2001 BMW 540I problems

Filed Mar 3, 2026 · Airbags · CA

The contact owns a 2001 BMW 540i. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: (17V047000 (AIR BAGS) and would like to be removed from the recall distribution list. The local dealer and manufacturer were contacted.

Filed Mar 21, 2023 · Airbags, Electrical · 105,000 miles · CA

The contact owns a 2001 BMW 540I. The contact stated that the dealer had previously performed an unknown air bag recall repair; however, the failure occurred a year after the recall repair was performed. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked and turned off, an explosion was heard. The contact entered the vehicle and noticed that the passenger's side air bag had deployed, which shattered the front windshield. The air bag and an unknown warning light were illuminated. The driver's side air bag deployed a month later. The contact stated that there was no impact to the vehicle that could have caused the air bags to deploy. Additionally, the vehicle made an abnormal sound after it was turned off. The vehicle also needed to be jumpstarted daily due to the battery failing to retain a charge. The dealer was made aware of the failure; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 105,000.

Filed Jan 14, 2020 · Engine · 145,000 miles · CT · crash

M62 v-8 engines used in the e-39 540 and e-38 740 are notorious for faulty timing chain guides. At around 125,000 the plastic can disintegrate causing the chain to skip a tooth. Once a tooth is skipped the valves are crushed and the engine is destroyed. The cost to replace the guides is extremely expensive. I was lucky in that I replaced mine at 140,000 miles

Filed May 21, 2017 · Airbags · 156,000 miles · GA

Takata recall: both the manufacturer (bmw north america) and the local dealer (united bmw of roswell, ga) are refusing to perform the inspection of the air bag inflator on the referenced vehicle, per the federal safety agency recall campaign no. 17v‑047. Dealer claims that no inspection is required since manufacture's service records for this VIN show that the "airbag control unit" was replaced 6/22/04. However, the open the federal safety agency recall campaign on this vehicle notes that the inflator may have been replaced previously but that the inflator that was replaced still needs to be inspected at this time as it may be faulty.

Filed Jul 1, 2016 · Airbags · 75,000 miles · MD

Possible takata inflator: at first the passenger airbag light came on occasionally and now the passenger airbag light is on all at the time.

Filed May 5, 2015 · Steering · 130,000 miles · CA

The bracket that holds the power steering pump on my 2001 bmw 540i snapped on the top and bottom pieces of the bracket resulting in my belts and pulleys to be thrown and destroyed. The repair is very expensive and time consuming. This is becoming a more and more common problem on the e39 style 1997-2003 bmw 540i's.

Filed Feb 14, 2014 · Steering · 89,000 miles · OH

Power steering brackets on these cars break. Happened to me and threw a belt during a turn. This is an extreme safety hazard as you have no power steering when the bracket breaks and the belt is thrown. This is a known issue if you search on bmw forums and should be addressed by bmw! This is happening to my vehicle for the second time. Other owners report multiple instances as well.

Filed Feb 10, 2011 · Transmission · 73,263 miles · NY

2001 bmw 540i reverse gear failure on zf 5hp24 (a5s 440z) transmission. My bmw will no longer engage reverse, car feels like it is still in neutral.

Filed May 21, 2010 · Electrical, Lights · 98,000 miles · TX

3rd (high) tail light bulb and socket overheats and melts, rendering the light inoperable and possibly causing a fire hazard.

Filed Mar 19, 2009 · Electrical · NH

Electrical short in faulty thermostat caused all wiring to melt and lead to a damage of main computer.