Home · 2015 BMW 428i Xdrive · Complaints

What 69 owners told NHTSA about the 2015 BMW 428i Xdrive

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (69)Crash / fire / injury (14)Electrical system (29)Engine & cooling (20)Engine (10)Airbags (7)Brakes (6)Fuel system (5)Transmission & drivetrain (4)Body & structure (3)Speed control (3)Tires (3)

Newest first · 69 complaints · page 2 of 3

Oct 24, 2024Engine & coolingElectrical system

The contact owns a 2015 BMW 428I. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V608000 (Engine and Engine Cooling, Electrical System); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

NHTSA ODI 11621696

Feb 7, 2024Tires

I had a flat the other day and had it replaced as they were inspecting my cars they noticed my other tire was bald. Both of these are Pirelli P7 all season and I had just bought this tire in June of 2023 and driven around 10,000 miles. Its almost totally bald after 10k miles which is crazy. Its raining and my car is not gripping on the road. My other tire blew because of this. I called and they told me there no rating for my tire and they can't replace it. They just put my life at risk because they gave me a crappy tire and they wont even replace the bald one? I could have crashed and been hurt or someone else hurt. Has not been inspected except for the tire company who installs them.

NHTSA ODI 11570543

Oct 28, 2023Transmission & drivetrainBrakes

There is a ebrake bracket made of plastic underneath the car but that sits above the drive train running from the front to the back parallel to the drivetrain. It's not protected by a heat shield and is only made of thin plastic. My has been replaced three times already and is already needing to be fixed again on a car with only 76k miles. The high temperatures from the exhaust melt the plastic and cause the cable to fall on to the drivetrain. It's only the matter of time before it gets caught in the drivetrain or wraps around causes an accident and serious bodily injury. I am shocked to see this is not recalled already to be replaced with a metal bracket. Mfg Part # 34406854898 34-40-6-854-898 34 40 6 854 898 34.40.6.854.898

NHTSA ODI 11552395

Sep 13, 2023Brakes

The plastic clip supporting the emergency brake line clip failed resulting in the emergency brake line guide resting on the drive shaft. This could cause a complete failure of the emergency brake. Replacing the clip requires removal of the gas tank, exhaust and heat shield to access the clip. A BMW dealer shop did the expensive repair ($3345) and told me it was common. I’ve read that the clip may have been redesigned. I believe this part should be properly designed and replaced in impacted cars and that the cost of the repair should be on BMW and not the consumer. The emergency brake/parking brake needs to be a reliable functioning part of the car to protect the safety of people in and around the vehicle. I do not have the broken clip for inspection, however, I attached photos. I realized I had a problem from the intermittent noise made from the emergency brake guide resting on the drive shaft. The vehicle inspection at the dealership identified the problem. A video of the inspection was made at the dealership. I attempted without success to gain some reimbursement and find out about the clip redesign from BMW USA.

NHTSA ODI 11544273

Aug 9, 2023

Parking brake cable retainer clip that extends above the driveshaft all the way to the rear wheels has broken and now cable scrapes against drive shaft causing a loud unpleasant concerning grinding noise when accelerating. The dealer were I service my vehicle is aware of issue, the part is a very inexpensive part, ranging from $12 to $50 depending ware you purchase but the dealer wants to charge $900 dollars to replace. This repair should be placed on the recall list due to the difficulty in replacing the clip, due to possibly having to remove the gas tank and drive shaft to get to the clip.

NHTSA ODI 11537387

Mar 12, 2023Body & structure

I saw a similar NHTSA report for this car, so I will just repeat it here: <start of similar NHTSA REPORT>--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- NHTSA ID Number: 11440588 The door locks have become ‘sticky’. This means that when pulling on the interior door release handle, the lock is moving to a stuck position that is not permitting egress. While the solution of pushing the central unlock button is currently viable, it would not work in a total electrical failure, or a situation of a vehicle submersion in water. This is a dangerous situation, potentially leading to passenger entrapment if the motors or lock mechanism fail. <end of similar NHTSA REPORT>--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Back to me: I have owned the car for roughly 2 years. The car has 72,000 miles on it. At first the problem was intermittent - less than 5% of the time. Recently, it is up to over 50% of time. A quick look at the BMW message boards shows that this is a widespread problem. There should be a recall on this extremely dangerous defect.

NHTSA ODI 11511436

Oct 12, 2022Engine

I was driving on the interstate and my 2015 BMW 428i suddenly went into neutral and almost got us killed. Mileage at 88k, no check engine light, rattling, or leaking of fluids and car had just been to my local shop for an oil change the week before. Towed to BWW dealership, as car was inoperable, and told the engine had seized.

NHTSA ODI 11488925

Sep 25, 2022CrashFire

I finance my car in 2016, the car was purchased at a third-party dealership, it only one previous owner. My car has two major recalls, BMW never notified me that there were any recalls and I never got any compensation such as fixing the car. Long story I lost my car in a car fire last year. My car was completely totaled and the car caught wire out of nowhere. I put an investigation through BMW of North America but they weren’t helpful and they compensate me for all the damages and losses that I lost due to the fire in my car. I just saw a new recall for more than 900,000 cars and I wanted to make sure that A- every recalls was served or down my car and B- if there’s a new recall related to my car fire I’m entitled to repairs monetary damages since I lost my car.

NHTSA ODI 11486333

Jul 6, 2022WheelsBrakesCrash

I was driving at 20mph and the brakes failed at a red light and it felt that a misfire in the engine as well I didn't have other option to force my way to the side because I could push the front car and pedestrians where crossing.

NHTSA ODI 11472578

Jun 6, 2022Suspension

Drivers side rear control arm snapped in half (sheered cut). The aluminum solid piece broke in half, this is to knowledge an oem original part that was not replaced. Resulted in suspension and alignment issue, uneven tread wear on all four tires (excessive wear on short amount of time causing me to replace all tires).

NHTSA ODI 11467716

May 20, 2022Steering

The contact owns a 2015 BMW 428i. The contact stated while driving 50 MPH, the vehicle lost power steering functionality. The message; Electrical Malfunction. Contact Service Center was displayed. The contact was able to veer to the side of the road using physical strength to steer the vehicle. The contact turned off and restarted the vehicle and the vehicle regained power steering assist functionality. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the Electric Power Steering (EPS) had failed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 141,425.

NHTSA ODI 11465459

Apr 26, 2022

Rear backup camera stopped working when backing car up. Also rear tailgate electric hatchopening stopped working along with lights. Dealer troubleshot problems and couldn’t determine failure cause but stated real tail gate control module needed replacement. Picked up car from dealer and the problems resolved themselves! Been working for several weeks so far but seems this might be an intermittent problem. Contacted BMWUSA to ask for Good Will repair but was denied due to mileage being outside base warranty. This is a potential crash hazard.

NHTSA ODI 11462187

Apr 14, 2022Engine & cooling

The contact owns a 2015 BMW 428i. The contact stated while driving approximately 65 MPH, there was an abnormal cracking sound. The vehicle was towed to a local mechanic. The vehicle was diagnosed with engine failure. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V119000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The approximate failure mileage was 70,000.

NHTSA ODI 11460809

Feb 14, 2022Fuel system

My car stops every once in a blue moon randomly while I am driving. The engine suddenly shuts off and a warning light that says "Drivetrain Malfunction: Drive moderately. Maximum drive output not available." shows up. It is extremely dangerous for me and others, it has stopped 3 times in the middle of the freeway & 6 times on normal street. When I got my car towed the first few times to random auto body stores, they scan my car & no engine code comes up so they don't know what to do and gave me a lot of advice. They also fill my gas up and then my car runs as if it has no problems. I found that this happens always at the half gallon mark, it will again say "drivetrain malfunction" when I call Triple A towing assistance I asked for gas instead and when they give it to me, the problem is fixed again. It clearly isn't being able to use up all my gas because it cant even go past the half tank mark when it shuts down. Right now I am literally driving only when my car gas is full before it reaches the half mark because I am so afraid. I found that my car model & year has the same recall listed for fuel pump problems. I took it to auto stores and they all tell me this is a fuel pump issue and not a drivetrain issue. I also measured the amount of gas I put in which is correct so the gas gauge meter is not the issue. My car shakes a bit when its starting off and often I feel as if it is not getting the gas correctly and my car feels weak at acceleration and then random jolts of it going well, which makes the car leap forward even though my foot is at the same pressure. My car is available for inspection anytime and I have called BMW service center and they told me to contact you guys first with a report. There has been no prior issues before this started happening maybe 6 months ago. It has happened over and over and over and now I am terrified to drive my car. The independent service centers tell me I have to probably change either both the fuel pumps or something related.

NHTSA ODI 11451974

Feb 2, 2022

I was driving on the highway with no cars around me and my sunroof exploded outward.

NHTSA ODI 11449931

Nov 16, 2021Body & structure

The door locks have become ‘sticky’. This means that when pulling on the interior door release handle, the lock is moving to a stuck position that is not permitting egress. While the solution of pushing the central unlock button is currently viable, it would not work in a total electrical failure, or a situation of a vehicle submersion in water. This is a dangerous situation, potentially leading to passenger entrapment if the motors or lock mechanism fail. A manual unlock MUST be possible, but as this vehicle has aged, has become problematic. I experience this most on days with significant temperature swings, and will note that I experienced the exact same problem in my 2005 BMW 3 series, which was reported and repaired at cost to me, Basic passenger safety should not require this repair or cost. The mechanism in question is flawed and deserves investigation.

NHTSA ODI 11440588

Sep 18, 2021SteeringAirbagsCrash1 injury

I car hit me from behind and pushed me into the car in front of me and my steering wheel came off and my air bag on steering wheel did not deploy. As a result the wheel pushed in my chest.

NHTSA ODI 11433462

Aug 30, 2021Electrical systemTiresFire

The contact owned a 2015 BMW 428i. The contact stated that while driving approximately 50 MPH, the vehicle drove over a pot and the air pressure monitoring system warning had displayed. After stopping the vehicle, flames and smoke were present coming from the front driver side wheel well. The fire department was called to the scene but the vehicle was completely engulfed in flames and was destroyed. The cause of the failure was not determined due to the extent of the fire damage. A police report was taken and the vehicle was towed away. The manufacturer was contacted regarding the failure. The local dealer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 75,000.

NHTSA ODI 11431012

Jul 7, 2021Fuel system

My car has been experiencing the same issues as reported in the BMW safety recall campaign 15V189000, since I purchased the car in October 2018. "If the fuel pump fails, the vehicle may stall without warning, increasing the risk of a crash." The last issue just happened recently on the interstate, which almost resulted in a crash. My Vin number production year is 2/2015 and is not part of the campaign, which is for production years 9/2013 to 9/2014. I believe my car should be part of this campaign, as my car is experiencing the exact same issues. I don't believe it is because of mileage/age, because this has been occurring since I got the car at around 40k or so miles in 2018.

NHTSA ODI 11423797

May 21, 2021AirbagsCrash1 injury

I had road side accident on4/30/21 around 3:15 pm at Clovis California air bag not deployed all front smashed my call back no is [XXX]. PARTS OF THIS DOCUMENT HAVE BEEN REDACTED TO PROTECT PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

NHTSA ODI 11418061

May 12, 2021Brakes

VACUUM PUMP LEAKING OIL INTO BRAKE BOOSTER. ENGINE OIL LEAKING INTO BRAKE BOOSTER DAMAGED MASTER CYLINDER CAUSING THE CAR NOT TO BRAKE POTENTIALLY CAUSING A CRASH. WE NOTICED THE BRAKES NOT FUNCTIONING CORRECTLY WHILE DRIVING ON CITY STREETS.

NHTSA ODI 11416255

Aug 25, 2020Transmission & drivetrain

CAR WOULD SHIFT WITHOUT WARNING TO NEUTRAL AND STALL WHILE DRIVING AT STREET AND HIGHWAY SPEED. POTENTIALLY MAY CAUSE A CRASH DUE TO SUDDEN LOSS OF SPEED AND POWER. THERE HAS BEEN PREVIOUS RECALLS, BUT THE 4 SERIES WAS NOT INCLUDED AND SHOULD BE, AS I EXPERIENCED THE SAME AS REPORTED WITH ATTACHED

NHTSA ODI 11351074

Aug 7, 2020

CAR HAS A FUTURE THEY CALLING CONNECT BMW. THAT FUTURE IS NOT WORKING ON MY CAR. I CAN'T OPEN OR CLOSE , OR USE VENTILATION OR ANY FUTURE IS NOT USEABLE ON APP. I PAID FOR ALL FUTURES AND DIDN'T WORKING I TOOK THE 2 DIFFERENT BMW SERVICES AND THEY TOLD ME IT'S MANUFACTURE PROBLEM YOU HAVE TO CONTACT WITH BMW GENIUS DEPARTMENT. I CONTACTED WITH THEM AND THEY TOOK MY INFORMATION AND THEY TOLD ME WE WILL CONTACT WITH YOU. THEY CONTACT WITH ME ONES AND TOLD ME WE ARE STILL WORKING ON IT. AND 1 YEAR PASSED AND THEY NOT FIXING MY PROBLEM.

NHTSA ODI 11343874

Apr 5, 2020Engine

BMW N20 ENGINE DETERIORATES ITSELF BY A FAULTY TIMING CHAIN SYSTEM SETUP. BMW HAS EXTENDED THE LIMITED WARRANTY TO 7 YEARS 70K MILES, BUT THAT IS SIMPLY JUST NOT ENOUGH. MY CAR, A 2015 428I, HAS SYMPTOMS OF OF THE TIMING CHAIN FALLING APART. KNOCKING SOUND, AND VERY LOUD HIGH PITCH WINE WHEN DRIVING. I HAVE BROUGHT MY CAR TO THE DEALER AND THEY SAY IT'S NORMAL. WHEN YOU LOOK UNDER THE HOOD YOU CAN SEE THE TIMING CHAIN, IT SHOULD NOT MOVE AT ALL. MINE MOVES UP, DOWN, LEFT, AND RIGHT, AS WELL AS THE GUIDE. BMW NEEDS TO MAKE THIS A RECALL. MY CAR IS CURRENTLY AT 68,000 MILES, AND THE WARRANTY ENDS AT 70,000. THESE ENGINES ARE KNOWN FOR BREAKING AFTER THE 70K MILE MARK. THIS ISSUE REALLY NEEDS TO BE A RECALL, AND JUST HAVE ALL N20, ENGINES FROM 2012-2015'S TIMING CHAINS REPLACED, OR EXTEND THE WARRANTY TO 10 YEARS AND 150,000 MILES. AS MY CAR HAS ALL OF THE SYMPTOMS OF A BAD TIMING CHAIN, I'M JUST WAITING FOR THE DAY MY CAR BREAKS AFTER 70K, AND I'M STUCK TO DEAL WITH A 20K ENGINE REPLACEMENT BILL. I KNOW PEOPLE WITH THE BMW N20, ENGINE WHO HAVE HAD TO DEAL WITH THEIR BROKEN CARS DUE TO THE TIMING CHAIN. THIS IS JUST RIDICULOUS, AND BMW REALLY JUST NEEDS TO RECALL THIS PART. THEY LIKE TO CALL THEMSELVES THE 'ULTIMATE DRIVING MACHINE', BUT THEIR CARS CAN'T EVEN LAST PAST 70 THOUSAND MILES WITHOUT HAVING A COMPLETE ENGINE REPLACEMENT. THIS IS RIDICULOUS, AND THEY NEED TO MAKE THIS ISSUE A RECALL.

NHTSA ODI 11320274

Dec 13, 2019AirbagsSeat beltsSeats

I BROUGHT MY CAR IN AFTER A FAULTY AIRBAG LIGHT WENT OFF. WAS NOTIFIED BY BMW THAT THE SEAT SENSOR WAS FAULTY CAUSING THE AIRBAG TO SHUT OFF. THIS FAULT IS WELL-KNOWN TO BMW AND I WROTE A COMPLAINT BASED ON MY INITIAL CONTACT THAT BMW WOULD NOT TAKE RESPONSIBILITY. I RECEIVED A CALL BACK FROM BMW ABOUT THE COMPLAINT MADE TO THEM IN WHICH THEY STATED BECAUSE I HAVE AN EXTENDED WARRANTY THEY WILL TAKE NO OWNERSHIP OR RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE REPORTED PROBLEM. I WAS TOLD AT THE DEALERSHIP THAT THIS COMMON SEAT SENSOR ISSUE CAN BE AFFECTED BY CELL PHONES BEING PLACED ON THE SEAT AND MOISTURE (NEITHER OF WHICH APPLIED TO THIS CIRCUMSTANCE). IT IS TROUBLING TO KNOW THAT FREQUENCY INTERFERENCE CAN FAULT SUCH A CRITICAL COMPONENT AND I ADVISED BMW CORP DURING MY PHONE CALL THAT PROPER SHIELDING OF ELECTRONIC COMPONENTS TO PREVENT FREQUENCY INTERFERENCE SHOULD BE CORRECTED. SAFETY COMPONENTS SHOULD BE COVERED BY MANUFACTURER WHEN IT PERTAINS TO THE SAFETY OF THE DRIVERS.THE REPRESENTATIVE CONTINUED TO PRESS THAT BMW WOULD TAKE NO OWNERSHIP OR RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE FAULTY EQUIPMENT BUT WOULD DOCUMENT THIS IN THE FORMAL COMPLAINT. THERE IS NO RESOLVE AVAILABLE THROUGH BMW ACCORDING TO THE REPRESENTATIVE.

NHTSA ODI 11288873

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Working with the data? Download all 69 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 28, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2015 BMW 428i Xdrive verdict →