2004 BMW 5 Series problems & reliability
64 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2004 BMW 5 Series, alongside 6 safety recall campaigns. Last verified Aug 7, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several vehicles.
4 complaints report injuries (4 injured).
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Air Bags → | 29 | 45% |
| Seats → | 11 | 17% |
| Electrical System | 9 | 14% |
| Seat Belts | 7 | 11% |
| Exterior Lighting | 6 | 9% |
| Power Train | 6 | 9% |
| Steering | 5 | 8% |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 3 | 5% |
| Tires | 3 | 5% |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 2 | 3% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
Common symptoms owners describe
Keyword analysis of complaint narratives; one complaint can describe several symptoms.
Mileage when problems occurred
Half of the failures with a reported odometer reading occurred by 78,625 miles (middle 50% between 60,000 and 91,750 miles), based on 54 complaints that included mileage.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“Passenger seat/airbag warning malfunction. This warning has been on since I purchased vehicle. It is obviously the common seat mat sensor failure. And it would appear that either my vin isn't on the previous recall or it has expired for my year and model. But my wife sits in that seat and if we have an accident and…”
Seats · filed Sep 21, 2018
“About 3 weeks ago we noticed in the front passenger seat "a mark" that looks like a burnt - we thought that it was just a mark or somebody put a hot bottle o cup on the seat - but this morning we turn the heating in both seat to warm up a little bit then smell and smoke start to come out the burnt mark. We turned it…”
Electrical System · filed Jan 15, 2018
“Wire insulation deterioration causing short, potential fire hazard, 5 separate lighting components all wiring insulation severely deteriorated causing short circuiting and inoperable headlights. Bare copper wires making contact I have an extensive history in electronics and firefighting. This issue was found while…”
Exterior Lighting · filed Apr 8, 2017
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Federal defect investigations
- BMW AIRBAG LIGHT ILLUMINATION
Engineering Analysis EA08001 · opened Jan 4, 2008 · closed Dec 31, 2008 · led to recall 08V384000
Technical service bulletins
51 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 2004 BMW 5 Series. The 10 most recent:
The basic conditions for initializing the power windows are not met.
B510819 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 16, 2024
The electrical system of BMW vehicles has been subject to an ongoing development process over the last few years. This has led to increased demands being placed on the battery. This document covers important information…
B611305 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 11, 2024
Engine will crank but not start. There is no communication with the integrated fuel module (TFE) whendiagnosing with ISTA. The following two fault codes will be stored in the DME: 032B43 - Low fuel pressure system…
B160623 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Dec 20, 2023
Customers may state that the alarm system (DWA) is not active after locking their unoccupied vehicle. Depending on the vehicleâ  s equipment and settings, no acoustic or optical confirmation (folding the…
B653423 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Nov 22, 2023
Various functions of the camera-based driver assistance systems (ADCAM system) can lead to customer complaints.
B660523 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Oct 19, 2023
Discharged Battery Energy Diagnosis Must Be Performed: The electrical system of BMW vehicles has been subject to an ongoing development process over the last few years. This has led to increased demands being placed on…
B611305 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Oct 1, 2020
Radio / Navigation / Head Unit Identification Guide
B650916 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Nov 1, 2018
For the above-referenced vehicles with driver?s side airbag modules, BMW of North America, LLC (?BMW NA?) will provide a Customer Support Program as outlined in the Takata Settlement Customer Support Program Overview…
B011618 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Oct 1, 2018
In an effort to improve the completion rate on Takata air bag recall affected vehicles; BMW NA has expanded the BMW Ultimate Rewards platform to include a new Recall Support page. This page will allow IRFs to check…
B080119 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 1, 2018
Bmw: battery has an increased demand due to developemental process of the electrical system. This is causing the batter to need to undergo an energy diagnosis. *kb
SIB-61-13-05 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 1, 2013
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
The 2004 BMW 5 Series has 6 NHTSA recall campaigns — recall repairs are free at franchised dealers regardless of the vehicle’s age.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 2004 BMW 5 Series?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.
- · Owners most often reported problems around 78,625 miles — budget accordingly if the car is approaching that mileage.