2012 BMW 5 Series Recalls
No NHTSA recalls on record for the 2012 BMW 5 Series. That means NHTSA has no open safety campaign for this vehicle — it does not guarantee the absence of problems. Owners have filed 12 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the engine. Last updated July 5, 2026.
Complaints by component
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal information removed.
“I was driving my car on a road when a warning light came on. I parked the car home, since I was close to home. The same week I took the car to a bmw specialist because there was a noise coming from the engine. After $467.00 spent on labor, just to tell me I need a new engine. This car has 72k…”
“Tl* the contact owns a 2012 bmw 5-series. The contact stated that the vehicle excessively overheated without warning. The contact constantly had to exercise caution in the event that the vehicle may have reduced engine power and was uncertain if the failure would result in a fire. Bmw gallery of…”
“I had an issue with the timing chain on this vehicle. I do believe this is a safety issue. Car fails with very little warning while the car is being driven. It is not a question of maintenance but of a specific manufacturing fault. How would one know of a defect until something goes wrong. Then…”
“Tl* takata recall. The contact owns a 2012 bmw 5-series. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign numbers: 17v020000 (air bags) and 17v138000 (power train). The part for the recall repair was unavailable. The contact spoke with the dealer, bmw of columbus, georgia, and was informed that…”
“Tl* takata recall. The contact owns a 2012 bmw 5-series. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign numbers: 17v020000 (air bags) and 17v138000 (power train). The part for the recall repair was unavailable. The contact spoke with the dealer, bmw of columbus, georgia, and was informed that…”
“I was driving at about 65 mph on a highway uphill, engine completely stalled, no power, got a message "drive-train malfunction, no maximum output, drive moderately". I was surrounded by cars/semi trucks, very dangerous situation. Managed to pull over on the should. Could not restart car, got a…”
“I was driving at about 65 mph on a highway uphill, engine completely stalled, no power, got a message "drive-train malfunction, no maximum output, drive moderately". I was surrounded by cars/semi trucks, very dangerous situation. Managed to pull over on the should. Could not restart car, got a…”
“My windshield wipers move on their own, they turn on and off as they please. Brought the car in twice so far and bmw service cannot find the problem. *tr”
Defect investigations
Loss of power assist braking
In a letter dated September 26, 2013, BMW Group submitted a safety recall notice to NHTSA identifying a defect condition in the vacuum pump oil supply that may result in loss of power assist braking in 76,191 model year (MY) 2012 through 2014 BMW 3-Series, 5-Series, X1 SAV, X3 SAV, and Z4 vehicles equipped with…
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL, FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 2012 BMW 5 Series as of July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.