10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
71,008 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2012 BMW 528 engine problems

engine problem

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2012 BMW 528 Owner Comments (Page 3 of 4)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #27

Feb 252019

528

  • 85,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I purchased my BMW 528 xi drive cpo in January 2015. In August 2018 my engine oil pressure light came on in the car and then the drive train malfunction light.I tried to run a self diagnostic on the car as this is a feature built in and the engine oil check would only go up to 15% and cut off. I took it into BMW of bloomfield for service mentioning this to them. They changed the oil and cleared the codes got the car back. Fast forward to just a few weeks ago, I am driving on the highway and the engine oil pressure and drive train malfunction light come on and the car stops on me. I could have gotten killed. I had it towed to BMW and they check it and say that the engine is gone due to low pressure and repairs are 20,000 plus. Remind you I barely drive the car as I work in NY and take the bus. I only drive the car on evenings and weekends. I contacted the corporate BMW of na offfice and they act like they don't care. Advised me to talk to the service manager to see what could be done. Based om what I have researched this seems to be a common issue with these types of cars as it is a defect in the engine. Now I am not sure what to do but will be consulting an attorney.

- Carteret, NJ, USA

problem #26

Feb 262019

528

  • 83,000 miles
Last week I was on the NJ turnpike when all of a sudden my car stall and lost power, I barley got off the turnpike when the car came to a completely stop. No warning messages or noises just stopped. Fortunately no accident occurred due to this but could have been an ugly one. The car would not start and was towed to the BMW dealer. The car was inspected, oil was clean, no water damage, however they tell me I need a new engine (13K) has the engine seized without telling me what caused it.the car has 83K miles. I've been a BMW owner for 19 years. I now have mixed feelings about BMW and the way I feel now I will nevery buy another BMW as I'm not getting the attention I thin I deserve. Any advice is greatly appreicated!

- Bayonne, NJ, USA

problem #25

Feb 012019

528

  • 60,000 miles
The contact owns a 2012 BMW 528I. While driving various speeds, the contact heard abnormal noises underneath the hood and the power train warning indicator illuminated. BMW of greenwich and BMW of mamaroneck service (110 midland ave, port chester, NY 10573, (914) 881-3600) informed the contact that the vehicle was leaking oil and the timing chain and oil pan needed to be repaired. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 60,000.

- Fishkill, NY, USA

problem #24

Nov 192018

528

  • 96,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Last week my wife was on the freeway when all of a sudden the car stall and lost power, my wife was able to barley pull to the side of the fwy when the car completely stopped. No warning messages or noises just stopped. Fortunately no accident occurred due to this but could have been an ugly one. The car wold not start and was towed to my house and was inspected by my mechanic. He found broken pieces of the timing guide and metal shavings inside the engine. I see that there was an extended warranty for this issue but it was only extended to 70K miles. I was not aware of this issues and specially not this big where I would endanger my family when the car would die while driving. I now have mixed feelings about BMW. I have a payment on a car that is well known and luxury all around that failed due to poor quality parts on the most important part of a car 'the engine'. please let me know my options and hopefully I don't get discouraged to ever buy another BMW.

- Rialto, CA, USA

problem #23

Nov 012018

528

  • 40,000 miles
The contact owns a 2012 BMW 5-series. The contact stated that the vehicle excessively overheated without warning. The contact constantly had to exercise caution in the event that the vehicle may have reduced engine power and was uncertain if the failure would result in a fire. BMW gallery of norwood (918 boston providence hwy, norwood, MA 02062, (888) 441-2338) was notified of the failure, but had not specified if the failure was related to any recall campaigns or technical service bulletins. The dealer stated that further diagnostic testing was required. The manufacturer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The VIN was not available. The approximate failure mileage was 40,000.

- Westwood, MA, USA

problem #22

Dec 182018

528

  • 76,000 miles
I was driving down the highway and my 'low oil pressure' light came on so I pulled over to the side of the road immediately and shut the car off. I had the car towed to a certified BMW repair shop global imports. The BMW service center confirmed the failure was the drive chain causing the engine to seize and needing to be replaced. As I researched the issue I found thousands of similar internet stories elaborating on the design flaws in the engine that uses plastic flywheels for the drive chain/oil pump chain. BMW extended the warranty for this issue beyond their normal 4 year 48,000 miles to 7 years and 70,000 miles. I am at 76,000 miles just out of warranty. It is odd they extended the warranty years by 3 but only extended the warranty miles an additional 22,000 miles or an average of 7,333 miles per year. Who only drives 7,333 miles a year. BMW's other extended warranties usually offer an average of 12,000 miles per year on the additional years it is extended. The other extended warranties for this engine were extended 10 years and 120,000 miles. I was diligent in changing the oil long before the recommended change intervals issued by BMW. There is no reason an engine would seize at 76,000 miles when the regular maintenance was followed unless there was a major engine design flaw. BMW has already acknowledged the engine design issues by extending the warranty on the 'timing chain and oil pump drive chain', 'engine oil feedline' to the turbo charger and the 'fuel tank leak diagnostic module (nvld)'. with this being a known design flaw and the number of issues there should be a recall on this engine so the fly wheels can be replaced with a better part or at very least BMW should be forced to extend the warranty and miles as they do with other warranty extensions. This design flaw caused the engine to stop in the middle of the highway which is very dangerous.

- Woodstock, GA, USA

problem #21

Jan 222019

528

  • 98,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I was stopped at a red light making a left hand turn when the vehicle powered off with a warning of a drive train malfunction. The vehicle did not restart and I was stranded in 10 degree temperature for 2 hours waiting for a tow. I had no warning light prior and am now told I need an entire new engine.

- Tinley Park, IL, USA

problem #20

Jan 082019

528

  • 96,000 miles
At 96,000 miles and 6.5 years my car with no warning, the low oil pressure light came on and the car immediately shut down. Luckily for me, I was traveling on a road with little traffic which was fortunate as I usually travel on I95. I took it to the BMW dealer and he stated I needed a new engine as the timing chain broke and left shards of metal in the engine.. BMW has proof that the maintenance was completed timely on the car. The cost is $11,250 to replace the engine and the dealer and BMW will only decrease to $8,000. The automotive repair facility stated that they see at least one of these per week. This was a new engine that BMW came out with in 2011. They increased the warranty to 7 years 70K miles due to issues but I'm over on miles. This is a huge safety issue and should result in a recall. Issues are abound on-line and BMW will not take responsibility. This issue has had to result in deaths and injuries. BMW should be held accountable and be required to fix these issues. This is not an anomaly.

- Newark, DE, USA

problem #19

Dec 202018

528

  • miles
My car has always been serviced they BMW service department. There is a running log. Car was last serviced back in Oct. My car had been there 2 times previously. Not sure how metal shaving would end up in my engine. My vehicle is out of warranty. 109,000 miles. I have the same driving patterns. Warning issued while driving engine oil pressure. Pulled over, car turned completely off. You could here the car trying to restart. Car was towed to the BMW service department. I was told a needed to replace the engine. Not sure how or why I never received any indication of engine falliure. I'm the second owner of this car. My service records prove I have faith fully bought my car in for service whenever needed or any issue would arise. Not I'm told I'm responsible for paying the repairs. BMW has issued several recalls. This is clearly another issue that should be investigated and BMW should assume responsibility.

- Houston, TX, USA

problem #18

Nov 232018

528

  • miles
I found the noise from the engine and took into the dealer(patrick BMW) with towing. They found out that the timing chain and guide were broken inside the engine. I need to replace the engine. BMW has extended a warranty to 70K miles regarding this problems. My mileage is 89K. There are many 5 series BMW has these problems when they reached between 90K and 100K. BMW already knew about this problems and have extended to 70K miles. They are trying to giving the gesture to the consumer but it does not resolve any problems at all if it does cover by 70K miles. Again these problems usually the occurs between 90K and 100K miles. BMW has realized this but did not fix the problems. I am paying more money to a luxury car but they are not qualified.

- Naperville, IL, USA

problem #17

Oct 132018

528

  • 98,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

On a rainy October 13, 2018, while riding on the highway(rte. 422) with my 7 year old son my BMW 528I stopped running; without warning. Miraculously, we coasted on the highway ramp into the dealership driveway. The vehicle was diagnosed with an internal engine failure, which required $12,000+ to rebuild/repair. Currently, the payoff is $13,895.32 till 11/25/18. The monthly payment is $425 and the date of maturity for the loan is 9/15/21. I purchased the vehicle under a pre-owned certified guarantee, which expired in July. The car was regularly serviced and I kept all of my paperwork. Upon researching the engine failure, I discovered that this is a common problem. In fact, presently, an acquaintance of mine has his car at the BMW cleveland dealership with the same problem. These engines suffer reliability issues that result from problems relating to the timing chain, fuel injectors, mass airflow sensors, crankcase vent lines, battery, the engine vacuum pump and low-pressure fuel sensors. Such problems led to more serious concerns such as excessive battery drainage (the 'battery defect'), oil leakage (the 'oil defect') and engine seizure, often causing pistons to crack the engine block due to the high pressure (the 'engine defect'). additionally, the engines experience internal engine failure due to loose metal shards in the engine. My question is...how did the vehicle pass the multi-point inspection to earn the pre-certified designation?

- Hudson, OH, USA

problem #16

Aug 302018

528

  • 205,000 miles
My wife and I was driving on 95 a very busy highway when a light came on saying low oil pressure to pump we were in the left lane trying to get over by the time we made it to the right lane the car had stopped we just made it we couldn't get over as much as we would have like the car just shut off I thank god we made it off the highway it could have been worse the car didn't give us a warning about oil was low the only warning we got was a few minutes before the car cut off even will the light came on about the pump the oil level in our car was still normal no kind of sign of oil being low and the car wasn't do for a oil change we kept up with the maintenance now due to no warning about the oil being low my engine is gone

- Camden, SC, USA

problem #15

Jun 012017

528

  • 61,000 miles
Vehicle was starved of oil. No warning showed up in the instrument panel. The vechle died on a high speed roadway and could not be put into neutral to get it to a safe location off the road. The tow operators could not move it either. Cars were swerving and braking to avoid hitting my vehicle. BMW told me th oil issue was my fault. Come to find out there are 2 letters sent for warranty extensions for oil pump drive chain and engine oil feed line. Because I do my own oil changes BMW stated the oil issue was my fault. This is a safety problem and should not be a warranty extension but an official recall! there are dozens of complaints online regarding the safety issues when this car dies in the roadway. Something needs to be done about this!!!

- Wilmington, DE, USA

problem #14

Nov 062017

528

  • 100,000 miles
Was driving down the street and car stopped. Dealer said I needed a new engine on a 3 yr old car. Engine covered under warranty.a few years later the drive shaft failed as I was driving. Believe it was related to removing engine and not securing all parts. How could this happen to a 5 yr old car? dealer nor BMW usa would not cover the 2800 costs.

- Fort Washington, PA, USA

problem #13

Feb 202017

528

  • 72,000 miles
The contact owns a 2012 BMW 528xi. The contact stated that the bolts prematurely fractured or loosened for the cam shaft and timing chain. The vehicle was diagnosed at herrin-gear BMW of jackson (1685 high St, jackson, ms 39202, (601) 354-2269). The vehicle was not included in a manufacturer service campaign and there was no manufacturer recall on the vehicle. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and provided no solution. The approximate failure mileage was 72,000.

- Canton, MS, USA

problem #12

Apr 202017

528

  • 89,000 miles
Turbo charger system is affected due to the engine oil filter housing failing which caused oil to transfer through out the turbo system into the coolant reservoir resulting in black sludge that caused my car to stall and not run and have to be towed. Every since this recall issue my car gives the drive-train malfunction warning which when diagnosed indicates low turbo boost pressure which I'm certain has to do with the black sludge that ran through the turbo system and coolant system because of the engine oil filter housing failing. A software update was recommended that BMW is not willing to pay for or I need to pay $3660 to replace the turbo charger which I truly believe is the result of the oil filter housing fail and oil leaking into the turbo system and the coolant system.

- Waynesboro, VA, USA

problem #11

Jul 132017

528

  • 800,000 miles
I was driving my car home from work and it just cut off, I put the car in park and restarted my car this was in May 2017 and on July 13 2017 I was sitting at a red light and stop sign turned green and I push on the gas but the car cut off again.

- Fortworth, TX, USA

problem #10

Jul 032017

528

  • 59,000 miles
Timing chain is loose per the dealer. The car only has 59,000 miles. The car has not stopped but if the chain breaks it will stop wherever it happens. I could be driving on a busy interstate and the car will stop. This is definitely a safety issue.

- Reston, VA, USA

problem #9

Jun 132017

528

  • 77,000 miles
The contact owns a 2012 BMW 528xi. While driving 10 mph, the engine stalled. The contacted called the dealer (BMW gallery of norwood located at 918 providence hwy norwood, MA 02082 781-762-2691) and an appointment was scheduled for the following week. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 77,000.

- Boston, MA, USA

problem #8

Oct 112016

528

  • 66,000 miles
The contact owns a 2012 BMW 528I. While driving various speeds, the vehicle began to shutter and the engine oil indicator illuminated on the instrument panel. Upon stopping and checking under the hood, the contact noticed that the plastic oil filter housing fractured and spilled all over the engine and into the coolant system. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the oil filter housing needed to be changed. The vehicle was not repaired. The VIN was not included in a recall; however, there was a manufacturer's customer satisfaction campaign for the issue. The manufacturer refused to repair the vehicle per the customer satisfaction campaign because the manufacturer alleged that the engine was changed. The approximate failure mileage was 66,000.

- Montgomery, AL, USA

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