2006 BMW X5 problems
NHTSA has received 221 complaints about the 2006 BMW X5, and 40% of them involve air bags. Next are brakes (14%) and seats (11%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 221 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Air bags 40% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 6 and 17
- Injuries and deaths
- 16 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 85,000 miles 178 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 | 13 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 10 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 29 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 31 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 36 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 24 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 21 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 6 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 3 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 3 |
| 200k+ miles | 2 |
What the data shows
Of the 178 complaints that include odometer readings, half describe a problem before roughly 85,000 miles. For air bags specifically, the median reported mileage is about 70,000 miles (64 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 6 complaints mention a crash; 17 complaints mention a fire; 16 injuries reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2006 ranks 14th most-complained-about out of 27 model years of the BMW X5 with enough data (56 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 2 safety recall campaigns.
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.
Tl*the contact owns a 2006 BMW x5. The contact stated that the electric seat heater on the driver's side caught fire. While at a stop light, he noticed that the seat was smoking and his leg was burned. The seat heater was activated prior to noticing the failure. He took the vehicle to the dealer, where it currently remains. The manufacturer stated that they were aware of the issue; however, the failure was a result of the risk of having seat heaters. They also stated that they would repair the vehicle for free.
Started x5 up and turned on driver 's seat warmer. Let car warm up for 5 minutes and commenced to drive away. One minute down the road I smell smoke like an electrical fire. I feel my left hip getting hot at the same time. I stop car and look down and see a dull red glow from the seat. Immediately turn off heater and get out of car. The driver seat warmer had shorted and burned a hole through the leather seat along the left side of the seat. How hot was it!
Heated seats were getting hotter the past couple of uses...until today when I warmed up the car (approximately 3 minutes). I was putting my daughter in her safety seat in the rear passenger side. When I opened the door, the cabin of the vehicle was filled with thick white smoke. I removed my daughter and proceed to ascertain where the smoke was coming from. There was a swirling funnel of smoke coming from the front driver side.
1) the air bag light does not go off. It stays on. Air bags engage but light is just as bright as can be. 2) ignition switch security latch does not release. Have to smack steering wheel after turning off alarm to place key into ignition slot.