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.
BMW 528i xdrive purchased new in 2013. Currently has 103k miles. While driving on hi-way at 65 mph, received "low oil pressure" alarm on instrument panel. Pulled on hi-way, engine shut-down. Initial diagnosis by local mechanic is timing chain failure. Have read COUNTLESS blogs about this being a recurring problem with the plastic timing chain degrading, 90% leading to complete engine failure - repair of which far exceeds value of car. Went to BMW dealership which didn't even bother to read the CLASS ACTION reports I presented. They had done some service work a year or so ago with no mention that this is a rather common issue. Said they would repair at my cost and that's all they can do. Ridiculous the lack of OWNERSHIP and responsibility that BMW is taking. Hopefully if enough people report BMW's behavior, an oversight agency will have enough stroke to force BMW to deal with this.
I am 70 years old, driving in a high traffic area and my vehicle stopped! I brought it into the dealership and was told it was a timing chain issue and it needs to be replaced. The repair cost is very expensive. There was a lawsuit settled about fauly timing chains in 2021. My vehicle is not covered by it, not due to mileage but age. It is dangerous for a car to suddenly stop in the middle of heavy traffic. I had to call the police to stay behind my car with lights flashing so it was not hit. Louisiana was under an extreme heat warning at this time. The car could not be started and I had to wait for a wreaker, in extreme heat. BMW did not recall these vehicles named in this suit. No engine light came on prior to this incident. I travel long distances to larger cities for healthcare. I am thankful this did not happen on an interstate with six lanes. In my opinion, recalls should have been sent out to owners. It puts drivers at risk in areas of high traffic.
The car is from 2013. BMW USA does not want to cover the warranty due to the defective turbo feed oil line, part that it was replacing and I never received information from BMW about it. A few days ago I called and they told me that the car was manufactured in 2012 and had its First service in December 2012 I do not apply for the 10-year or 120,000-mile warranty. Really"?"rs absurd. They should check this out. My car has been smoking for more than 2 years and I never knew about it. Please help with the warranty.
The 2013 BMW 528xi had impeccable maintenance up to this catastrophic event. The mileage was just over 80,000 miles at the time of detonation. The four-cylinder N20's plastic timing chain guide experienced catastrophic failure upon placing the car in drive, obstructing the oil pump's ability to lubricate, scorching the cylinders, and destroying the engine. BMW of North America has covertly settled a class action lawsuit regarding this issue (N20 timing chain guide), which caused this incident on my 528xi. However, no public notices were issued to current customers. Additionally, timing chains are a lifetime component; their guides should be as well unless otherwise specified in the manual. BMW of North America either installed inferior components unknowingly that do not meet their strict OEM specifications or engineered a timing chain bomb that they knowingly are aware of and are liable for all damages associated with this engineered nightmare.
- Westport, CT, USA
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The engine timing chain failed due to faulty plastic guide around the timing chain which gets brittle and brakes in the engine causing catastrophic engine failure. Our safety and the safety of others on the Parkway was put at HIGH RISK because the car goes into some safe mode and puts itself into PARK!! This three lane parkway has no shoulder to pull over on at all! So we were blocking the entire lane during rush hour traffic in NYC!! This problem was confirmed by the BMW dealership where the car is now, and they are fully aware of this issue with certain model BMWs produced between 2012 thru 2015. The vehicle was inspected by BMW Certified Mechanics at their service station. The warning light came on a min before the car shut itself down on this very DANGEROUS stretch of highway!!
Error Codes : 1. E11480 No Message (Alive Counter Safety 0xD7) Receiver Instrument Cluster Transmitter Airbag 2. E11482 Message (Alive Counter Safety 0xD7) Not Current Receiver Instrument Cluster Transmitter Airbag 3. B7F685 Under Voltage. 4. E114DB Instrument Panel: Demand Based Service Message, Message From CBS Subscriber (BBV) Missing 5. E114DC Instrument Panel: Demand Based Service Message, Message From CBS Subscriber (BBH) Missing 6. E11421 Message Demand Based Service Message From CBS User Has Failed DRIVETRAIN MALFUCTION when drive sport mode The Trunk always Open for no Reason when unlock the car.
Driving as normal, and came to stoplight at intersection of busy highway. Stopped for red light, and call stalled, and couldn't be restarted. Just as the car shut off, I got a Drivetrain Malfunction warning. Had to have a tow company tow vehicle to my BMW dealer 50+ miles away. Being at a busy intersection at night, and not being able to move the car (couldn't get it out of park), it put the driver at risk until assistance arrived because oncoming traffic wasn't prepared for a vehicle in the middle of the road, and not moving (even with 4-way flashers on) and having the driver stand on the roadside would have been just as dangerous. After running diagnostics, dealer stated timing belt snapped and caused engine damage. Cost of repair would be $13,000 which exceeded the value of the car; ended up buying new car with basically no trade-in value on this car and no financial assistance from BMW. Interesting enough, when I took delivery of my new vehicle, my sales person said there were 2 additional vehicles in their repair shop with the same issue.
Driving on highway got Low Oil Pressure light followed by Drivetrain Malfunction. Engine failed, managed to pull over on shoulder because road was deserted. Could have been rear ended or crashed into another vehicle if any cars were on road. Also dangerous to be stranded on the shoulder of a deserted dark highway at night. Towed to BMW Dealer and they diagnosed premature Oil Pump failure causing Timing Chain assembly to break. Said I needed an engine replacement now. This car was inspected by a mechanic who also performed an oil service change just 385 miles prior to this event. Since vehicle has over 100,000 miles, BMW NA is offering no financial assistance at all. Manufacturer placed me in an extremely dangerous and possibly fatal situation due to design flaws and defects in materials.
My BMW suddenly started making a weird sound. I took it to BMW and they could not tell me exactly what happened. However they told me that a new engine was needed. I contacted headquarters and they referred me back to the local BMW. The Local BMW said that there's no way for them to know what caused the engine problem but they were recommending a new engine. I had no choice but to purchase a new engine, still to this day I have not idea why the engine failed. I strongly believe its something they are failing to admit is wrong with their engine that causes problems.
The contact owns a 2013 BMW 528xi. The contact stated that while driving approximately 60 mph, the engine suddenly failed, causing the vehicle to stall without warning. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the engine had experienced a catastrophic failure and needed to replaced. The local dealer BMW gallery norwell located at 1040 hingham St, rockland, MA 02370 and the manufacturer were notified of the failure however, no assistance was provided. The approximate failure mileage was 117,000.
I was driving on the highway twice and the engine failed the same way both times it went from 55mph to 20 begin to jerk prompted me to pull over and stopped about 10 seconds after
At least 7 times in the last 3 years I have had a weird engine problem. After park the car for awhile it failed to start with no reason. After one hour of trying to start, engine start as usual. Car have been test by the dealership for a whole week and no codes or fails have been detected. Most of these fails have happend after park the car, a couple of times engine stalls while driving. Very dangerous situation. After been evaluated for the dealership, car has failed twice. Same as always it starts again after trying several times. Lapse between fails is 3 to 4 months apart. Fail happens only on the city so far.
I currently have a 2013 528I BMW with less 90K miles and less than 8 years old. I was driving the vehicle and all of a sudden I received a drivetrain malfunction that abruptly stopped the car. I got to find out that the engine was completely done. I called BMW to see if there was any recall on that issue, I also found out that many BMW owners have had the same issue and had to get the engine replaced. If I was on the freeway this would have been a major traffic incident accident,
On numerous occasions after restarting the car after a short period of rest (30mins-1hr) and a couple times on extended drives(2+ hours) car stalls out the first 6 times came up with power train and fuel module codes took to dealer. Dealer replaced high pressure fuel pump and timing chain issue appeared fix till it started doing it again no longer throwing codes
I was driving my 2013 BMW 528I in April 2019 with ~65K miles at the time. The drive train malfunction indicator came on and the car was driving sluggish. Per bmws request I drove it to BMW service center. Fault codes F133B04 and F133E10. They performed calibration, tested and sent me on my way and no more warning displayed. June 2020 low oil pressure indicator came on. I took it in for service (oil change, cbs) and indicator was no longer displaying. October 2020 low oil pressure and drive train malfunction indicators come on while driving on the street. I was able to drive home, but the car completely stops while parking in the driveway. I had it towed to BMW and it was diagnosed as timing chain and oil pump chain drive, plus faults with the vanos unit (fc 1C0102, 1C2002, 1C0301, 130F11, 130E11, 131401, 130308, 130304, 130108, 131501). To investigate further they want me to pay $3,100+, but that is not fix it. I still owe $8K on the car and now it's requiring a engine work that will possibly exceed what I owe on the car. My car has 83K miles on it and should not be inoperable. The timing chain & oil pump chain drive was known before I purchased the car in 2016, but was not disclosed. All of my service has been done at BMW. BMW serviced my car when the indicator came on in 2019, yet did not go further to fix the issue that they knew existed. BMW needs to do the right thing and fix my car for free. There is no way that the "ultimate driving machine" with 83K miles on it should be landfill bound. Instead of issuing the extended warranty, BMW should have issued a recall due to this being a safety issue. This is a safety issue because the car just stops and locks up - no way to put it in neutral to at least move it so that it is not a hazard. Someone or many people could die if a car does this on the highway. BMW do the right thing.
I am having the same drivetrain issues that other earlier model BMW's between 2011 to 2015 that was recalled. My oil pump chain module and timing chain module needs replacing. Vehicle was stationary for about a month off and on. I started my car and drivetrain malfunction appeared on dash. I've driven car for 3,000 miles since purchasing and it just came on.
While driving a message of drivetrain malfunction pops up on the idrive system. Spark plugs have been changed along with regular oil changes. Happens occasionaly then I shut the car off and lock then unlock and restart. Sometimes the message will pop back up and sometimes it does not.
Driving along the 8 freeway, driving straight, but slightly uphill, outside san diego, the engine died very suddenly. We coasted to the side of the freeway, and the car would not restart. We had the car towed to BMW of el cajon, where it was determined that the timing chain tensioner had failed, a piece of plastic had plugged the oil pump, and the engine lost time, causing catastrophic engine damage. We were told that the engine will have to be replaced. The car has 89,190 miles on it.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Herriman, UT, USA