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Research · Sport Utility Vehicle - 2WD

2010 Lincoln MKXRecalls, problems, MPG & safety

NHTSA lists 7 safety recalls and 111 owner complaints for the 2010 Lincoln MKX. Most complaints involve air bags (54) and service brakes (22). The EPA rates it 19–20 mpg combined.

Check a VINAdd to my garage
Combined MPG
19–20mpg
EPA · 2 versions
NHTSA overall
—
Not rated by NCAP
Safety recalls
7campaigns
Latest Mar 2021
Owner complaints
111
Top: air bags
Fuel cost / yr
$3,200est.
EPA estimate, best version
01 —Recalls

Safety recalls

7 NHTSA campaigns · applies to some vehicles, check your VIN

Air bags: inflator module

Park It: do not driveFree remedy

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2014 Ford Mustang vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." Additionally, Ford is recalling certain 2011 Ford Ranger and Mercury Milan vehicles, 2011-2012 Ford Fusion and Lincoln Zephyr/MKZ vehicles and 2011-2014 Ford Mustang vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia or "Zone B." Ford is also recalling certain 2010 Ford Edge and Lincoln MKX vehicles, 2010-2011 Ford Ranger and Mercury Milan vehicles, 2010-2012 Ford Fusion and Lincoln Zephyr/MKZ vehicles, and 2010-2014 Ford Mustang vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of AK, CO, CT, ID, IA, ME, MA, MI, MN, MT, NH, NY, ND, OR, RI, SD, UT, VT, WA, WI, and WY or "Zone C." These vehicles are equipped with air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules, used as original equipment or replacement equipment (such as after a vehicle crash necessitating replacement of the original air bags), that may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.

Air bagsReported Jan 7, 2019NHTSA 19V001000

Air bags: inflator module

Park It: do not driveFree remedy

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2013 Ford Mustang vehicles sold, or ever registered in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." Additionally, Ford is recalling certain 2010 Ford Edge, Fusion, Mustang and Ranger, Lincoln MKX and Zephyr/MKZ, and Mercury Milan vehicles ever registered in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia or "Zone B." Ford is also recalling certain 2009 Ford Edge, Fusion, Mustang and Ranger, Lincoln MKX and Zephyr/MKZ, and Mercury Milan vehicles ever registered in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming or "Zone C." These vehicles are equipped with air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules, used as original equipment or replacement equipment (such as after a vehicle crash necessitating replacement of the original air bags), that may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.

Air bagsReported Jan 11, 2018NHTSA 18V046000

Air bags: inflator module

Park It: do not driveRemedy pending

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2007-2011 Ford Ranger vehicles, 2006-2011 Ford Fusion, Mercury Milan and Lincoln Zephyr/MKZ vehicles, 2007-2010 Ford Edge, Lincoln MKX vehicles, 2005-2006 Ford GT vehicles, and 2005-2011 Ford Mustang vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands, or "Zone A." Additionally, unless included in "Zone A" above, Ford is recalling certain model year 2007-2008 Ford Ranger, Edge and Lincoln MKX vehicles, 2006-2008 Ford Fusion, Mercury Milan and Lincoln Zephyr/MKZ vehicles, 2005-2006 Ford GT vehicles and 2005-2008 Ford Mustang vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia, or "Zone B." Any vehicle not included in "Zone A", or "Zone B" is not included in the safety recall. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules, and used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the front air bags, these inflators may rupture due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.

Air bagsReported May 31, 2016NHTSA 16V384000
See all 7 recalls with remedies
Data from NHTSA Recalls API · synced Oct 27, 2026 · All recall detailsNHTSA vehicle page
02 —Complaints

Owner complaints by component

111 complaints filed with NHTSA · Feb 2010 – Sep 2024
  1. Air bags54
  2. Service brakes22
  3. Seats6
  4. Structure5
  5. Vehicle speed control5
  6. Engine4
  7. Power train4
  8. Visibility3
  9. Exterior lighting3

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.

By model year

Complaints for each MKX model year we’ve synced.

View as table
Model yearNHTSA complaints
2007298
2008253
200966
2010111
2011149
201284
2013164
201435
201519
2016156
201752
201831
Crashes reported
9
Fires reported
1
Injuries reported
4
Deaths reported
0
Data from NHTSA Complaints API · synced Oct 27, 2026 · Full problem breakdownNHTSA vehicle page
03 —Common problems

What owners report most

Verbatim excerpts from NHTSA complaints, by component

Air bags

54 reports3 crashes
“I am satisfied with the help that the customer service assisted me with and that was getting my service moved up to September 26th from the original date of October 30th. But I am not satisfied with the remedy. I have received several written letters from Lincoln that go into detail of the recall on my car and as well they say and in BIG RED LETTERS ..DO NOT DRIVE YOUR CAR UNTIL REPAIRS ARE DONE. WELL, I should say that you see my 2010 Lincoln Mkx is my and only vehicle I own I can not just park it up and forget I have a life and a job because of no fault of my own that my one and only car urgently is needing repair to the factory installed air bags. Therefore I ask Lincoln to assist me with a rental until my car had been repaired. I do not feel safe DRIVING MY CAR.Letter's I have on hand from Lincoln plainly stating DO NOT DRIVE. I am upset Lincoln ortrays they care so much to bombard me with all the recall letters and such but pretty much told me NO WE DONT DO RENTAL CARS So what I am to do??? I don't have rental coverage on my insurance. I couldn't afford it. So what choice do I have??? If I do die from their faulty air bags imploding on me atleast make sure…”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Sep 7, 2024Air bagsODI 11613278

Service brakes

22 reports1 crash
“Brakes are extremely hard to use, takes both feet to stop vehicle, once stopped the engine will stall while brake is touched, must put vehicle in park when stopped.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Dec 31, 2023Service brakesODI 11562805

Seats

6 reports
“The front seat when we had to come to a stop the seat bounced forward and then back. Very dangerous. This should be a recall. I have many read letters of this happening for many others. It is an accident waiting to happen.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Feb 14, 2022SeatsODI 11451864
All 2010 MKX problemsSend a problem to a mechanic on findmechanic.ai
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Oct 27, 2026
04 —Key specs

Engines, transmissions & drive

2 versions rated by the EPA
EPA class
Sport Utility Vehicle - 2WD, Sport Utility Vehicle - 4WD
Engines
3.5L 6-cyl
Transmissions
Automatic 6-spd
Drive
Front-Wheel Drive · All-Wheel Drive
Fuel
Regular Gasoline

Towing, payload and dimensions aren’t in the EPA or NHTSA data, so we don’t list them.

Data from EPA fueleconomy.gov · synced Oct 27, 2026EPA listing
05 —Fuel economy

EPA fuel economy by version

City / highway / combined, annual fuel cost and CO₂
EPA
VersionCityHwyComb.Fuel / yrCO₂ g/mi
MKX FWD
Auto 6-spd, 6 cyl, 3.5 L · Front-Wheel Drive
182520$3,200444
MKX AWD
Auto 6-spd, 6 cyl, 3.5 L · All-Wheel Drive
172319$3,400468
  • MKX FWD
    Auto 6-spd, 6 cyl, 3.5 L
    18 city · 25 hwy · $3,200/yr
    20
    mpg comb.
  • MKX AWD
    Auto 6-spd, 6 cyl, 3.5 L
    17 city · 23 hwy · $3,400/yr
    19
    mpg comb.
Estimate your fuel costCost of ownership
Data from EPA fueleconomy.gov · synced Oct 27, 2026 · Fuel cost is EPA’s annual estimate (15,000 mi, 55% city)
06 —Safety

NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings

1 tested variant
NHTSA has not published 5-Star Safety Ratings for the 2010 Lincoln MKX as of Oct 27, 2026.
Data from NHTSA NCAP Safety Ratings API · synced Oct 27, 2026Vehicle 5580
07 —Maintenance

Maintenance basics

General guidance, not the OEM schedule. Check your owner’s manual.
General guidance
ItemMilesTimeNote
Engine oil & filter5,000–10,000 mi6–12 monthsFollow the oil-life monitor if fitted
Tire rotation5,000–7,500 miEvery oil changeCheck pressure monthly
Engine air filter15,000–30,000 mi1–2 yearsSooner in dusty areas
Cabin air filter15,000–25,000 mi1–2 years
Brake fluid—2–3 yearsAbsorbs moisture over time
Coolant60,000–100,000 mi5–10 yearsLong-life coolants last longer
Spark plugs60,000–100,000 mi—Iridium/platinum plugs at the long end
12V battery—3–5 yearsHeat shortens battery life
  • Engine oil & filter5,000–10,000 mi
    6–12 months
  • Tire rotation5,000–7,500 mi
    Every oil change
  • Engine air filter15,000–30,000 mi
    1–2 years
  • Cabin air filter15,000–25,000 mi
    1–2 years
  • Brake fluid—
    2–3 years
  • Coolant60,000–100,000 mi
    5–10 years
  • Spark plugs60,000–100,000 mi
    —
  • 12V battery—
    3–5 years
Typical intervals for modern cars. Severe service (towing, short trips, extreme heat or cold) shortens them.
09 —FAQ

2010 MKX questions

How many recalls does the 2010 Lincoln MKX have?

7 safety recalls as of Oct 27, 2026, according to NHTSA. Recall repairs are free at a dealer. Check your VIN to see whether your car is included and whether the repair was done.

What are the most common 2010 Lincoln MKX problems?

Owners filed 111 complaints with NHTSA. The most-cited components are air bags (54), service brakes (22), seats (6). Complaints are unverified owner reports and aren't adjusted for how many cars were sold.

What MPG does the 2010 Lincoln MKX get?

The EPA rates the 2010 Lincoln MKX at 19–20 mpg combined, depending on engine and drivetrain (2 versions rated).

Data from NHTSA & EPA · synced Oct 27, 2026