Owners have filed 32 complaints on the BMW 535xi, covering 2011–2011. The system named most often is Tires (8 reports). Worst years by volume: 2011; cleanest: 2011. On average the car was 2.9 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on BMW 535xi
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 32 535xi complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Tires 8 Read
I purchased a 2011 bmw 535i xdrive vehicle with goodyear eagle ls runflats 245/40 r19. The car has only 19,000 miles and from the day that I purchased it (in feb 2011), I have had to replace the front tires 8 times and recently the rear tires 2 times. A total of 10 tire replacements. Some replacements were due to…
The automobile has the stock wheels/tires that came with the m535 xi (goodyear eagle ls runflats 245/40 r19). After receiving the vehicle back from bmw service, I noticed that the front right tire (inflated to 35 PSI) has a bulge on the exterior sidewall
At 6000 miles car displayed three tires with "sidewall bubbles" in them. Dealer replaced three tires at cost to me. At <12,000 miles later one of those replaced had a "sidewall bubble" which again was replaced at my cost. I fear there is a dangerous situation with this car using these tires (goodyear rft) waiting to…
Power Train 6 Read
After bringing my car to bmw of buena park to take care of a couple of recalls, a couple of miles after I get on the freeway at about 60 mph the car lost power and I heard the emergency sound on my dashboard, the emergency light came on and a message on my screen saying ' drive moderately, maximum drive train output…
While driving drive train light comes on, made appointment and was informed that the left cv joint boot was torn and leaking. Had it fixed on october 2016, paid over $1700. In september 2017 drive train light comes on again, was informed that the left and the right cv joint boots were torn/leaking had it repaired and…
It has acceleration issues all of the time. Does not accelerate as it should, instead it jerks. When at a stop sign or light and looking to accelerate it would jerk making it unsafe. I have almost hit multiple vehicle ecause of this
Engine 4 Read
I was driving 60 mph when the engine seized. The rpms fell to 0 and the steering wheel became very stiff. I pulled on the side of the road tried to start the car, nothing happened and I had to call the tow truck. None of the lights came on. Everything looked fine and very misterious. After the mechanics disassembled…
The contact owns a 2011 bmw 535xi. After the vehicle had been parked for three weeks, it failed to start. The vehicle was taken to the dealer (erhard bmw bloomfield, 1845 s telegraph rd, bloomfield hills, mi 48302, (248) 834-7788) where it was diagnosed that the vanose housing bolt fractured inside the engine. The…
Malfunction or failure of thermostat and water pump, resulted in significantly increased coolant temperature and system pressure. Indicating a critical overheating condition and my car stopped in the middle of the road and I almost got in a rear end crash. I had to be towed to a shop and they replaced the failed…
Wheels 4 Read
I purchased a 2011 bmw in september 2014. I have had 4 good year run flat tires with bubbles. I replaced two and when the next two formed bubbles I decided to replace them with another brand. I had firestone give me the last two bubble tires so I would have evidence of the failure. The cost to me at this time is $…
While driving on an interstate I had a blowout of my left front tire , goodyear 245/40 r 19 98vxl eagle ls2. It is a run flat tire. After driving 40 miles, the tire disentegrated, and I need a tow truck to get me off the highway. After getting a new tire, less than one month later and less that 2000 miles on the "new…
I just ordered my 3rd replacement tire due to a bubble on the sidewall of my front tire. I encountered a pothole on I-90 (mass pike) at approx. 70mph between exits 3 and 2, felt the bump, and then and felt the familiar wobbling that I experienced the last time this happened. I knew before I even stopped at the rest…
Fuel/propulsion System 3 Read
I was driving my bmw 535 xi on interstate highway. All of a sudden cars gave a message of "drivetrain malfunction: contact your service centre". After that car's power reduced. After that whenever I apply brake, the car ignition stopped and car puts itself in neutral. I had to start the car around 8 times to reach…
I have an open recall campaign with my vehicle's in tank fuel pump. It is been a nine months since the recall was initial identified and my vehicle has not been fixed by bmw. I called them up and brought the vehicle to the dealership but have to bring back the vehicle un-repair due to the fact that they don't want to…
The contact owns a 2011 bmw 535xi. While driving various speeds, the vehicle suddenly stalled. The dealer diagnosed that the intake fuel pump was faulty and needed to be replaced. The contact was informed that the failure was related to NHTSA campaign number: 16V746000 (fuel system, gasoline), but the parts were not…
Seats 2 Read
My 2 year-old son's leg was fractured when the driver's side power seat malfunctioned while adjusting the seat. The seat went back into the farthest position without stopping fracturing my son's left leg who was in a forward facing car seat in back. The vehicle was parked at the time of the incident. The power seat…
The memory power seat in my car malfunctioned and went back without stopping causing a fracture to my 2 1/2 year old son's leg who was sitting in the car seat directly behind me. The vehicle was parked at the time of the incident
Air Bags 1 Read
I was driving at around 20 mph with a friend of mine sitting on the passenger seats and the car system tells me "passenger restraint system malfunction. Continue to wear seat belt." I checked online and its because sensors for the air bag system are malfunctioning. This has been a problem in all bmws since 2006. I…
Service Brakes 1 Read
Car was stolen from state of north carolina from my resident. Car is registered to the state of south carolina with south carolina plates. The car is now in new york area, stratford, ct area and norwalk, ct area- driver took car out my possession and jump states with my spare key that was inside my home. Never gave…
535xi years to avoid — and the clean ones
Complaints per model year. More reports usually means more cars on the road as well as more trouble, so read the crash and fire columns alongside the count.
| Model year | Complaints | Top system | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Air Bags,seats | — | — |
The same model year, different builds
Every complaint carries the first 11 characters of the VIN — plant, year, body and engine. That is a production series, and complaints are spread across them very unevenly.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Distinct production series | 14 |
| Average complaints per series | 2.3 |
| Worst single series | 6 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 2.9 years |
A model average of 2.3 hides a worst series at 6. Enter a VIN above to see the numbers for that exact build instead of the model as a whole.
Owners reported these. Find out if yours is one of them.
- Complaints matched to the exact production run, not just the model
- What the car is worth given what tends to fail on it
- The original window sticker and factory options
- Full research report as a PDF for the pre-purchase inspection
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- No ads, no tracking — and much more
How we count
Every figure here comes from complaints owners filed with NHTSA — 1,100,006 of them, covering 1,982 models built between 1981 and 2026.
A complaint is an unverified report: someone wrote down what happened to their car. It is not a confirmed defect and not a recall. What makes the volume useful is the pattern — when thousands of owners of the same build describe the same failure, that is a signal no marketing brochure will give you.
Two things we do that the source does not. First, we compute the age of the car at the moment of failure from the incident date and the model year. Second, we group complaints by the first 11 characters of the VIN — the production series — so a bad plant run does not disappear into a model-wide average.
Frequently asked questions
What are the worst years for the 535xi?
By complaint volume, 2011 drew the most owner reports. Bear in mind that popular years put more cars on the road, so check the crash and fire columns too.
Which 535xi years are the cleanest?
2011 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the BMW 535xi have?
32 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 2011–2011. Of those, 0 describe a crash and 0 a fire.
Are these complaints verified?
No. They are unverified reports from owners. NHTSA publishes them as filed and investigates only a fraction. The value is in the pattern, not in any single report.
Can I check complaints for one specific car?
Yes — enter its VIN above. We match the first 11 characters, which identify the plant, year, body and engine, so you get complaints on that exact production series rather than the whole model.