61 problems related to engine and engine cooling have been reported for the 2013 BMW 528. The most recently reported issues are listed below. Please also check out the statistics and reliability analysis of the 2013 BMW 528 based on all problems reported for the 2013 528.
On [xxx], century west BMW in north hollywood, CA performed recall 20e-a01 b120921 (dme reprogram/connector update) on my 2013 BMW 528i. Within 30 minutes of leaving the dealership, the car displayed a red “engine overheating – stop immediately” warning while I was in a crowded intersection with my child in the vehicle. This created an immediate danger to us and to surrounding traffic. Prior to the recall, the vehicle had no history of overheating. When I returned the next morning ([xxx]), the service advisor admitted they had no timestamp or documentation of the coolant bleed procedure. Instead of proving the recall was performed correctly, the dealership attempted to shift blame onto unrelated issues such as the thermostat or an oil leak, even sending me a video of the oil leak but providing no proof of proper recall completion or verification. This negligence placed me, my child, and the public at serious risk of injury and could have caused catastrophic engine damage. The fact that the vehicle overheated almost immediately after recall work indicates the recall was not properly completed or verified, and the car was returned to me in an unsafe condition. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).
My 2013 BMW 528i was serviced under recall 24v-608 (coolant pump electrical connector / dme). After the recall was marked complete, the car developed several serious failures: coolant pump / connector (recall item) – the dealer refused to replace the coolant pump even though the recall notice from the government includes both the pump and connector. Shortly after, the water pump failed completely, causing “high temperature” warnings and putting me at risk of sudden overheating and breakdown on the road. Dme (engine control unit) – this was supposedly updated during the recall, but it failed to detect existing problems. Before the recall, I was never warned about issues with the turbo or oil leaks. Immediately after the recall update, the car started misfiring and showing drivetrain malfunction. The recall did not prevent or detect the failures as promised. Valve cover gasket (oil leak) – after the recall, a severe valve cover oil leak appeared, causing lean air/fuel mixture, misfires, and risk of fire. Oil leaking onto engine components is a known safety hazard. The dealer admitted the gasket leak existed but refused to cover it. Turbocharger / wastegate – the dme flagged turbo wastegate actuator problems after the recall. The turbo cannot be ordered separately from the actuator, leading to very expensive repairs. Before the recall update, this issue was not visible, so I believe the recall software either failed to detect earlier or triggered worse conditions. Because of these combined failures, the car became unsafe to drive: misfires caused loss of power, overheating warnings increased risk of sudden engine shutdown, and the oil leak created a fire hazard. An independent mechanic later confirmed the water pump failure and valve cover gasket leak, which I had to repair at my own expense. I believe the recall defect (coolant pump connector / dme) caused or contributed to the damage of the water pump, gasket, and turbocharger. BMW and the dealer refused to rep.
The contact owns a 2013 BMW 528xi. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 24v608000 (engine and engine cooling, electrical system); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
The contact owns a 2013 BMW 528xi. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 24v608000 (engine and engine cooling, electrical system); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was contacted and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
The contact owns a 2013 BMW 528i. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 24v608000 (engine and engine cooling, electrical system); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
The timing chain became stretched so that the valve timing with the pistons had been altered so that a valve face almost hit the top of a piston(one more tooth on the intake camshaft gear would have caused an impact between the piston top and a valve face causing the motor to stall and cease operation thereby causing the vehicle to lose power and possibly control). A timing chain should not stretch so as to cause a strike between a valve face and the top of a piston. Either the timing chain was of inferior quality or the automatic tensioner was inadequate to take up the slack as the chain wore.
The contact owns a 2013 BMW 528i. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, there was smoke coming from the engine compartment. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact was able to restart the vehicle. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 24v608000 (engine and engine cooling, electrical system). The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the water pump and plug connector had failed and needed to be replaced. The dealer confirmed that parts were not yet available. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 87,000. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
The contact owns a 2013 BMW 528i. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 24v608000 (engine and engine cooling, electrical system) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
-drivetrain warning message was displayed, indicated to drive moderately, and moments later car sputtered and ceased to operate. Mechanic inspected and reported the timing chain failed and is to blame. Also, the engine may be impacted due to fraying parts that may have entered engine values over the course of time. Vehicle may be available for inspection for a short period of time (sold car to mechanic for very nominal amount). -my teenage daughter was driving the car when the above occurred and broke down on a busy highway. Thankfully, she avoided a collision. The police were called and the car towed. This could have been extremely harmful to both my daughter and the general public. -an independent mechanic diagnosed the issue and confirmed the issue. -the vehicle was not inspected by the manufacturer, police, or insurance. The manufacturer (BMW) did perform an extensive evaluation and repair of the coolant line approximately two months ago but did not mention this issue. -I believe the drivetrain warning displayed once or twice with a message to drive moderately. On recollection, this was after the visit to fix the coolant issue. -we purchased the car new in 2013, were the only owners, and I expected much more from BMW. We are very upset given the potential harm that could have occurred. Also, I have since read about a class action lawsuit impacting this very same issue and pertaining to our year, make, and model. We were not informed of this lawsuit, nor did we receive a recall notice for the defective timing chains in these models. I took a substantial loss on this vehicle as compared to its fmv had this not occurred.
The contact owns a 2013 BMW 528i. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 24v608000(engine and engine cooling, electrical system); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated while driving 60 mph, the contact noticed smoke coming from underneath the hood. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact pulled to the side of the road, and the vehicle was towed to the residence. The local dealer was contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 108,000. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
The contact owns a 2013 BMW 528i. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 24v608000 (engine and engine cooling, electrical system) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was not contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed the contact noticed a smoke like smell coming from the vehicle with no warning light illuminated. The dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 127,000. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
The contact owns a 2013 BMW 528i. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, there was smoke coming from the engine and entering the cabin through the vents. The engine warning light was illuminated. There were unknown messages displayed. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who determined that the head gasket needed to be replaced. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 24v608000 (engine and engine cooling, electrical system); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was approximately 60,000. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
The contact owns a 2013 bmv 528i. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 24v608000 (engine and engine cooling, electrical system); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that while driving 75 mph, the vehicle stalled with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed with fuel pump failure. The contact was informed that the fuel pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the water pump had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired due to the parts not being available. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 96,000. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
The contact owns a 2013 BMW 328i. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 24v608000 (engine and engine cooling, electrical system) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated that the headlights fail to illuminate when there is rain or when washing the vehicle. The blinkers fail to signal the intended turn. The warning lights indicating an electrical failure would illuminate. The failures occurred intermittently. The dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was 119. 000. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
The contact owns a 2013 BMW 528i. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 24v608000 (engine and engine cooling, electrical system); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated that the engine overheated and there was white smoke coming from under the hood. The messages low coolant and engine overheating were displayed. The contact pulled over to the side of the road to allow the engine to cool down before continuing to drive. The contact stated that while checking the coolant level, the coolant level was in the normal range. The dealer was contacted. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was 98,000. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
The contact owns a 2013 BMW 528i. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 24v608000 (engine and engine cooling, electrical system); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
See attached document for complaint.
The contact owns a 2013 BMW 528xi. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was not able to be restarted and was towed to a local dealer. The local dealer diagnosed the vehicle with a failure with the timing chain. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure with an unknown customer satisfaction program; however, the contact had not received the notification letter. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 191,000.
The contact owns a 2013 BMW 528i. The contact stated that after driving and parking the vehicle, the contact smelled an abnormal burning odor. The contact stated the burning odor occurred frequently. The contact stated that the vehicle was towed to the dealer where the vehicle was purchased. The contact was aware of NHTSA campaign number: 24v608000 (engine and engine cooling, electrical system). The contact was unaware that the vehicle needed to be taken to an authorized BMW dealer for the recall repair. The vehicle remained at the dealer unrepaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The contact was referred to a BMW dealer for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 107,000.
The contact owns a 2011 BMW 528i. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 23v707000 (engine and engine cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted, and it was confirmed that the part was not available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had experienced the failure causing a screeching sound coming from the engine compartment. The check engine warning light was illuminated, and the vehicle was driving rough. The failure mileage was 125,000. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
Engine failure due to faulty timing chain or oil pump while driving.
BMW 528i xdrive purchased new in 2013. Currently has 103k miles. While driving on hi-way at 65 mph, received "low oil pressure" alarm on instrument panel. Pulled on hi-way, engine shut-down. Initial diagnosis by local mechanic is timing chain failure. Have read countless blogs about this being a recurring problem with the plastic timing chain degrading, 90% leading to complete engine failure - repair of which far exceeds value of car. Went to BMW dealership which didn't even bother to read the class action reports I presented. They had done some service work a year or so ago with no mention that this is a rather common issue. Said they would repair at my cost and that's all they can do. Ridiculous the lack of ownership and responsibility that BMW is taking. Hopefully if enough people report BMW's behavior, an oversight agency will have enough stroke to force BMW to deal with this.
I am 70 years old, driving in a high traffic area and my vehicle stopped! I brought it into the dealership and was told it was a timing chain issue and it needs to be replaced. The repair cost is very expensive. There was a lawsuit settled about fauly timing chains in 2021. My vehicle is not covered by it, not due to mileage but age. It is dangerous for a car to suddenly stop in the middle of heavy traffic. I had to call the police to stay behind my car with lights flashing so it was not hit. Louisiana was under an extreme heat warning at this time. The car could not be started and I had to wait for a wreaker, in extreme heat. BMW did not recall these vehicles named in this suit. No engine light came on prior to this incident. I travel long distances to larger cities for healthcare. I am thankful this did not happen on an interstate with six lanes. In my opinion, recalls should have been sent out to owners. It puts drivers at risk in areas of high traffic.
The car is from 2013. BMW USA does not want to cover the warranty due to the defective turbo feed oil line, part that it was replacing and I never received information from BMW about it. A few days ago I called and they told me that the car was manufactured in 2012 and had its first service in December 2012 I do not apply for the 10-year or 120,000-mile warranty. Really???rs absurd. They should check this out. My car has been smoking for more than 2 years and I never knew about it. Please help with the warranty.
The 2013 BMW 528xi had impeccable maintenance up to this catastrophic event. The mileage was just over 80,000 miles at the time of detonation. The four-cylinder n20's plastic timing chain guide experienced catastrophic failure upon placing the car in drive, obstructing the oil pump's ability to lubricate, scorching the cylinders, and destroying the engine. BMW of north America has covertly settled a class action lawsuit regarding this issue (n20 timing chain guide), which caused this incident on my 528xi. However, no public notices were issued to current customers. Additionally, timing chains are a lifetime component; their guides should be as well unless otherwise specified in the manual. BMW of north America either installed inferior components unknowingly that do not meet their strict oem specifications or engineered a timing chain bomb that they knowingly are aware of and are liable for all damages associated with this engineered nightmare.
The engine timing chain failed due to faulty plastic guide around the timing chain which gets brittle and brakes in the engine causing catastrophic engine failure. Our safety and the safety of others on the parkway was put at high risk because the car goes into some safe mode and puts itself into park!! this three lane parkway has no shoulder to pull over on at all! so we were blocking the entire lane during rush hour traffic in nyc!! this problem was confirmed by the BMW dealership where the car is now, and they are fully aware of this issue with certain model Bmws produced between 2012 thru 2015. The vehicle was inspected by BMW certified mechanics at their service station. The warning light came on a min before the car shut itself down on this very dangerous stretch of highway!!.
Error codes : 1. E11480 no message (alive counter safety 0xd7) receiver instrument cluster transmitter airbag 2. E11482 message (alive counter safety 0xd7) not current receiver instrument cluster transmitter airbag 3. B7f685 under voltage . 4. E114db instrument panel: demand based service message, message from cbs subscriber (bbv) missing 5. E114dc instrument panel: demand based service message, message from cbs subscriber (bbh) missing 6. E11421 message demand based service message from cbs user has failed drivetrain malfuction when drive sport mode the trunk always open for no reason when unlock the car.
The contact owns a 2013 BMW 528i. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the check engine warning light remained illuminated. Additionally, the odor of burning plastic was present inside the vehicle. The contact stated that smoke was coming from the engine compartment. The contact attached a diagnostic device to the vehicle and the reading indicated a heater malfunction. No further information was available. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but no assistance was offered. The local dealer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 130,000.
Driving as normal, and came to stoplight at intersection of busy highway. Stopped for red light, and call stalled, and couldn't be restarted. Just as the car shut off, I got a drivetrain malfunction warning. Had to have a tow company tow vehicle to my BMW dealer 50+ miles away. Being at a busy intersection at night, and not being able to move the car (couldn't get it out of park), it put the driver at risk until assistance arrived because oncoming traffic wasn't prepared for a vehicle in the middle of the road, and not moving (even with 4-way flashers on) and having the driver stand on the roadside would have been just as dangerous. After running diagnostics, dealer stated timing belt snapped and caused engine damage. Cost of repair would be $13,000 which exceeded the value of the car; ended up buying new car with basically no trade-in value on this car and no financial assistance from BMW. Interesting enough, when I took delivery of my new vehicle, my sales person said there were 2 additional vehicles in their repair shop with the same issue.
Driving on highway got low oil pressure light followed by drivetrain malfunction. Engine failed, managed to pull over on shoulder because road was deserted. Could have been rear ended or crashed into another vehicle if any cars were on road. Also dangerous to be stranded on the shoulder of a deserted dark highway at night. Towed to BMW dealer and they diagnosed premature oil pump failure causing timing chain assembly to break. Said I needed an engine replacement now. This car was inspected by a mechanic who also performed an oil service change just 385 miles prior to this event. Since vehicle has over 100,000 miles, BMW na is offering no financial assistance at all. Manufacturer placed me in an extremely dangerous and possibly fatal situation due to design flaws and defects in materials.
My BMW suddenly started making a weird sound. I took it to BMW and they could not tell me exactly what happened. However they told me that a new engine was needed. I contacted headquarters and they referred me back to the local BMW. The local BMW said that there's no way for them to know what caused the engine problem but they were recommending a new engine. I had no choice but to purchase a new engine, still to this day I have not idea why the engine failed. I strongly believe its something they are failing to admit is wrong with their engine that causes problems.
Drivetrain malfunction, car is shutting off while in drive and vehicle is not safe to drive. Vehicle is only at 66k miles.
I currently have a 2013 528i BMW with less 90k miles and less than 8 years old. I was driving the vehicle and all of a sudden I received a drivetrain malfunction that abruptly stopped the car. I got to find out that the engine was completely done. I called BMW to see if there was any recall on that issue, I also found out that many BMW owners have had the same issue and had to get the engine replaced. If I was on the freeway this would have been a major traffic incident accident,.
While driving a message of drivetrain malfunction pops up on the idrive system. Spark plugs have been changed along with regular oil changes. Happens occasionaly then I shut the car off and lock then unlock and restart. Sometimes the message will pop back up and sometimes it does not.
Iissue with the timing chain which I understand to be a common problem with many BMW's drivetrain malfunction warning light came on and I had a loss of power along with low oil pressure warning light. Took the car the a BMW dealership for a diagnostic and the results were the timing chain needed replacement along with cam adjuster solenoids and phasers. Estimated cost almost $5k. Car is currently sitting in my driveway for the past 40 days. My understanding is that this is/has happened to many BMW owners of 2012-2015 cars.