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What 26 owners told NHTSA about the 2021 BMW 5 Series Hybrid Sedan Phev

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 (26)Crash / fire / injury (3)Electrical system (7)Brakes (4)Engine (3)Fuel system (3)Airbags (2)Backup camera & sensors (2)Seat belts (2)Transmission & drivetrain (2)Driver assistance (1)Seats (1)

1 of 26 complaints match · Driver assistance · crash/fire/injury only · clear filters

Jul 24, 2023BrakesDriver assistanceCrash

Unintended car acceleration, with complete brake failure. No software warning icons in dash, no collision avoidance or ABS triggered even though car so equipped. Crashed into rear end of stationery vehicle,. [XXX] , MN police were called. Incident report # attached. (1st image) Western National Insurance Co. notified.Claim # attached (2nd image) Car will be inspected @ BMW dealership in Bloomington, MN 7/25/23. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ODI 11533979

Working with the data? Download all 26 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 19, 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 2021 BMW 5 Series Hybrid Sedan Phev verdict →