Problems · by component
2011 BMW 535I Xdrive power train problems
38 owner complaints to NHTSA about the 2011 BMW 535I Xdrive cite power train, 14% of all 268 complaints for this model year.
Complaints
38
14% of all complaints
Crashes
1
Reported by owners
Fires
0
Reported by owners
Injuries
1
Reported by owners
What owners say about the power train
Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
“ValveTronic motor and eccentric shaft is a very common issue that my specific car has. Affects the timing and makes a loud sound. Dangerous to drive in this condition.”
“The vehicle is having cooling/ heat problems. Does not overheat while driving but rather driving on high temp. Cools to norm temp here and there. My best thought is electrical. Also same vehicle rattles in rear center when going 65mph.. not sure the cause is.”
“I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY AND VEHICLE SENT AN OVERHEATING MESSAGE AND INSTANTLY THE POWER TO THE MOTOR WAS CUT OFF CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO RAPIDLY SLOW DOWN WITH NO BRAKE SIGNAL SO THE REAR CAR ALMOST REAR ENDED THE VEHICLE DUE TO THE SIGNAL CUTTING POWER TO THE ENGINE DURING THE OVERHEAT MESSAGE, ONCE I WAS ABLE TO PULL OVER AND STOP IT WAS FINE? I CHECKED THE COOLANT AFTER I GOT HOME AND IT WAS AT THE LEVEL REQUIRED, AFTER I WAS ABLE TO THE READ THE CODES IT SHOWED WATERPUMP ? I RECENTLY SAW RECALLS FOR 2011 BMW 5 SERIES ON WATER PUMP ISSUES, I WOULD LIKE TO AD THIS PROBLEM AND OR SAFEY ISSUE TO BE NOTICED, IF ALL THOSE VEHICLES ARE BEING REPORTED TO HAVE WATERPUMP ISSUES ,L BELIEVE MY CAR SHOULD BE ON THAT LIST OF RECALLS AS WELL , THEY ALL HAVE THE SAME WATER PUMP ,SO THAT WOULD EFFECT ALL MODELS 6 CLYINDER ,8 CYLINDER ETC,, TTHE AFTER A MONTH OF NO CODES NO ISSUES, I PULLED INTO MY DRIVEWAY TO GET SOMETHING FROM THE HOUSE, I LEFT THE CAR RUNNING, WHEN I CAM OUT IT HAD SENT AN OVER HEAT SIGNAL AGAIN, WHEN THE CAR WASNT OVERHEATING? IT WAS JUST WEIRD, IT MIGHT BE WISE TO INCLUDE ALL VEHICLES WITH THE 2010-2011 STYLE WATER PUMP TO BE REPLACED AND LOOK INTO…”
“2011 535I XDRIVE GT CV JOINTS ON DRIVE SHAFT FAILED WHILE DRIVING ON HIGHWAY DESTROYING THE CAR RENDERING IT UNDRIVABLE. NO RECALLS ON THIS MODEL OR THIS VIN ALTHOUGH ALL OTHER LIKE MODELS WERE ON RECALL. CAR PURCHASED AND SERVICED AT BMW DEALERSHIP.”
“THIS RECALL HAS MY POWERTRANS NOT PREFORMING AS IT SHOULD. I BROUGHT THE CAR IN 2017 AND THIS RECALL WAS NEVER DONE. I TURN MY CAR IN TO THE DEALERSHIP AND SINCE THEN I HAVE BEEN TAKING MY CAR FREQUENTLY TO MECHANICS FOR POWERTRANS PROBLEMS. WHEN I TAKE IT TO THE DEALERSHIP THEY TELL ME THEY DON'T SEE A FAULT FOR THE POWERTRANS IT AS SOON AS I LEAVE THE FAULT RETURNS. I PAID MONEY FOR NUMEROUS DIAGNOSTICS FOR THIS PROBLEM AND I STILL HAVE THE SAME ISSUE. THIS PROBLEM OCCURS AFTER REACHING SPEEDS OVER 65 MPH.”
“SES LIGHT ILLUMINATED. CHECKED THE OBD2 SYSTEM FOR A CODE. P-2763 IS PRESENT. TROUBLESHOOTING FOR THE ISSUE REVEALED THE ORANGE TCC PRESSURE CONTROL SOLENOID IS MALFUNCTIONING. ZF WILL NOT SELL THE SOLENOID INDIVIDUALLY. THEY REQUIRE THE CONSUMER TO PURCHASE A MECHATRONIC UNIT. THE ORANGE SOLENOID IS A SCARCE PART TO FIND LOCALLY IN THE U.S. ONLINE PRICES ARE AROUND $90. ON THE GLOBAL MARKET. THESE ARE NOT NEW SOLENOIDS. THE MECHATRONIC UNIT, OVERHAULED IS $1600 PLUS A CORE CHARGE. PLUS LABOR. MY COMPLAINT IS THAT ZF WILL NOT SUPPORT THE 8HP TRANSMISSION BY SELLING THE SOLENOID INDIVIDUALLY. COSTING ME SEVERAL THOUSAND DOLLARS WHEN A SINGLE PART AROUND $100 DOLLARS WILL REPAIR THE TRANSMISSION. ZF CUSTOMER SERVICE INFORMED ME THAT I SHOULD SOURCE THE PART THROUGH A USED PARTS DEALER OR LOCAL JUNK YARD. I TRIED BUT NO TRANSMISSIONS ARE AVAILABLE. I HAVE BEEN LOOKING SINCE MAY OF 2019. I TALKED TO BMW AND CHRYSLER PARTS DEPARTMENTS AT MY LOCAL DEALERS. THE TELL ME THEY CAN ONLY ORDER THE MECHATRONIC UNIT.”
Showing 6 of 38 reports. Read every report on NHTSA.gov.
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 9, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.