NHTSA Complaint #10625882 — 2008 BMW X5

ON A RECENT RIDE HOME FROM VACATION (SUMMER 2014), MY FAMILY AND I HAD TO ENDURE OUR 2008 BMW X5 STALLED OUT AND SLOWED TO ABOUT 30 MPH ON INTERSTATE 95. THERE WERE NO WARNINGS OF A POTENTIAL PROBLEM OR ANY UPCOMING MAINTENANCE NEEDED. THE INFORMATION SCREEN STATED CRUISE CONTROL/ENGINE MALFUNCTION. WE WERE EXTREMELY SURPRISED, OVERLY ALARMED AND FRIGHTENED AS THIS WAS A DANGEROUS AND UNSAFE EVENT. WE WERE NOT USING AND HAVE NEVER USED THE CRUISE CONTROL. MY FAMILY WAS SCARED OF THIS UNSAFE ORDEAL BUT THANK GOD, NO ONE WAS INJURED. AFTER RESEARCHING THESE CONDITIONS, WE FOUND THIS SIMILAR INCIDENT OCCUR TO MANY OTHER X5 BMW OWNERS AND DATE BACK AS FAR AS 2001. THIS THROTTLE BODY DEFECT IS A SAFETY ISSUE AND CAN CAUSE BODILY HARM OR DEATH. IF THIS CAR DECREASES IN POWER, ESPECIALLY ON AN INTERSTATE, SERIOUS AND DEADLY ACCIDENTS CAN OCCUR. QUITE INTERESTING IS THAT THIS SAME DIAGNOSIS WAS IDENTIFIED WITH PREVIOUS OWNERS WHO'VE ONLY OWNED THEIR VEHICLES LESS THAN A YEAR. RESEARCH SHOWS THIS CONDITION HAS BEEN AN ISSUE FOR THE PAST 10 YEARS AND BMW HAS NOT ACKNOWLEDGED, RECALLED AND CORRECTED THE PROBLEM. MY 2008 BMW X5 HAS ABOUT 52,000 AND RECEIVE REGULAR MAINTENANCE ON TIME AND AS REQUIRED. MORE IMPORTANT, THE DAY BEFORE THE INCIDENT WE CHECKED THE VEHICLE SYSTEM CHECK AND ALL SYSTEMS WERE "OK." AND TWO DAYS LATER, THE CAR SHUT DOWN WITH NO WARNING. MY CAR WAS TAKEN TO NORTHWEST BMW IN OWINGS MILLS WHO DIAGNOSED THE PROBLEM AS A THROTTLE BODY DEFECT. *TR