Audited US model-year file

2016 LINCOLN MKZ

Exact make, model and year evidence from official US sources. Recall campaigns, ODI investigations, complaint allegations and EPA estimates remain separate.

Model-year evidence is not a VIN check.

A campaign may cover only certain production dates, plants or equipment. A zero result here is not safety clearance. Use NHTSA’s official VIN tool for the individual vehicle.

Official VIN lookup ↗

01 · Safety actions first

7 NHTSA recall campaigns

Exact model-level NHTSA results for 2016 LINCOLN MKZ. Campaign records are official safety actions; applicability to a particular car still requires its VIN.

01
NHTSA Recalls · US · received 2019-08-29

STEERING:ELECTRIC POWER ASSIST SYSTEM

Campaign 19V632000
Summary

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.

Consequence

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.

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.

02
NHTSA Recalls · US · received 2018-03-12

STEERING: STEERING WHEEL/HANDLE BAR

Campaign 18V167000
Summary

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.

Consequence

A steering wheel detachment can cause a loss of steering control, increasing the risk of a crash.

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.

03
NHTSA Recalls · US · received 2015-10-01

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE

Campaign 15V618000
Summary

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2016 Ford Fusion vehicles manufactured September 3, 2015, to September 13, 2015, and 2016 Lincoln MKZ vehicles manufactured September 3, 2015, to September 12, 2015. The affected vehicles have a fuel tank that may have insufficent wall thickness. As a result, the fuel tanks may crack in the event of a crash and thus the vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 301, "Fuel System Integrity."

Consequence

A fuel tank that cracks may leak fuel, increasing the risk of a fire.

Remedy

Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel tank, free of charge. The recall began on October 19, 2015. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 15C11.

04
NHTSA Recalls · US · received 2020-03-23

LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:DOORS:LATCH

Campaign 20V177000
Summary

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.

Consequence

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

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.

05
NHTSA Recalls · US · received 2020-04-24

EXTERIOR LIGHTING:HEADLIGHTS

Campaign 20E025000
Summary

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."

Consequence

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

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.

06
NHTSA Recalls · US · received 2023-03-10

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS:HOSES, LINES/PIPING, AND FITTINGS

Campaign 23V162000
Summary

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

Consequence

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

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.

07
NHTSA Recalls · US · received 2023-11-17

LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:DOORS:LATCH

Campaign 23V775000
Summary

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2015 Fiesta, 2016 Fusion, and 2016 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 inside the door latches may break, which can make it difficult to latch or possibly allow the doors to open while driving.

Consequence

Vehicle doors opening unexpectedly while driving can increase the risk of a crash or injury.

Remedy

Dealers will inspect the door latch date codes and if necessary, replace all four side door latches, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed December 20, 2023. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 20S15. This recall is an expansion of NHTSA recall number 20V-177.

02 · Owner allegations

63 NHTSA complaints

Counts are not adjusted for sales, vehicle age, mileage, publicity or reporting behavior. They are allegations, not defect findings or a reliability score.

Crash mentions
8
Fire mentions
0
Injuries reported
6
Most-reported component labels
SERVICE BRAKES14
STEERING12
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM11
AIR BAGS9
UNKNOWN OR OTHER6
BACK OVER PREVENTION5
Complaints across nearby Lincoln MKZ model years

Totals for the same nameplate, scaled against its highest year here. They are not adjusted for how many were sold, how old they are, how far they are driven, or how much publicity a fault received — an older or better-selling year will usually carry more reports. This shows where the reporting sits, not which year is better.

  1. 972014
  2. 792015
  3. 632016
  4. 1352017
  5. 322018
  6. 192019

A dash means NHTSA holds no complaint record for that exact year, make and model. See all MKZ years with specs and fuel economy →

03 · Agency review

3 NHTSA ODI investigations

An investigation means ODI reviewed a possible safety issue for this exact model-year identity. Opening one is not a defect finding; closing one does not by itself clear a vehicle.

EA21002
Open in imported snapshot · opened 2021-09-17

Desiccated Air Bag Inflator Rupture

NHTSA source ↗

AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:DRIVER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE · No associated recall campaign number was published in this investigation row.

RQ22004
Closed 2023-03-24 · opened 2022-08-08

Front Brake Jounce Hose Failures

NHTSA source ↗

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS:HOSES, LINES/PIPING, AND FITTINGS · Associated recall campaign 23V162000.

RQ19005
Closed 2022-02-07 · opened 2019-12-19

Door Latch Failures

NHTSA source ↗

LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:DOORS:LATCH · Associated recall campaign 20V177000.

04 · EPA configurations

Fuel economy & specifications

FuelEconomy.gov records are summarized as ranges where this model name has multiple engines, drivetrains or trims.

EPA configurations
5
Combined economy
20–40 mpg/MPGe
City / highway
17–41 / 24–39 mpg/MPGe
Engine displacement
2–3.7 L
Cylinders
4–6
Fuel type
Regular
Drive
All-Wheel Drive · Front-Wheel Drive
Vehicle class
Midsize Cars
Annual fuel-cost estimate
$1600–3250

05 · Evidence strength

Exact identity. Explicit limits.

No opaque score. Evidence strength is expressed through source availability, exact match method, jurisdiction and honest empty states.

exact match

Recall campaigns

7 exact US model-year records in this bounded view.

exact match

Complaints

63 exact US model-year allegations; narratives and VIN fragments are omitted.

exact match

ODI investigations

3 exact US model-year action numbers in the approved import snapshot.

canonical only

Model aliases

Only the exact NHTSA vPIC model name is published; unverified aliases are not merged.

not published

Manufacturer ownership

No rights-reviewed official ownership record is joined to this exact model-year.

PUBLIC EVIDENCE PASSPORT

Identity, freshness and provenance.

The canonical URL is this file’s permanent public identifier. Source IDs and timestamps show exactly what was matched and when; they do not turn the evidence into a verdict.

Permanent public ID
https://modelyearfacts.com/vehicle/2016/lincoln/mkz
NHTSA make ID
464
NHTSA model ID
1790
Match key
2016 · LINCOLN · MKZ · US
Live evidence requested
EPA publication catalogue
Complaint matrix snapshot
Imported safety snapshot
nhtsa-investigations · exact match

NHTSA ODI investigations

Action number, component, subject and open/close dates from the approved bulk import; long summaries omitted.

Open official source ↗
US-market boundary

Only NHTSA vPIC, NHTSA ODI complaints and investigations, NHTSA recalls and FuelEconomy.gov contribute to this vehicle claim. CPSC equipment notices are searched separately and never joined to vehicle fitment. UK MOT, Canadian, New Zealand and European records are not merged into this US claim.

06 · Research paths

Diagnose first. Confirm fitment.

These are transparent searches, not diagnoses or endorsed parts. Recall remedies come before purchases; exact part fitment requires VIN, trim, powertrain, production date and OE number.

Offers status: held

Awin US and R2 affiliate inventory are not published until a US programme, merchant and exact-fitment projection are approved. No offer currently has both merchant approval and exact vehicle fitment, so commercial links never count as evidence.