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2016 Lincoln MKX

Gas
Small Sport Utility Vehicle 2WD
4 EPA-rated configurations
Data refreshed 2026-09-11
F
Safety Signal
37 / 100 from the NHTSA recall record
Recalls1 critical7
Complaintsowner reports to NHTSA154
Crash ratingNHTSA overall5★
Fuel economybest combined, EPA20 mpg
201820172016

The 2016 Lincoln MKX is sold in the U.S. as a gas compact SUV with 4 EPA-rated configurations. The most efficient version, the MKX FWD, is EPA-rated at 20 mpg combined. NHTSA lists 7 recall campaigns for this model year, 1 rated critical, which gives it a Safety Signal grade of F. Owners have filed 154 complaints, most often about the service brakes. NHTSA crash-tested it at 5 stars overall.

Specs & fuel economy

Source: EPA fueleconomy.gov
ConfigurationPowertrainDriveEngine / motorCityHwyCombAnnual fuel*
MKX FWDGasFWD3.7L 6-cyl172520$3,100
MKX FWDGasFWD2.7L 6-cyl turbo182620$3,100
MKX AWDGasAWD2.7L 6-cyl turbo172419$3,300
MKX AWDGasAWD3.7L 6-cyl162319$3,300

*EPA estimate at 15,000 miles/year at EPA reference fuel and electricity prices. fueleconomy.gov record ids: 36294, 36295, 36297, 36298.

Factory warranty running out?

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Recalls (7)

Source: NHTSA recall database
▲high

Service Brakes, Hydraulic

25S87
499,129 vehicles
ProblemFord Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Lincoln MKX and 2015-2018 Edge vehicles. The rear brake jounce hose may rupture and leak brake fluid.RiskA brake fluid leak can extend the distance required to stop the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.FixDealers will inspect and replace the brake jounce hoses and adjust brake jounce hoses with no damage present, free of charge. Interim owner letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed September 8, 2025. Additional letters will be sent once the remedy is available, anticipated August 2026. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 25S87.
NHTSA campaign 25V544000reported Aug 22, 2025Ford Motor Company
▲high

Service Brakes, Hydraulic

20S42
488,594 vehicles
ProblemFord Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2015-2018 Ford Edge and 2016-2018 Lincoln MKX vehicles. The front brake hoses may rupture prematurely.RiskA ruptured front brake hose will cause a brake fluid leak, lengthening the distance needed to stop the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.FixFord will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front brake hoses with the new hoses that have a revised braid material, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on May 13, 2021. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 20S42.
NHTSA campaign 20V469000reported Aug 10, 2020Ford Motor Company
▲high

Electrical System

20S37
19,299 vehicles
ProblemFord Motor Company, Inc. (Ford) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Lincoln MKX and 2019-2020 Nautilus vehicles equipped with 16-way electric tilt seats. The seat cushion frame edge may contact the wire harness when the seat occupant uses the tilt function of the seat, potentially damaging one or more wires within the harness, which can result in either inadvertent deployment of the air bag or nondeployment of the air bag in the event of a crash.RiskAn air bag that deploys inadvertently increases the risk of a crash. An air bag that does not deploy in the event of a crash increases the risk of injury.FixFord will notify owners, and dealers will install protective flocking tape onto the exposed edge of the 16-way seat cushion frames, and inspect the wire harness for damage, and repair or replace it as needed, free of charge. This recall began August 12, 2020. Owners may contact Ford/Lincoln customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 20S37.
NHTSA campaign 20V414000reported Jul 17, 2020Ford Motor Company
!critical

Electrical System

19S41
54,411 vehicles
ProblemFord Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2016-2017 Lincoln MKX vehicles equipped with 3.7L engines. The battery positive cable harness may contact the transmission shifter cable bracket resulting in a short circuit.RiskAn electrical short increases the risk of a fire.FixFord will notify owners, and dealers will remove the battery harness clips and elbow guide, and install a wire channel shield and protective sleeve to the battery cable harness, free of charge. Interim notices informing owners of the safety risk were mailed on December 2, 2019. Owners will receive a second notice when the remedy becomes available, currently expected to be the end of April 2020. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 19S41.
NHTSA campaign 19V809000reported Nov 12, 2019Ford Motor Company
▲high

Steering

19S26
116,160 vehicles
ProblemFord 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.RiskIf 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.FixFord 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.
NHTSA campaign 19V632000reported Aug 29, 2019Ford Motor Company
▲high

Air Bags

17C02
27,531 vehicles
ProblemFord Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2016-2017 Ford Edge and Lincoln MKX vehicles and 2017 Lincoln Continental vehicles. In the event of a crash, the driver's frontal air bag may not fully inflate or the air bag cushion may detach from the air bag module. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."RiskDuring deployment, if the air bag does not fully inflate or the cushion detaches, there is an increased risk of injury in the event of a crash.FixFord will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver frontal air bag module, free of charge. The recall began June 16, 2017. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 17C02.
NHTSA campaign 17V123000reported Feb 27, 2017Ford Motor Company
▲high

Child Seat

16C09
5 vehicles
ProblemFord Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2016 Lincoln MKX vehicles manufactured September 24, 2015. An incorrect seat back trim cover was installed on the affected vehicles, blocking the child seat tether anchors in the second row center seating position. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 225, "Child restraint anchorage systems."RiskAn improperly anchored child seat can increase the risk of injury in a crash.FixFord will notify owners, and dealers will replace the seat back trim cover and tether cover bezel on the second row, free of charge. The recall began on June 16, 2016. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 16C09.
NHTSA campaign 16V343000reported May 24, 2016Ford Motor Company

NHTSA defect investigations

Air Bags:Frontal:Passenger Side:Inflator Module — Desiccated Air Bag Inflator Rupture open

From 2000 through 2017, Takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("PSAN") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004L. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant to burn too quickly when ignited. The rapid burning can cause the inflator to rupture during deployment, potentially causing serious or even fatal injury to vehicle occupants. See 2016 Blomquist Report at www.nhtsa.gov/sites/nhtsa.gov/files/documents/expert_report-hrblomquist.pdf.Consequently, all frontal inflators using propellant 2004 that do not contain a "desiccant" (a substa

Opened Sep 17, 2021 · action EA21002

Owner complaints

Source: NHTSA complaint database
154complaints filed

6 involved a crash · 3 a fire · 3 injuries · 0 deaths reported

Filed per year: 2015: 3 · 2016: 28 · 2017: 12 · 2018: 8 · 2019: 9 · 2020: 13 · 2021: 17 · 2022: 6 · 2023: 11 · 2024: 4 · 2025: 18 · 2026: 25

Most-cited components

Service Brakes39
Engine32
Electrical System27
Unspecified21
Service Brakes, Hydraulic21
Fuel/Propulsion System12

What owners describe

“Had to replace all lug nuts. They were destroyed when the tire was changed. The mechanic showed me that the lug nut was swollen.”May 1, 2023 · Wheels · NHTSA owner report
“I placed my foot on the Brake to release the Emergency brake. I heard a pop. The brake pedal immediately went to car floor. I didn’t know what it was initially but quickly realized something was wrong with my brakes when I was on the highway. When I tried to brake the pedal went to the floor and the car did not slow …”Mar 23, 2023 · Service Brakes · NHTSA owner report
“The major problem occurred right after purchase as check engine light came on. The dealership was no help and refused to take vehicle back. The vehicle is nice looking but the mechanical is a lemon. I purchased this in 2020 and paid $24000. It’s a 2016 Lincoln mkx. I repaired problems and due to covid and my lifestyl…”Feb 15, 2023 · Engine · NHTSA owner report

Complaint counts are raw owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects, and scale with how many were sold. Use them to spot patterns, not to rank.

Crash ratings

Source: NHTSA NCAP
ConfigurationOverallFrontalSideRolloverRollover risk
SUV AWD★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★☆16%
SUV FWD★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★☆15%

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program.

Other MKX model years

F

2018 Lincoln MKX

5 recalls · 30 complaints

F

2017 Lincoln MKX

5 recalls · 52 complaints

Sources & method

Safety Signal starts every model-year at 100 and subtracts points per open NHTSA recall campaign by severity: critical 15 (fire risk, park-outside or do-not-drive advisories), high 8 (brakes, steering, airbags, loss of drive power, structure, battery), moderate 6, minor 3 (software, labels, lighting fixed by an update). Floor 35. A ≥ 90, B ≥ 80, C ≥ 70, D ≥ 60, otherwise F. Complaint counts and NHTSA crash ratings are shown separately and are not blended into the grade.

EPA figures come from fueleconomy.gov vehicle records. Recalls, complaints, investigations and crash ratings come from NHTSA's public flat files, refreshed weekly.

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