2000 Daewoo Leganza

Late-failing

Complaints about the 2000 Daewoo Leganza cluster late in its life, with the median arriving at 5.0 yr in service — later than all but 0% of 2000 vehicles. Owners report wear, not out-of-the-box defects. The most-reported system is engine cooling (178 complaints), typically at 5.0 yr or about 50,000 miles.

Complaints: 224
Median age at failure: 5.0 yr
Median mileage: 51,000 n=82
Crash / fire / tow: 7.6% of reports
Safety recalls: 3

Safety recalls — NHTSA campaigns

04V394000 2004-08-06

Engine cooling

ON CERTAIN PASSENGER VEHICLES, THE CAMSHAFT POSITION SENSOR MAY MELT RESULTING IN A BURNING SMELL AND VISIBLE SMOKE, WHICH MAY SUBSEQUENTLY LEAD TO THE MELTING OF THE CAMSHAFT COVER AND THE CAMSHAFT POSITION SENSOR WIRE HARNESS.

THIS COULD POSSIBLY CAUSE AN UNDERHOOD FIRE.

04V357000 2004-07-14

Engine cooling

THIS COULD POSSIBLY CAUSE AN UNDERHOOD FIRE.

01V180000 2001-05-31

Structure:frame and members

VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: CERTAIN PASSENGER VEHICLES FAIL TO COMPLY WITH REQUIREMENTS OF FMVSS NO. 201, "OCCUPANT PROTECTION IN INTERIOR IMPACT." THESE VEHICLES EXCEED THE MAXIMUM ALLOWABLE HEAD INJURY CRITERION VALUE SPECIFIED IN THE STANDARD FOR PASSENGER-SIDE A-PILLAR TARGET LOCATION.

CONSEQUENTLY, IN A CRASH, THE FRONT SEAT PASSENGER COULD SUFFER INCREASED HEAD INJURY FROM CONTACT WITH THE PASSENGER A PILLAR (FORWARD MOST ROOF SUPPORT).

In owners’ own words

Engine cooling mileage not reported 1.9 yr in service

WHILE DRIVING VEHICLE WILL STALL/CUT OFF WITHOUT WARNING. CONTACTED DEALER, AND HAD VEHICLE REPAIRED, BUT PROBLEM REOCCURS. PLEASE ADD VIN. *AK

Engine cooling mileage not reported 2.3 yr in service

THERE IS A STRONG ODOR OF FUEL ENTERING THE CAB OF VEHICLE. CONSUMER HAS TO DRIVE WITH WINDOWS DOWN JUST SO THEY WON'T GET SICK. CONTACTED DEALER, AND DEALER HAS HAD VEHICLE FOR 4 WEEKS, BUT THE PROBLEM STILL OCCURS. *AK

Engine cooling mileage not reported 4.0 yr in service crash / fire / tow

I HAVE CONSTANT PROBLEMS WITH THE BRAKES, THEY WEAR OUT QUICKLY. RECENTLY HAD ALTERNATOR REPLACED IN AUG. 2003 AND NOW THE SENSOR VALVE CAUGHT FIRE AND BURNED UP THE WIRE HARNESS, VALVES, VALVE COVER, TIMING BELT, SERPENTINE BELT. $1400 OF WORK TO BE DONE AND NO GUARANTEE THAT EXTENDED WARRANTY WILL COVER. WHENEVER I DID TAKE IT TO THE DEALER FOR A COMPLAINT, THEY WOULD ALWAYS SAY THEY COULDN'T FIND A PROBLEM. *JB

Other Leganza model years

How to read this

This is what owners reported, not a reliability rating. People file with NHTSA about alarming failures, not routine ones, and complaint volume tracks how many cars were sold.
Failure ages come from the incident date on each complaint, populated on about 83% of records. Mileage is shown where reported — NHTSA’s 2021 system change cut mileage capture to roughly 15%, so it thins out sharply after MY2020.
Every rank compares this vehicle only against others of the same model year. A 2025 car has not had time to accumulate five-year failures, so comparing early-failure share across years is meaningless.
Fourteen make-months distorted by media storms and mass recalls — Toyota in February 2010 ran 11× normal volume across 33 models — are excluded.
Recalls are manufacturer actions and authoritative; complaints are not. A recall listed here may already have been performed on any individual car. Check a specific VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

2000 Daewoo Leganza

When each system is reported — middle 50% of complaints

Safety recalls — NHTSA campaigns

In owners’ own words

Other Leganza model years

How to read this