BMW 530e Complaints

49 consumer complaints on file.

#11600531July 9, 2024
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
My family was driving home on California [XXX] approaching [XXX]. Suddenly we saw heavy white smoke coming from our vehicle. Vehicles behind us had to almost stop as the smoke was very thick and covered all lanes. We pulled over and turned off the car. I started checking the control panel for any issues or alerts and found none. We never received any indication of issues in the control panel or dashboard. My husband got out of the car and inspected the tires which were all ok. He opened the hood and immediately saw flames from the center bottom of the hood. We all got out of the vehicle immediately and called 911. California Highway Patrol arrived and soon after Cal Fire arrived. Within 10 minutes my car was engulfed in flames and only the trunk area was sparred. I believe this was a malfunction or defect in the battery or electrical as we did not get any warning of engine issues or overheating. There have been several recalls on this model for battery defects which can lead to fire. My family's safety was put at risk as these batteries are highly combustible and could have exploded with us in the car. We had no warning whatsoever to immediately get out of the car and we were sitting there for at least 5-8 minutes trying to figure out what the issue was and who to call. I don't know at what point the car locked itself as the firemen had to use the jaws of life to open a door for the VIN. What if the car would have locked when we were still inside. I filed a claim with my insurance and they are deeming it a total loss based on the photos. I contacted the BMW service center and they said they can't do anything and I have to go through the insurance to have the car inspected. I asked if BMW will be sending someone to determine the cause and the rep said no. I sense that BMW does not want to do a thorough inspection of what caused the fire as the vehicle is still under manufacturer warranty and they would have to replace the vehicle. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C.
Crash:
No
Fire:
Yes
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11591199May 29, 2024
SEATS, SEAT BELTS
Passenger Restraint System Malfunction keeps coming on. I have not done any modifications to the car, it comes on during the morning when maybe the weather is a little damp. Has happened twice in a month.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11584457April 22, 2024
SEAT BELTS, AIR BAGS
Passenger restraint system malfunction cause by faulty sensors that are not covered by warranties.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11580570April 2, 2024
SERVICE BRAKES, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS
Vehicle continues to take over randomly when no vehicle, object, pedestrian or other item is on the road ahead of the hood. This persistent problem has been reported to the manufacturer and BMW dealerships on no less than (6) occasions – BMW advises the vehicle performs normally which isn't the case. ADAS/AEB takes over for no apparent reason, randomly, sometimes a few times per month, other times a few months apart – depending on speed at which the vehicle is traveling, the incident causes soft tissue injuries as was again the case on Friday, (XXX] when vehicle came to an abrupt stop when no vehicle, object, pedestrian or other item was on the road ahead of me as I was traveling southbound around 20mph on [XXX] around [XXX] (weather was sunny, road was dry). I suffered whiplash injuries which was confirmed later in the afternoon by Cedars Sinai hospital group in Beverly Hills, CA. BMW and their dealerships refuse to acknowledge the ADAS/AEB is faulty and continues to deny my safety documented concern which has led my vehicle to be serviced for more than 100 days since taking delivery in 2022, to no avail. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11580414April 1, 2024
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
sunroof exploded Myself and two friends were in the car when we heard a loud bang, it sounded like a gunshot that went off and glass was falling down all over us. We thought a bullet or rock came thru the sunroof. After arriving back at home we did some research and see this is a known problem with exploding sunroofs. It was very scary. BMW claims there are no recalls for this on our model. What can we do?
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11576746March 11, 2024
AIR BAGS
It appears that the dealer has disabled my passenger side air bag system. The car is available for inspection. The safety of any front passenger is at risk as the system has been disabled by the dealer after a 'vehicle check' that occurred during routine maintenance. The problem (airbag system disabled) has been confirmed by the same BMW dealer that performed the service. The vehicle has not had additional inspections. Prior to this problem, an alert/message would indicate the passenger would need to buckle up. Never was a passenger in the seat, I would move the groceries, backpack, water bottle, etc to the floor and message would dismiss itself. This message to buckle up has been appearing since the car was purchased as a certified BMW from a BMW dealer. Recently, I took my car into the BMW dealer that I typically go for scheduled, routine maintenance. The maintenance consisted of an oil change, oil filter change, air filter change, and vehicle check. When I started the car after picking it up, a chime sounded and a warning message was displayed that says "Passenger restraint system malfunction: Contact BMW Carefully drive to the closest service center. Passenger restraint system is limited. Increased risk of injury in case of a collision. Continue wearing safety belt." Additionally, a red air bad light is displayed on the dash board instrument cluster. Every time the car is started the chime sounds and these message is displayed. Dealer is requesting 2,000-2,500 to replace a part - meanwhile system was dealer disabled. Please note this issue has occurred in the past with BMW SRS systems, and a recall resolved the issue.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11575917March 6, 2024
EXTERIOR LIGHTING
The car’s instrument cluster has no indicator light to inform the driver whether or not low beam headlights are active. I took the car into BMW to get this addressed early on after purchasing the vehicle and BMW service technicians informed me that these cars don’t have such a light. Even though the manual includes documentation for the light. This poses a safety hazard as a driver may put the headlight switch in the wrong position and would have no indication they’ve done so. Daytime running lights may confuse them to thinking they have their headlights on. This poses a safety risk as tail lights would also not illuminate reducing visibility for other drivers and could increase the likelihood of a collision.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11574500February 28, 2024
SEAT BELTS
I continually get the message 'passenger restraint system malfunction' Was meant to be repaired under warranty in 2022, it came back, but problem persisted intermittently since.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11573475February 22, 2024
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Digital display cluster suddenly started flickering and had a shifting image moving incorrectly to the left. It made reading the electronic speedometer and other gauges impossible and highly unsafe while driving on highway. There was no way to safely determine speed or vehicle. The display did not recover after parking the car and restarting engine.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11570467February 7, 2024
VISIBILITY/WIPER
o Rear view camera o When in reverse, camera image on infotainment display goes black hindering rearward visibility. This only happens occasionally. o Vehicle has been into Sewell BMW of Grapevine, TX multiple times for this issue. They have done a software update and replaced the camera. Problem continues to persist. They will no longer look at the issue without me paying a $265 diagnostic fee since the car is now out of warranty. o The problem has been present since I purchased the vehicle new in Nov 2019.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11563427January 3, 2024
SEAT BELTS
The passenger seat is a mess. There are two issues that repeatedly happen on this car. One - there is false passenger seatbelt warning and two their is a passenger restraint system malfunction message. I took this to the BMW dealership and they said it requires a sensor mat replacement that costs over $2000. I looked it up online and found many people have had the exact same issue with this car.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11558862December 6, 2023
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
I took my car to pacific bmw in Glendale California on July 21 2023. It was getting a battery replacement under warranty. I recieved my car back November 16 2023. After 4 months of waiting and being Discriminated against, my car only got 3 out of 6 battery modules replaced. It's a safety hazard to mix new and used lithium batteries. Warranty covered me for all 6 modules to be changed but the dealership deliberately only fixed 3. After being advised to change them all.also they charged me for parts covered under warranty. I took my car in because I would get 4-6 miles on a full charge. Pacific gave it back to me with 9 miles on a full charge. It should be at least 18. I do not feel safe in my own car. Yes I have attached proof.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11556498November 22, 2023
AIR BAGS
The contact owned a 2019 BMW 530E. The contact stated that while stopped due to traffic, the vehicle was rear-ended causing the contact to crash into the vehicle in front. During the impacts, the contact hit his head, and was unconscious. The contact does not remember if it was the steering wheel or the windshield where he hit his head. The only air bags deployed were the side air bags but no frontal. The rear-end damage to the vehicle was severe as the entire trunk was destroyed. No warning lights were illuminated. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to an impound lot. The contact was transferred to the hospital via ambulance. The daughter who was seated in the front passenger side sustained back and leg injuries that required pain medicine and an x-ray for medical attention. The contact sustained a bruise on his nose, ribs, neck, and lower back, and had a headache. The vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised that a callback was scheduled. The failure mileage was approximately 15,000.
Crash:
Yes
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11543307September 7, 2023
AIR BAGS, SEAT BELTS
The passenger restraint system is malfunctioning and dealer not covering the cost. It’s a defect in the component and a clear safety issue.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11537627August 10, 2023
AIR BAGS
BMW has had known issues with its passenger seat safety sensors failing. These are expensive repairs exceeding $2,000+ and happen frequently with the 2018 - 2020 BMW 5 Series. My 2018 BMW 530e has had this sensor fail with regular usage. There hasn't been an abnormal exposure to moisture (I live in Utah, a very dry climate) and so the vulnerability of this technology and the cost associated with it's upkeep and it's necessity for basic safety, means BMW should own up to ensuring that this has better and more reliable craftsmanship.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11524031May 26, 2023
AIR BAGS:SENSOR:OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION
I get the message “Passanger Restraint System Failure” at random times.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11519843May 1, 2023
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
Vehicle randomly and erroneously triggers forward collision warning and automatic emergency braking at different speeds when no car or pedestrian is present on the road and the danger of an imminent collision is actually null. This has happened around 5 times in a year of ownership. Last time this event occurred, the car was traveling around 35 to 40mph which resulted in my getting whiplash (and nearly rear-ended) when the car applied what felt like its full braking power when no one was on the road, the weather was clear and no imminent danger was ahead. No error message ever appeared anywhere on the dash. Brought the vehicle in for service and was advised that the dealer cannot reproduce the issue and that nothing is wrong with the vehicle since no error code is found in the on-board computer. I have since been unwilling to drive my vehicle for extended periods of time for fear of injury to myself, passengers, pet or other road-users.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
1
Deaths:
0
#11517046April 14, 2023
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:INSTRUMENT PANEL:SPEEDOMETER/ODOMETER
The contact owns a 2019 BMW 530E. The contact stated that while her uncle was driving approximately 65 MPH, the instrument panel display became inoperable. During the failure, the speedometer was inoperable. The contact stated that the failure occurred on several occasions. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer however, the mechanic found no failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 30,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11516933April 13, 2023
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
KLE MODULE FAILURE - Causing short on EV Hard Wires Wall Charger. Module Burned out on vehicle, which could cause fire and electrical problems. This failure also causes problems with emissions issues as this is a Hybrid Vehicle. BMW has has several issues with this and advising that it is not a covered part in the 2018 module, but has been covered and repaired in 2019 + Vehicles.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11434846September 29, 2021
POWER TRAIN
This vehicle malfunctioned 6x; 2 drivers; by where the car would lunge forward on it's own after coming to a complete stop. 1 incident almost resulted in an accident. This was reported to BMW NA after 5-6 weeks in Stevenscreek BMW for service and issues apparently could not be duplicated after Regional and National Technicians were called in to further investigate. BMW refused to buy-back the vehicle and ultimately I was encouraged to take it to the purchasing dealership (BMW of Monterey) for trade-in consideration. BMW of Monterey indicated they were planning to auction this vehicle but 5 day's post return, they did a normal service (oil change, inspection) and re-sold the vehicle. However, they expunged the 5.5 wks of service records from the CarFax report for which I have reported against this VIN as missing information. I'm very concerned that an unsuspecting new buyer could be at risk thus why I'm reporting this to you after rendering the vehicle. I owned and drove this vehicle for 2 yrs without incident before the 6x malfunction which in my opinion is clearly a safety risk. BMW North America has closed the file on my complaints as of recent.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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