2025 BMW X5 Recalls, Ratings & Complaints

Incident: August 21, 2025 · Filed: October 14, 2026

The contact owned a 2025 BMW X5. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle independently accelerated and became uncontrollable. The vehicle traveled over a cliff down an 80-foot drop and rolled over several times before coming to a stop. The contact and her husband were transported to a medical facility. The contact sustained multiple cuts and bruises, a broken left index finger cut to the tendon that required surgical repair, and a laceration on the right leg that became infected, requiring ongoing medical treatment and therapy. The contact's husband sustained five broken ribs, a broken right knee, and multiple head and body lacerations and contusions, requiring three months in a wheelchair and ongoing medical treatment and therapy. The vehicle was towed to an impound lot and deemed a total loss. A police report was filed, but the report details were unavailable. The manufacturer was notified of the failure by phone. The failure mileage was approximately 16,368.

Incident: September 29, 2026 · Filed: September 29, 2026

VEHICLE: 2025 BMW X5 MILEAGE AT TIME OF INCIDENT(S): 15,512 COMPONENT: Forward Collision Warning / Pedestrian Warning / Automatic Emergency Braking (City Collision Mitigation) DESCRIPTION OF PROBLEM: On multiple occasions, the Pedestrian Warning and/or automatic emergency braking system on my 2025 BMW X5 has activated with no pedestrian, vehicle, or obstacle posing any actual risk to the vehicle. These false activations have occurred both at low speed (parking lots/driveways) and at normal driving speed on public roads. In at least two instances, the sudden, hard braking created a real risk of being rear-ended by the vehicle behind me, endangering occupants of both vehicles. SPECIFIC INCIDENTS: 1. XXX, [XXX] (residential/local road): A vehicle merged into my lane from the left ahead of me while maintaining a consistent speed matching mine, posing no collision risk. My BMW slammed on the brakes without warning, nearly causing the vehicle behind me to rear-end us. This endangered multiple passengers in both vehicles. 2. Early XXX parking lot: While backing out of a parking space, a pedestrian was nearby but showed no indication of walking into the vehicle's path. The system triggered hard braking and an audible alarm with no actual risk present. 3. XXX, local street: A pedestrian was walking on the sidewalk with no indication of intent to cross the street. The vehicle braked extremely hard and suddenly, without warning, creating a risk that the car behind us would rear-end us. I have not been in an accident as a result of these events, but the pattern shows the system engaging hard, sudden braking in response to non-threats, including at normal driving speeds on public roads, not just low-speed maneuvers. This creates a risk of rear-end collision and startles/endangers pedestrians and other drivers. I am submitting this report to document the issue and make NHTSA aware in case other X5 owners have this issue. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Incident: August 25, 2026 · Filed: August 28, 2026

I was driving my 2025 BMW X5 sDrive40i at approximately 60 mph when the vehicle in front of me stopped abruptly. I immediately applied the brake pedal firmly in an attempt to make an emergency stop. Despite applying heavy and continuous pressure to the brake pedal, the braking force felt unusually weak. The vehicle slowed gradually but continued rolling forward much farther than I expected and did not stop before I made low-speed contact with the rear of the vehicle in front of me. The vehicle did not skid, I did not feel the tires sliding, and I did not observe skid marks. My concern is that the vehicle did not provide the amount of braking force I expected despite firm emergency braking. Because BMW X5 vehicles have been subject to recalls involving the Integrated Brake system, ABS, DSC, and potentially increased stopping distance, I am reporting this incident as a possible safety-related braking defect.

Incident: August 26, 2026 · Filed: August 26, 2026

While the daytime running lights are on (this vehicle has front and rear daytime running lights, so when the DRL’s are on, the taillights are illuminated as well as the front daytime running lights). When the DRL’s are on, and you use a turn signal, the rear turn signals are almost invisible to the naked eye during the day time. Reason being, the DRL’s are on, so the rear tail lights are slightly illuminated. This vehicle also has a pulsating (fade on/off) turn signals in the front and rear. It’s not a sharp on/off like a typical LED. So when using the turn signal, the rear turn signals (which also act as the taillight and brake light) are very very dim and hard to see as compared to when the DRL’s are off. The photo I will provide shows the left turn signal at its brightest point, the one on top with the daytime running lights off, are very bright and visible, whereas the bottom photo (which shows the rear daytime running taillights on) also shows the left turn signal at its brightest point, and is almost indistinguishable as to whether the turn signal is flashing. Again, both have the left turn signal on at its brightest point. This is very unsafe, and applies to all 2024-2026 BMW X5’s. J would like this rectified.

Incident: August 18, 2026 · Filed: August 20, 2026

2025 BMW X5...warning lights appeared and voice said emergency stop... emergency stop and tried to pull me off the road. shut down the vehicle for a while... and started up. finished errands. got home. vehicle would not start in the morning. dealership said it was an issue with the braking system... electronics and dead battery . said repaired. got it back. happened again...but got it going. dealership said if it happened again... press the gas pedal and it would clear up the problem. recent issue August 18, 2026. vehicle would not start. got a jump and emergency lights again.. emergency stop. vehicle towed to dealership. was told it had faults with the brake control unit. believed to be fixed but further testing to make sure. I'm worried this will happen on highway or the vehicle is not sellable if I ever want to sell or trade it in

Incident: August 14, 2026 · Filed: August 15, 2026

While driving eastbound on [XXX] on XXX between approximately 9:29 and 10:21 AM, the vehicle suddenly displayed a red warning instructing the driver to “Take over braking function immediately.” At that moment, adaptive cruise control braking and automated braking assistance disengaged without warning, requiring the driver to manually brake while in traffic. This created an unexpected safety hazard for the driver, passengers, and surrounding motorists. Prior to this event, the vehicle had exhibited repeated Driver Assistance instability across multiple service visits, including inconsistent adaptive cruise control behavior, braking‑related restrictions, and GPS mislocation affecting ADAS functions. The vehicle has been inspected by the manufacturer’s authorized dealer across five service visits, including replacement of the head unit and multiple software resets. The underlying malfunction has occurred repeatedly, but the specific braking alert has not been reproduced by the dealer. No crash, fire, or injury occurred. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Incident: July 11, 2026 · Filed: July 29, 2026

Our 2025 BMW X5 50e was involved in an accident while slowly pulling into a parking spot at Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah. While turning right into the striped parking spot, the car suddenly accelerated, swiping the car parked to the right and continued on to break through a rung of the log fence barrier before manual hard braking stopped it from plunging into the canyon below. There was no audible alarm heard and apparently no emergency braking engaged to prevent impact with the other car or log fence. No airbags deployed. Emergency braking was enabled. Drive mode was Hybrid. With the grill damaged and a front sensor hanging below the damaged bumper. We are still awaiting the Park Ranger report.

Incident: May 14, 2026 · Filed: May 15, 2026

The contact owns a 2025 BMW X5. The contact stated while the contact's son was driving at an undisclosed speed, the brake pedal was depressed, however the vehicle failed to stop as intended. The contact's son drove the vehicle to a local gas station. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, however the vehicle had not been inspected.The tow truck driver informed the contact's son that there was a leak in the brake fluid container. In addition, the contact stated that prior to the failure occurring, the vehicle was serviced on April 30,2026 and the recall, NHTSA Campaign Number 24V104000 (Electronic Stability Control (ESC), Service Brakes, Hydrauli) was performed. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was filed. The failure mileage was unknown. VIN was unavailable.

Incident: April 10, 2026 · Filed: April 20, 2026

Reduced steering effort error message. No accident or injuries. Seems to be a known issue on BMWs. Likely covered under warranty but I feel should be reported

Incident: April 15, 2026 · Filed: April 17, 2026

On April 15, 2026, while driving on the highway with my family in my 2025 BMW X5 (purchased new on September 25, 2025 from Principal BMW of Corpus Christi for approximately $75,000), the panoramic sunroof suddenly and violently exploded. The explosion sounded like a gunshot. Shards of glass sprayed throughout the cabin and got into our eyes. I was barely able to maintain control of the vehicle and prevent a serious accident that could have resulted in hospitalization or worse. Photos of the sunroof taken immediately after the explosion are attached to this email. These images clearly show the large shattered section, missing glass fragments, and debris inside the sunshade right after the failure. You can also see from the picture submitted from the front, the glass is pushed out from the car. This was an extremely dangerous safety failure that put my entire family at immediate risk. Because of this incident, I no longer feel safe driving the vehicle. I am now constantly on high alert, worried that the sunroof could explode again at any moment. This traumatizing experience has completely ruined my ability to enjoy what was supposed to be a luxury vehicle. Instead of the premium driving experience I paid for, I am left with fear and anxiety every time I get behind the wheel. This is not an isolated or “unheard of” incident. BMW has faced multiple reports and a class action lawsuit regarding exploding sunroofs dating back to at least 2017. Despite this known issue, when I contacted Principal BMW of Corpus Christi, the dealership claimed the problem was unheard of and showed absolutely no sense of urgency or willingness to address it properly. The service person took a quick look and told me that this incident has happened two other times within the last two months. Since the incident happened on 4/15/26 @ 6:35PM I was unable to speak to a service member.Service person told me to bring my car in for further evaluation on 4/20/26 since he’s only one working.