general problems of the 2008 BMW X5

Pcv my safety of my self and my 5 yr 17 yr I use my BMW X5 to take my kids or doctors and school and I work too and something need to be happen about this bc my family are at risk of getting caught on fire when iam starting up the car black smoke or white smoke comes out and when iam driving and people who are behind in they car get smoke out my lots of smoke that comes from my car in back and yes ita a recall on my car manufactuer no warning just smoke and driving very and had it look at then I was told.

While vehicle is running transmission malfunction code comes on and vehicle instantly loses power. Almost been rear ended on highway several times. Spent 1000 recently on transmission parts. Researched and found out this is a soft ware issue and BMW has not acknowledged although thousands of reports have been filed-some by owners with only 1000 miles on them this has been an ongoing issue that BMW has ignored.

While driving on the highway, the dashboard give error that the transmission has failed. Car loses power and would not accelerate. Pulled over to the sign and turned off engine. Subsequently, engine will not start or crank as if battery power is list. Engine can be restarted with a jumper or if the car is left for about 30 minute to an hour, the engine will start without a jumper.

Engine, acceleration shutdown (on interstate highway - 2/26/16); monitor display false message of "warning: engine hot; overheating. " engine not hot or overheated; cool to touch. Coolant level full. Car disabled. Car gave 45 seconds at full acceleration before sounding high pitched fan noise, then displaying "warning message" on center monitor, then losing pedal acceleration power on extremely busy interstate 87 south highway at night, with intermittent emergency shoulder access. Dangerous to maintain maneuverability to safety with high velocity trucks and cars barreling alongside vehicle. Suspected part defect is "electronic temperature gauge" sensor, causing car to instantly disable when it isn't hot. Car is seldom driven and under 40,000 miles. . Read more...

In October of 2015 while making a right turn very slowly into a one lane drive thru, my BMW X5 accelerated climbed up a 2 foot wall that was on the drivers side rode the front drivers side wheel upon the wall. I tried to break and pull the hand brake the car would not stop. I turned the steering wheel to the right the car hopped off the wall on to the ground and I turned off the car. The car just accelerated so fast and hard my sister and I could not believe how it climbed the tile wall with one wheel and came down to the ground. Now I had just got the car back from the dealership 5 days earlier when they replaced the water pump and replaced the 2 front tires and did a wheel alignment a $2500. 00 job. It was very scary luckily there was no people or another car close by. I immediately called the dealership and took it in the next morning. I explained what happened I felt that the car had a malfunction with the accelerator it made the car go so fast and hard. It wasn't just a crash into the wall it climbed the wall. Of course BMW said the engineer said there is nothing wrong with the brakes or drive shaft? what gets to me is that I just got the car back from the local dealership. I feel like the power of the vehicle was so strong and powerful there was no way that it could hop on the wall like that and not just crash straight into the wall. Oh side note the very next morning 10-12-2015 my sister heard on abc morning news that a BMW SUV just ran into a glass window at a store the car accelerated on it's own!.

When I was driving around 30 mph and about to merge onto the highway, an orange warning sign came up that the engine was overheating and then immediately afterward a red sign came up stating that the engine was overheated and I could hear the loud noise from the fan. Immediately after that the vehicle stalled and I had to pull over to the shoulder. I waited for about 15 min. And when I restarted the vehicle, the fan was still loud and the red engine overheated sign came up again. I then had the vehicle towed to a repair facility. They diagnosed the issue as a defective electric water pump and said that the water pump and thermostat need to be replaced. The estimate for repair including parts and labor is around $1700. 00. The vehicle is beyond the 4 year, 50000 miles warranty and apparently there are no recalls for this issue. Searching the internet, I am seeing numerous complaints from 2008 BMW X5 owners who experienced this exact same issue and had the same diagnosis. This is a very serious safety issue - when driving on a busy highway and suddenly losing all power in the vehicle, very few drivers would be lucky enough to pull over safely and avoid a serious accident. I request that the NHTSA consider this serious safety issue from a recall perspective due to the potential harm it can do to the lives of motorists who may not be lucky enough to avoid a serious crash. I believe the manufacturer should be held accountable for the basic safety of the vehicle. They should the needful to help owners fix the issue proactively, before it causes harm to more motorists.

Right rear sunroof drain did not drain properly causing electrical malfunction including failure of all safety and dash gauges - (including speedometer, gas gauge) on interstate at freeway speed. Repairs exceed $1,500. 00.