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.
Station wagon lift gate has severe wiring failures between the lift gate and body. This problem is well known throught the blog community. Broken wires cause failures, and electrical danger, to the rear lighting system that includes brake, running, back up, and turn signals. Also effected is the rear wiper, defroster, and operation access to open and close the lift gate. Tailgate failure would prohibit emergency opening and access to spare tire and fuses. I have already spent $3,000 on one harness replacement (dealer) and am looking at another $3,000 to repair (dealer) more wiring that will restore the brake/running lights on one side (failed state inpection). The internal lighting diagnostics did NOT indicate any lighting problems or warning. Broken wires could also cause failures to some or all of the entire electrical system. Very dangerous.
The vehicle's engine caught fire approximately 13 1/2 hours after last having been driven. I parked it in my driveway at 9pm on April 15, 2022. I was alerted to a fire in the engine by my neighbor at 10:30am on April 16, 2022. The entire engine was engulfed in flames, melting all of the plastic components. It burned through my hood and affected every part of the engine. We were able to get the fire out with a garden hose before it spread to the house and my parents' two other vehicles parked next to it. No one was burned while putting out the fire, but several neighbors and family members did breathe in the toxic smoke. 911 was called and the fire department confirmed the fire was out. The driveway under the vehicle has burn damage, but we haven't moved the vehicle yet to see the extent of it. The check engine light had been on since purchase. The vehicle had been maintained by a mechanic specializing in import motors. He was unable to determine the cause of the check engine alert, and said it was a problem that BMW has with several of their models of this era. The vehicle was only covered under liability insurance, so our insurance company has not required an inspection. It has not yet been inspected by a mechanic or any other entity. The vehicle is available for inspection if requested.
For over the past year, the (small) engine light has been repeatedly & constantly going on/off. I've had sensors, spark plugs, tubes & everything under the sun replaced and have taken (or towed in most cases) the car to many different auto repair shops for multiple quotes & repairs. The latest problem is the small engine light came on & the car was stuck in park and would not engage in drive or reverse. It wouldn't shift. After turning the car off and then on again, the engine light was completely gone & the car was fine to drive/reverse. After driving the car a few blocks, the engine malfunction/reduce speed light came on, the power was drastically reduced & I almost got hit by a dump truck. In 2008, I bought my BMW brand new because I wanted no car issues because I am not a mechanic. Every since I bought this car I have had nothing but repeated & different issues that no mechanic can identify. And it all started with the high-pressure fuel pump which was replaced three times (hpfp). After the third hpfp was replaced, and the car was in the shop literally for three months straight, I got a lawyer involved and BMW Corp apologized & said I could have a choice of: 1/ getting a different car that they picked out (a 535I not the xi I bought because of snow and ice conditions) 2/ they cut me a check for a few thousand and told me to shut up and I could never speak of what happened or be part of future lawsuits or class actions. I've never felt safe driving my 2008 BMW (116K miles on it over 12.5 years) every BMW owner that bought a BMW between the range of years knows exactly what I am talking about re: The constant and never-ending issues that all start with the hpfp & escalate from there. Repair shops can't fix the issues & BMW covers up. NHTSA hasn't done anything about this massive BMW issue affecting the vast majority of owners. Just google it!
Known safety concern due to broken wiring in E61 wagon hatch wiring. See this thread: Https://5series.net/forums/E61-touring-discussion-4/tailgate-wiring-harness-replacement-72751/
Driving family down the highway around 65 mph. I loose all power in the cabin. The car starts throwing all warning lights, ABS, steering, sway control, transmition, etc. Engine still running would not shift into neutral had to use E brake to pull over then it wanted to keep going had to turn car off to stop it. Called tow truck sent family home.
- Palmdale, CA, USA
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Wednesday July 25th, 2018, as I was getting ready to leave work, I started my car which was parked in my company's underground garage and the interior became engulfed with smoke. I turned the car off and got out to check the engine. There was no smoke coming from the under the hood of the car. I got back into the car and started it again and more smoke entered into the car. I turned the car off and went back to my office to call aaa. Approximately 20-30 minutes later I went back to the car and immediately smelled smoke in the garage. As I approached the car it was completely filled with smoke but I could tell that the both the back and front window shields and the sunroof were scorched. My key fob did not work so I had to open the car with the key. With the door open the thick smoke escaped and then I was able to see the damage to the car as a result of a fire. I have attached some pictures so you can see. I did some research and found that there have been some instances where this has happened to other BMW owners in the past and that this was a course of action to take in letting you know.
Insulation on wiring inside headlight assembly has fallen off exposing bare wires. This was discovered when replacing bulbs. Discussion boards on web have many owners reporting similar problems. BMW does not
Insulation crumbling on all wiring inside both headlight (driver and passenger sides) units resulting in malfunctioning headlights, running lights, and marker lights. Unfortunately, a common problem and a huge safety concern. Issue is exacerbated but not caused by heat. Insulation on wiring to navigation, radio/media player, climate control unit, or ccc (car communication computer), crumbling causing malfunctions to occur in all the above sections. I suspect much of the car's wiring to be in similar, poor condition. I have read that many european cars from the '80S, '90S through the first ten or so years of the 21st century used a soy based, biodegradable wire insulation as part of a "green movement". this early implementation of said wire does not last much longer than 10 years, much less than that when exposed to heat. Please see: Https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?2132684-headlight-wire-jackets-just-flake-off https://5series.net/forums/E60-discussion-2/headlight-wiring-outer-jacket-deteriorating-139655/ www.peachparts.com/shopforum/off-topic-discussion/330631-can-you-believe-BMW-still-using-biodegradeable-wiring-insulation.htmlwww.mercedesdefects.com/2008/04/wire-harness-defect.html https://rennlist.com/forums/Porsche-cayenne-forum/733521-brittle-wiring-insulation.html there are many, many more threads such as these on the web. There are thousands of cars on the road like this. The manufacturers keep producing vehicles with this type of wiring. It's wonderful that the insulation degrades. It's absurd to start biodegrading when the car is just five or so years old.
The wiring harnesses in the tailgate have been both severed and otherwise damaged by the normal operation of the tailgate and liftglass. The hinges and wiring trays have sharp edges and the wire insulation material seems to be of a pvc material. It appears that this material is vulnerable to failure with only regular operation of the vehicle, however, the sharp edges of the harness tray in the tailgate hinges act as shears that have severed the wires. This presents several safety issues including the potential of fires from electrical shorts, malfunctioning and damage of control modules due to electrical shorts, inoperable rear-defogger system, inoperable keyfob remotes for entry and locking, loss of radio system including weather band for safety updates, etc. This appears to be not only a common problem, but every vehicle in this designation has either suffered from these problems or is susceptible. As noted in several blogsites where owners and repair specialists have commented, this is an obvious design defect that should be addressed by both NHTSA and the manufacturer. Clearly a recall and manufacturer-paid repair should be implemented.
I was driving and bumped up against a sidewalk curve and my airbags deployed as well as my car shut off. It will not start another more and the hood underneath was on fire. (smoke was present).
This is the 3rd complaint on the same vehicle I have placed. This vehicle has been in and out of the shop for the last 8 months and they have finally discovered that the rear of the vehicle, where the computer components are located, has been receiving water leakage from faulty plugs via the sunroof drainage system leading to the rear of the vehicle. Thus causing major malfunctions such as fuel injectors, starters, batteries, sensors, and indicators that major transmission malfunctions have occurred when what is really wrong is that all the computer components are drowning in water, corroded and rusted. This is faulty from the BMW factory and they know the problem exists and they refuse to recall this model vehicle. This problem can be found via the internet from many consumers experiencing the same problem. I have placed a complaint with BMW and they have done nothing. In one instance I experienced the cruise control accelerate on its own and would not disengage when the brake pedal was pressed. The steering wheel on/off button was the only way to stop the acceleration. This vehicle is a danger to drive and is unreliable!!
Wiring and rear diversity antenna can become wet under rear hatch fairing. This has caused the comfort access to work with reduced range and or not work at all. Wiring harness on both right and left side have severed cables from opening and closing rear window portion of hatch.
The contact owns a 2008 BMW 535xi. While driving approximately 60 mph, the vehicle overheating warning indicator illuminated. The vehicle stalled without warning. The contact pulled over and the vehicle was restarted. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the electric water pump failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 135,000.
I ordered new light bulbs to change out my halo angel bulb lights (running parking lamps).which said they were out on my screen inside of the BMW. When I twisted off the housing cap in the back, the wiring inside of my headlight housing which turns on my parking lights left and right is totally degraded and flaked off, the copper cables were touching everywhere.I read this is because germany use biodegradable material but this is a very dangerous fire hazard for driving on the highways and road in Florida. We as 5 series owners for these years need a recall of new harness with better wiring.even if you buy a new housing it will do the same thing in 4 years guaranteed. You would have to find some one to rewire it with the same cables Ford uses so it can last 20+ years. Please fix.
My 2008 BMW 535I headlight went out and I took it to a certified mechanic to change the headlight bulb, he took out the headlight and shown to me the wiring in both headlights have flaked off and had presented a fire hazard situation which caused the fuse the blew. I researched the BMW forums and found lots of people with the same issue, hence, it is not an outlier. I contacted BMW usa and they refused to remedy the situation. I was told by them that the vehicle is out of warranty and that the vehicle mileage was past the headlight wiring should not go bad in 8 years and they were rude and told me they will not pay for it. I also learnt that most of these headlight wires in the E60 flaked off within 50K miles and are not discovered until a short or blown bulb. Hella (the manufacturer of the headlight) said it is not their problem since the make the headlights to BMW specifications.
I purchased my certified pre-owned 2008 BMW 535xi sports wagon from concord BMW on 09.01.2015 with 81,759 miles on it. On December 15, 2015 I was traveling at freeway speed when the rear air springs fully collapsed. I brought the vehicle to concord BMW's service department that very same day to determine what caused the failure. On December 17, 2015 I received an email repair estimate from BMW concord service advisor joey tiongson for $24,188.17 (I purchased the used vehicle for $17,400).the diagnosis was that clogged sunroof drains allowed water to travel down the framework of the vehicle and flood all the electronic modules. Timing of this incident is such that mid-December 2015 produced the first rainfall in our area due to California drought. My car was not exposed to any significant water prior to these first rains. I believe that this is a manufacture defect and that this vehicle was sold to me with this pre-existing condition of which I was never advised. My research after this incident indicates that other BMW owners have had similar problems but not to this magnitude. BMW has also issued service bulletins advising dealerships of this problem.
Vehicle was previously driven the day before drove perfect no problems, the day after the vehicle when you put in drive or reverse it would automatically go back to park on it's own and would not move the vehicle was parked in the drive way as normal. I had vehicle towed to BMW they diagnosed as the mechatronic sleeve needed replacing they charged me 1300 dollars my wife picked the car up and drove 50 miles and the car started doing the same previous behavior I contacted BMW they had me to tow back to their dealership a second time both tows cost me 125 dollars each the car was then diagnosed as needing a 9000 transmission and I was told the previous repair that I paid for would not be credited toward the new transmission I'm outraged. My service advisor is john ard at tom williams BMW in irondale Alabama.
Just bought a used 2008 528I (E60) w/94K miles, in otherwise perfect condition. Went to change the angel eyes from drab yellow to lux led's. noticed bare wires on both sides of the bulb connectors, on both sides of the car. Tried to use electrical tape, just made more bare wire. The more I touched the wires, the more insulation flaked off, almost like a powder. I've never seen anything like it. Can't possibly be safe. Definitely a fire hazard. Neighbor brought over a bottle of liquid tape, and I re-coated all the bare wire I could see, making sure each wire was separated so a short would not occur. That is a good temporary fix. Will have to stay on top of this problem, since most, if not all, of the headlight wiring is made with bad, quickly degrading wire insulation. A real disappointment in otherwise good german quality and engineering. I guess the source procurer at the factory saved BMW some big bucks on that wire!! this is definitely a NHTSA safety recall issue. Tort lawyers should have a field day on this one. Photos of this problem are available at: www.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?2132684-headlight-wire-jackets-just-flake-off
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Richmond, VA, USA