2006 BMW 5 Series Powertrain & Transmission Problems

MY AIRBAG LIGHT CAME ON FOR NO REASON ONE DAY AND WILL NOT GO OFF I INITIALLY GOT A RECALL PAPER FOR IT BUT WAS UNABLE TO TAKE IT TO THE SHOP I VAN NO LONGER FIND THE PAPER BUT THE TRANSMISSION IS TRASH

WHILE REPLACING PARKING LIGHT BULB I FOUND INSULATION TO BULB HOLDER FALLING OFF, LIKELY DUE TO HEAT INSIDE HEADLIGHT ASSEMBLY. GIVEN THE BRITTLE INSULATION FALLING OFF, A SHORT COULD EASILY HAVE OCCURRED. THE INNER CV JOINT ON THE RIGHT DRIVE WAS FOUND TO BE WITHOUT GREASE. WITH NO GREASE FITTING OR MEANS OF INSPECTION, THE AXLE COULD HAVE FROZEN, CAUSING STABILITY ISSUES.

WHILE DRIVING ON THE INTERSTATE WITH SPEED LIMIT 70 MPH, A WARNING MESSAGE APPEARED TRANSMISSION FAILURE & REDUCE SPEED. THE CAR SLOWED DOWN ITSELF WHILE ONGOING TRAFFIC APPROACHED EXTREMELY FAST. MY CAR WOULD NOT ACCELERATE TO THE 5TH OR 6TH GEAR. I HAD TO I GET OFF THE INTERSTATE AS QUICKLY AS I COULD. IN A PANIC I CALLED AAA TO TOW MY CAR. THINKING THERE WAS TRULY SOMETHING WRONG WITH MY TRANSMISSION, ALTHOUGH I KEPT UP WITH MAINTENANCE. NEEDLESS TO SAY THIS MESSAGE THAT POPPED UP WAS INCORRECT. THERE WAS NOTHING WRONG WITH MY TRANSMISSION.

MY AIRBAG LIGHT IS ON AND MY TRANSMISSION HAS AN ISSUE AS IF IT NEEDS TO BE REPLACED AFTER RESEARCH I FOUND OUT THAT MECHATRONICS AND OTHER COMPONENTS TO BE AN ISSUE FOR INSTANCE IF YOUR TRYING TO PASS YOUR CAR STALLS AND SAYS TRANSMISSION FAILURE AFTER SHUTOFF MESSAGE DISAPPEARS CAR WILL GO IN LIMP MODE AND CAR STARTS OUT IN 2ND GEAR INSTEAD OF 1ST AND 1ST GEAR WILL ALSO LOCK ITSELF.....THIS IS DANGEROUS FOR A SUPPOSED HIGH END WELL BUILT PERFORMANCE VEHICLE. TRANNY HAS NO ISSUES COMPUTER DOES THAT CAUSES SHUTTER AND STALL LIMP MODE NEARLY COULD HAVE DIED

BOUGHT FROM MANAGER AT BMW SERVICE DEPARTMENT W/89,920 ON 10/25/13. 2 OVERHEATED BROKE DOWN ON 11/29/13 ON JANUARY 7 RARELY PARK IN DRIVEWAY, PULL UP ON DRIVEWAY WITH AN INCLINE AT MY HOME. CAR WAS PLACED IN PARK BUT SORTA DID NOT CATCH GEAR RIGHT, FELT A ROLLBACK SO I ENGAGED MY E-BRAKE. DID NOT WANT TO RELEASE KEY, SO I GET STUFF AT HOUSE AND RESUMED INSPECTION OF VEHICLE, CAR DID NOT START. SO I ATTEMPTED TO REMOVE OUT OF PARK, TO NO AVAIL, THEN AFTER OFF AND ON ATTEMPTS IT CHANGED GEARS. SCREEN SAID GEAR CHANGE WITHOUT BRAKE POSSIBLE. TOOK IT IN THEY SAID HAD TO REPLACE GUIDE PLATE AND SOLENOID FOR 1250.00 I HAVE 4 KIDS AND A WIFE I LOVE, WE ARE ALWAYS IN VEHICLE, I FEEL MY FAMILIES SAFETY IS VIOLATED FOR BEING EXPOSED TO A POTENTIAL DANGEROUS EPISODE. DID RESEARCH PARKING PAWL GUIDE PLATE HAS RECALL. EXACT TO MY PROBLEM DEALERSHIP ACKNOWLEDGES IT BUT CLAIMS THAT MY CAR AIN'T BECAUSE RECALLS ON V8 MODELS. ONLY HAD CAR FOR SHORT TIME FRAME. FEEL SCAMMED, PAID 14600 W/ TAXES FROM BANK LOAN AND NOW I'M STUCK WITH A LEMON! HELP!!??

I BOUGHT THE CAR IT HAD AN OIL LEAK, RADIATOR LEAK, DEVELOPED AN AIR BAG MALFUNCTION, THE ENGINE STOPPED RUNNING, TAR IS ACCUMULATING ON TOP OF THE SUNROOF EVERY TIME I OPEN IT, THE HEATER FAN MAKES NOISE, THE TRANSMISSION MAKES NOISE AFTER FOUR ATTEMPTS IT IS STILL LEAKING OIL. ALL OF MY FRIENDS WHO OWN BMW'S HAVE ALSO HAD AIR BAG MALFUNCTIONS. NONE WERE PART OF THE RECALL, ALL PAID $1,300.00 TO HAVE IT FIXED. BMW SHOULD HAVE RECALLED ALL OF THEM. THE PURPOSE OF RECALLING SOME IS TO AVOID A TOTAL RECALL. THEY ARE BUILDING THEIR CARS WITH INFERIOR PARTS SO THAT THEY DO NOT LAST FOR MORE THAN 60,0000 BEFORE MAJOR PROBLEMS OCCUR. ONE OF MY FRIENDS HAS SPENT OVER $10,000 ON REPAIRS TO HIS 2004 X3. *JS

THE TRANSMISSION HAS A HARSH 2-1 SHIFT DOWN TO STOP. THIS HAPPENS AT 5 MPH AND WHEN THE TRANSMISSION IS SHIFTING FROM SECOND GEAR TO FIRST GEAR. SOMETIMES IT IS MILD SOMETIMES IT IS VERY ROUGH AS TO MOVE YOU AND YOUR HEAD IN THE SEAT, AS IF ANOTHER CAR TAPPED INTO THE BACK OF THE CAR. SOMETIMES THE TRANSMISSION WILL JERK WHILE SITTING AT A TRAFFIC LIGHT OR STOP. I SEE REFERENCE TO THIS PHENOMENON ALL OVER THE WEB BUT WHEN I APPROACHED A BMW SERVICE WRITER AND EXPLAINED THIS TO HIM, HE WOULD NOT ACKNOWLEDGE THAT HE WAS EVEN AWARE OF IT. HE WOULD ONLY SAY THAT THEY COULD LOOK AT MY CAR BUT THEIR POLICY IS THAT THEY DO NOT REPAIR TRANSMISSIONS, THEY ONLY REPLACE THEM. SO IF THERE IS ANY TRANSMISSION OPERATION OUT OF THE NORM, IT WILL BE DEEMED FOR REPLACEMENT. DID I STILL WANT THEM TO LOOK AT IT? A NEW TRANSMISSION FOR MY CAR IS $8,000.00 AND ALMOST ANOTHER $700.00 TO PROGRAM THE COMPUTER TO MATE THE NEW TRANSMISSION WITH THE CAR. BLUE BOOK ON MY CAR IS $9,000.00, THEREFORE YOU COULD SAY IT'S TOTALED! BMW NEEDS TO STAND BEHIND THIS PROBLEM AS IT IS NOT AN ISOLATED CASE. WHEN I PUT THE TRANSMISSION IN M+S MODE THE 2-1 SHIFT DOWN DOES NOT OCCUR BUT THERE ARE ROUGHER SHIFTS GOING UP THROUGH THE GEARS. EITHER WAY IT IS A TRADE OFF AND NEITHER IS A SATISFACTORY RESULT. *TR

A RECENT RAIN STORM FLOODED THE SPARE TIRE WELL COMPARTMENT AND FRIED ALL THE ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS STORED UNDERNEATH THE TIRE. LUCKILY I WASN'T DRIVING THE WAGON THAT DAY AND THE CAR WAS PARKED ON THE DRIVEWAY. OTHERWISE, THE CAR WOULD HAD SHUT DOWN IF IT WAS MOVING AND COULD CAUSE AN ACCIDENT (HAPPENED TO SOMEONE AS DISCUSSED IN THE BIMMER FORUM). APPARENTLY, BMW HAVE KNOWN ABOUT THIS SAFETY ISSUE AS WELL AS THE SUNROOF DRAINAGE & TIRE WELL DESIGN DEFECTS FOR QUITE SOME TIME. THEY EVEN GENERATED A TECHNICAL SERVICE/SERVICE INFORMATION BULLETIN (SIB54-06-06 & 61-13-06 ON SPECIAL ROOFS) FOR THEIR SERVICE DEPARTMENT TO USE. HOWEVER, BMW KEEPS DENYING ANY DAMAGE LIABILITY AND REFUSING TO ADMIT ANY DESIGN DEFECTS. BMW NA, PUBLIC RELATIONS AND THE SF BMW DEALERSHIP RESPONDED TO ME THAT IT IS DUE TO "EXTERNAL FACTORS" (RAINS) AND THEREBY THEY HAVE NO RESPONSIBILITY TO THE DAMAGED VEHICLE. THE SERVICE ADVISER TOLD ME THAT THE REPAIR COST WOULD RUN INTO $15K. I AM FILING THE SAID COMPLAINT AND AM SEEKING AN ATTORNEY FOR A POSSIBLE CLASS ACTION SUIT AGAINST BMW NA. *TR

I NOTICED MY CAR START TO JERK OR MOVING FORWARD WHEN I COME TO STOP. THIS IS VERY CONCERN FOR ME THAT I COULD CAUSE TO HIT SOMEONE IN FRONT OF ME. PLEASE HELP ME. THANK YOU IN ADVANCED FOR YOUR UNDERSTAND. *TR

VERY BIG LEAK ON MY GARAGE FLOOR. NO DASHBOARD SENSOR ALERTED ME TO THIS LEAK. TRANSMISSION MECHATRONICS SLEEVE WAS LEAKING AND HAD TO BE REPLACED ALONG WITH THE OIL PAN AND TRANSMISSION OIL ADDED. THIS IS A SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE AND I HAVE HEARD THAT THIS IS COMMON WITH THE 500 SERIES. THIS SHOULD BE INVESTIGATED. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 BMW 5 SERIES 530XI. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE ATTEMPTING TO PARK, THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT SHIFT INTO PARK. ONCE THE CONTACT WAS ABLE TO SHIFT INTO PARK, THE MESSAGE DISPLAY INFORMED HER THAT THE ENGINE WOULD NOT SHUT OFF BECAUSE THE VEHICLE WAS NOT LOCKED INTO PARK. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER WHERE THE CONTACT WAS AWAITING INSPECTION OF THE FAILURE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE AND DID NOT OFFER ANY ASSISTANCE SINCE THE VEHICLE WAS NOT INCLUDED IN NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER: 05V504000 (POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION). THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 123,000.

I'VE HAD PROBLEMS WITH THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION SINCE PURCHASING IN DEC 2008. THE VEHICLE JERKS VIOLENTLY AS IT SHIFTS AFTER STOPS. A FEW MONTHS AGO, THE TRANSMISSION WOULDN'T SHIFT UP UNTIL I PUT IT IN NEUTRAL AND SHIFTING IT BACK TO D. CURRENTLY, IT JERKS DURING UP SHIFTS THRU ALL GEARS, MOST OF THE TIME. I HAVE BROUGHT IT IN TO THE DEALER MULTIPLE TIMES OVER THE YEARS. THEY CLAIM THAT THEY COULDN'T FIND ANYTHING WRONG. I AM VERY WORRIED OF THE TRANSMISSION FAILING SUDDENTLY AND CAUSING A CRASH. *TR

ON START-UP FROM A NEAR STOP THE TRANSMISSION JERKED HARD BACK INTO FIRST GEAR. FELT AS IF SOMEONE HAD HIT ME FROM THE REAR END. THIS HAS HAPPENED REPEATEDLY AND IS VERY DISTURBING, CAUSING UNFAMILIAR REACTIONS FROM THE DRIVER AND PASSENGER. COULD CAUSE AN ACCIDENT.

THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION OF MY 2006 BMW 525I, WITH APP 65,000 MILES, FAILED AND THE DEALER TELL ME THAT I HAVE TO PAY FOR A REPLACEMENT. I FEEL THAT A TRANSMISSION SHOULD LAST MORE THAN 65,000 MILE AND THUS SHOULD BE REPLACED AT BMW'S EXPENSE. MY RESEARCH INDICATES THAT THESE ARE AN ANUSUALLY HIGH RATE OF TRANSMISSION FAILURES IN THESE CARS, AND THE RECALL SHOULD BE MANDATED. *TR

BMW CAR CAN BE A DEATH TRAP! MY 2006 530I SMG GEARBOX WITH 34K MILES LOST POWER COMPLETELY WITHOUT WARNING ON THE ROAD. LUCKILY, I WAS APPROACHING A STOP LIGHT AND THE CAR BECAME UNDRIVABLE AND NEEDED TO BE TOLLED AWAY. I WAS 5 MINUTES FROM GETTING ON A HIGHWAY AND IF I WAS ON HIGHWAY, IT WOULD BE A DIFFERENT STORY. THE FAILURE WAS DUE TO A LEAK IN THE HYDRAULIC COMPONENT OF THE TRANSMISSION. THIS IS A SEALED SYSTEM WITH NO USER SERVICEABLE/INSPECTION SUPPORT AND OBVIOUSLY THE CAR HAS NO MONITOR FACILITY FOR THIS COMPONENT SINCE THERE WAS NO WARNING. WITH THE HYDRAULIC FAILURE, THE TRANSMISSION DISENGAGED THE GEAR BACK TO NEUTRAL WHICH RESULTS IN COMPLETE POWER LOST AND I COULD NOT "RE-ENGAGE" IT BACK IN GEAR. THE TRANSMISSION IS UNDER COMPUTER CONTROL (AUTOMATIC). *TR

2006 BMW 530I - WHEN STOPPING, CAR LURCHES FORWARD FORCEFULLY. ALMOST HIT CAR IN FRONT OF ME - FELT LIKE SOMEONE HIT ME. *TR

"TAKATA RECALL" THE CAR OVERHEAT, THE DASHBOARD SHOW SAFETY BELT MALFUNCTION, WHEN PUSH THE GAS PEDAL SOMETIMES JUMP, THE CAR SMELL GASOLINE ALL HE TIME, ALL THE TIME SHOW LOW LIMITS OF OIL BUT THE LEVEL OF OIL IS CORRECT.

DT*: THE CONTACT STATED THE ENGINE HESITATED WHEN ACCELERATING FROM A STOP. THE HESITATION OF THE ENGINE LASTED BETWEEN 5 TO 10 SECONDS. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE SERVICE DEALER AND MANUFACTURER, WHO DID NOT FIND ANY PROBLEM WITH THE ENGINE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT INVOLVED IN ANY ACCIDENTS.*AK WHEN PULLING OUT INTO TRAFFIC, THE VEHICLE HESITATED. THE CONSUEMER WAS TOLD THE VEHICLE IS UNDERPOWERED FOR ITS WEIGHT. UPDATED 12/18/06. *JB