BMW 550I loss of power problems

Filed Sep 13, 2025 · Electrical, Engine · TX

Vehicle abruptly shut off while reversing out of my driveway. Vehicle restarted after a long crank and appeared to enter a reduced power mode/limp mode with a transmission fault that locked the transmission in 4th gear. Reading OBD2 codes revealed a code for the crankshaft position sensor. Inspection of the 3 terminal sensor revealed 2 of the terminal contacts on the sensor to be shorted out with melted plastic on both the sensor and the wiring connector plug. Shorted wire could be a result of a leaking coolant passage at rear of engine within bellhousing where sensor is located. Coolant intrusion into sensor connector resulted in electrical short and melted connections.

Filed May 26, 2020 · Fuel system, Transmission · 50,000 miles · TX

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 bmw 550i gran turismo. The contact stated that while her son was driving at 45 MPH, the vehicle loss power and stalled without warning. The vehicle was pulled to the side of the road and restarted. The vehicle jerked. The vehicle was taken to the classic bmw located at 6800 dallas pkwy, plano, tx 75024, (214) 778-2600, where it was diagnosed that the fuel pump and the spark plugs needed to be replaced. The contact was told that there was no recall. The manufacture was made aware of the failure and stated that there was no recall. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 50,000.

Filed May 21, 2020 · Engine · 130,000 miles · MO · fire

I own my bmw 550i gran turismo sedan 2011 f10(n63). There is a recall on my exact model. The federal safety agency number: 18v248000/ engine and engine cooling. I am having the same exact issues that the recall shows. I have proof of documents showing my water pump failing, getting service water pump and alternator repair. August 24, 2019 shows small evaporations leak, cylinder misfires and has bad head gasket. Water pump failure caused my engine to over heat and bad head gaskets.I also had similar problem as other customers with the turbo coolant hoses, my hoses cracked like glass, ejecting coolant all over the engine and alternator, which caused smoke really bad almost leading to an car crash because I couldn't see on the highway, when I pulled over on the side of the road the alternator was burning up. I have contacted manufacturer bmw of north america and my VIN number is not on the recall list and I have the same exact engine that is recalled(n63/f10) I am needing my car added to the recall list, this mistake nearly cost me and my family life. April 12th, the car was in motion, in kansas city,mo on the highway 435, big clouds of white smoke, engine loss power, causing a car to almost crash into the rear of the car.

Filed Apr 29, 2020 · Acceleration, Engine · 120,000 miles · MO

I own my bmw 550i gran turismo sedan 2011 f10(n63). There is a recall on my exact model. The federal safety agency number: 18v248000/ engine and engine cooling. I am having the same exact issues that the recall shows. I have proof of documents showing my water pump failing, getting service water pump and alternator repair. August 24, 2019 shows small evaporations leak, cylinder misfires and has bad head gasket. Water pump failure caused my engine to over heat and bad head gaskets.I also had similar problem as other customers with the turbo coolant hoses, my hoses cracked like glass, ejecting coolant all over the engine and alternator, which caused smoke really bad almost leading to an car crash because I couldn't see on the highway, when I pulled over on the side of the road the alternator was burning up. I have contacted manufacturer bmw of north america and my VIN number is not on the recall list and I have the same exact engine that is recalled(n63/f10) I am needing my car added to the recall list, this mistake nearly cost me and my family life. April 12th, the car was in motion, in kansas city,mo on the highway 435, big clouds of white smoke, engine loss power, causing a car to almost crash into the rear of the car. I am now located in kansas city, mo. I can be contacted by email: [xxx] or cell: [xxx] redacted to protect personally identifiable information pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).

Filed Apr 10, 2018 · Engine · 60,000 miles · GA

Tl* the contact owns a 2011 bmw 550i. The contact stated that the vehicle experienced a sudden loss of power and stalled without warning. The vehicle was towed to a dealer (global imports bmw, 500 interstate n pkwy, atlanta, ga 30339, (800) 294-1853) where it was diagnosed that the timing chain was faulty and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was notified. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer and the manufacturer indicated that there was no recall to provide a solution. The approximate failure mileage was 60,000.

Filed Sep 7, 2016 · Engine, Transmission · 73,000 miles · DC

Drivetrain malfunction car lost power (no acceleration) on the highway shock violently, happened 3 times in less then a year car does have 70k miles but this shouldn't happen.

Filed Oct 11, 2015 · Electrical, Engine · 57,000 miles · DC

Lost of power while driving, 2 incident: bad vibrations while at a idle.

Filed Sep 16, 2015 · Transmission · 41,900 miles · TX

Tl* the contact owns a 2011 bmw 550i. While driving approximately 70 MPH, the vehicle started shaking and lost all power. The drive train malfunction warning light illuminated. The vehicle restarted, but the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken to a dealer for diagnostic testing. The high pressure sensor, low pressure sensor, and drive train were replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 41,900.

Filed Nov 4, 2014 · Electrical, Engine · 55,000 miles · GA

I bought the car on may 6, 2015 with about 53k miles on it. Drove it for only about 45 days and while driving the car the drivetrain malfunction and other lights came on and the car lost power and stopped immediately. At first, I thought it was the battery and had the car jumped but that didn't work. The care engine was totally dead, no sound no anything other than the engine light that popped on before it stopped. I had purchased an extended warranty from gwc at the purchase of the car so informed them. I had the car towed to a place (lmc auto in norcross georgia) that gwc was willing to pay for repairs. Lmc said the engine was locked and needed to be replaced. Gwc refused to replace the engine because of the expense and instead had lmc auto repair the engine. Needless to say, lmc is still repairing the engine almost 5months later. I had called governor's office of consumer protection, [xxx], etc.. Trying to get help with getting the car fixed. When I talked to bmw of north america they said they warranty is up at 50k miles so they cannot commit to do anything. I am at my wits end and the car still does not seem to be any closer to getting fixed. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).

Filed Sep 29, 2014 · Engine, Fuel system · 39,300 miles · NE

I was driving my car and all of a sudden the entire car started shaking. I get multiple engine malfunction lights and then get a "reduced power" alert on my dashboard. The car goes into "limp-mode", which means it's incapable of going past 40-45 MPH and going anything above 25 results in violent shaking of the car. Also at red lights, the entire car vibrates. The fault was determined to be the fuel injectors in the engine, however I already knew that by simply looking up the symptoms. Thousands of bmw 5-series made between 2011-2012 have this issue, yet bmw is not recalling them, but rather fixing them on a one-by-one basis. If someone is out of warranty, like me, they are then charging nearly $6,000 for a fault that affects over 50% of 2011 bmw 550i's made! Bmw forums everywhere talk about this problem and as cars made in 2011 start running out of their warranty in late 2014, early 2015, more and more of them will start showing symptoms and consumers will be forced to shell out thousands of dollars for a fix bmw should have addressed in a mandatory recall.