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.
Vehicle shuts off unexpectedly and fails to restart, additionally the vehicle will randomly fail to start. The engine will shut off while driving at highway speeds, when driving slowly, or shortly after shifting the car into drive from park. No warnings or errors are generally encountered or logged however in rare instances drivetrain warnings are displayed. The engine displays no strange behavior prior to this occurring and shuts off as if it were instructed to do so. The vehicle regularly fails to start. The engine does not turn over at all or make any indication that it is attempting to start. The vehicle responds as though the ignition was not activated and was never instructed to start. After a random time interval from 5 minutes to 2 hours the car will start as if no problems were ever encountered. No errors are logged in the ECU. The manufacturer has yet to find any issues which they claim are repairable after approximately 40 days of shop time and well over 100 occurrences.
TL- the contact owns a 2008 BMW 535. The contact was driving 60 mph when the vehicle overheated and stalled. The vehicle was towed to the dealer for diagnostic testing where the dealer advised the contact that the electrical water pump and thermostat malfunctioned and needed to be replaced. There were no recalls for the failure of the vehicle. The failure mileage was 59,500. Kmj
Three wks ago my 08 528I was making a rattling sound in the engine, tin-can sounding. Took the car for service & they replaced my lifters and related parts. They said that the lifters are "known" for going bad on the 5 series and it's typically due to seasonal changes. When my husband brought the car home to me I was very upset because the noise was still there, not as loud as before. I called BMW and made another appointment, citing that this problem had not been resolved and it needed to be looked at again. The appointment with a loaner could not be scheduled for another 10 days, so we waited. During those 10 days the vehicle started to take longer to turnover at start up. I would also feel the engine lightly shuttering as I drove at speeds averaging 35-50 miles per hour. Monday 05/23/11 was my requested appointment; however because my 15 mo. Old baby was ill we had to cancel. Thank goodness we did because my car would not have made it the 20 miles of freeway to the dealership. Today, 05/25/11, I made a left out of my neighborhood and as I accelerated approx. 50 yards, my engine bucked (felt like the bottom fell out), I lost speed dramatically. Suddenly, steering became nearly impossible and I was forced to "turn" into a small shopping center. However, I lost ability to steer upon entering the parking lot. My car would respond to nothing but the brakes (thank god those atleast worked). I looked down at my gear shift to attempt to reverse away from the curb and maneuver into a parking space, though my car was thrown into neutral & would not respond to anything but "park". I attempted to startup again but engine wouldn't turn over. It was dead. Within moments my ABS, check eng, and battery lights illuminated & corresponding msgs came onto my communication screen. Car was towed. Awaiting dealership response in the am. After seeing prior complaints, I see someone needs to be fired. The us government needs to step in before people die! thank god my baby wasn't with me!
The contact owns a 2008 BMW 535xi. While driving approximately 65 mph, the accelerator pedal was engaged and the engine began to sputter with an extensive reduction in power. The contact continued with caution and the vehicle was taken to a dealer where they replaced the fuel pressure sensor, spark plugs and performed an oil change. The failure persisted. The vehicle was taken to the dealer three times in which there were no resolutions. The high pressure pump was replaced on a different occasion. In addition, when encountering a bump in the road and down-shifting from third to second gear, an abnormal clicking noise would occur. Recently, the engine warning indicator illuminated. The vehicle was in the process of being diagnosed. The failure mileage was approximately 45,000. Updated 01/28/11 updated 02/07/11
I purchased a certified, pre-owned 2008 BMW 535xi with approx. 22,000 miles on 10/23/10. Subsequent to my purchase, I discovered the high-pressure fuel pump in the vehicle had earlier failed and been replaced. On 10/28/10, just 5 days after purchasing - I was driving on a surface street when the car began violently shaking and rocking, the engine lost substantial power and nearly stalled, and the engine malfunction indicator lit. I took the vehicle in for service on 10/28/10 and the vehicle was returned 10/30/10. 3 of 4 fuel injectors were replaced along with all sparkplugs. At high speeds, this type of engine malfunction would pose an extreme safety risk in my opinion. I have contacted BMW usa and the dealership where I purchased the vehicle and I have not been satisfied with the response to-date.
- New Berlin, WI, USA
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2008 BMW 535I. Engine start-up takes longer than normal. The engine idles rough and hesitant to accelerate and check engine light comes on. BMW claims to have fixed the problem under a recall, but the problem came back again 3 days later.
2008 BMW 535I - car has had 3 fuel pumps, 3 separate visits for plugs / injectors, last visit for replaced fuel pump created large fuel leak in car which resulted in tow to dealer. Engine malfunction light problem. Hpfp, repeated engine program.
2008 BMW 528I. Consumer states unexplained engine shut down the navigation screen flashed overheating; reduce speed; and pull over, then the engine shut down when the third message was received. The shut down was traced to a faulty electronic water pump.
Reduced power from engine. Pressed accelerator and engine did not respond with regular power. Reduced power in traffic at 40mph. Pulled over shut off engine and restarted with full return of power. One repeat of problem 3 months later with similar results. Dealer replaced fuel injection auxiliary parts. Too soon to know if problem will recur.
Car loses power 2008 BMW.535I had just gotten it out of the shop (new plugs and new brakes, changed the oil air filter full service) and the next day we had gone out for supper when the car would barrly run it was like it had 2 cyclinders. Had the BMW place pick up and they said it was low fuel pump and they had to order. When they got that in it did not fix it so the put another set of plugs and new coils and high pressure fuel pump in also. They ended up covering the whole bill. But it seems not to run like it use to. Not as much power. I would like to find more info on problem and how they extended warranty.*
My check engine light, reduced power came on, brought car into shop. They "repaired" car for 10 minutes.. car would not go over 30 mph when it ran. It shook violently. Car stopped and had to be flat bedded. Danger! BMW bought me out of my lease..these cars should not be sold!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Engine malfunction light comes on and there is loss of power. This is the second episode. After the first episode I had taken it to BMW dealer, they had it inspected it and said it was a software glitch and fixed it. I happened today again and had taken my car to BMW dealer and they say it is fuel pump problem and gave a Thursday appointment to look into the problem and told me it was safe to drive. Currently I am facing atleast a 40% power reduction.
My 2008 535 BMW fuel pump went out for the second time. This time my wife was driving. She was making a left hand turn. The car did not have power. Thank god the on coming traffic stoped. BMW is not taking this seriously. This is very dangerous situation
2008 BMW 535I has an engine malfunction and a problem with the fuel valves. The consumer stated the engine had very little power. Two months later, the consumer had to take the vehicle back to the dealer due to the same problem previously. The dealer informed the consumer again it was the fuel valves. The consumer experienced the problem for a third time, in he lost virtually all power in the engine. So far, the dealer has been unable to determine the cause of the failure.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Ocala, FL, USA