general problems of the 2008 BMW 535

Station wagon lift gate has severe wiring failures between the lift gate and body. This problem is well known throught the blog community. Broken wires cause failures, and electrical danger, to the rear lighting system that includes brake, running, back up, and turn signals. Also effected is the rear wiper, defroster, and operation access to open and close the lift gate. Tailgate failure would prohibit emergency opening and access to spare tire and fuses. I have already spent $3,000 on one harness replacement (dealer) and am looking at another $3,000 to repair (dealer) more wiring that will restore the brake/running lights on one side (failed state inpection). The internal lighting diagnostics did not indicate any lighting problems or warning. Broken wires could also cause failures to some or all of the entire electrical system. Very dangerous.

The vehicle's engine caught fire approximately 13 1/2 hours after last having been driven. I parked it in my driveway at 9pm on April 15, 2022. I was alerted to a fire in the engine by my neighbor at 10:30am on April 16, 2022. The entire engine was engulfed in flames, melting all of the plastic components. It burned through my hood and affected every part of the engine. We were able to get the fire out with a garden hose before it spread to the house and my parents' two other vehicles parked next to it. No one was burned while putting out the fire, but several neighbors and family members did breathe in the toxic smoke. 911 was called and the fire department confirmed the fire was out. The driveway under the vehicle has burn damage, but we haven't moved the vehicle yet to see the extent of it. The check engine light had been on since purchase. The vehicle had been maintained by a mechanic specializing in import motors. He was unable to determine the cause of the check engine alert, and said it was a problem that BMW has with several of their models of this era. The vehicle was only covered under liability insurance, so our insurance company has not required an inspection. It has not yet been inspected by a mechanic or any other entity. The vehicle is available for inspection if requested.

For over the past year, the (small) engine light has been repeatedly & constantly going on/off. I've had sensors, spark plugs, tubes & everything under the sun replaced and have taken (or towed in most cases) the car to many different auto repair shops for multiple quotes & repairs. The latest problem is the small engine light came on & the car was stuck in park and would not engage in drive or reverse. It wouldn't shift. After turning the car off and then on again, the engine light was completely gone & the car was fine to drive/reverse. After driving the car a few blocks, the engine malfunction/reduce speed light came on, the power was drastically reduced & I almost got hit by a dump truck. In 2008, I bought my BMW brand new because I wanted no car issues because I am not a mechanic. Every since I bought this car I have had nothing but repeated & different issues that no mechanic can identify. And it all started with the high-pressure fuel pump which was replaced three times (hpfp). After the third hpfp was replaced, and the car was in the shop literally for three months straight, I got a lawyer involved and BMW corp apologized & said I could have a choice 1/ getting a different car that they picked out (a 535i not the xi I bought because of snow and ice conditions) 2/ they cut me a check for a few thousand and told me to shut up and I could never speak of what happened or be part of future lawsuits or class actions. I've never felt safe driving my 2008 BMW (116k miles on it over 12. 5 years) every BMW owner that bought a BMW between the range of years knows exactly what I am talking about the constant and never-ending issues that all start with the hpfp & escalate from there. Repair shops can't fix the issues & BMW covers up. Nhtsa hasn't done anything about this massive BMW issue affecting the vast majority of owners. Just google it!.

Driving family down the highway around 65 mph. I loose all power in the cabin. The car starts throwing all warning lights, abs, steering,sway control, transmition, etc. Engine still running would not shift into neutral had to use e brake to pull over then it wanted to keep going had to turn car off to stop it. Called tow truck sent family home.

Wednesday July 25th, 2018, as I was getting ready to leave work, I started my car which was parked in my company's underground garage and the interior became engulfed with smoke. I turned the car off and got out to check the engine. There was no smoke coming from the under the hood of the car. I got back into the car and started it again and more smoke entered into the car. I turned the car off and went back to my office to call aaa. Approximately 20-30 minutes later I went back to the car and immediately smelled smoke in the garage. As I approached the car it was completely filled with smoke but I could tell that the both the back and front window shields and the sunroof were scorched. My key fob did not work so I had to open the car with the key. With the door open the thick smoke escaped and then I was able to see the damage to the car as a result of a fire. I have attached some pictures so you can see. I did some research and found that there have been some instances where this has happened to other BMW owners in the past and that this was a course of action to take in letting you know.

Vehicle was previously driven the day before drove perfect no problems, the day after the vehicle when you put in drive or reverse it would automatically go back to park on it's own and would not move the vehicle was parked in the drive way as normal. I had vehicle towed to BMW they diagnosed as the mechatronic sleeve needed replacing they charged me 1300 dollars my wife picked the car up and drove 50 miles and the car started doing the same previous behavior I contacted BMW they had me to tow back to their dealership a second time both tows cost me 125 dollars each the car was then diagnosed as needing a 9000 transmission and I was told the previous repair that I paid for would not be credited toward the new transmission I'm outraged. My service advisor is john ard at tom williams BMW in irondale alabama.

My 2008 BMW 535i is suffering from the same passenger restraint system malfunction error as the earlier BMW models. Nhtsa information I've read indicates that the passenger airbag will not deploy in the event of a substantial front end collision, which poses a significant risk to passengers. BMW only recalled model years 2004 - 2006, however. This is not an isolated incident to those years. My 2008 BMW 535i throws the error every time I drive with or without a passenger. Both the passenger side seat belt light and the passenger side airbag light remain illuminated any time the key is in the ignition. What is being done about more recent BMW models?.

New battery install caused power surge damaging electrical system.

Driving a 2008 BMW 535i at highway speed, approximately 50 mph, when, with no warning, large red warning light appears, "engine overheated - turn off engine. " light came on suddenly and engine died to 5 mph and then stopped running. Barely able to get to the side of the road and in great danger from trucks bearing down on a mountainous curving California highway. Discovered the problem was an immediate failure of the electric water pump which causes sudden engine loss placing the driver in grave danger. This problem has been reported by many drivers to BMW (see online forums) and they know this is a serious problem but have not issued recall notices on the electric water pumps on their vehicles. They previously issued recalls on the high pressure fuel pumps but this also requires a recall as the car abruptly dies at highway speed.

Pressing the shift (transmission) selector into the reverse position, causes the shifters electrical ribbon cable to get pinched and the lights in the shifter and sport button fail to work anymore. Repositioning of this ribbon cable or using a different insulation method would solve this problem.

While driving about 35 mph on a busy street at rush hour I prepared to make a right turn by indicating. The fast turn single flashing started and the computer system in my 2008 535i said rear turn single malfunction. I slowed to my the turn and the person behind me slammed on their brakes and swerved to avoid hitting me and almost crashed into the person next them. I didn't realize why this happened, so I pulled over to check my lighting system and realized that the right rear lights weren't functioning properly. I opened the rear brake compartment and smelled burning melted plastic. I disconnected the brake light connector and found that it was melted. I searched online and found that there is a NHTSA recall for this problem for my year car. When I went to beverly hills BMW I was turned away. They told me that there wasn't a recall that covered my car. They were very rude about the whole and basically told me that I'd have to deal with myself and cover the costs. . Read more...

As I was driving home on the highway my engine overheated very quickly. It went into serious limp mode and slowed down to under 30mph in the middle lane of a wide freeway. I let it cool for over 20 minutes, and it overheated within 1 minute of turning it back on. I had to have it towed to my mechanic and he determined the water pump had failed. I started doing some research online and it turns out to be a very common issue. I read many many complaints of people having electrical water pump failures before 75,000 miles. Without a water pump you must have the car towed and its a very expensive fix. BMW/Mini have had many cars with problematic water pumps in the past and they never do anything about it. This issue needs to result in a recall.

I just had to have my water pump and thermostat replaced on my 2008 535i. I was told that it happens so often, they keep the part on the shelf! are there really no recalls on this problem?? also, my right tail light shorted out. I asked the shop why. . . He said this also happens all the time. The wires fry! not cool. I really think someone needs to investigate this. When I was told they replace them all of the time, I was shocked. That cost me $1102. 62 to fix. The guy who towed me said he makes several trips a week for people with the same problem.

Right rear brake light failure indicator on dash board turned on. Inspecting the light bulbs, all seemed to be in working condition. Fuses were also good. Found the ground wire pin and socket on the bulb holder burned out pretty severely. Problem appears to be intermittent as the indicator would turn on and off before eventually staying on permanently. Also, indicator would show turn signal failure at first, then brake light, then right back up light, then all three. Eventually it settled in on brake light only. Potential for accidents related to turn signals not working and warning other drivers of braking and/or turning. Also potential for an electrical fire beginning in the rear of the vehicle close to where the fuel filler cap is located. Checking online forums for a repair, it appears to be a common problem, and the subject of an earlier recall on other BMW models.

Wires inside headlights have insulation crumbling off. Fire risk. So many BMW's have this problem. A clear issue that BMW knows about.

While driving, the entire electrical panel [speedometer, radio, display screen, etc. ] begin to click on/off each time reappearing with appeared to be everything but english. Soon to follow, I received a warning light indicating "engine overheated", "engine power was being reduced", and "to stop the vehicle" when possible. Unfortunately, I was in the middle of traffic and could not immediately pull off to the shoulder. The vehicle didn't travel very far before complete engine power was lost due to the possibility of "fire risk" as indicated on the panel.