1999 Bmw 540I: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 29 complaints
29
Total Complaints
71,000mi
Median Mileage
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Top Issue
1
Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

59,942 25th Percentile
71,000 Median Mileage
159,502 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
4
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:COOLING SYSTEM:RADIATOR ASSEMBLY
3
STEERING
3
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
2
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES
2
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:COOLING SYSTEM
2
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP
2
AIR BAGS:SIDE/WINDOW
1
TIRES:TREAD/BELT
1
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP:CONTROL UNIT/MODULE
1

Severity Assessment

1
Crashes
0
Fires
0
Injuries
0
Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"WHILE CONSUMER WAS DRIVING AT ABOUT 25 MPH AND PASSENGER'S AIR BAG DEPLOYED. THERE WAS NO ACCIDENT. CONTACTED DEALER, AND DEALER WAS WILLING TO REPLACE AIR BAG.*AK"
"ON OCCASIONS WHEN SLOWING, TRANSMISION DOWNSHIFTS "HARD" MAYBE 2-1OR 3-2-1 AND EVEN A THUMB??AND DIFFICULT TO CONTROL AT THAT TIME??*AK"
"THIS IS A VERY COMMON OCCURENCE. ON THE ROADFLY BULLETIN BOARD OF FELLOW OWNERS, FAILURE RATE IS ALMOST 40% OF RESPONDENTS! TYPICALLY AFTER ONLY 40 - 50K MILES! DT"

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28