KnownCarProblems2003 BMW 525i Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 32 complaints with NHTSA about the 2003 BMW 525i, most often about the air bags (31% of complaints). It is 5th of 9 525i model years by number of complaints and has 2 recalls.
⚠ Safety advisory2 recalls for this car came with a do-not-drive warning. See below and check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Most common 2003 BMW 525i problems
Air bags
10 complaints · 31%Tl contact owns a 2003 BMW 525i. While driving approximately 60 MPH, the front and rear air bags on the driver side suddenly deployed. The contact noticed that the hazard lights blinked and the check engine light illuminated on the instrument panel after the failure. The contact pulled over and shut the vehicle off.…
The contact owns a 2003 BMW 525i. The contact stated that while starting the ignition the air bag warning light illuminated until the engine was turned off. The failure recurred whenever the vehicle was in operation. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The…
Electrical
8 complaints · 25%Parts named most often: ignition.
Repeated ignition coil failure on my 2003 BMW 525i series. The dealers has attempted to repair pair this same problem four times. I question the safety of this vehicle.
I was driving on the freeway and turned the seat heater on. After about 5 minutes into my drive, I started to smell smoke and then saw smoke in the car. I pulled over and saw that the seat was catching on fire. I turned the seat heater off and doused the fire with water.
Lights
4 complaints · 13%Parts named most often: headlights, tail lights.
Bought car new in april of 2001. Since that time, driver side headlight (low beam) has burned out 3 times. Do not know if this is a safety defect or not, but thought I would report it just in case.
I have a complete failure of the passenger(right) side tail light assembly on our 2003 BMW 525i. The tail light is connected to a wiring harness via a connector. One of the connector pins has been overheated by the electrical current and has been burnt to a crisp. This exact problem has forced BMW to do a recall in…
Seats
3 complaints · 9%I was driving on the freeway and turned the seat heater on. After about 5 minutes into my drive, I started to smell smoke and then saw smoke in the car. I pulled over and saw that the seat was catching on fire. I turned the seat heater off and doused the fire with water.
Upon turning on the manufacturer installed drivers seat heater, the drivers seat heater shorted out causing extreme heat and smoke to rise from the left side of the seat. Although this did not cause a fire, it was extremely close to causing a fire. The heater was turned off, and the smoke and heat subsided. There was…
Visibility and wipers
3 complaints · 9%Parts named most often: power window devices and controls.
I was helping a passenger out of the passenger seat of my 2003 BMW 525i when the passenger accidently bumped the the auto-up window button. The door was open, the window was down, and I had finger in the way of the now closing window. All off a sudden the window chopped off a digit of my pinky finger. My finger was…
Module fails that controls windshield wipers. If raining, there would be no visiblity and would result in an accdent. This happened when the car was moving.
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2003 BMW 525i recalls
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the vehicle has been remedied. Bmw will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the vehicle for an optional sports steering wheel with an affected inflator. Dealers will replace the air bag module as necessary, free of charge. The recall began march 14, 2019. Owners may contact bmw customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
Full defect summary
Bmw of north america, llc (bmw) is recalling certain model year 2000-2003 525i sedan, 530i sedan, 540i sedan, 2001-2003 525i sports wagon and 540i sports wagon vehicles, and 2000-2004 x5 sav 3.0i, x5 sav 4.4i, and x5 sav 4.6is vehicles. This recall affects certain vehicles where the original steering wheel has been replaced with the optional sports steering wheel. The sports steering wheel has a frontal air bag inflator that may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the vehicle has been remedied. Bmw will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front driver air bag module, free of charge. The recall began aug 2016. Owners may contact bmw customer service at 1-800-525-7417. Note: this recall supersedes recall 14v-348 in its entirety. Additionally, vehicles that have had their driver side frontal air bag replaced previously as part of a recall remedy need to have their air bag replaced under this recall as well. Note: on december 17, 2015 bmw removed the model year 2004 x5 3.0i and 4.4i sports activit
Full defect summary
Bmw of north america, llc (bmw) is recalling certain model year 2002-2005 325i, 325xi, 330i, and 330xi sedans, and 325xi and 325i sportswagons, 2002-2006 330ci, 325ci, and m3 convertibles and 325i, 330i, and m3 coupes, 2002-2003 m5, 540i, 525i sedan, and 530i sedans, and 540i and 525i sportswagons, and 2003 x5 3.0i and 4.4i sports activity vehicles. Please note that the 5-series and x5 vehicles are only included if they are equipped with the optional sports steering wheel. The affected vehicles are equipped with a dual-stage driver frontal air bag that may be susceptible to moisture intrusion which, over time, could cause the inflator to rupture.
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which recalls are still open on your car.
Questions about the 2003 BMW 525i
- What are the most common problems with the 2003 BMW 525i?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: air bags (10 complaints); electrical (8 complaints); lights (4 complaints).
- How many recalls does the 2003 BMW 525i have?
- 2 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from January 14, 2019 (air bags). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2003 a bad year for the BMW 525i?
- It is 5th of 9 525i model years by number of complaints, with 32 complaints. Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many cars were sold, so popular years collect more of them, and the newest years have had less time to.