2015 BMW 535I problems
NHTSA has received 37 complaints about the 2015 BMW 535I, and 19% of them involve electrical system. After that come engine (16%) and air bags (11%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 37 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Electrical system 19% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 2 and 0
- Injuries and deaths
- 0 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 59,000 miles 16 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 1 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 2 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 6 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 2 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 1 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 0 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 4 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 0 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 0 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 0 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Among the 16 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 59,000 miles.
Safety-related details: 2 complaints mention a crash. Its complaints are less severe on average than those of 88% of model years in our database.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2015 ranks 8th most-complained-about out of 8 model years of the BMW 535I with enough data (9 complaints in that window).
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
December 29th 2020, my wife was turning left while pulling into a parking space in a shopping mall when the car suddenly surged forward even though she had her foot on the brake. She plowed into the car parked in the space on the right and pushed that car into the car to its right. The air bags on the steering wheel, left and right side and driver's knee bag all deployed. State farm has just declared the car a total loss.
Driving at 50MPH with active cruise activated. Vehicle in front was slowing down. I applied brakes to slow down and all of a sudden the brakes freeze and lock up. I had to overpower the brakes and travelled a few hundred yards to find a safe place to pull over. Car towed to dealer. They replaced the stability control module and the damaged brakes and said the vehicle is safe to drive.
The contact owns a 2015 BMW 535I. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, a steering wheel image was displayed on the instrument panel. The computer then informed the contact to carefully drive the vehicle to a dealer for service. The contact stated that excessive force was needed to steer the vehicle during the failure. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where a diagnostic test was performed. The contact was informed that the electrical steering rack system was defective and needed to be replaced.
The contact owns a 2015 BMW 535I. The contact stated that while driving at 30 MPH, the engine overheated. The engine temperature gauge was between 250 and 300 degrees. The contact linked the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V608000 (Engine and Engine Cooling, Electrical System). The vehicle was taken to the local dealer and was diagnosed with a water pump connector failure. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline.