1994 BMW 530I 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 1994 BMW 530I, 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
- Engine545.5%
- Electrical218.2%
- Interior & seats218.2%
- Driver assistance19.1%
- Transmission19.1%
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
1994 BMW 530I ENGINE'S FAN CLUTCH SEIZED CAUSING THE FAN TO SHATTER VIOLENTLY. *NJ THE FAILURE OF THE FAN CLUTCH CAUSED EXTENSIVE AMOUNTS OF DAMAGE TO MANY COMPONENTS IN THE ENGINE BAY. *JB
ENGINE BLOCK FAILS ON ALL M60 BMW V8'S FROM 1993-1995 CONTACT ME FOR DETAILS. *AK
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Electrical
Reports naming the electrical system — wiring, battery, charging, control modules, infotainment and electrical accessories.
From owner reports, verbatim
DT: THE CONTACT BOUGHT A BMW. SHE COMPLAINED ABOUT ELECTRICAL PROBLEMS. ON 4-26-05 SHE GOT INTO THE CAR AND CLOSED THE DOOR AND IT STARTED SMOKING. SHE COULD NOT GET OUT OF THE CAR. SOMEONE GOT IT STARTED. WHEN SHE ARRIVED HOME SHE TURNED IT OFF. WHEN SHE TURNED IT BACK ON VEHICLE STARTED TO SMOKE AGAIN. SHE CALLED THE DEALER, AND HE PROMISED FIX I, BUT IT NEVER WAS FIXED. SHE TOOK VEHICLE TO BMW. IT TOOK BMW 4 WEEKS TO CHECK THE CAR. SHE WAS TOLD BY BMW THE CAR WAS ONLY WORTH $1,500 AND THERE WAS $8,000 IN MINOR DAMAGES , AND OVER $10,000 IN MAJOR DAMAGES. SHE EVENTUALLY HAD TO GIVE THE CAR BACK TO THE DEALER. SHE CLAIMED THE DEALER WAS TRYING TO SELL THE CAR TO SOMEONE ELSE. *AK
WHEN TURNING STEERING WHEEL, THE FUSE WOULD BLOW. NO INTERIOR LIGHTING OR WINDSHIELD WIPERS, IF RAINING. THE DASHBOARD LIGHTS WOULD BE OUT. TAKEN TO DEALER & MECHANIC FOUND NOTHING WRONG THE FIRST 2 TIMES. FINALLY, THE 3RD TIME, THE PROBLEM (ELECTRICAL) WAS FOUND & REPAIRED. *AK
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
SEAT ROCKS ON RAILS NOTICEABLY. *AK
WHEN TRANSPORTING CARGO BEHIND REAR SEATS, IF CARGO HITS BACK OF SEATS, SEATS FLY FORWARD, HAPPENS WHEN SUDDENLY APPLYING BRAKES, DEALER READJUSTED LATCHES, SNAPPED LATCHES DO NOT HOLD, REFERRED BY GA STATE ATTORNEY, LEMON LAW.. *AK
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
BMW WAS AWARE OF A PROBLEM WHERE SULPHER FROM US FUELS WAS CAUSING THE CYLINDER WALLS OF THE M60 V8 MOTOR TO DETERIORATE. APPARENTLY THEY USED A NEW METAL CALLED NIKASIL (ALUMINUM IMPREGNATED WITH NICKEL AND SILICONE). ONCE THE CYLINDER WALLS BECOME DAMAGED, THE PISTON RINGS CAN NO LONGER SEAL PROPERLY, CAUSING "LEAKDOWN" OR AIR TO ESCAPE PAST THE PISTON AS IT ATTEMPTS TO COMPRESS AIR INTO THE COMBUSTION CHAMBER. ALTHOUGH BMW KNEW OF THE DEFECT, THERE WAS NO RECALL ISSUED. THROUGH REASEARCH, AND TALKS WITH BMW MECHANICS, I FOUND THAT BMW HAS REPLACED THOUSANDS OF THE EFFECTED MOTORS. BMW EVEN EXTENDED THE WARRANTY PERIOD ON THE ENGINE TO 100K MILES. I OWN A BMW 530I WITH THE 3.0 LITRE M60 NIKASIL MOTOR. IT BEGAN HAVING PROBLEMS AT AROUND 96K MILES. I NOW HAVE 109K MILES. THE CAR RAN FINE, BUT HAD A ROUGH IDLE. APPARENTLY THIS IS A SYPTOM OF THE "LEAKDOWN" PROBLEM. I BROUGHT THE CAR TO GIRARD BMW TO HAVE IT TESTED. THEY CONFIRMED THE ENGINE HAD THE PROBLEM ASSOCIATED WITH THE DEFECTIVE ENGINE BLOCK. HOWEVER, WHEN I GOT MY CAR BACK, IT RAN VERY POORLY. BEFORE LEAVING THE DEALER, I TOLD THEM THAT IT WAS RUNNING WORST THEN WHEN I BROUGHT IT TO THEM. THEY INDICATED IT WAS DUE TO THE ENGINE BLOCK PROBLEM. I INFORMED THEM I WAS CONCERNED TAKING THE CAR FOR FEAR I WOULD GET STUCK SOMEWHERE. THEY ASSURED ME I WOULD NOT. TWO DAYS LATER, MY CAR WOULD NOT START. GIRARD HAD A TOW TRUCK PICK UP MY CAR. I HAVE RECEIPTS FROM A LOCAL GARAGE SHOWING THAT THE CAR WAS EXPERIENCING THE PROBLEM WHILE IT WAS STILL COVERED UNDER WARRANTY. AT THE TIME, I WAS UNAWARE THAT BMW HAD EXTENDED THE WARRANTY, OR THAT THERE WAS ANY KNOWN PROBLEMS WITH THE MOTOR, AS I RECEIVED NOTHING FROM BMW INDICATING SUCH. I DID RECEIVE OTHER RECALL INFORMATION ON THE CAR HOWEVER NOTHING REGARDING POTENTIAL ENGINE PROBLEMS. MY CAR IS NOW BARELY OVER THE WARRANTY PERIOD (9K MILES) AND BMW WILL NOT FIX IT. *AK
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Transmission
Reports naming the automatic or manual transmission, including shifting behaviour, shudder, slipping and transmission control modules.
From owner reports, verbatim
ENGINE FAILED.
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 .