2011 BMW 335I US Owner Complaints

POWER TRAIN: DRIVELINE: CONSTANT VELOCITY JOINT DETAILS ISSUED APRIL 21, 2017 RECALL ID 265558 NHTSA CAMPAIGN # 17V067000 VEHICLES AFFECTED 8,752 COMPONENT AFFECTED POWER TRAIN: DRIVELINE: CONSTANT VELOCITY JOINT SUMMARY BMW OF NORTH AMERICA, LLC (BMW) IS RECALLING CERTAIN 2011-2012 135I COUPE, 1 SERIES M COUPE AND 135I CONVERTIBLE VEHICLES, 2011 Z4 SDRIVE 35I, 335I, 335D, 335I COUPE, 335IS COUPE, 335I CONVERTIBLE, 335IS CONVERTIBLE, 535I, 535I XDRIVE, 535I GRAN TURISMO AND 550I XDRIVE GRAN TURISMO VEHICLES AND 2012 740I AND 740LI VEHICLES. THE REAR DRIVESHAFT CONSTANT VELOCITY (CV) JOINT ON THE AFFECTED VEHICLES MAY FATIGUE AND BREAK. CONSEQUENCE IF THE CV JOINT BREAKS, THE VEHICLE MAY HAVE A LOSS OF PROPULSION, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH. REMEDY BMW WILL NOTIFY OWNERS, AND DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE REAR DRIVESHAFT CV JOINT AND, BASED ON ITS PRODUCTION DATE, WILL REPLACE IT, FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN APRIL 21, 2017. OWNERS MAY CONTACT BMW CUSTOMER SERVICE AT 1-800-525-7417. WHAT CAN I DO? RECALLS OCCUR WHEN A MANUFACTURER OR THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION (NHTSA) DETERMINE THAT A VEHICLE HAS A SAFETY RELATED DEFECT. THIS NOTICE IS BASED ON A SEARCH OF YOUR YEAR, MAKE, MODEL AND TRIM. TO CONFIRM WHETHER YOUR SPECIFIC VEHICLE WAS IMPACTED, VISIT THE NHTSA SITE.

NHTSA ID

11217063

Incident

May 17, 2017

Mileage

60,000 mi

MY FUEL IS LEAKING UNDER THE DRIVER SIDE DOOR THERE IS NO EVIDENCE OF INJURY TO THE UNDER BODY BUT FUEL IS DRIPPING FROM UNDERNEATH

NHTSA ID

11210795

Incident

May 29, 2019

Mileage

45,000 mi

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 BMW 335I US. WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS STARTED, THE "SERVICE ENGINE SOON AND LOW POWER MODE' WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED. THE CONTACT DROVE THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER (BMW OF WEST SPRINGFIELD, 1712 RIVERDALE STREET, WEST SPRINGFIELD, MA 01089) WHERE IT WAS DETERMINED THAT THE VALVE-TONIC SYSTEM FAILED AND NEEDED REPLACEMENT. THE CONTACT MENTIONED THAT THE VEHICLE HAD BEEN TAKEN TO THE DEALER ON THREE OCCASIONS FOR THE SAME FAILURE, BUT WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 89,000.

NHTSA ID

11112987

Incident

Jul 22, 2018

Mileage

89,000 mi

2011 BMW 335I THREE (3) RECALLS: 1) FIRE HAZARD, 2) TAKATA RECALL AND 3) VANOS HOUSING BOLTS - RESULTING IN TOTAL LOSS OF MY 2011 BMW 335I VEHICLE AS CONFIRMED A TOTAL LOSS VEHICLE BY PROGRESSIVE INSURANCE CLAIM NUMBER 17-2120735. CONTRARY TO PROGRESSIVE INSURANCE COMPANY'S REPORT, THERE WAS NO COLLISION. MY 2011 BMW 335I SPORTS MODEL VEHICLE WAS DECLARED A TOTAL LOSS BY PROGRESSIVE INSURANCE ON APRIL 21 2017 AND I WAS SEVERELY INJURED WITH HIP DAMAGE WHEN MY 2011 BMW CAR OVERHEATED AND STOPPED SUDDENLY WHEN I WAS SLOWLY DRIVING MY CAR ON A CITY STREET IN THE LOS ANGELES AREA. CONTRARY TO PROGRESSIVE INSURANCE'S FALSE REPORT, THERE WAS NO COLLISION. BMW NEVER PROVIDED ANY NOTICE RE: NHTSA RECALL NUMBER 14V176 (VANOS HOUSING BOLTS), NOR PROVIDED ANY NOTICE RE: NHTSA RECALL NUMBER 17V676 (OVERHEATING LEADING TO FIRE). INSTEAD OF OFFERING TO REPAIR OR REPLACE MY RECALLED VEHICLE,BMW, SINCE APRIL 21, 2017 AND FOR THE PAST SIX MONTHS, BMW, BMW FINANCIAL SERVICES AND PROGRESSIVE INSURANCE HAVE BEEN ORCHESTRATING TAG TEAM FINANCIAL FRAUD, REFUSING TO REPAIR OR REPLACE MY BMW VEHICLE AND DENYING ME OF STATUTORY PERSONAL INJURY BENEFITS RESULTING FROM INJURIES SUSTAINED IN MY RECALLED 2011 BMW VEHICLE. WITH REGARD TO THE ONLY RECALL NOTICE WHICH BMW DID PROVIDE RE: THE TAKATA AIRBAGS, RATHER THAN AGREEING TO REPAIR MY TOTAL LOSS VEHICLE, BRAMAN BMW OF WEST PALM BEACH USED THE TAKATA RECALL AS A 'BAIT AND SWITCH' OPPORTUNITY TO SELL ME A NEW BMW VEHICLE. EVEN THOUGH BRAMAN'S WEST PALM BEACH FLORIDA BMW MANAGER HAD FIRST HAND ACTUAL KNOWLEDGE THAT MY RECALLED BMW VEHICLE WAS A TOTAL LOSS, BRAMAN BMW REFUSED TO REPAIR OR REPLACE MY TOTAL LOSS VEHICLE; BUT CONTACTED ME MORE THAN TWO HUNDRED TIMES WITHIN SIX MONTHS TO SELL ME A NEW MODEL BMW. I HAVE FULL DOCUMENTATION OF ALL OF THE ABOVE. THANK YOU.

NHTSA ID

11052215

Incident

Apr 21, 2017

Mileage

38,400 mi

MY 2011 BMW 335I, WHEN DRIVING AT LOW SPEEDS (>20MPH) AND TURNING (ONTO STREETS AND INTO PARKING LOTS) STALLS AND LOSES ALL ENGINE POWER. I AM ABLE TO RE-START CAR BUT THE SUDDEN LOSS OF POWER CAUSE SAFETY ISSUES BECAUSE CARS BEHIND YOU MAY HIT YOU. THIS HAS HAPPENED 7-10 TIMES SINCE 2012. I HAVE TAKEN IN THE CAR TO KELLY BMW AND MAG BMW IN COLUMBUS OHIO FOR INSPECTION ON AT LEAST 2 OCCASIONS, BUT DUE TO BMW'S WARRANTY REQUIREMENTS REGARDING REPLICATION AT THE SERVICE CENTER, THESE INTERMITTENT BUT SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUES HAVE NOT BEEN ADDRESSED. FROM READING CUSTOMER FEEDBACK ON CONSUMER SITES, THIS IS A PREVALENT ISSUE AND IS NOT BEING ADDRESSED BY BMW CORRECTLY. I AM HOPING TRANSPORTATION CAN HELP ADDRESS THIS PROBLEM.

NHTSA ID

11032918

Incident

Oct 9, 2017

Mileage

12,000 mi

TL* TAKATA RECALL. THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 BMW 335I US. THE CONTACT RECEIVED NOTIFICATION OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 16V071000 (AIR BAGS). THE PART TO DO THE REPAIR WAS UNAVAILABLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE MANUFACTURER EXCEEDED A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME FOR THE RECALL REPAIR. THE DEALER WAS CONTACTED (LAUDERDALE BMW OF PEMBROKE PINES, PEMBROKE PINES, FL, 954-620-5050) AND CONFIRMED THAT THE PARTS WERE NOT AVAILABLE FOR THE RECALL REMEDY. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE ISSUE AND WAS NOT ABLE TO CONFIRM WHEN THE PARTS WERE TO BECOME AVAILABLE. THE CONTACT HAD NOT EXPERIENCED A FAILURE. PARTS DISTRIBUTION DISCONNECT.

NHTSA ID

11030563

Incident

Feb 5, 2016

TL* TAKATA RECALL. THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 BMW 335I US. THE CONTACT RECEIVED NOTIFICATION OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 16V071000 (AIR BAGS); HOWEVER, THE PART TO DO THE REPAIR WAS UNAVAILABLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE MANUFACTURER EXCEEDED A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME FOR THE RECALL REPAIR. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE ISSUE. THE CONTACT HAD NOT EXPERIENCED A FAILURE. VIN TOOL CONFIRMS PARTS NOT AVAILABLE. UPDATED 01/05/2017*CT

NHTSA ID

10927660

Incident

Mar 31, 2016

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 BMW 335I US. WHILE DRIVING 60 MPH, THE VEHICLE STALLED WITHOUT WARNING. THE CONTACT WAS ABLE TO RESTART THE VEHICLE, BUT THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER TO BE DIAGNOSED, BUT WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 76,000.

NHTSA ID

10909351

Incident

Sep 22, 2016

Mileage

76,000 mi

VEHICLE INTERMITTENTLY STALLS AT LOW RPM (LESS THAN 650) AND LOW SPEED (LESS THAN 10MPH) WHILE DRIVING. STALL HAPPENS IN EVERY 300-500 MILES AND CAR LOOSES POWER (STEERING WHEEL AND OTHER POWER) WHILE ON STALL MAKING IT DANGEROUS TO DRIVE. CAR DOESN'T THROUGH ANY FAULT CODE TO THE SYSTEM IF STALLS. MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA BMW DEALER'S TECHNICIAN COULDN'T REPRODUCE THE STALL AS IT HAPPENS INTERMITTENTLY AND SERVICE AGENT SUGGESTED ME TO KEEP DRIVING TILL IT GETS FREQUENT SO THAT THEY CAN REPRODUCE AT THE DEALERSHIP. I'M SCARED TO DRIVE THE CAR AS IT CAN BE A HUGE RISK AS IT LOSES POWER WHILE STALLS.

NHTSA ID

10881910

Incident

Jun 2, 2016

Mileage

47,400 mi

WHEN PARALLEL PARKING THIS 335I THE CAR WILL LUNGE OR SURGE WITH UP TO A 50 PERCENT INCREASE OF ENGINE POWER WHEN THE STEERING WHEEL IS TURNED TO EITHER EXTREME OF TRAVEL. THE STEERING WHEEL IS TURNED TO THE END OF TRAVEL TO OBTAIN MINIMUM TURNING RADIUS. THIS LUNGING MAKES THE CONTROL OF THE CAR UNCERTAIN IN THOSE TIGHT MANEUVERING SPACES THAT HAPPEN WHEN PARKING.

NHTSA ID

10717172

Incident

Dec 1, 2014

MY 2011 335I BMW CONVERTIBLE STALLED FOR 2ND TIME WHILE LESS THAN 200 MILES DRIVEN IN BETWEEN. VEHICLE STALLED IN SLOW SPEED WHILE TURNING LEFT IN BOTH CASES. VEHICLE LOST TOTAL POWER IN BOTH CASES. TOOK TO THE BMW MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA DEALERSHIP IN FIRST OCCURRENCE. DEALER CHECKED AND NO FAULT FOUND IN THE SYSTEM. TECHNICIAN DROVE ~60 MILES AND COULDN'T REPRODUCE THE ISSUE. DANGEROUS TO DRIVE THE CAR AS IT STALLS. VEHICLE HAS ONLY ~38K MILES ON IT. *TR

NHTSA ID

10705252

Incident

Mar 27, 2015

Mileage

38,600 mi

WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY, MY 2011 BMW 335CI EXPERIENCED A TOTAL POWER FAILURE LEAVING ME WITH VERY SLUGGISH STEERING, NO FUEL POWER, AND ESSENTIALLY A DEAD ROLLING HEAVY PIECE OF METAL. *TR

NHTSA ID

10692004

Incident

Mar 4, 2015

Mileage

40,000 mi

IT APPEARS THAT MY HPFP (HIGH PRESSURE FUEL PUMP IS FAILING). CAR WENT INTO REDUCED POWER MODE AND WAS VERY DIFFICULT TO EVEN DRIVE. *TR

NHTSA ID

10680754

Incident

Jan 28, 2015

Mileage

42,000 mi

I HAVE HAD AN INCIDENT WITH MY CAR WHERE MY CAR DIED WHILING GOING ON TO MY MILITARY BASE. AFTER FINDING OUT THE ISSUE AND GETTING IT WORKED ON, I FOUND OUT THAT THERE IS A KNOWN ISSUE. THERE ARE SEVERAL PUBLIC COMPLAINTS OF USERS RISKING THEIR LIVES DUE TO A DOCUMENTED DEFECT WITH N55 ENGINES PRODUCED FROM 2/2010 TO 12/2010. THIS ENGINE IS USED IN SEVERAL BMW MODELS, MINE INCLUDED. BOTH (INTAKE AND/OR EXHAUST) OF THE VANOS GEAR ASSEMBLIES HAVE FAILED; THE ATTACHING BOLTS MAY HAVE ALSO LOOSENED AND/OR BROKEN. THIS HAS SOMETIMES CAUSED A SUDDEN LOSS OF POWER, RESULTING IN A POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS SITUATION, AND FAILURE OF THE ENGINE. BMW HAS ISSUED A SERVICE INFORMATION BULLETIN SI B12 14 12 BUT HAS NOT ISSUED A RECALL TO PREVENT THIS ISSUE, EVEN IF THE VEHICLES ARE RELATIVELY NEW, AND STILL UNDER BASE WARRANTY. I HAD TO PAY $3700 FOR A JOB THAT SHOULD OF BEEN COVERED. *TR

NHTSA ID

10574484

Incident

Feb 21, 2014

Mileage

83,000 mi

MY RIGHT REAR TIRE KEPT LEAKING AIR, SO I TOOK IT IN TO THE DEALER AND THEY TOLD ME TO TAKE IT TO A TIRE SHOP. THE TIRE SHOP FOUND OUT THERE WAS A CRACK IN THE RIM MOST PROBABLY BECAUSE OF A POTHOLE, SO I THOUGHT THAT WAS POSSIBLE AND I GOT THE CRACK FIXED. EVER SINCE I HAD THIS ISSUE, I HAD BEEN DRIVING VERY CAREFULLY AND AVOIDING ANY POTHOLES. AFTER A FEW MONTHS, NOW MY LEFT REAR TIRE HAS THE SAME EXACT REASON. I RESEARCHED THIS ISSUE ON SOME ONLINE BMW FORUMS AND PEOPLE WITH THE SAME CAR AND RIM ARE REPORTING SIMILAR ISSUE. BMW REFUSES TO REPLACE THE RIM SAYING IT'S MY FAULT AND THAT I PROBABLY HIT A POT HOLE. *KB

NHTSA ID

10452394

Incident

Mar 1, 2012

Mileage

18,000 mi

MY REAR TIRE SLOWLY STARTED TO LOSE AIR PRESSURE DURING FREEWAY COMMUTING IN LOS ANGELES AREA. SAVAGE BMW IN ONTARIO COULDN'T AT FIRST DETERMINE THE CAUSE AND SUGGESTED IT WAS A TIRE LEAK AND TO TAKE IT TO A TIRE SHOP. THE TIRE SHOP FOUND NOTHING WRONG WITH THE TIRE AND SAID TO TAKE IT BACK TO THE DEALER. THE DEALER FINALLY FOUND THE PROBLEM BY DUNKING IT INTO A WATER TANK....A CRACKED RIM...CRACKED ON THE INSIDE....THIS WAS CAUSING THE AIR TO LEAK OUT MORE AND MORE AS I DROVE. IT WAS TO THE POINT THAT I WAS FILLING UP AIR EVERY DAY. THE DEALER TOLD ME THAT I PROBABLY HIT A POTHOLE AND THAT IT WAS NOT COVERED UNDER WARRANTY, SO I FIGURED THEY WERE RIGHT AND PAID FOR THE NEW RIM. NOW SEVERAL MONTHS LATER (AND DOING VERY CAREFUL DRIVING TO ENSURE I DON'T HIT ANY POTHOLES OR ROUGH SURFACES), I FOUND THE OTHER REAR TIRE DOING THE SAME THING. I IMMEDIATELY TOOK IT TO CREVIER BMW AND TOLD THEM I SUSPECTED IT MIGHT BE CRACKED TOO. THEY RETURNED THE CAR TO ME WITHIN A COUPLE OF DAYS AND TOLD ME IT JUST NEEDED AIR, AND EVERYTHING WAS OK. TODAY (THE VERY NEXT DAY), I DROVE TO WORK AND MY TIRE PRESSURE SENSOR SAID THE SAME TIRE WAS LOW. I IMMEDIATELY ADDED AIR 46 PSI PER BMW DOOR LABEL...AND GOT ON FWY TO GO HOME. WITHIN 5 MINUTES ON THE FWY, MY WHEEL WAS MAKING A HORRIBLE VIBRATION AS IF IT WAS ABOUT TO COME APART. I PULLED TO THE SIDE OF FWY AND GOT A TOW TRUCK TO TAKE ME BACK TO DEALER. AFTER A HEATED DEBATE WITH BMW SERVICE MANAGER, THEY SAID THEY WOULDN'T PAY FOR MY TOW, NOR THE WHEEL (IF IT IS CRACKED)...AND THAT ITS DUE TO MY DRIVING HABITS. PREPOSTEROUS! I BABY MY CAR, ESPECIALLY AFTER PAYING FOR THE 1ST RIM. I AM FURIOUS THAT BMW IS IGNORING AN OBVIOUS DEFECT IN THE WHEEL DESIGN. I'VE OWNER SEVERAL BMW CARS AND OTHER LOW PROFILE TIRE/WHEEL AUTOMOBILES...DRIVEN ON THE SAME ROADS....AND NEVER HAD THIS ISSUE. IM VERY CONCERNED THAT 1) A MAJOR SAFETY HAZARD IS BEING IGNORED AND 2) THAT IM NOT RECEIVING FAIR TREATMENT. I WILL RETRIEVE THE RIM AND TIRE FOR PROOF. *TR

NHTSA ID

10416371

Incident

Jul 30, 2011

Mileage

26,000 mi

THE RADIO STARTED TO BUZZ AND IT WOULD NOT STOP, WHETHER I TURNED IT OFF, STOPPED THE CAR, OPENED AND CLOSED ALL THE DOORS, NOT UNTIL I GOT HOME AND THE CAR HAD BEEN OFF FOR 10 MINUTES. THE DEALER ACKNOWLEDGED THAT THERE IS A DESIGN ISSUE, BUT WOULD NOT FIX THE PROBLEM. APPARENTLY THERE IS AN OVERLOAD IN THE RADIO WHICH ALSO SERVES AS A BUS FOR THE COMPUTER. *TT

NHTSA ID

10413156

Incident

Jun 15, 2011

Mileage

10,000 mi

DELAY IN DCT/THROTTLE ENGAGEMENT AFTER SLOWING TO A ROLL, THEN PRESSING DOWN ON THE GAS- THE DELAY IS BETWEEN 1-2SECONDS, AND I KNOW SOME OTHER FOLKS HAD THE SAME PROBLEM. S-MODE PLUS SPORT BUTTON, ELIMINATED THIS PROBLEM. THIS OCCURS WHEN I'VE SLOWED TO A STOP, THEN WANT TO ACCELERATE QUICKLY TO MERGE INTO TRAFFIC. I WAS SCARED TWICE, AND NOW HAVE BECOME AN "OLD MAN DRIVER" ACCORDING TO MY GIRLFRIEND, I DO NOT PULLOUT IN FRONT OF CARS UNLESS I KNOW THE DELAY OF 1-2SEC WON'T BE A SAFETY ISSUE. *TR

NHTSA ID

10403914

Incident

Mar 5, 2011

Mileage

6,000 mi

I HAVE A NEW BMW X3 35I. WHILE DRIVING ALONG AT A STEADY PACE, THE DASHBOARD WARNING LIGHTS FOR "BRAKE FAILURE", "ALB FAILURE" AND "DYNAMIC STABILITY CONTROL FAILURE" ALL CAME ON. THE CARS COMPUTER DISPLAY ALSO DISPLAYED A BRAKE AND AWD SYSTEM FAILURE AND SPECIFIED THAT THE CAR SHOULD BE IMMEDIATELY AND CAREFULLY DRIVEN TO A DEALER. AFTER CAREFULLY EVALUATING THE BARKING SYSTEM, IT WAS APPARENT THAT THE BRAKES AND AWD SYSTEMS WERE FULLY FUNCTIONAL, AND THERE WAS NO FAILURE. AFTER STOPPING THE VEHICLE, AND SHUTTING OFF THE ENGINE, AND THEN RE-STARTING, THE ERROR "CLEARED" AND ALL DISPLAYS WERE NORMAL. THE DEALERSHIP FOUND NO PROBLEMS. THIS OCCURS RANDOMLY. I'VE SPOKEN WITH (2) OTHER 2011 X3 OWNERS WHO ARE HAVING THE EXACT SAME PROBLEM AND THEIR DEALERS ALSO CANNOT FIND THE CAUSE/\.. THE DANGER HERE IS THAT OWNERS WILL IGNORE THE WARNING WHEN A TRUE BRAKE SYSTEM FAILURE FINALLY OCCURS. BMW CLAIMS THE CAR IS "TOO NEW" FOR THEM TO KNOW ABOUT THE PROBLEM. SINCE IT'S BRAKE AND STABILITY CONTROL RELATED, I FEEL THIS IS A SERIOUS SITUATION AND NEED MORE ATTENTION THAN BMW IS GIVING IT. *TR

NHTSA ID

10392606

Incident

Feb 1, 2011

Mileage

475 mi

WHEN GOING THROUGH AN INTERSECTION INSTEAD OF DOWNSHIFTING THE CAR LOST ALL POWER AND ONLY WENT BACK IN GEAR AFTER SEVERAL SECONDS. *TR

NHTSA ID

10381657

Incident

Jul 15, 2010

Mileage

2,000 mi