What breaks most · 2006 to 2016 model years
BMW 550i problems by year
Owners have filed 252 safety complaints with NHTSA about the BMW 550i across model years 2006 to 2016. Three years stand out: 2011 for engine complaints, 2007 for air bags complaints and 2012 for engine complaints. The quietest years are 2009, 2014 and 2010.
- Years to check closely: 2011, 2007, 2012
- Fewest complaints: 2009, 2014, 2010
- Complaints on file
- 2522006 to 2016, all trims
- Worst year
- 201184 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 916 fires · 4 injuries · 0 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 66kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 19Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 | 3 | 3 | Air bags (13) | |
| 37 | 3 | 2 | Air bags (8) | |
| 32 | 1 | 2 | Electrical system (9) | |
| 2 | 0 | 1 | Tires (2) | |
| 11 | 1 | 1 | Engine (4) | |
| 84 | 1 | 3 | Engine (32) | |
| 35 | 0 | 2 | Engine (13) | |
| 15 | 0 | 1 | Engine (8) | |
| 6 | 0 | 2 | Fuel system (2) | |
| 6 | 0 | 0 | Fuel system (3) | |
| 1 | 0 | 2 | Engine (1) |
What fails on the 2011 BMW 550i
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EngineEngine gaskets and seals | 38% |
32 | 0 | Shop engine parts for the 2011 BMW 550i |
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 24% |
20 | 0 | Shop electrical system parts for the 2011 BMW 550i |
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 17% |
14 | 0 | Shop all powertrain and transmission parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Fuel systemFuel pumps and injectors | 17% |
14 | 0 | Shop fuel system parts for the 2011 BMW 550i |
| Tires | 14% |
12 | 0 | — |
| Unknown or other | 10% |
8 | 0 | — |
| Wheels | 7% |
6 | 0 | — |
| Air bags | 6% |
5 | 1 | Check recalls for air bags on NHTSA.gov |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
-
The car just don't go the speed is supposed to i can't go in highway because the car don't go that fast and that is not safe for me and my family i spent a lot of money trying to fix it but the problem always come back
-
Wiring in headlight assemblies shorts out because of degraded defective wiring insulation. Headlights can immediately fail while driving at night. Passenger side headlight failed.
-
When driving down the road the car will start shaking and the car computer pops up saying drivetrain malfunction and you have to pull over to restart the car. But it does it again 5-10 minutes later
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 6, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which BMW 550i years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 2011, 2007, 2012 carry the most filings on the BMW 550i. The 2011 alone has 84 complaints, led by engine.
What is the most common BMW 550i problem?
On the 2011 model year, the most-reported component is engine with 32 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do BMW 550i problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all BMW 550i complaints that include mileage is about 66,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.