NHTSA Complaint #10369896 — 2010 BMW 5 SERIES

THIS IS THE SECOND TIME THIS PARTICULAR PROBLEM HAPPENED. THE FIRST TIME THE CAR LOST POWER WHEN REVS WENT UP ABOVE 3.5K RPM AND RECOVERED AS SOON AS REVS FELL BELOW THIS RANGE. THIS ALMOST RESULTED IN AN ACCIDENT SINCE THE DRIVER BEHIND ME WAS TAKEN BY SURPRISE WITH THE ABRUPT REDUCTION IN SPEED. I TOOK THE CAR TO BMW FOR SERVICE AND THEY REPORTED IT HAD BEEN FIXED. THE SECOND INCIDENT OCCURRED WHILE DRIVING AT 60MPH ON THE LEFTMOST LANE OF A THREE LANE HIGHWAY. THE CAR COMPLETELY LOST POWER AND A WARNING WAS DISPLAYED INDICATING: "ENGINE MALFUNCTION, YOU MAY BE ABLE TO CONTINUE AT REDUCED POWER". THERE WAS NO POWER AT ALL. THE ENGINE WAS COMPLETELY OFF, CAR SWITCHED TO NEUTRAL. I TURNED THE HAZARD LIGHTS ON SINCE THERE WAS A LOT OF COMMUTING TRAFFIC AND THE QUICK REDUCTION IN SPEED COULD HAVE AGAIN RESULTED IN A SERIOUS ACCIDENT. I MANAGED TO COAST TO THE SHOULDER ON THE RIGHT AND CALLED ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE. CAR WAS TOWED AND IS BEING SERVICED BY BMW. SEARCHING THE WEB I FOUND NUMEROUS REFERENCES TO THIS EXACT PROBLEM REPORTED AS EARLY AS 2008. SOME OF THE REPORTS INDICATE THAT THIS ISSUE HAPPENED A FEW TIMES TO THE SAME CAR EVEN AFTER THE ISSUE WAS DECLARED RESOLVED. I AM DUMBFOUNDED BY THE FACT THAT A RECALL HASN'T BEEN ISSUED. DOES IT TAKE SOMEONE DYING FOR ANYONE TO PAY ATTENTION AND DO THE RIGHT THING? *TR