2012 BMW 528I Problems
Owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA, grouped by component
Data refreshed
What this page shows
Everything below is an owner-reported complaint submitted to NHTSA about the 2012 BMW 528I, grouped by the component NHTSA recorded on the report. These are not confirmed defects, and they are not recalls. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a category with more reports in it is not evidence that a part is defective.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Reports by component
Ranked by how many owner reports name each component category
- Engine4735.6%
- Fuel system2922.0%
- Powertrain (other)2015.2%
- Electrical129.1%
- Brakes43.0%
- Driver assistance43.0%
- Steering32.3%
- Body & structure32.3%
- Other / unspecified32.3%
- Airbags32.3%
- Seat belts21.5%
- Interior & seats10.8%
- Exterior lighting10.8%
Percentages are of component mentions. A single complaint can name more than one component, so these do not sum to the total complaint count.
Each component in detail
What the reports in each category say, in the owners' own words
Engine
Reports naming the engine itself — including stalling, misfires, oil consumption, cooling and internal engine components.
From owner reports, verbatim
Vehicle has oil leak bad
I had just purchased a car but a month ago I was driving to lunch and I was at a stop sign when the light turned green I started to go the car started shaking and smoke was coming out of the front under the hood I had just an oil change so I took it back to the oil change shop. They could not figure out why the engine blew and I had to take it to a different BMW shop where I have to purchase a rebuilt motor and pay for the repairs. I can request all records from the automotive shop if needed.
Fuel system
Reports naming fuel storage or delivery — tanks, pumps, lines, injectors and fuel leaks.
From owner reports, verbatim
I had just purchased a car but a month ago I was driving to lunch and I was at a stop sign when the light turned green I started to go the car started shaking and smoke was coming out of the front under the hood I had just an oil change so I took it back to the oil change shop. They could not figure out why the engine blew and I had to take it to a different BMW shop where I have to purchase a rebuilt motor and pay for the repairs. I can request all records from the automotive shop if needed.
N20 引擎 汽油泵浦故障
Powertrain (other)
Powertrain reports that are not specifically the engine or transmission — driveshafts, axles, transfer cases and differentials.
From owner reports, verbatim
I had just purchased a car but a month ago I was driving to lunch and I was at a stop sign when the light turned green I started to go the car started shaking and smoke was coming out of the front under the hood I had just an oil change so I took it back to the oil change shop. They could not figure out why the engine blew and I had to take it to a different BMW shop where I have to purchase a rebuilt motor and pay for the repairs. I can request all records from the automotive shop if needed.
While driving error message came up on screen saying add a quart of oil, car was smoking and engine block caught fire.
Electrical
Reports naming the electrical system — wiring, battery, charging, control modules, infotainment and electrical accessories.
From owner reports, verbatim
The contact owns a 2012 BMW 528I. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V608000 (Engine and Engine Cooling, Electrical System). The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, there was condensation underneath the vehicle. The contact stated that while driving approximately 50 MPH, the "Engine Malfunction" message was displayed, and the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was restarted 20 minutes later after several attempts. The failure reoccurred several times until the vehicle was taken to the residence and parked. The vehicle was towed to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the control unit seal pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired but the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken to the same independent mechanic on several occasions where it was diagnosed that the ignition coil and timing chain had fractured into the oil pan valve cover, and the oil pan gasket, oil pan, and spark plugs needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 136,898.
The contact owns a 2012 BMW 528i. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the vehicle was started, however, the vehicle failed to start. The contact stated the vehicle eventually started. In addition, the contact stated that when the accelerator pedal was depressed, however the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. The contact stated that the steering wheel seized and the vehicle lost motive power. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence. The dealer was made aware of the failure and confirmed that the parts were not available. In addition, the contact stated that previously the vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with a failed coolant pump and unknown sensor. The contact was informed that the coolant pump and the unknown sensor needed to be replaced. The unknown sensor was replaced, however the contact was informed that the coolant pump was unavailable. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V608000 (Engine and Engine Cooling, Electrical System) 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 failure but provided no assistance. The contact was offered to have the vehicle towed to the dealer, however the parts were not available. The failure mileage was 111,000. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
Brakes
Reports naming service brakes, the antilock braking system, brake hoses, master cylinders or the parking brake.
From owner reports, verbatim
Picked up from a stop light no aggressive but normally and a few seconds after going around 20-30ish mph the car stalls and goes into neutral. I was really confused and panicking of what happened, the cars behind me almost crashed into me and I was trying to manage to pull the car over to the side of road and thankfully I did. This could have caused a serious injury to me and others. As I was able to pull off to the side of the road I try to start my car back up and it cranks and cranks for a few seconds which it normally never does and finally when it starts back up the car just starts miss firing like crazy and the check engine light comes on and the car is throwing codes all over the place like drive train malfunction, engine malfunction, low oil pressure, check engine oil, auto stop start malfunction. I was super confused so I shut it off and tried to start it again but it didn’t help at all. I drove slowly into a parking lot and got it towed to a independent repair shop to which they diagnosed the timing chain guides breaking and falling into the oil pump, clogging the oil pump then causing further damage due to no oil going to the top of the motor. I was very confused how all of this could have happened since I took care of my car . If the car had given me a service warning light I would have went and got my engine serviced for this job. Now The thing is these timing chain jobs aren’t cheap and replacing the oil pump chain is even more expensive since it requires lowering the sub frame. Now In my case the timing was so bad to where the engine did something to the cylinders as of what my mechanic said. So my engine is toast and I need a new engine. Car has a hunk of metal parked in my driveway now that I’m still paying off. Good job BMW. I really want to sue bmw for this bs. The car is poorly designed and I’m super thankful this issue did not occur on the freeway because I could have died. I looked into the bmw warranty and it’s only covering up to 100K.
The contact owns a 2012 BMW 528i. The contact stated while at a standstill the vehicle stalled randomly. The contact stated that drive train failure warning message was displayed. The vehicle was taken to a dealer and was awaiting diagnostic testing. Upon investigation, the contact associated the failure with NHTSA Campaign Number: 14V627000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and informed the contact that they were unable to assist. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000. The VIN was not available.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Driver assistance
Reports naming forward-collision avoidance, lane keeping, back-over prevention, cruise control and related electronic driver-assistance systems.
From owner reports, verbatim
I own bmw 528i 2012. These engines are straight up bad. Timing chain failed at 149K miles with no signs of failure. Just driving down the road when suddenly the car just turns off and goes into neutral on its own. I simply pulled over restarted the car to cylinder misfires, car struggling to accelerate, smoke out the exhaust, and a loud rattling sound. I pulled over had the car towed. I had my car taken to a independent shop for repairs and diagnostics and what I got told was absolutley crazy. The timing chain guides broke off the timing chain, went down into the oil pump and those pieces settled into the pump restricting oil from going to the top of the motor causing the timing chain to start slacking and breaking from the top. He also said one of the Camshaft caps also has a crack in it.The car has been parked in my driveway for 6 months because repairing the motor would cost a ton, and putting in a remanafactured motor with labor cost would cost just as much as buying the same car again. BMW had a lawsuit about the N20/N26 but thats only covered upto 100K miles. Considering my car was running good I had no reason too change anything on this car. Oil changes were done almost every 3-5K miles and the car had no sounds no lights on the dash. I tried to claim the SULEV/PZEV Warranty which is covered upto 150K miles and the dealerships either never contacted me back or they just said no. I even contacted the HQ of BMW and they also refused any repair even with SULEV Warranty. BMW knows 100% these motors have a bad timing chain issue and that these timing chains can fail at any moment. What type of motor fails at 150K miles. Im a college student, my dad gave me this car for graduating high school. I maintained my car so much just for it to fail out of no where and the way it failed could have caused someone to crash into me. Im really upset that BMW isnt taking responsibility for whats wrong and wont recall these timing chains or motor no matter the mileage on the car.
I WAS DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY AND MY CAR SUDDENLY STOPPED RUNNING AND SHUT DOWN ON ME MID FREEWAY! I STEPPED ON GAS PEDAL AND NOTHING! IT TURNED OFF ON ME AND WOULDN'T TURN ON! NOW IT TURNS BUT GAS WON'T WORK! I BELIEVE THERE IS A PROBLEM WITH THE GAS PUMP OF SOMETHING REGARDING GAS FUEL! I HAD TO CALL MY CAR INSURANCE TO TOW MY CAR WHEN I BECAME STRANDED ON THE FREEWAY. *TR
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Steering
Reports naming the steering system — racks, columns, power-steering assist and steering linkage.
From owner reports, verbatim
Picked up from a stop light no aggressive but normally and a few seconds after going around 20-30ish mph the car stalls and goes into neutral. I was really confused and panicking of what happened, the cars behind me almost crashed into me and I was trying to manage to pull the car over to the side of road and thankfully I did. This could have caused a serious injury to me and others. As I was able to pull off to the side of the road I try to start my car back up and it cranks and cranks for a few seconds which it normally never does and finally when it starts back up the car just starts miss firing like crazy and the check engine light comes on and the car is throwing codes all over the place like drive train malfunction, engine malfunction, low oil pressure, check engine oil, auto stop start malfunction. I was super confused so I shut it off and tried to start it again but it didn’t help at all. I drove slowly into a parking lot and got it towed to a independent repair shop to which they diagnosed the timing chain guides breaking and falling into the oil pump, clogging the oil pump then causing further damage due to no oil going to the top of the motor. I was very confused how all of this could have happened since I took care of my car . If the car had given me a service warning light I would have went and got my engine serviced for this job. Now The thing is these timing chain jobs aren’t cheap and replacing the oil pump chain is even more expensive since it requires lowering the sub frame. Now In my case the timing was so bad to where the engine did something to the cylinders as of what my mechanic said. So my engine is toast and I need a new engine. Car has a hunk of metal parked in my driveway now that I’m still paying off. Good job BMW. I really want to sue bmw for this bs. The car is poorly designed and I’m super thankful this issue did not occur on the freeway because I could have died. I looked into the bmw warranty and it’s only covering up to 100K.
Casually picking up from a stop light when my car just randomly decided to turn off on the middle of the road and go into neutral. I lost power steering and brakes. I was able to manage to pull over and restart the car and I was welcomed with a bunch of check engine lights and many other malfunctions. Got the car towed and comes out that the timing chain has failed as well as the oil pump and resulted in damage to the camshaft and cylinder head of the motor. This is just insane how all of this happened in just a few seconds. I took care of my car did oil changes on time, coolant, brakes, transmission fluid. I took care of my car. Bmw put me in a very unsafe condition that day and I’m very upset because that could have ended very bad for me. The n20 motor has been very well known to fail at any time without any warning and bmw has yet to recall this motor. It became very bad to the point to where they even got sued but only limited the warranty up to 100K miles. Many people experienced this problem before 100K and some experienced it earlier. Their is no given time when this timing chain can fail on you. In my case so many things were damaged in the engine and I even contacted bmw NA and they didn’t even care to help. Bmw put me in a very bad spot and they want me to replace the engine and pay labor and pay more than what the cars worth! Bmw is crazy for this and I hope all of these engines get recalled and get replaced free of charge without worrying about how many miles you got on the car.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Body & structure
Reports naming the vehicle structure, frame, body panels, doors, hood and trim.
From owner reports, verbatim
THE FRONT PASSENGER OCCUPANCY SEAT SENSOR IS DEFECTIVE/NOT WORKING EVEN THOUGH THE CAR HAS ONLY 25,000 MILES. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE AND THERE ARE SO MANY OWNERS HAS SIMILAR ISSUE WITH THIS DESIGN
I WAS DRIVING AT 30, AND HIT A POT-HOLE. ALL OF SUDDEN MY RARE PASSENGER DOOR POPPED OPENED. MY DASH BOARD STARTED LIGHTING, AND ALSO THE INTERIOR LIGHTS STARTED LIGHTING. TAKEN TO THE DEALER IMMEDIATELY AS WE CARRY OUR BABY OFTEN TIMES IN THE REAR SEAT (HE WAS NOT IN THE CAR WHEN INCIDENT HAPPENED), AND THEY SAID NOTHING WRONG, BUT SUGGESTED TO PUT CHILD LOCK. I SEE A SIMILAR COMPLAINT BY ANOTHER USER. *TR
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Other / unspecified
Reports whose component NHTSA recorded as unknown, or that do not map to one of the categories above.
From owner reports, verbatim
THE CAR FRONT AND REAR TIRES WERE OF DIFFERENT SIZE AND I NOTICED WHEN I GOT THE CAR FROM DEALER NEXT DAY AS THE CAR WOULD DRIFT TOWARDS ONE SIDE. IT GAVE "DRIVETRAIN ERROR" SINCE ITS ALL WHEEL DRIVE WITH POWER NOT BEING EQUALLY DISTRIBUTED DUE TO DIFFERENT RPM ON FRONT AND REAR. THIS WASN'T THE CASE WHEN I TEST DROVE THE DAY BEFORE. I KEPT THINKING ITS A TRANSMISSION ISSUE BUT IT WAS TIRE THAT WAS CAUSING IT. AT HIGH SPEED (40-60MPH) WHEN I TAKE OFF FROM GAS THE CAR WOULD DRIFT TO ONE SIDE AND WOULD STALL. THIS IS SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE AND COULD HAVE CAUSED NOT ONLY PASSENGER LIFE BUT ALSO MAJOR TRANSMISSION AND DRIVETRAIN BREAKDOWN. THE DEALER SWAPPED THE TIRES BECAUSE WITH MISMATCHED TIRES THE CAR WOULD HAVE BEEN NON-DRIVABLE AT THE TIME I BOUGHT. THIS AWD IS VERY SENSITIVE TO TIRES TREAD DIFFERENCES. AFTER CALLING DEALER HE IS DENYING AND SAYING ITS "AS-IS" AND NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANYTHING.
WAS DRIVING DOWN THE STREET AND CAR STOPPED. DEALER SAID I NEEDED A NEW ENGINE ON A 3 YR OLD CAR. ENGINE COVERED UNDER WARRANTY.A FEW YEARS LATER THE DRIVE SHAFT FAILED AS I WAS DRIVING. BELIEVE IT WAS RELATED TO REMOVING ENGINE AND NOT SECURING ALL PARTS. HOW COULD THIS HAPPEN TO A 5 YR OLD CAR? DEALER NOR BMW USA WOULD NOT COVER THE 2800 COSTS.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Airbags
Reports naming the air-bag system — deployment behaviour, inflators, sensors and warning lights.
From owner reports, verbatim
I had been having problems with my seatbelt alarm coming on for a while with nothing in the seat of the passenger and then as I was trying to turn in to park I heard a click from my steering wheel as if it didn’t want to turn and the driver seat restraint malfunction error popped up . Now my horn will not work as well . I’m told that the dealership is the only place it can be repaired. I’m worried that it will deploy on me while driving . I’m sure this is an issue others have experienced as well .
THE FRONT PASSENGER OCCUPANCY SEAT SENSOR IS DEFECTIVE/NOT WORKING EVEN THOUGH THE CAR HAS ONLY 25,000 MILES. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE AND THERE ARE SO MANY OWNERS HAS SIMILAR ISSUE WITH THIS DESIGN
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Seat belts
Reports naming seat belts, buckles, retractors and pretensioners.
From owner reports, verbatim
DRIVERS SEAT BELT WON'T LOCK
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 BMW 528I. WHENEVER THE FRONT PASSENGER SEAT WAS OCCUPIED, THE AIR BAG AND SEAT BELT WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER (CENTER BMW, 5201 VAN NUYS BLVD, SHERMAN OAKS, CA 91401) WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE SEAT SENSOR FAILED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED AND INFORMED THE CONTACT THAT THE VEHICLE WAS NOT UNDER WARRANTY OR RECALL; THEREFORE, THE CONTACT WOULD BE RESPONSIBLE FOR REPAIRS. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 47,000. *TT
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Interior & seats
Reports naming seats, latches, locks, linkages and interior fittings.
From owner reports, verbatim
THIS 2012 BMW 528, WHILE STANDING STILL ON A CITY STREET, WAS STRUCK FROM BEHIND ON THE LEFT REAR CORNER AND THE ACTIVE HEADREST RESTRAINT SYSTEM WAS ACTIVATED STRIKING THE DRIVER IN THE HEAD AND CAUSING A TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Exterior lighting
Reports naming headlights, tail lights, turn signals and other exterior lighting.
From owner reports, verbatim
Headlights fill with condensation and cause short circuit and headlight and turn signal malfunction. Headlights fill with condensation and moisture even on sunny summer days. No warnings prior to headlights and turn signals malfunctioning. BMW says to drive with headlights on to dispel condensation but the headlights produce no heat to do so and do not illuminate because circuits are damp and not working.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Elsewhere on this vehicle
Data sources
- NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation — owner-reported complaints and the components recorded on them
Data on this page last refreshed .