Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | |||
| 06/21/2012 | 101000 | 1 | |
| There was a burnt plastic odor, shortly after that there was smoke coming out of the trunk. there was a cable connected to the battery that come loose, which caused the power module to burnt out. there was power outage throughout the car, the noticeable ones included: the radio (the screen was completely black and there was no sound); the car alarm; and the bing alerting sounds that goes off when key is in ignition, seatbelts are not strapped,etc. were not working. my technician change the power module then he noticed that the cable that came loose only disconnects when there is a car accidents as a precaution, just the same way the airbags deflate. he advised that it was a manufacturing defect that could lead to an explosion. when i informed bmw center about this problem they said it had nothing to do with a defect that it was wear and tear, but then again they didn't bother to diagnose it, they didn't even bother to take a look at it! *tr | |||
| 06/21/2012 | 101000 | 1 | |
| There was a burnt plastic odor, shortly after that smoke came out of the trunk. a cable connected to the battery came loose which cause the power module to burn out. there was a power outage throughout the car, the noticeable ones included; the radio (no image was displayed on the screen and no sound); the car alarm was not working and the bing sound alerting key in ignition, seatbelt not strapped, etc. was not working. *tr | |||
| 06/21/2012 | 101000 | 1 | |
| There was a burnt plastic odor, shortly after that there was smoke coming out of the trunk. there was a cable connected to the battery that come loose, which caused the power module to burnt out. there was power outage throughout the car, the noticeable ones included: the radio (the screen was completely black and there was no sound); the car alarm; and the bing alerting sounds that goes off when key is in ignition, seatbelts are not strapped,etc. were not working. my technician change the power module then he noticed that the cable that came loose only disconnects when there is a car accidents as a precaution, just the same way the airbags deflate. he advised that it was a manufacturing defect that could lead to an explosion. when i informed bmw center about this problem they said it had nothing to do with a defect that it was wear and tear, but then again they didn't bother to diagnose it, they didn't even bother to take a look at it! *tr | |||
| 06/21/2012 | 101000 | 1 | |
| There was a burnt plastic odor, shortly after that smoke came out of the trunk. a cable connected to the battery came loose which cause the power module to burn out. there was a power outage throughout the car, the noticeable ones included; the radio (no image was displayed on the screen and no sound); the car alarm was not working and the bing sound alerting key in ignition, seatbelt not strapped, etc. was not working. *tr | |||
| 06/21/2012 | 101000 | ||
| There was a burnt plastic odor, shortly after that there was smoke coming out of the trunk. there was a cable connected to the battery that come loose, which caused the power module to burnt out. there was power outage throughout the car, the noticeable ones included: the radio (the screen was completly black and there was no sound); the car alarm; and the bing alerting sounds that goes off when key is in ignition, seatbelts are not strapped,etc. were not working. my technician change the power module then he noticed that the cable that came loose only disconnects when there is a car accidents as a precaution, just the same way the airbags deflate. he advised that it was a manufacturing defect that could lead to an explosion. when i informed bmw center about this problem they said it had nothing to do with a defect that it was wear and tear, but then again they didn't bother to diagnose it, they didn't even bother to take a look at it! | |||
| 06/21/2012 | 101000 | ||
| There was a burnt plastic odor, shortly after that smoke came out of the trunk. a cable connected to the battery came loose which cause the power module to burn out. there was a power outage throughout the car, the noticeable ones included; the radio (no image was displayed on the screen and no sound); the car alarm was not working and the bing sound alerting key in ignition, seatbelt not strapped, etc. was not working. | |||
| 06/21/2012 | 101000 | ||
| There was a burnt plastic odor, shortly after that there was smoke coming out of the trunk. there was a cable connected to the battery that come loose, which caused the power module to burnt out. there was power outage throughout the car, the noticeable ones included: the radio (the screen was completly black and there was no sound); the car alarm; and the bing alerting sounds that goes off when key is in ignition, seatbelts are not strapped,etc. were not working. my technician change the power module then he noticed that the cable that came loose only disconnects when there is a car accidents as a precaution, just the same way the airbags deflate. he advised that it was a manufacturing defect that could lead to an explosion. when i informed bmw center about this problem they said it had nothing to do with a defect that it was wear and tear, but then again they didn't bother to diagnose it, they didn't even bother to take a look at it! | |||
| 06/21/2012 | 101000 | ||
| There was a burnt plastic odor, shortly after that smoke came out of the trunk. a cable connected to the battery came loose which cause the power module to burn out. there was a power outage throughout the car, the noticeable ones included; the radio (no image was displayed on the screen and no sound); the car alarm was not working and the bing sound alerting key in ignition, seatbelt not strapped, etc. was not working. | |||
| 06/21/2012 | 101000 | ||
| There was a burnt plastic odor, shortly after that there was smoke coming out of the trunk. there was a cable connected to the battery that come loose, which caused the power module to burnt out. there was power outage throughout the car, the noticeable ones included: the radio (the screen was completly black and there was no sound); the car alarm; and the bing alerting sounds that goes off when key is in ignition, seatbelts are not strapped,etc. were not working. my technician change the power module then he noticed that the cable that came loose only disconnects when there is a car accidents as a precaution, just the same way the airbags deflate. he advised that it was a manufacturing defect that could lead to an explosion. when i informed bmw center about this problem they said it had nothing to do with a defect that it was wear and tear, but then again they didn't bother to diagnose it, they didn't even bother to take a look at it! | |||
| 06/21/2012 | 101000 | ||
| There was a burnt plastic odor, shortly after that smoke came out of the trunk. a cable connected to the battery came loose which cause the power module to burn out. there was a power outage throughout the car, the noticeable ones included; the radio (no image was displayed on the screen and no sound); the car alarm was not working and the bing sound alerting key in ignition, seatbelt not strapped, etc. was not working. | |||
| 08/27/2012 | 89859 | ||
| Car was going to be purchased on 8/24/2012 was told to drive for the weekend. on 8/27/2012 around 3:00 in the morning (after filling with fuel the prior evening) we heard a loud explosion, then followed by firetrucks and ambulances. upon inspection the bmw in the parking garage was engulfed in flames, windows had blown out. according to fire marshall fire started at battery in trunk and was ignited by gasoline vapors. caused major fire damage to car parked next to it as well. | |||
| 07/04/2012 | 79000 | 1 | |
| The front passenger air bags is deactivated and the air bag warning lamp as well as the passenger air bag on-off lamp is illuminated. this issue is the same as the 2004 bmw 5 series frontal airbag recall ( #08v384000), but for some reason when i contacted bmw at 1-800-525-7417 and provided them my vin number they said it wasn't covered under the recall. please review and reconsider as this is a serious defect that needs to be addressed. *tr | |||
| 07/04/2012 | 79000 | ||
| The front passenger air bags is deactivated and the air bag warning lamp as well as the passenger air bag on-off lamp is illuminated. this issue is the same as the 2004 bmw 5 series frontal airbag recall ( #08v384000), but for some reason when i contacted bmw at 1-800-525-7417 and provided them my vin number they said it wasn't covered under the recall. please review and reconsider as this is a serious defect that needs to be addressed. | |||
| 06/06/2012 | 111000 | ||
| Passenger seat occupancy sensor failure. this failure has disabled the airbags on the passenger side of the vehicle. in the event of an accident, any passenger in the vehicle would not be protected by the airbags. there was a recall on my2004-2006 bmw 5-series models (along with numerous other models) for the passenger seat occupancy sensor. bmw of north america has advised me that my vehicle (per vin) is not a part of the recall. however, i am experiencing the same fault as outlined in the recall issued by bmw na. neither my local dealership, or bmw na is willing to cover this failure. this is a significant safety issue for any passengers in the vehicle. | |||
| 01/01/2011 | 70000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2004 bmw 320i. the contact stated that the vehicle failed to start. the contact replaced the battery and was able to start the vehicle. the battery was replaced four times. the contact discovered that water entered the battery compartment, causing the failure. the contact referenced nhtsa campaign id number: 12v126000 (electrical system:battery:cables) but was unaware if the vehicle was included in the recall because he no longer owned the vehicle and the manufacturer would not provide any information. the vehicle was not repaired. the approximate failure mileage was 70,000. kmj | |||
| 01/01/2011 | 70000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2004 bmw 320i. while parked the vehicle would not start. the contact replaced the battery and was able to start the vehicle. the battery was a replaced four different times. the contact stated water entered the battery compartment causing the failure. there was a recall under nhtsa campaign id number: 12v126000 (electrical system:battery:cables) that may be related to the failure. the contact was unaware if the vehicle was included in the recall because he no longer owned the vehicle and the manufacturer would not provide that information. the vehicle was not repaired. the approximate failure mileage was 70,000. ds | |||
| 07/09/2011 | 130000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2004 bmw 530i. the contact stated that the passenger side restraint system warning light had illuminated. the vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was inspected and the contact was informed that the passenger seat mat needed to be replaced since the censor was faulty. the manufacturer was aware of the failure. no repairs were performed. the current and failure mileages were 130,000. bw | |||
| 10/30/2010 | 163864 | ||
| The heated leather seat for my bmw 2004 530 i malfunctioned and burned a hole from a small fire through the seat. | |||
| 04/24/2010 | 74000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2004 bmw 530i. the contact stated that while opening his trunk during a rain storm the microprocessor or mpm, which is located in the spare tire well under the tire, started sparking and smoking because of the wet, rainy conditions. the module controls the air bags, idrive, and most of the electronics in the vehicle. none of which are functional as a result. bmw was contacted and stated that they can repair it and move it to another location in the vehicle at a cost from $1100.00 to $5,000.00. the vehicle has not been repaired. the failure mileage is approximately 74,000. rd | |||
| 03/02/2009 | 35000 | 1 | |
| There is currently a recall on my 2004 bmw 530i regarding the seat warmers burning the leather and driver. however, the recall covers the backrest and not the seat bottom. after talking to bmw north america, they said the seat bottom was not covered. can you make them include the seat bottom in the recall? the seat warmers are burning through the seats in both places, and is hot enough to burn the driver in both places. *tr | |||
| 11/18/2008 | 53000 | 1 | |
| Driving north on i-77 in s.c. - traveling along with the traffic flow - left hand lane - suddenly alert lights came on that abs was not operating, battery alert (had battery installed at dealership) etc.- engine quit - dash board went blank - was able to get to the curb lane (no turn indicators) came to stop - tried to restart -no luck -wait maybe 10 minutes it restarted -drove home -approx another 200 miles -dealer could not find any problem - it could have been a dangerous situation if someone panicked. *tr | |||
| 10/03/2008 | 80000 | ||
| Tl*the contact owns a 2004 bmw 530i. on three separate occasions, the windshield wipers moved back and forth, the headlights flashed on and off, the odometer dial moved from side to side, and the alarm sounded. all of the failures occurred automatically. the instrument panel read, vehicle malfunction, see dealer immediately. the vehicle was taken to the dealer twice. the first time they could not duplicate the failure; however, the second time they stated that the instrument cluster needed to be replaced at the cost of $2,000. the current mileage was 89,000 and failure mileage was 80,000. | |||
| 07/20/2005 | 1 | 04/23/2004 | |
| Both electric windows had to be replaced because the motors died within weeks of each other. i was unable to open the doors properly or put the windows down. also i only have 10000 miles on my mini and my tale pipe rattles like a '56 chevy. the light on passenger visor does not work. the silver is peeling off the gear shift. i love my car hate the little stuff that keeps going wrong. *jb | |||