2016 Bmw 535i problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Air Bags (7) · Visibility/Wiper (1) · Tires (1)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Bmw 535i model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
Safety recalls (2)
Air Bags 2016-12-20 · campaign 16V914000 · 3,506 vehicles
Defect: BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2017 BMW 640i, 640i xDrive, 650i, 650i xDrive, M6, 535i, 535i xDrive, 430i, 430i xDrive, 440i, 440i xDrive, M4, X1 sDrive28i, X1 xDrive28i, i3, i8, Rolls-Royce Dawn, Mini Clubman Cooper, Clubman Cooper S, Cooper All4, Cooper S All4, Mini 4-Door Cooper, Cooper S, Mini 2-Door Cooper, Cooper S, John Cooper Works and 2016 BMW 528i, 528i xDrive, 535i, 535i xDrive, 550i, 550i xDrive, M5 and 535d vehicles. The affected vehicles have seat-
Risk: If the air bag inflator initiator fails to ignite, the seat-mounted air bag will not deploy, increasing the risk of injury.
Fix: BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the air bag modules, free of charge. The recall began February 6, 2017. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
Child Seat 2015-10-30 · campaign 15V718000 · 7,162 vehicles
Defect: BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2016 528i, 528i xDrive, 535i, 535i xDrive, 535d xDrive, M5, 550i, 550i xDrive, and 535d sedans. The affected vehicles have an inboard lower anchor for child restraints on the left rear seat that may have been bent downwards, preventing the child seat from fully engaging both lower anchors. As such, these vehicles may fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 225, "Child Restraint
Risk: If the child seat is not properly attached to the lower anchors, it can increase the child's risk of injury in the event of a crash.
Fix: BMW will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, if necessary, repair the inboard lower anchor on the left rear seat, free of charge. The recall began on December 28, 2015. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
Service bulletins (220)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Visibility:power Window Devices And Controls 2024-01-16 · B510819 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
the basic conditions for initializing the power windows are not met.
Electrical System 2024-01-11 · B611305 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
the electrical system of bmw vehicles has been subject to an ongoing development process over the last few years. this has led to increased demands being placed on the battery. this document covers important information for the dealer on how to handle ã¢ââdischarged batteryã¢ââ complaints.
Fuel System, Gasoline 2023-12-20 · B160623 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
engine will crank but not start. there is no communication with the integrated fuel module (tfe) whendiagnosing with ista. the following two fault codes will be stored in the dme: 032b43 - low fuel pressure system, electric fuel pump: pressure value too low cda594 - message (- 0x33e) missing, rec
Equipment 2023-11-22 · B653423 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
customers may state that the alarm system (dwa) is not active after locking their unoccupied vehicle. depending on the vehicleã¢ââs equipment and settings, no acoustic or optical confirmation (folding the mirrors/blinking confirmation) is noticeable. additionally, the red anti-theft alarm led in
Engine And Engine Cooling 2023-11-16 · B010919 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
diesel fuel injectors: ltd wty extension to 10 years/120,000 miles
Engine And Engine Cooling 2023-11-13 · B011423 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
pressure control valve (pcv) extended ltd wty 15 years/150,000 miles
Showing the 6 most recent of 220 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2024-09-26 · Air Bags“passenger restraint system malfunction, available for inspection. passenger side air bag will not work if in an accident problem has been confirmed by dealer warning lamp appeared approximately 4-5 weeks ago, prior to that no symptoms. just happened all of a sudden. …”
2024-08-20 · Engine And Engine Cooling · 78,000 mi“the contact owns a 2016 bmw 535i. the contact stated while driving at various speeds, the message that the engine was overheating was displayed. the contact stated that the vehicle was left overnight in a hotel parking lot. the vehicle was able to be restarted; however, the failure recurred. the vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnose…”
2024-04-10 · Unknown Or Other“1 .panoramic sunroof curtain has been repaired twice at the dealer and now it broke for the third time 2. the controls to the panoramic sunroof do not work at all 3.passenger restrain system malfunction…”
2024-02-06 · Air Bags“the passenger air bag signal flashes on and off even when someone is seating on the passenger seat. …”
2024-02-02 · Air Bags“air bag warning light stays on.…”
2023-06-28 · Seat Belts“i got a notice from the car that the restraint system was malfunctioning. it said to go ahead and wear my seatbelt and go to the nearest repair shop. this is distressing and should not have happened. i’m afraid to drive it. i have no other means of transportation. my life was destroyed by a near fatal car accident in 1994 as i was enrolling in medi…”
2023-02-08 · Air Bags“the driver's side supplemental restraint warning light has come on and stays on. i have an appointment with my service center.…”
2021-02-01 · Visibility/Wiper · 36,000 mi“the head unit or the car stopped working. as a result, rear view camera, all warning systems or the car including warnings for low tire pressure, warnings for distance from objects in front, side and rear all stopped working. this is a safety issue with all safety features of the car were disabled. this is the second time head unit has stopped work…”
2020-02-29 · Air Bags · 36,000 mi“my car is showing a warning sign passenger restraint malfunction…”
2018-03-16 · Tires · 19,000 mi“tires are coming apart and unserviceable at 19000 miles of normal driving conditions. the tire shop tells me they are clearly defective …”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.