There are 3 owner-reported powertrain & transmission complaints for the 2015 Lincoln MKZin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
TRANSMISSION MAKES UNUSUALLY LOUD REVVING NOISE WHEN THE GAS ENGINE TAKES OVER FOR THE ELECTRIC MOTOR. IF YOU ARE ON AN ENTRANCE RAMP TO A FREEWAY AND APPLY 1/2 PEDDLE OR MORE TO MERGE ONTO FREEWAY, IT HAS A VERY NOISY REV (TRANS) NOISE. I HAVE BEEN APPRAISING CARS FOR 25YRS IN THE RETAIL AUTO BUSINESS AND I HAVE DRIVEN OTHER MKZ HYBRIDS AND THEY DON'T MAKE AS MUCH NOISE AS THIS CAR MAKES
SHIFTING FROM GEARS 1-2 AND 3-4 ARE HARD AND/OR DELAYED. SHIFTING FROM 1-2 IS SO HARD THAT YOU HAVE TO STIFFEN YOUR NECK MUSCLES TO PREVENT AN UNCOMFORTABLE HEAD AND NECK MOVEMENT. THE ONLY TIME THIS ISN'T EXPERIENCED IS WITH 80% OR MORE THROTTLE APPLIED. THE DEALER HAS REBUILT THE TRANSMISSION, REPLACED SOLENOID ASSEMBLIES, ETC AND THE PROBLEM COMES BACK. THE DEALER HAS LOOKED AT IT ONE MORE TIME AND SAYS THEY FIND NO ISSUE THAT LINCOLN'S WARRANTY PARAMETERS WILL ALLOW THEM TO FIX.
TRANSMISSION HARD SHIFT FROM 1-2 AND 3-4, STARTED EXPERIENCING PROBLEM APPROXIMATELY 24,000 MI HAVE TAKEN TO DEALERSHIP TWICE(ONCE IN FEB FOR 4 DAYS) AND SECOND TIME IN MAR FOR 7 DAYS), FIRST TIME SAID IT WAS LEAKING FLUID AND REPLACED "O" RING. A COUPLE OF WEEKS LATER IN MARCH RETURNED, WAS GETTING WORSE, SAID THEY REBUILT THE TRANSMISSION. SHIFTS AS IF SOMEONE HIT ME IN REAR WHEN INCREASING SPEED PULLING AWAY FROM TRAFFIC LIGHT ON A CITY STREET OR MERGING ONTO HIGHWAY. NOW MAKES A WHINING NOISE WHEN ACCELERATING FROM TRAFFIC LIGHT OF MERGING, ANYTIME SHIFTING GEARS IN GENERAL.
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 26, 2026