reported. The worst model year for it is 2020.
26
Complaints
7%
Share of all complaints
0
Crashes
2
Fires
STEERING
Driving and the steering assistance warning goes off cuts off my cruise control and my lane keep assistance causing my car deceleration on highway promptly while going 70 mph.
NHTSA complaint #11755796 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
STEERING
While driving on Back Rd in New Hampshire at approximately 30 mph on Saturday, Feb 14, the vehicle suddenly lost power steering assist and simultaneously shifted into neutral. I received warning messages and immediately lost propulsion. Luckily, there was no traffic on the road with me, but that is not always the case on this particular road. I had to manually steer the vehicle without power assist and muscle it to the side of the roadway. The vehicle was disabled in the road and required towing. The vehicle has approximately 5,400 miles and is a 2025 model year, purchased in late June of 2025. The dealer has indicated the likely cause is a failed DC-DC converter, and I have been told the part is on backorder with extended delays. I've look online at forums, and it sounds like this is a widespread known issue that effects Land Rover cars with model years of 2022 and potentially prior as well. This sudden loss of steering assist and propulsion created a safety hazard in traffic, and it is possible that Land Rover has known about this issue for awhile.
NHTSA complaint #11718508 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
STEERING
Car has had 2 separate, distinct failures of the DC/DC converter which result in electrical faults rendering all systems unusable (gearbox, steering, etc.) and making the care immobile. I have had it replaced once in September 2025 following a failure, and then the replacement failed in January 2026. This is incredibly dangerous while driving. Dealer and Land Rover are aware of widespread failures, parts are backordered with no timeline. Warning light starts with 'Electric Fault Detected' and continues to function for an indeterminate amount of time before failing completely.
NHTSA complaint #11715904 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
STEERING
While driving the vehicle warnings alerted me that the battery was low and to start the vehicle ( it was running as I was driving) then the alert changed to pull over when possible. At this time the power steering and power brakes started to fail by the time I pulled into a parking lot the vehicle completely died and I had to push it into a parking spot. I called Land Rover they towed it to a dealership. The dealership in Orlando Florida said that the DC to DC converter failed and that it would need a new one (but the part is on a back order because it’s a common issue and they have no idea how long it will take to get the part) it will take at least 30 days or more to get a new part. Before I managed to pull over in a safe location the steering became very heavy and the brake pedal got very hard and barely stopped the vehicle ( almost had a collision) and steering into the parking lot was extremely difficult.
NHTSA complaint #11715474 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
STEERING
Yes, my car caught fire. It's at an impound currently. My clothes caught fire when I tried putting it out. The car could have been parked in my garage or been in NYC, with a full tank of gas, that would have caused serious damage. My insurance company is sending an investigator to look into it today. No, warning lamps, messages or symptoms.
NHTSA complaint #11714170 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
STEERING
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 complaint #11709603 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
STEERING
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 complaint #11692533 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
STEERING
We were driving at highway speeds on paved, dry road. The vehicle threw a electrical fault error. As I drove to a safe location to pull over, the vehicle switched into Neutral, every warning light on the dash lit up and my power steering failed. We barely coasted to a safe spot on the shoulder of the highway we were on in the mountains. The parking brake also would not work. The vehicle then completely died and we were stuck in an area with no cell phone service. The rear hatch also would not open
NHTSA complaint #11624215 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
STEERING
It happened after being parked at work for 9hrs. The lane assist not available! warning came on when I started the car. I noticed the steering wheel was VERY hard to turn. You have to use both hands and lean with body weight to turn the wheel a few inches which when the car is at a stand-still. It did get a little easier if the car was moving. The screen didnt dim but now I recall, just for a few seconds, part of the cameras on the display screen were grayed out when I put it in reverse. This only happened once for a short time during the multiple engine on/off cycles I tried hoping it would go away. The 20 sec pivi reboot didnt fix it (I tried it about 3 times). Walking away and coming back didnt fix it.
NHTSA complaint #11567000 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
STEERING
Steering wheel is locked and does not turn the wheels
NHTSA complaint #11566651 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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The steering column won't move. The car starts, you can drive forward and back but the steering column doesn't move. This has happened twice now and I am afraid if this happens while I'm driving unexpectedly, death or serious injuries are very possible.
NHTSA complaint #11564087 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
STEERING
Lane assistance and power steering failed. There was no warning light or alarm. The warning light in the dashboard came on reading “Lane assistance not available” and “power steering resistance reduced” immediately when both systems failed. We were able to safely park, no one was injured. The car has been at the service center at the dealership for 10 days.
NHTSA complaint #11562181 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
STEERING
This morning I got into my Defender, started it, and the power steering was clearly not working at all. The steering wheel was not locked. With very significant effort I could turn the wheel. After searching online I found that this is apparently a widespread problem with Land Rover Defenders since about 2021. I was lucky that it happened in my driveway and not while I was actually driving. I was able to regain steering by disconnecting the negative terminal of the battery for 60 seconds and reconnecting. After that, the car drove fine.
NHTSA complaint #11561955 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
STEERING
Dec 6. Started vehicle and steering wheel would nor move. All functions of car worked. Fwd, rev, engine running , lights all worked. Turned off and restarted 3 times and steering wheel still not moving. All of a sudden wheel became free. I worry now if this could happen while driving. Light did come on saying "lain assist not available"
NHTSA complaint #11558909 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
STEERING
I was ready to leave for work and started the car. The steering wheel was locked and would not turn left or right. The car could be put in gear but, the steering wheel not move. I turned the car off several times and nothing helped. Hopefully, this will not happen while driving. Had to drive my other car to work.
NHTSA complaint #11557380 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
STEERING
The power steering failed and the car was not drive-able. The warning light for no lane assist available also turned on. The vehicle was in-operable and left us stranded. This would have been a much bigger issue in the winter time, or if I was not at my home. I contacted Land Rover, who had me call LandRover road side to have the car towed to the dealership, since this occurred on a Sunday. They confirmed the issue of power steering malfunction. There was no warning that his was going to happen. It first appeared when we tried to start the car and it was not drive-able. Once at the dealership, I was made aware there was a service bulletin-not a formal recall- regarding this malfunction. It required two code updates (that I was unable to complete with attempt to update software prior to tow) and a battery reset. With this being such a significant issue, making the car in-operable, it was frustrating to hear it was a known issue that was not a recall. The dealership told me there were others in the area that had the same issue and were fixed, with out recurrent of the issue.
NHTSA complaint #11555087 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
STEERING
When driving the new 2023 vehicle with 956 miles we got a lane keep malfunction dialogue box pop up on digital instrument cluster. At the same time the power steering ceased to work or the lane keep fought to keep it centered even when trying to make maneuvers to stay in lane of traffic, navigate turns or avoid other vehicle. It endangered the lives of my wife, 3 young daughters and lives of other drivers/passengers on the road. The vehicle was parked about a mile from it occurring and roadside assistance called. It was taken to Jaguar Land Rover Hunt Valley to be repaired. Where they duplicated same issue. They could not get the computer to flag any codes that something was wrong but witnessed it not being able to be steered properly. They proceeded to do a hard reset on the steering module as they could not communicate with it, they then downloaded new software and said it fixed the problem. We drove 3.5 hours round trip to go pick it up. It drove just like is should for trips but then at 1145 miles the exact same issue with dialogue box saying lane keep malfunction and power steering or it fighting my wife to stay straight and fighting her to navigate road turns, obstacles or other vehicles. This again put my family and other families on the road at extreme risk. It was then towed again. This time it went to Jaguar Land Rover Harrisburg. They too witnessed the same issue and I told them of what happened before and what they did to fix. It has been in the dealership service centers care for a week and they can’t figure out why it’s doing it. They contacted Land Rover corporate for help and have open ticket with Engineer. The service managers words to me where that they can’t do anything until LandRover engineer figures out why this is happening to Defenders. I said there is more, he said yes. I called corporate to request they take the vehicle back as it is unsafe for my family and other families in the road. They said it has to happen 3 times! Not Safe At All.
NHTSA complaint #11512581 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
STEERING
Went to turn on vehicle and experienced a complete shutdown of power steering system. Lane assist not available message was the only error presented.
NHTSA complaint #11497325 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
STEERING
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 complaint #11454234 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
STEERING
Several times while waiting at a red light, the engine just died, feels like it's connected to the hybrid engine not functioning properly. service said it had to do with battery and they fixed it. It still happened 2 more times after they serviced. Also now car is not drivable, because the steering wheel does not budge/move. Waiting for service to return my call. Is this something that could happen whilst driving? It is very scary when the brand new car keeps failing unexpectedly.
NHTSA complaint #11451195 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.