Electrical System Problems of BMW 525 - part 1

Battery problems, was supposedly recalled for it and now the car is dying and the alarm is going off in my driveway at 10:30pm after being off for hours. The alarm doesn’t turn off with the fob or if key is in ignition, I need to remove the battery panel find a ratchet and remove one of the battery terminals while my alarm is simultaneously going off for long period over and over and over.

See all problems of the 2007 BMW 525 🔎.

I am encountering persistent issues with my 2005 BMW 525i. Despite having replaced several critical components, including the ignition coils, spark plugs, mass air flow sensor, and throttle body sensors, the vehicle continues to experience performance problems, specifically failing to advance beyond the fourth cylinder when driving uphill. After conducting numerous diagnostic tests, I have concluded that there may be an air leak in the intake manifold. Additionally, after prolonged use under these conditions, the positive battery cable from the trunk has shown signs of overheating, evidenced by smoke, which I suspect is related to repeated uphill driving. While the vehicle performs adequately on flat surfaces, it exhibits hesitation and jerking once it surpasses the fourth cylinder.

See all problems of the 2005 BMW 525 🔎.

Recal 94v219000: double-lock feature gcm revised. "the double-lock feature can engage with occupants and the door/ignition key inside of the vehicle. The occupants of the vehicle would be unable to exit either from the doors or from the windows of the vehicle. " note: if your vehicle is presented to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and the remedy is not provided free of charge within a reasonable time or the remedy does not correct the defect, contact BMW and the national highway traffic safety administration's auto safety hotline my car locked me in it and I was unable to exit exactly as described in this recall. Called BMW and they are saying the recall was remedied. Clearly it is not corrected. BMW says they cant do anything. 1995 or not this is a serious safety issue, this car is perfectly safe running and driving vehicle besides this issue.

Pcv issue unknown.

See all problems of the 2006 BMW 525 🔎.

We arrived at church, and I remained behind finishing my makeup. My husband locked the car with the fob out of habit, and my foot was holding the passenger door open. Forgetting the door had been locked with the fob, I accidentally allowed the passenger door to close. I had no keys. Services began, not a soul in site outside. I began to panic when I could not get the door or any other to open. The alarm would not trigger, and the sunroof was cracked accidentally about an inch. It was July. I could not get anyone to hear me, and could not get any door or window ajar. Eventually I was able to get the attention of an elder, who went and retrieved the keys and got me out. I was soaked in sweat, using an inhaler about every 20 minutes, extremely scary. The other time this happened, my son was sitting in the car but the alarm went off and would not let him out until I came with the fob. He was 15, so he was not young. I had no idea he could not exit the vehicle should he choose. I know there is some emergency release in the hatch somehow but could not locate. Air bags were scheduled to be replaced, had rental scheduled with dealership, drove 45 minutes to leave car for repair, but they had no rental as was promised, so I returned home in the vehicle.

See all problems of the 2001 BMW 525 🔎.

I purchased said automobile from my neighbor for my son to drive. I figured it was a good car to buy because it was serviced by hendrick BMW (charlotte, nc) only and regularly. BMW's also have a reputation for being safe as well as reputable so this also weighed into my decision. Fast forward 18 months. The passenger rear brake bulb went out. We replaced the bulb, it worked for a short time, then went out. We replaced the bulb again. This time it didnt work. About a week later the front passenger side head light went out, then the other side. We took it to hendrick BMW for repair. Hendrick has told us the car wiring basically needs to be replaced due to the protective coat wearing off and corroding the bare wire underneath. The headlights/ brake light will also need to be replaced due to the corrosion blowing out the bulb. For the front headlight the whole assembly needs to be replaced at a tremendous cost. I performed a google search on this and found many, many instances of the same issue. Ive seen many of these cars while casually driving around town. It would seem to be a major issue if an active drivers head and tail lights suddenly stopped working on a busy road. Also due to the cost most people probably wouldnt fix the issue on their own and drive the car anyway causing an ever bigger safety issue. I have never had this issue with any other vehicle brand ive owned. Ive looked into this issue with other brands and most tell me they use wiring which will not do this. I am not sure why BMW would not do the same. The car is also up for inspection. The car will not pass inspection unless I pony up over $6k ($2500 nada value) to fix. My taxes are also due. In nc you cant pay the tax unless the car passes inspection. This is costing me daily penalties in addition to the major safety issue. I believe the NHTSA has a duty to look into this major manufacturing defect and have BMW provide remedy to those other unfortunate folks who are experiencing the same issue.

Gm3 body module failure interior lights dont function, alarm whipers sprayers locks doors dont funtion.

See all problems of the 2003 BMW 525 🔎.

The car was off and caught fire due too electrical malfunctioning. The a/c unit was staying on even after cutting the car off . Along with my steering wheel randomly adjusting at start of the car . The fire started inside out .

See all problems of the 2002 BMW 525 🔎.

I was driving and antitheft system went off while driving. Then wiper failed to work. I was told by dealer mechanic that the body control module was failing and advised not to drive the car because the antitheft system may cause the car to stop and the wiper system will stop when raining causing multiple accidents.

Abs module failure trifecta abs light traction amd brake light. Sometimes used to auto accelerate when brake was pressed and cruise control doesnt work.

I drove the car a mile to the store and a mile back and when I was walking away you could see a spark and then a minute later another one and another until then the car started smoking and within 4 minutes the car was engulfed in flames. My security cameras caught the whole thing on tape. We tried our best to contain the fire but it took the fire department to put it out.

I had taken a longer road trip, and was on my way back, about a quarter of the way when we stopped for dinner. I parked, and everything was usual. A couple minutes later, I went to move the car, and while I was waiting in a drive-thru line, I see smoke billowing out from under the hood and I smell a burning smell. I parked the car back where it had been, and, thinking it was a coolant issue, opened the hood to let the engine cool down, and left my passengers with the car and walked across the street to buy some coolant. When I returned, my passengers told me that they had noticed a flame at the extreme front of the engine and had to douse it with water. I checked, and I saw that the wires leading to the auxiliary cooling fan in front of the radiator had melted and caught on fire and burned the plastic near them (as seen in the picture). I then found the connector for those wires and disconnected them so that they could not relight. I did some research and found that this is a common problem resulting from the wires pulling too much power and thus melting themselves. The problem with the wires did not set off any warning or check engine lights, and did not affect the engine temperature, at least at freeway speeds. I also found out that the battery can run this fan for up to 11 minutes after the engine is turned off, thus being able to start a fire in a garage when no one is around. This problem is extremely dangerous as the whole car could go up in flames.

I was on my way to work and had driven only 4 1/2 miles at 6:55am on Thursday, August 15, 2019. I was about 1/2 from work on a city street when smoke began coming out the air vents and steering column. A smell of plastic, electrical filled the car and I pulled into the nearest place when the smoke was quickly increasing. My son and I jumped out of the car and called 911. The fire department arrived almost immediately, and upon pulling up, before they could get out of the truck, the driver's side curtain airbag exploded, the firemen heard the explosion. By the time they pulled their hoses and lifted the hood, smoke was heavily coming from the car. When the airbag exploded, a large piece of plastic shrapnel was blown to the passenger side of the car and stuck between the windshield and the window and stuck into the edge windshield frame. The firefighters tried for several minutes to get the source under control and finally was able to when they disconnected the battery. I had my car towed to BMW columbus, they "repaired the recall" and said that the fire was not a result of the recall. I believe that if the firefighters did not respond as quickly as they did because they were nearby, then my car would have gone up in flames.

Tl-the contact owns a 2006 BMW 525-I. The contact estated that the vehicle was parked, when th engine was turned onf, black smoke started emerging from the engine compartment, when the hood was opened a fire started. The fire department was called and they extinguished the fire. The police was present and a report was issued. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer for a diagnostic. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 307,726. Bp.

The service engine light is on and off many times. There are several times after I exit the highway car shaked and almost cannot drive. But after several hours or park one day, it can drive again, when it can drive, it runs excellent. I do not know what happened. If I drive a long distance, the light turn on again. It even slow down on the highway. Currently it cannot drive. It ever stopped on the highway 60th nogales exit. Temperature light is on. I drive it of the highway. After I exit highway, the steering is locked.

On Dec. 2 my 2004 BMW 525i was sitting outside my house when it cought on fire at the fuse panel in the trunk on the right fender well. The car had been driven over 100 miles that day. My step-daughter had gotten home at midnight and parked the car. She said the car was fine when she got home at 3;30 am my neighbor knocked on my door to tell me the car was on fire. The fire department was called to put it out as ever time we would get the fire out it would spark and start again. They reported that it was a mechanical problem that caused the fire.

See all problems of the 2004 BMW 525 🔎.

Possible BMW recall issue (car spontaneously caught fire while car off). Car purchased on 11/8/17. On 11/16/17, car was parked in our driveway with ignition off after driving approximately 30 minutes. Approximately 10 minutes later, driver heard the car alarm go off which prompted him to go outside and saw flames and smoke coming from under the hood. Driver called 911. Car continued to combust several times before fire dept got to our house. See pictures for damage. We still have the BMW car in question in our driveway.

Micro power module (mpm) started smoking while driving, causing erratic engine rpm, and causing smoke inside cabin and burnt electronics smell. Complete loss of radio and idrive functionality. Module is located in trunk under the spare tire. Notified BMW of north America, and they just said that the car was out of warranty and nothing could be done. I feel that this is a serious defect that could possibly start a fire. Several BMW online forums have discussed this issue. Others have remedied the problem by relocating the module to a higher place in the trunk. Most of who own these cars do not know that these vehicles have this vulnerability. Vehicle was moving in the early morning when this happened.

My BMW appears to the have an issue with the passenger air bag sensor, but the VIN isn't include in the recall list. Kindly request recall, as the vehicle hasn't been in an accident, but passenger air bag light remains on.

My BMW drivers seat get so hot it feels like it's about to catch fire ( I don't have heated seats } sometimes in motion sometime after I shut ti off.

My BMW was parked outside a restaurant in overland park, KS, at lunch time on March 7, 2017. Auto was locked and all windows and skylight were closed. When I returned to my car after lunch, the car was unlocked and all windows and skylight were open. The key was in my purse and was untouched. Possible theft attempt?.

I really need some assistance. My seat caught on fire while I was driving. The seat heater keeps turning on and occasionally won't go off I've driven the car maybe 35 minutes tops since the seat caught fire 3 weeks ago. BMW north America has tried to assist me unfortunately the dealers are either booked solid or are capable of fixing this technical a problem. They've agreed to fix everything for free & provide me with a loaner car until the issues are totally resolved BMW does not want my vehicle to catch fire again. I was told not to drive it unfortunately none of the dealership consider a car fire top priority. There is a huge likelihood it could continue burning without immediate repairs. I wish BMW north America would assist me like they said. I've had 8 BMW's and never have I had an issue . That is why I've bought Bmws because as long as I did all the scheduled maintenance (a side from this one) my vehicles have been not only reliable but a pleasure to own. I've had very few issues with my current e60 until 3 weeks ago. Since then my life has been chaotic borrowing vehicles renting vehicles and relying on others because BMW doesn't prioritize car fires. I need someone to help me otherwise I will have no choice but to continue driving a vehicle that is a danger to myself as well as my minor child and any other vehicle around me if it were to become fully engulfed in flames. Please call me at your earliest convenience so I can be safe . My contact info is susan gold 160 concord road keene nh 03431 (603)571-1387 email susanbgold@mail. Com call me day or night I'll be ready to get the vehicle to the proper facility for repair. I have contacted all dealership in new hampshire . Tulley BMW said that the repair was beyond their expertise. I spoke to an absolutely clueless gentleman name john bowland at tulley BMW nashua.

Front passenger seat occupancy sensor has failed. Rear left hand brake/backup light is problematic and intermittently works, usually only shows up on car's dashboard while in reverse, but sometimes will stay on-screen during driving. Front ashtray outlet/cigarette lighter doesn't work.

Sunroof drain clogged into trunk causing fire in battery compartment and spare tire area. Vehicle was stationary in shop after not being run for hours.

I was driving on my way to work and started smelling something burning. All electrical warning lights started lighting up the dash and then displays go blank. Passenger compartment was filling up with smoke coming from under glove box. I pulled over and called fire department. We disconnected battery and took to BMW. They said micro-processor located in spare tire storage area had shorted out due to water. I don't carry coolers and don't leave my trunk open when it rains. How did water get there. Bulletins show that sunroof drains get clogged and water gets into trunk and shorts out electrical. Service bulletin says if this happens, customer pay but move electrical to where it can't get wet. So BMW knows it's a problem and can cause a fire but doesn't care to cover repair. Now I'm stuck with $1000 repair for micro-processor just to be able to tell what else is burned up. I have to pay before I will know if it will cost an additional $5,000 to repair. I'm lucky electrical didn't catch fire and burn up entire car.

Mcm burned up got wet and stank up whole trunk because of design flaw by BMW we were driving as it burned up till we had to pull over because of the awful smell.

While driving my 2004 BMW 525i, my right hip started burning. Followed by an odor. When I pulled the car over, I looked to my right & on the back portion of the seat I noticed a burn mark. The seat heater got so hot that it burned my blouse to the seat. I sent an email to BMW who responded they would get back to me after asking me to send them my VIN #, along with pictures of the seat. I did so, and as of today no one has gotten in touch with me. (?) after purchasing the car brand-new in 2004 this same situation happened to the passenger seat in 2005-06. The seat literally caught on fire with my mother sitting in it. The dealership where I purchased the car in massachusetts respectfully did the right thing and replaced it, "immediately" for me. ~ it is incomprehensible, that a company such as "b-m-w" is not only not standing behind this ongoing issue, but refuses to get back in touch with the consumers to come to some resolution of their inferior & damaged product. Which at some point, will cause bodily harm and possibly give someone third degree burns. Maybe it will take a serious injury or dateline nbc to run an undercover program, before BMW manufacturers smarten up & fix this unacceptable issue with a feature we all paid extra to have. . . The cold weather package. ~in closing; I was once told by other owners I would never go back to any other car once I owned a BMW. I honestly can say this experience has changed my opinion of that. BMW customer service is outstanding until the warrantees are gone and until there are no more recalls. At least at the corporate level. You have a better chance going back into the dealership who welcomes & values your continued business! what a disappointment from such a high end manufacturer.

Went to replace my front headlamp bulbs after headlamp failure while operating my vehicle at night, on a winding road, in rural texas. Mechanic pulled the "sealed" housing, and discovered that the majority of the wires in the headlamp assembly had faulty insulation. The insulation had "flaked" off to the point that many of the wires were exposed, causing a short circuit, and failure of the headlamp. Researched the issue on many forums, and it is a common occurrrence. Replacement costs of each headlamp assembly is approx $1500. The use of subpar insulation appears to be the cause of this safety issue.

While driving down the interstate, suddenly we began to smell �something� burning, and then the idrive system displayed a battery icon light followed by the message "charging system malfunction" and control messages warning "your battery is not being charged". Seconds after that message the power in the vehicle began surging, and another message displayed "4x4 system and dsc have malfunctioned". At this point we were pulling over, and the cab of the vehicle began filling with smoke. The 4 of us exited the vehicle and witnessed flames and smoke coming from under the bonnet. We managed to move safely away from the vehicle and call for help as it went up in flames - burning completely (bumper to bumperr). It has been declared a total loss.

See all problems of the 2009 BMW 525 🔎.

Tl-the contact owns a 2006 BMW 525i. The contact stated that when the vehicle was started, the passenger side air bag warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the air bag sensor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure and the VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign number:13v564000 (air bags). The failure mileage was 40,000. Ss.

The contact owns a 2004 BMW 525i. The contact stated that the service indicator illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the lighting wires were zip tied together and the casing was missing. As a result, the lighting assembly on the driver and passenger side would need to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 190,000.

On April 11, 2015. I was taking my vehicle to my mechanic to get it serviced after sitting all winter. As I was driving I noticed smoke coming from the rear of the vehicle. I pulled over, could not locate the source. I continued to my mechanic. Once there we opened the trunk, we noticed and smelled something burning. We took out the tire and noticed water in the wheel well, which made an electrical component sparking, smoking and on fire. I had the vehicle towed to BMW. They stated the water damaged the micro power module. BMW paid for the repairs, and relocated the module away from the wheel well. I feel where it was placed previous was very dangerous. If I had any combustible item in my trunk my BMW would have fully caught fire. BMW should recall all vehicle and relocation any electrical components that can be damaged by water, possibly catch fire. This is very dangerous.

The wires in the head light assembly are brittle and break upon just touching them. Causing day time running lights to fail as wires are bare and touching each other. This is also a fire hazard.

While I was driving on a street road my stirring wheel got stuck and I lost control of my car swerved into other lane and nearly caused an accident. I pushed the wheel back hard and bought my car on the side of the road . A mechanic found that nearly two inches of water had accumulated in the trunk of my car, the water damage caused electrical failure making the car to become inoperable. By shoddy construction. The modules, are installed in the spare tire well and insufficiently protected from moisture, making them especially prone to water damage that can be caused through the normal and ordinary use of the vehicle. My life was put in danger because of this shoddy construction by BMW. When I notified them, they denied and refused to pay or fix. They literally put my life as well as other drivers life in danger, because my car swerved uncontrollably.

We would like the NHTSA to be aware that myself and a few colleagues own BMW and have experienced this issue. BMW has purposely built these vehicles to fail after the warranty period when a few months after the 100,000 mile warranty we began having problems specifically with the seals around all all windows including windshield and rear window as well as the seals around the trunk, however at the bottom of the trunk BMW keeps a main component board underneath the spare tire , once the seals begin to fail it causes water and moisture to gain access to this compartment and cause the board to ignite and catch fire and cause car to go crazy with acceleration and deceleration, why place a main component in this location with 10 feet of extra wire and no drain, I would also like to point out all BMW's of the same year experience m melting of the plastic interior parts and the paint to completely break down underneath the clear coat no matter how much ax is applied these are major flaws and BMW is well aware of them, there vehicles and service is terrible they should not be allowed on the road.