AutoDefect IQ

2013 Lincoln Mkz problems, complaints & recalls

Most-reported problem areas: Steering (16) · Power Train (10) · Structure:body (9)

🧭 Reliability snapshot

85 /100
✓ Typical or better for this model

Compared against other Lincoln Mkz model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →

🛣️ Complaints by mileage

<25k miles: 20 complaints 20 <25k 25–50k miles: 17 complaints 25–50k 50–75k miles: 15 complaints 50–75k 75–100k miles: 7 complaints 75–100k 100–125k miles: 7 complaints 100–125k 125–150k miles: 2 complaints 125–150k 150k+ miles: 2 complaints 150k+

70 NHTSA complaints that reported an odometer reading.

109
Complaints
13
Recalls
159
Service bulletins
4
Crashes reported
2
Fires reported
0
Deaths

Safety recalls (13)

Service Brakes, Hydraulic:foundation Components:hoses, Lines/Piping, And Fittings 2023-03-10 · campaign 23V162000 · 1,280,726 vehicles

Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2013-2018 Fusion and Lincoln MKZ vehicles. The front brake hoses may rupture and leak brake fluid.

Risk: A brake fluid leak will increase brake pedal travel and extend the distance needed to stop the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.

Fix: 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.

Latches/Locks/Linkages:doors:latch 2020-06-08 · campaign 20V331000 · 2,147,323 vehicles

Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2011-2014 Fiesta, 2013-2014 Fusion, 2015 Mustang, 2013-2015 Escape and C-Max, 2012-2015 Focus, 2014-2016 Transit Connect, 2013-2014 Lincoln MKZ, and 2015 MKC vehicles. These vehicles were previously recalled and repaired under recalls 15V-246, 16V-643 or 17V-210, however the repair may not have been completed properly. A component within the door latches may break making the doors difficult to latch and/or leading the driver or a passenger to beli

Risk: A door that is not securely latched could open while the vehicle is in motion, increasing the risk of injury to a vehicle occupant.

Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the latch date codes to confirm if the repair was done correctly, and replace the side door latches if necessary, free of charge. Owners will also have the option to inspect their own vehicle's door latches and enter the date codes into a website to determine if the latches are correct. Owner notification letters were mailed on July 27, 2020. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 20S30.

Exterior Lighting:headlights 2020-04-24 · campaign 20E025000 · 130 vehicles

Defect: 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."

Risk: The incorrect headlamps may reduce the driver's visibility or make the vehicle less visible, increasing the risk of a crash.

Fix: 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.

Steering:electric Power Assist System 2019-08-29 · campaign 19V632000 · 116,160 vehicles

Defect: 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

Risk: If the bolts corrode, the steering gear motor may detach from the gear housing resulting in a loss of power steering assist, requiring a greater steering effort, especially at lower speeds, and increasing the risk of a crash.

Fix: 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.

Latches/Locks/Linkages:doors:latch 2017-03-27 · campaign 17V210000 · 191,432 vehicles

Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2014 Ford Fiesta, 2013-2014 Ford Fusion and 2013-2014 Lincoln MKZ vehicles. 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.

Risk: A door that is not securely latched could open while the vehicle is in motion, increasing the risk of injury to a vehicle occupant.

Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace all four door latches, free of charge. The recall began May 1, 2017. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 15S16.

Seat Belts:front 2016-12-05 · campaign 16V875000 · 603,392 vehicles

Defect: 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.

Risk: If the driver or front passenger seatbelt cables cannot properly restrain the front seat occupants, they would be at an increased risk of injury.

Fix: 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.

Steering:electric Power Assist System 2015-04-28 · campaign 15V250000 · 487,301 vehicles

Defect: 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, Wisconsi

Risk: If the bolts corrode, the steering gear motor may detach from the gear housing resulting in a loss of power steering assist. Loss of power steering assist would require a higher steering effort, especially at lower speeds, which may increase the risk of a crash.

Fix: 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.

Latches/Locks/Linkages:doors:latch 2015-04-24 · campaign 15V246000 · 456,440 vehicles

Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) notified the agency on April 23, 2015, that they are recalling certain model year 2013-2014 Ford Fusion and Lincoln MKZ vehicles manufactured July 1, 2012, to May 31, 2013, and 2012-2014 Fiesta vehicles manufactured February 1, 2012, to May 31, 2013. On April 30, 2015, Ford expanded the recall to cover an additional 119,567 vehicles, including certain model year 2011 Ford Fiestas manufactured from November 11, 2009, to May 31, 2013 and certain model year 2013 Ford Fus

Risk: A door that is not securely latched could open while the vehicle is in motion, increasing the risk of injury to a vehicle occupant.

Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace all four door latches with an improved part, free of charge. Interim notifications were mailed to owners on June 5, 2015. The recall began on December 18, 2015. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 15S16.

Seat Belts 2014-09-26 · campaign 14V597000 · 746,842 vehicles

Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2013-2014 Ford C-Max vehicles manufactured January 19, 2012, to November 21, 2013; Ford Fusion vehicles manufactured February 3, 2012, to August 24, 2013; Ford Escape vehicles manufactured October 5, 2011, to November 1, 2013; and Lincoln MKZ vehicles manufactured April 25, 2012, to September 30, 2013. The coating on portions of the Restraint Control Module (RCM) may crack, and when exposed to humidity, circuits on the printed circuit bo

Risk: The short circuits could cause the frontal air bags, side curtain air bags and the seat belt pretensioners to not function as intended when needed, increasing the risk of occupant injury in the event of a crash.

Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the RCM, free of charge. Parts are not currently available. The recall began on May 26,2015. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 14S21.

Seats:front Assembly:recliner 2014-04-02 · campaign 14V164000 · 43,135 vehicles

Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2013-2014 Ford Fusion and Lincoln MKZ vehicles manufactured August 15, 2012, through September 10, 2013, 2013-2014 Ford Escape vehicles manufactured June 5, 2012, through August 12, 2013, and 2013-2014 Ford C-Max vehicles manufactured from July 23, 2012, through May 28, 2013. The driver and passenger seatback assemblies may have been produced with sub-standard weld joints used to attach the seat back recliner mechanism to the seat frame.

Risk: The back of the subject seats may become loose or lean while driving and potentially increase the risk of injury in certain crashes.

Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the seatback, free of charge. The recall began on May 30, 2014. Owners may contact Ford at 1-800-392-3673. Ford's number for this recall is 14C03.

Power Train:automatic Transmission 2013-11-25 · campaign 13V594000 · 7,153 vehicles

Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2013-2014 Lincoln MKZ Hybrid vehicles manufactured April 26, 2012, through September 24, 2013. Due to a manufacturing error, the transmission range sensor may not function properly allowing the affected vehicles to be shifted out of the Park position without first applying the brake pedal. Thus, these vehicles fail to conform with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 114, "Theft Protection."

Risk: Without requiring the brake to be pressed, the vehicle may be unintentionally shifted out of Park, allowing it to roll which may result in a crash.

Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will update the Powertrain Control Module (PCM) with new software, free of charge. The recall began on January 2014. Customers may contact Ford at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 13C09.

Fuel System, Gasoline 2013-05-31 · campaign 13V227000 · 390,783 vehicles

Defect: Ford is recalling certain model year 2013 Explorer, Taurus, Flex, Fusion, Police Interceptor Sedan and Police Interceptor Utility vehicles; and certain model year 2013 Lincoln MKS, MKT, and MKZ vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the fuel delivery module may develop a crack, allowing fuel to leak.

Risk: A fuel leak in the presence of an ignition source may result in a fire.

Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel delivery module, free of charge. The recall began on July 20, 2013. Owners may contact Ford Motor Company Customer Relationship Center at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's recall campaign number is 13S04.

Electrical System 2013-05-31 · campaign 13V230000 · 107 vehicles

Defect: Ford is recalling certain model year 2013 Lincoln MKZ vehicles manufactured April 25, 2012, through March 15, 2013 and equipped with an engine block heater. During use, the engine block heater cords may be bent and in certain temperatures, the wire insulation may crack, exposing the electrical wires.

Risk: Exposed electrical wires increase the risk of electric shock.

Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the block heater cord, free of charge. The recall began on June 28, 2013. Ford's recall number is 13S05. Owners may contact the Ford customer relationship center at 1-866-436-7332.

Service bulletins (159)

Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.

Unknown Or Other 2024-10-10 · SSM 53040 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions

while performing a transmission repair on some 2012-2024 ford and lincoln vehicles, a transmission seal kit may be on backorder due to supply chain interruptions.

Structure 2023-04-04 · SSM 51536 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions

for 2000-2024 ford and lincoln vehicles, swapping a module from a vehicle for diagnosis purposes is likely to cause errors and is not recommended. it is also not recommended to order a replacement module using a vehicle identification number (vin) from a different vehicle. most modules on these affe

Service Brakes 2022-12-16 · SSM 51261 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions

some ford and lincoln vehicles may exhibit noise when the brakes are applied. when diagnosing and repairing brake noise conditions, use the workshop manual (wsm) and the appropriate pinpoint test in section 206-00. the brake rotors should only be machined if directed by the wsm because one or more o

Service Brakes 2022-11-04 · SSM 51181 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions

some 2013-2016 escape/fusion/mkz vehicles may display an error message when updating the all wheel drive-atc barcode using the ids service function after installing a new rear drive unit assembly (rdu) or active torque coupling (atc) clutch assembly. to prevent this error from occurring, enter the u

Power Train 2022-10-25 · TSB 22-2396 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions

some 2013-2020 fusion, mkz and 2013-2018 c-max vehicles equipped with an hf35 transmission may exhibit a thumping/rubbing or grinding noise coming from the transmission. the noise may be present in all gear ranges including neutral when the vehicle is moving but will not be present when the vehicle

Service Brakes, Hydraulic 2022-10-06 · SSM 51120 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions

some ford and lincoln vehicles may exhibit noise when the brakes are applied. when diagnosing and repairing brake noise conditions, use the workshop manual (wsm) and the appropriate pinpoint test in section 206-00. the brake rotors should only be machined if directed by the wsm because one or more o

Showing the 6 most recent of 159 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.

What owners report

2026-09-15 · Air Bags

“component failure & inspection: restraints control module (rcm) / physical airbags failed on a 2013 lincoln mkz. the 44-page bosch cdr report proves a hardware failure: page 8 logs a "yes" command for frontal and rollover discriminating deployment. system voltage was stable (14.02v at t0), and seatbelt pretensioners successfully fired (683.0 ms and…”

2026-03-11 · Suspension

“vehicle: lincoln mkz 2013 dealer: auto quest inc. description of the safety issue: i am submitting this report regarding a vehicle safety concern involving a 2013 lincoln mkz that i purchased from auto quest inc. in renton, washington. shortly after purchasing the vehicle, within the first few days of ownership, the vehicle began experiencing si…”

2026-02-12 · Steering

“i was slowing down to take a turn and i see an error message saying “power steering assist failure”. and steering went stiff..…”

2025-11-03 · Electrical System

“video camera in the back is almost unusable at times, get loss of vision completely or it's flipped image and distorted. don't know if this counts but i had a issue where key batteries where fine and the car did not want to unlock or start. also last winter the door would not unlock and if forced would not close.…”

2025-10-22 · Lane Departure: Blind Spot Detection

“the driver side mirror blind spot stopped working and all most hit a vehicle coming up alongside of me. yes it is available no in october…”

2025-10-03 · Electrical System

“the contact owned a 2013 lincoln mkz. the contact stated that while adjusting the driver's side motorized seat, the contact felt an electric shock through her left hand, prompting the contact to cease the action and immediately turn off the vehicle. no warning lights were illuminated. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who determined…”

2025-09-02 · Back Over Prevention · 70,000 mi

“the contact owns a 2013 lincoln mkz. the contact stated that while reversing, the back-over prevention camera screen turned off and turned on independently. additionally, there was a message to contact the dealer displayed. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or the dealer. the contact referenced an unknown recall; …”

2025-07-22 · Back Over Prevention · 82,000 mi

“the contact owns a 2013 lincoln mkz. the contact stated that the back-over prevention camera was inoperable. the contact stated that occasionally the screen was distorted or blank. the message that the camera was unavailable was displayed. there were no warning lights illuminated. the local dealer was contacted and confirmed that there was no recal…”

2025-06-04 · Fuel System, Gasoline

“the contact owns a 2013 lincoln mkz. the contact stated that on several occasions while exiting the vehicle, the contact observed an abnormally strong fuel odor outside the vehicle. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic; however, the failure was not able to be replicated; however, the gas cap was replaced. the contact stated that the fai…”

2024-12-16 · Steering · 63,800 mi

“the contact owns a 2013 lincoln mkz. the contact stated while driving at various speeds, the steering was vibrating and jiggling. the contact stated that the steering wheel was loosened near the gear housing. the dealer was not notified of the failure. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the contact related the failure to nhtsa campaign numb…”

Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.

Other Lincoln Mkz years