BMW · NHTSA safety record
Every safety complaint, recall and defect investigation the US government holds on this vehicle.
Owners have filed 35 safety complaints about the 2011 BMW 535XI with the US government. Of those, 2 people were injured and no death is recorded. No recall campaign has been matched to this year, make and model.
The most complained-about system is the tires, named in 9 complaints, 26% of the total. The typical failure was reported at 19,000 miles, the median across the 29 complaints that gave an odometer reading.
Compiled from NHTSA's complaint, recall and investigation files · Covers September 2011 to September 2018 · How this is counted
35
Complaints
0
Describe a crash
0
Mention fire
2
People injured
0
Deaths
A complaint is an unverified account by the person who filed it, not a finding of fault. One complaint is one ODI number, which is how NHTSA counts them.
No recall campaign was matched to this year, make and model. That is not the same as a clean vehicle: recalls are issued against production ranges, and the only reliable check is your own VIN.
One complaint can name several systems, so these add up to more than 35.
By the year NHTSA received them, which is not the year the failures happened. They peaked in 2011 at 8.
This is the year the complaint was filed, not the year the failure happened. The range runs from 2011 to 2018.
NHTSA has not crash tested the 2011 BMW 535XI. Its New Car Assessment Program tests a selection of each year's vehicles and does not reach motorcycles, heavy trucks, motorhomes or most low-volume models, so an absence here says nothing about how the vehicle would perform. It is not a low score.
What owners have reported about this vehicle is below, and it is a different question: a crash test measures what happens to the people inside in a controlled impact, while a complaint records what broke during ordinary use.
Quoted from NHTSA's complaint file. These are unverified accounts by the people who filed them, not findings of fault.
1 injured · 80,000 miles
THE MEMORY POWER SEAT IN MY CAR MALFUNCTIONED AND WENT BACK WITHOUT STOPPING CAUSING A FRACTURE TO MY 2 1/2 YEAR OLD SON'S LEG WHO WAS SITTING IN THE CAR SEAT DIRECTLY BEHIND ME. THE VEHICLE WAS PARKED AT THE TIME OF THE INCIDENT. *TR
NHTSA complaint 10928894. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
1 injured · 80,000 miles
MY 2 YEAR-OLD SON'S LEG WAS FRACTURED WHEN THE DRIVER'S SIDE POWER SEAT MALFUNCTIONED WHILE ADJUSTING THE SEAT. THE SEAT WENT BACK INTO THE FARTHEST POSITION WITHOUT STOPPING FRACTURING MY SON'S LEFT LEG WHO WAS IN A FORWARD FACING CAR SEAT IN BACK. THE VEHICLE WAS PARKED AT THE TIME OF THE INCIDENT. THE POWER SEAT HAS AN EXCESSIVE AMOUNT OF FORCE/POWER AND IT SHOULD BE REDUCED. A SAFETY SENSOR TO DETECT RESISTANCE SHOULD BE EQUIPPED IN THE VEHICLE TO PREVENT THIS FROM HAPPENING IN THE FUTURE. THIS COULD CAUSE A FRACTURE EVEN IF THE SEAT HADN'T MALFUNCTIONED AND PARENTS SHOULD BE MADE AWARE OF THE DANGER.
NHTSA complaint 11074337. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
3 miles
AFTER BRINGING MY CAR TO BMW OF BUENA PARK TO TAKE CARE OF A COUPLE OF RECALLS, A COUPLE OF MILES AFTER I GET ON THE FREEWAY AT ABOUT 60 MPH THE CAR LOST POWER AND I HEARD THE EMERGENCY SOUND ON MY DASHBOARD, THE EMERGENCY LIGHT CAME ON AND A MESSAGE ON MY SCREEN SAYING ' DRIVE MODERATELY, MAXIMUM DRIVE TRAIN OUTPUT NOT AVAILABLE' THE CAR DID NOT STOP BUT LOST LOTS OF POWER
NHTSA complaint 11132255. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
90,000 miles
I WAS DRIVING 60 MPH WHEN THE ENGINE SEIZED. THE RPMS FELL TO 0 AND THE STEERING WHEEL BECAME VERY STIFF. I PULLED ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD TRIED TO START THE CAR, NOTHING HAPPENED AND I HAD TO CALL THE TOW TRUCK. NONE OF THE LIGHTS CAME ON. EVERYTHING LOOKED FINE AND VERY MISTERIOUS. AFTER THE MECHANICS DISASSEMBLED THE ENGINE THEY SAID THAT APPARENTLY CYLINDER NUMBER SIX SEIZED. AT THE TIME WHEN THIS HAPPENED, THE OIL WAS AT HE MAX LEVEL, AS WELL AS ANTIFREEZE, THE TEMPERATURE WAS NORMAL. MY MECHANIC ASSUMES THAT IT SEIZED BECAUSE OF LOSS OF PRESSURE, WHICH IS WEIRD BECAUSE AS I WAS TOLD THERE ARE 2 PRESSURE SENSORS IN THIS TYPE OF ENGINE (N55). THIS IS VERY FRUSTRATING AND PRICEY REPAIR,
NHTSA complaint 11124363, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
85,000 miles
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 BMW 535XI. AFTER THE VEHICLE HAD BEEN PARKED FOR THREE WEEKS, IT FAILED TO START. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER (ERHARD BMW BLOOMFIELD, 1845 S TELEGRAPH RD, BLOOMFIELD HILLS, MI 48302, (248) 834-7788) WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE VANOSE HOUSING BOLT FRACTURED INSIDE THE ENGINE. THE DEALER INDICATED THAT THE ENGINE ASSEMBLY NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE MANUFACTURER STATED THAT AN UNKNOWN RECALL REPAIR WAS COMPLETED IN 2016 BY BMW OF ANN ARBOR (501 AUTO MALL DR, ANN ARBOR, MI 48103, (734) 663-3309) AND PROVIDED NO SOLUTION OTHER THAN ADVISING THAT THE PART BE REPLACED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 85,000.
NHTSA complaint 11066435. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
82,000 miles
MALFUNCTION OR FAILURE OF THERMOSTAT AND WATER PUMP, RESULTED IN SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED COOLANT TEMPERATURE AND SYSTEM PRESSURE. INDICATING A CRITICAL OVERHEATING CONDITION AND MY CAR STOPPED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD AND I ALMOST GOT IN A REAR END CRASH. I HAD TO BE TOWED TO A SHOP AND THEY REPLACED THE FAILED COMPONENTS RESULTING IN A $2,200 BILL.
NHTSA complaint 11062578. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
CAR WAS STOLEN FROM STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA FROM MY RESIDENT. CAR IS REGISTERED TO THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA WITH SOUTH CAROLINA PLATES. THE CAR IS NOW IN NEW YORK AREA, STRATFORD, CT AREA AND NORWALK, CT AREA- DRIVER TOOK CAR OUT MY POSSESSION AND JUMP STATES WITH MY SPARE KEY THAT WAS INSIDE MY HOME. NEVER GAVE THE DRIVER POSSESSION OR PERMISSION TO DRIVE MY CAR
NHTSA complaint 11061154. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
Complaints on file, same model year.
Every BMW on this site — 257 vehicles.
If this is your car and a dealer keeps failing to fix it, your state's lemon law may require the manufacturer to replace it or buy it back. How many repair attempts it takes, and how long you have to file, is set by the state you bought in and by nothing on this page.
A complaint is one owner's account and has not been verified by NHTSA or by us. A vehicle with more complaints is not necessarily worse: models that sold in larger numbers collect more of them. How this is counted.
Compiled and maintained by guarledes
Independent developer and analyst