CSR

BMW · NHTSA safety record

2019 BMW 540I

Every safety complaint, recall and defect investigation the US government holds on this vehicle.

11

Complaints

2

Crashes

0

Fires

0

Injuries

0

Deaths

Owners of the 2019 BMW 540I have filed 11 safety complaints with NHTSA between December 2019 and May 2026. The most complained-about system is vehicle speed control, named in 3 of them (27%). The typical failure was reported at 16,600 miles, the median across the 9 complaints that gave an odometer reading.

NHTSA has issued 1 recall covering this vehicle.

Recalls (1)

BACK OVER PREVENTION: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA

19V684000 · September 27, 2019

The defect
BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2018 540d, 2018-2020 530i, 530i xDrive, 540i, 540i xDrive, M550i xDrive, M5, 530e, 530e xDrive, X3 sDrive, X3 xDrive, X3 M40i, X3 M, and 2019-2020 X4 xDrive, X4 M40i, X4 M, X7 xDrive, X7 M50i, 740Li, 740Li xDrive, 750Li, 750Li xDrive, 8 Series Convertible and Coupe 840i, 840i xDrive, M850i xDrive, X5 sDrive, X5 xDrive, X5 M50i, X6 xDrive, X6 M50i, 330i, 330i xDrive, M340i, M340i xDrive, Z4 sDrive, Z4 M40i, 740Le xDrive and 745Le xDrive, 2018-2019 640i xDrive Gran Turismo and Rolls-Royce Phantom, 2019 M850i xDrive Gran Coupe and Rolls-Royce Cullinan and 2020 Toyota Supra vehicles. The back-up camera and display settings can be adjusted such that the rear view image is no longer visible and the system will retain that setting the next time the vehicle is placed in reverse. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 111, "Rearview Mirrors."
The risk
The lack of an image in the back-up camera display increases the risk of a crash.
The remedy
BMW will notify owners, and dealers will update the back-up camera software, free of charge. The recall began November 8, 2019. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417 or Rolls-Royce at 1-877-877-3735. Toyota owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371.

BMW of North America, LLC · up to 257,473 vehicles across all model years covered

What owners report

Complaints naming each system. One complaint can name several, so these add up to more than 11.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER 3 27%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 3 27%
POWER TRAIN 2 18%
AIR BAGS 1 9%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 1 9%
ENGINE 1 9%
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 9%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 9%
VISIBILITY 1 9%

When the complaints arrived

By the year NHTSA received them, which is not the year the failures happened. They peaked in 2020 at 3.

2019 2020 2026
2019 to 2026, the last of them a part year

In owners' own words

Quoted from NHTSA's complaint file. These are unverified accounts by the people who filed them, not findings of fault.

VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL:ACCELERATOR PEDAL

crash · 18,000 miles

The contact owns a 2019 BMW 540i. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle stalled without warning while depressing the accelerator pedal. The contact stated that while attempting to park the vehicle, the failure recurred. The contact continuously depressed the accelerator pedal and the vehicle lunged forward and collided with a barrier and crashed into his neighbor's vehicle. The air bags failed to deploy upon impact. The contact was not treated for any injuries. A police report was not filed. The contact had taken the vehicle to an independent mechanic who discovered that the lower section of the accelerator pedal was fractured. The manufacturer was notified of the

NHTSA complaint 11421080, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL

crash · 30,600 miles

The contact owns a 2019 BMW 540i. The contact stated that while slowly driving into the driveway the vehicle erroneously accelerated forward at a high rate of speed and crashed into the garage door. The contact indicated that during the incident the brake pedal was being pressed but the vehicle did not immediately stop. During the incident the front end of the vehicle was damaged but no air bags deployed. No injuries were reported but the contact experienced emotional stress from the incident. The contact also indicated that the failure had once occurred while the husband was driving the vehicle. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer and manufacturer were

NHTSA complaint 11737812, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ENGINE
I own a 2019 BMW 540 with B58 engine and I have begun noticing abnormal rattling noise from the engine area, which may indicate early stage failure of the oil pump assembly. There are widespread reports from other owners of failure of the oil pump rotor housing/adjusting ring due to heat-related degradation of plastic components. Failure of this component can lead to sudden loss of oil pressure, drivetrain malfunction warnings, and ultimately engine seizure while driving. Sudden engine failure at speed presents a significant safety hazard due to loss of propulsion and potential inability to maneuver out of traffic. BMW has reportedly updated the oil pump design to an all-metal version

NHTSA complaint 11726908, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

VISIBILITY:REARVIEW MIRRORS/DEVICES:EXTERIOR

23,000 miles

The contact owns a 2019 BMW 540i Sedan. The contact stated while driving at 45 MPH, the peripheral rear-view mirror detached and collided with the passenger's window. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 23,000.

NHTSA complaint 11632656. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Radiator Grill does not open when running. It remains in the close position. It started with the engine symbol that appeared on the dash.

NHTSA complaint 11493211. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:LEVER AND LINKAGE:COLUMN SHIFT

43,500 miles

The contact owns a 2019 BMW 540I. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, the contact pressed the button on the gear shifter and the vehicle inadvertently shifted into NEUTRAL. The contact then shifted back into DRIVE. The contact continued driving with no further issues. However, the contact concern was that there should be no reason for the gear shifter to change gear with little to no pressure on the gear shifter from an inadvertent touch of the button on the gear shifter. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer to be inspected however, the mechanic was unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure

NHTSA complaint 11433724, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

Compare

Other years of the BMW 540I

Model year Complaints Recalls Deaths
2021 8 6
2018 29 2
2017 20 1

Other 2019 BMW models

Every BMW on this site — 249 vehicles, 484 recall campaigns and 2 open investigation s.

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. What each state asks for , read from the statutes.

Where these numbers come from

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.

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