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2018 BMW 5 Series

Plug-in hybridGasDiesel
Midsize Cars
7 EPA-rated configurations
Data refreshed 2026-09-11
F
Safety Signal
35 / 100 from the NHTSA recall record
Recalls4 critical7
Complaintsowner reports to NHTSA85
Crash ratingNHTSA overall—
Fuel economybest combined, EPA30 mpg
202720262025202420232022202120202019201820172016
Active NHTSA advisory: park outside and away from structures until repaired. Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls and see the recall details below.

The 2018 BMW 5 Series is sold in the U.S. as a plug-in hybrid, gas and diesel midsize car with 7 EPA-rated configurations. The most efficient version, the 540d xDrive, is EPA-rated at 30 mpg combined. NHTSA lists 7 recall campaigns for this model year, 4 rated critical, which gives it a Safety Signal grade of F. Owners have filed 85 complaints, most often about the air bags.

Specs & fuel economy

Source: EPA fueleconomy.gov
ConfigurationPowertrainDriveEngine / motorCityHwyCombRangekWh/100miCharge (240V)Annual fuel*
530ePlug-in hybridRWD2.0L 4-cyl turbo + 83kW DCPM273129 (37 MPGe blended)16 mi electric462 h$2,650
530e xDrivePlug-in hybridAWD2.0L 4-cyl turbo + 83kW DCPM273128 (36 MPGe blended)15 mi electric492 h$2,750
530iGasRWD2.0L 4-cyl turbo243427———$2,850
530i xDriveGasAWD2.0L 4-cyl turbo233327———$2,850
540iGasRWD3.0L 6-cyl turbo213024———$3,250
540i xDriveGasAWD3.0L 6-cyl turbo202923———$3,350
540d xDriveDieselAWD3.0L 6-cyl turbo263630———$3,000

*EPA estimate at 15,000 miles/year at EPA reference fuel and electricity prices. fueleconomy.gov record ids: 38754, 38755, 39153, 39154, 39230, 39290, 39820.

Factory warranty running out?

The 2018 BMW 5 Series is in the years where high-voltage electronics and module repairs land on the owner. Compare extended-coverage quotes in about two minutes.

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Recalls (7)

Source: NHTSA recall database
!critical

Electrical System

Park outside29,119 vehicles
ProblemBMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2018-2020 530e xDrive, 2017-2019 740Le xDrive, 2018-2020 530e iPerformance, 2016-2018 330e iPerformance vehicles. The engine starter relay may corrode, causing the relay to overheat and short circuit.RiskA short circuit in the starter relay may increase the risk of a fire.FixOwners are advised to park outside and away from structures until the remedy is complete. Dealers will replace the engine starter, free of charge. Letters informing owners of the safety risk were mailed September 3, 2026. Another letter will be mailed after the remedy is confirmed. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will become searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning August 28, 2026.
NHTSA campaign 26V441000reported Jul 8, 2026BMW of North America, LLC
!critical

Engine And Engine Cooling

15 vehicles
ProblemBMW of North America, LLC. (BMW) is recalling certain 540d xDrive vehicles that were previously repaired under recall number 22V-614. The exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) cooler may leak internally, causing coolant to mix with diesel engine soot, which could result in smoldering particles and a melting intake manifold.RiskAn EGR valve with smoldering particles and a melting intake manifold increases the risk of an engine fire.FixDealers will inspect and replace the EGR module and the intake manifold as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed October 7, 2024. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
NHTSA campaign 24V588000reported Aug 8, 2024BMW of North America, LLC
!critical

Engine And Engine Cooling

298 vehicles
ProblemBMW of North America, LLC. (BMW) is recalling certain 2018 540d xDrive vehicles equipped with an Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR) module with an integrated cooler. The EGR cooler may leak internally, causing coolant to mix with diesel engine soot, which could result in smoldering particles and a melting intake manifold.RiskA melting intake manifold increases the risk of fire.FixDealers will replace the EGR module, and the intake manifold will be inspected and replaced, if necessary, free of charge. Interim owner notification letters were mailed on October 7, 2022. Owner notification letters were mailed December 30, 2022. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
NHTSA campaign 22V614000reported Aug 10, 2022BMW of North America, LLC
▲high

Air Bags

33 vehicles
ProblemBMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2017 530i, 530i xDrive, 540i and 540i xDrive and 2017-2018 530e xDrive vehicles. Prior exposure to excessive levels of humidity within the driver and passenger head air bag inflators may affect the proper deployment of the head air bags.RiskIn the event of a crash of sufficient severity, deployment of the head air bag may be impaired and/or the igniter could separate from the inflator, increasing the risk of injury.FixBMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the left or right head air bag, free of charge. The recall began June 24, 2020. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
NHTSA campaign 20V243000reported Apr 29, 2020BMW of North America, LLC
○minor

Back Over Prevention

257,473 vehicles
ProblemBMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2018 540d, 2018-2020 530i, 530i xDrive, 540i, 540i xDrive, M550i xDrive, M5, 530e, 530e xDrive, X3 sDrive, X3 xDrive, X3 M40i, X3 M, and 2019-2020 X4 xDrive, X4 M40i, X4 M, X7 xDrive, X7 M50i, 740Li, 740Li xDrive, 750Li, 750Li xDrive, 8 Series Convertible and Coupe 840i, 840i xDrive, M850i xDrive, X5 sDrive, X5 xDrive, X5 M50i, X6 xDrive, X6 M50i, 330i, 330i xDrive, M340i, M340i xDrive, Z4 sDrive, Z4 M40i, 740Le xDrive and 745Le xDrive, 2018-2019 640i xDrive Gran Turismo and Rolls-Royce Phantom, 2019 M850i xDrive Gran Coupe and Rolls-Royce Cullinan and 2020 Toyota Supra vehicles. The back-up camera and display settings can be adjustedRiskThe lack of an image in the back-up camera display increases the risk of a crash.FixBMW will notify owners, and dealers will update the back-up camera software, free of charge. The recall began November 8, 2019. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417 or Rolls-Royce at 1-877-877-3735. Toyota owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371.
NHTSA campaign 19V684000reported Sep 27, 2019BMW of North America, LLC
!critical

Equipment

3,501 vehicles
ProblemBMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2018 BMW 330e iPerformance, i3 Rex, i3 Sport Rex, X5 xDrive40e, i3 BEV, i3 Sport BEV and 2019 i8 and i8 Roadster vehicles and 2018-2019 530e iPerformance, 530e xDrive iPerformance and 740Le xDrive iPerformance vehicles. Capacitors within the TurboCord Portable Chargers may fail, possibly resulting in a shock hazard or a fire.RiskAn electrical shock or a fire can increase the risk of injury or death.FixBMW will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the charging cable, and replace it if necessary, free of charge. The recall began February 22, 2019. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
NHTSA campaign 18V652000reported Sep 20, 2018BMW of North America, LLC
▲high

Engine And Engine Cooling

5,309 vehicles
ProblemBMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2018 BMW 540d xDrive vehicles. The crankshaft sensor may be equipped with incorrect firmware, preventing the sensor from properly processing input from the crankshaft reluctor ring, possibly resulting in a vehicle stall. On September 12, 2018, BMW expanded the recall to a total of 5,309 vehicles including certain 2018-2019 BMW 540d xDrive, 230i M240i, M240i xDrive, X2 sDrive28i, X2 xDrive28i, X1 sDrive28i, X1 xDrive28i, 330i, 330i xDrive, 340i, 340i xDrive, 330i xDrive Gran Turismo, 530i, 530i xDrive, 540i, 540i xDrive, 530e, 530e xDrive, 640i xDrive Gran Turismo, 330e, 2019 430i Gran Coupe, 430i xDrive Gran Coupe, 440i Gran Coupe, 440RiskA vehicle stall can increase the risk of a crash.FixBMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the crankshaft sensor, free of charge. The recall began September 6, 2018. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
NHTSA campaign 18V465000reported Jul 11, 2018BMW of North America, LLC

NHTSA defect investigations

Fuel System, Diesel:Delivery:Fuel Pump — High pressure fuel pump failure open

The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE21-021 on October 14, 2021, to investigate incidents alleging a stall/loss of motive power as a result of high-pressure fuel pump failures in certain model year (MY) 2019-2020 Ram 2500, 3500, 4500, and 5500 heavy duty trucks equipped with 6.7L Cummins turbodiesel engines. During the investigation, ODI sought to determine if the related defect allegation was limited in scope to the recalled population. After review of information request response materials from both FCA and BMW, NHTSA determined that sufficient information to identify a comprehensive recall population could not be produced by FCA and BMW.During the investigation FCA filed rec

Opened Mar 17, 2023 · action EA23001

Electrical System:Propulsion System — Pedestrian alert sounds closed

NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after March 1, 2021.On January 27, 2023, NHTSA opened Defect Petition (DP) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matt

Opened Jan 27, 2023 · closed Aug 7, 2023 · action DP22005

Owner complaints

Source: NHTSA complaint database
85complaints filed

5 involved a crash · 0 a fire · 5 injuries · 0 deaths reported

Filed per year: 2018: 10 · 2019: 5 · 2020: 3 · 2021: 3 · 2022: 6 · 2023: 13 · 2024: 20 · 2025: 20 · 2026: 5

Most-cited components

Air Bags42
Seat Belts28
Seats17
Electrical System13
Engine9
Unspecified8

What owners describe

“My 2018 BMW 530e suddenly shut down while I was driving. I charged it overnight, but the next day it showed a check‑engine light and a drivetrain failure warning. I tried driving it again, and it drove for some distance and shutdown after few minutes. Luckily, i was able to park the car on the side of the road. I bro…”Mar 4, 2026 · Electrical System · NHTSA owner report
“The contact owns a 2018 BMW 530E. The contact stated that while the vehicle was at the dealer for water pump repairs, the wrench warning light was illuminated, and the message "Passenger Seat Restraint Sensor Failure" was displayed. The contact stated that the dealer inspected the vehicle and diagnosed that the passeng…”Dec 31, 2025 · Engine And Engine Cooling · NHTSA owner report
“Passenger seat occupancy sensor faulty causing restraint system malfunction and seat belt warning”Nov 5, 2025 · Air Bags · NHTSA owner report

Complaint counts are raw owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects, and scale with how many were sold. Use them to spot patterns, not to rank.

Crash ratings

Source: NHTSA NCAP

NHTSA has not published 5-Star crash ratings for this model year.

Other 5 Series model years

A

2027 BMW 5 Series

0 recalls · 0 complaints

B

2026 BMW 5 Series

1 recalls · 1 complaints

F

2025 BMW 5 Series

6 recalls · 2 complaints

F

2024 BMW 5 Series

7 recalls · 18 complaints

F

2023 BMW 5 Series

4 recalls · 9 complaints

F

2022 BMW 5 Series

5 recalls · 17 complaints

F

2021 BMW 5 Series

10 recalls · 26 complaints

F

2020 BMW 5 Series

8 recalls · 15 complaints

D

2019 BMW 5 Series

3 recalls · 38 complaints

B

2017 BMW 5 Series

2 recalls · 38 complaints

F

2016 BMW 5 Series

7 recalls · 81 complaints

Sources & method

Safety Signal starts every model-year at 100 and subtracts points per open NHTSA recall campaign by severity: critical 15 (fire risk, park-outside or do-not-drive advisories), high 8 (brakes, steering, airbags, loss of drive power, structure, battery), moderate 6, minor 3 (software, labels, lighting fixed by an update). Floor 35. A ≥ 90, B ≥ 80, C ≥ 70, D ≥ 60, otherwise F. Complaint counts and NHTSA crash ratings are shown separately and are not blended into the grade.

EPA figures come from fueleconomy.gov vehicle records. Recalls, complaints, investigations and crash ratings come from NHTSA's public flat files, refreshed weekly.

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