BMW X5 Engine Problems

Engine complaints by model year

Which parts fail

• Engine
  22
• Cooling system
  9
• Cooling system › Fan
  7
• Exhaust system
  5
• Cooling system › Radiator assembly
  4
• Engine › Gasoline
  4
• Engine › Gasoline › Belts and associated pulleys
  4
• Exhaust system › Emission control › Crankcase (pcv)
  2

Components named in complaints (engine, cooling system, oil leaks, timing chain, exhaust).

Mileage when the problem started

• Under 25k
  5710%
• 25k–50k
  7613%
• 50k–75k
  15927%
• 75k–100k
  13924%
• 100k–150k
  12621%
• 150k+
  346%

What owners report

I have a 2026 BMW X5 50E. I experienced the same malfunction twice in the same day. The first occurrence was when I was taking my husband to a doctors appointment. While parking the car and when I was almost at a stop the vehicle lurched forward and was stopped by the concrete curb. My husband asked me what happened and I said I don't know. The second occurrence was about two hours later after visiting a second doctors office I headed to a lunch spot. I pulled into a parking spot and had come almost to a stop and once again the vehicle lurched forward with an even more powerful sudden acceleration. The vehicle struck a metal railing, bordering, an outdoor dining area. Once the railing was hit It pushed into a large freestanding metal continuous privacy panel. The privacy panel collapsed on people and caused multiple injuries. …

Component: Engine / Fuel/Propulsion System / Engine Cooling Vehicle Odometer at Failure: 463 Miles Date of Incident: September 8, 2026 Description of Safety Hazard: While driving a brand-new 2026 BMW X5 with only 463 total miles on the odometer (purchased on July 30, 2026), the vehicle suffered a sudden and catastrophic manufacturing failure of the oil filter housing unit. This failure caused an immediate, severe loss of over a quart of volatile, hot engine oil, which completely leaked out and stained my personal driveway. A rapid loss of engine oil at highway speeds presents an extreme safety hazard, including a high risk of catastrophic metal-on-metal engine seizure, sudden loss of vehicle propulsion in traffic, and a severe risk of under-hood vehicle fire due to pressurized engine oil leaking onto hot exhaust and engine components. …

The contact owns a 2025 BMW X5. The contact stated upon starting the vehicle, several unknown warning lights were illuminated. Additionally, the contact stated that there were twenty-one failure codes displayed on the infotainment system screen. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle the following day, no warning lights were illuminated. The contact stated that a dealer mobile technician arrived to the residence, and the vehicle was driven to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that an improper coding of the electronic modules had caused the Digital Motor Electronics (DME) to not communicate. The contact was informed that the electronic modules needed to be recoded. The DME data was cleared, and the DME was reprogrammed. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 3,165.

While driving this new 2025 BMW X5 M60i vehicle with only 6200 miles, all of a sudden battery failure indicator came on in the middle of traffic, followed by drivetrain failure / malfunction indicator came on. BMW roadside assistance was contacted, and advised me to have vehicle stopped and pulled over immediately and towed. Situation was dangerous as the traffic was flowing at 40 mph. Vehicle Eventually totally lost power. It was towed to local BMW dealership where it was purchased from. The dealership service department was able to reproduce the issue, confirmed that it was a cracked transmission casing, resulting in fluid leak, causing electrical failure and leading to mechanical failure. BMW head office was contacted By the dealership service department and new transmission was requested. Please refer to pages 3 and 4 of the service report attached for details. …

The contact owns a 2024 BMW X5. The contact stated that while driving at undisclosed speeds, the vehicle stalled while driving through ankle-height water. The kill switch was stuck. After the failure, the engine overheating warning light illuminated. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V104000 (Electronic Stability Control (ESC), Service Brakes, Hydraulic); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer but was not diagnosed or repaired. The undercarriage of the vehicle had sustained unknown damages during transportation. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The approximate failure mileage was 4,023. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

This is a follow up on a concern that I raised 3 weeks ago. This is a new car that broke down after 157 miles. The car has been disabled since September 4th 2023. As of today, I still do not have it and do not have a clear ETA for the repair. The diagnosis from the dealership is a defective combined charging unit. The part had to be back-ordered from Germany. A week or so after the incident, the service agent at BMW of Portchester (Kurt Hinrichs) told me on the phone that the part is undergoing a design upgrade. Hence the initial 7-10 business days minimum for the part to arrive would have to be revised. I did complain with bmw, including copying the CEO of bmw of north america in one of my complains as I was not receiving any (none) attention from customer service. Customer service did respond after this escalation. They offered me 5000 USD and sent me a check accordingly. …

I was accelerating from a green light in ELECTRIC only mode, once nearing 25 mph, felt a single strong jolt that caused acceleration to pause, the Hybrid mode automatically kicked in and acceleration continued under engine power. Received several warnings and alerts on the display- Stop Carefully: Power Supply Drivetrain Malfunction Continued Driving possible: Drivetrain Electric drive limited I was fortunate enough to continue driving the final 1/2 mile to my parking lot at work. After work, the engine started with the same errors as above and attempted to move, but the engine was making strange cycles of revving high and low. I called Roadside and as I idled waiting for a tow truck to arrive, the gas engine began revving high again, then low, then sputtered, then shut off and would not turn back on, leaving me in the cold. Fuel was about 1/2 tank, battery was at least 30%. …

The car had been preconditioned and driven within 45 minutes of my starting a route to the gym, all surface streets/neighborhood. I was in electric mode. I came to a stop at an intersection and when the light turned green, I pulled into the intersection to turn left and the car stalled. No power, no power steering. I put it in park and tried to restart in sport (ICE) mode and nothing happenned. After a few tries it did start to limp and I cleared the intersection and pulled over. I was still unable to restart in sport mode, and kept getting red screens, or blank screens. After a few minutes, the car was able to start as if everything was normal, and I continued to drive. It was a very dangerous situation, and there were no further warnings or alerts. I was able to drive it home and to the dealership where it is now.

Related recalls (15)