BMW 528i
Owners filed 833 complaints across 15 model years of the BMW 528i. The 2011 drew the most (118).
Model years15
Complaints833
Recalls28
Fires47
Deaths0
Which BMW 528i years should you avoid?
Going by 833 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, the BMW 528i years to avoid are 2008.
- 20082.7× the usual share of fires, crashes and deaths for a car of its age (16 fires, 1 crash).
How this is worked out: each year is compared with a typical year of the same model, which takes most of the difference in sales out of it, and its share of serious failures is compared with every other car of the same model year, because older cars were complained about differently. A year needs 25 complaints to be judged at all. Complaints are unverified owner reports. Full method →
Every BMW 528i model year compared
Complaints per year| Year | Complaints | Relative volume | Recalls | Fires | Crashes | Most reported | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 59 | 4 | 4 | 1 | Electrical System | Routine | |
| 2015 | 65 | 1 | 5 | 1 | Electrical System | Routine | |
| 2014 | 57 | 3 | 5 | — | Electrical System | Routine | |
| 2013 | 73 | 4 | 1 | 1 | Engine | Routine | |
| 2012 | 90 | 4 | 3 | — | Engine | Routine | |
| 2011 | 118 | 4 | 1 | 1 | Engine | Routine | |
| 2010 | 65 | 2 | 4 | 2 | Engine and Engine Cooling | Routine | |
| 2009 | 23 | 2 | 2 | 1 | Engine | Routine | |
| 2008Avoid | 118 | 2 | 16 | 1 | Exterior Lighting | Routine | |
| 2007 | 1 | 1 | — | — | Engine | Routine | |
| 2001 | 2 | 0 | — | — | Air Bags › Side/Window | Routine | |
| 2000 | 42 | 1 | 4 | 2 | Air Bags | Routine | |
| 1999 | 46 | 0 | — | 6 | Vehicle Speed Control | Routine | |
| 1998 | 33 | 0 | 1 | 2 | Air Bags | Routine | |
| 1997 | 41 | 0 | 1 | 5 | Suspension › Front › Macpherson Strut | Routine |
Data: NHTSA complaint and recall files, October 2026. Complaints are unverified owner reports.