The front Xenon Headlight Wiring protective plastic coating has degraded and prematurely failed on both headlight assemblies. This caused headlight bulb shorting and poses a potential fire hazard in the front engine compartment of the vehicle. The wiring used in the headlight assemblies was not up to proper standards and failed. The wiring used in other areas of the engine bay seems to be okay. The internal headlight wiring appears to be supplied by the OEM Headlight Manufacturer (HELLA) and does not seem to be up to proper standards to prevent the plastic protective coating from failing over time. This should not be considered a "wear item" as electrical wiring is used throughout millions of much older vehicles without incident.

- Howell, NJ, USA

BMW Headlight wiring on the 530 series is defective. Wire Insulation throughout the headlight assembly crumbles. The design and wire specification were not fit for use. Heat may be an issue but has nothing to do with climate. The vehicle has spent most of its life in Michigan where the problem was first noted when the age of the vehicle was approximately 8 years. High heat within the headlight assembly also caused deterioration of the covering on fiber optic cable. This problem is well known to BMW owners. The bare wires within the headlight housing pose a risk of electrical shorts and potentially fires.

- Punta Gorda, FL, USA

Headlight wiring has disintegrated and making headlight short

- Coloma, MI, USA

The headlight went out - replaced bulbs and still not working. Removed the headlight assembly and noticed every wire was bare with barely any coating left to protect the wires- at least 15 wires. Headlight replacement cost is over $650.!! this is an electrical hazard and could cause shorting out and a dangerous driving situation in the least.

- Mountain View, CA, USA

Insulation on electrical wiring inside headlight assembly is crumbling apart. This lets bare wire touch each other and shorts out headlight, leading to malfunctioning / very unpredictable and dangerous lighting. Other drivers may not see you coming

- Cocoa Beach, FL, USA

The headlight assembly had a halo light that burnt out. I went to the dealer and bought a replacement bulb. When I unscrewed the light bulb, the wiring insulation fell off and exposed all of the copper wiring in the headlight wiring harness. They do not sell a replacement wiring harness and now I'm required to buy a new headlight assembly for the passengers side which costs approx $1700+ at my local dealership. Due to the high costs of the headlight assembly, I'm not able to afford it and now my car will not pass inspection which has prevented me from driving it. I can only imagine that the other headlight has the same issue from reading 100's of other forum posts on the internet about this same issue with their vehicles. I've attempted to fix this issue myself using electrical tape but that didn't work for long. I've contacted repair shops and they won't take the headlight assembly apart due to the age of it. The vehicle was in motion when the light bulb burnt out. This issue happened in 2015 and I decided to drive with the halo light bulb burnt out but then the low beam bulb burnt out. Now my car won't pass inspection to continue driving it in Texas.

- Pflugerville, TX, USA

Wiring on headlights flaking apart leaving bear expose wires !!!

- Slidell, LA, USA

All rubber tubing has fallen off of lights creating a major fire hazard.wiring is currently down to copper, with multiple wires touching each other which has caused my lights to no longer work.

- Grovetown, GA, USA

Headlights internal wiring geta so hot it melts and cracks and deteriorates and causes short circuit eventually leading to both or single high beam malfunction.

- Huffman, TX, USA

The left front parking bulb was no working, took the vehicle to BMW dealership in columbia, S.C. to have bulb replaced. Upon picking up the vehicle, the warning indicator for the same bulb and the left front high beam warning both lights were not functioning correctly appeared. I returned to the service department to inquire why the warning was on, which they stated it was probably left loose. The service adviser returned to bring me into the shop to show me the wiring for the light assembly was cracking and falling off, exposing bare wire causing the short and blowing the bulbs. The service department at BMW stated a new assembly would be required which would be about $1500 each for the parts. After replacement of the bulb while in the service department, there was another electrical short causing the bulbs to blow immediately. I have read the wiring was coated with a soy based product, which is why the wiring coating is prematurely cracking and exposing bare copper wire, creating an electrical and fire hazard. Due to the inadequate material utilized by the manufacturer, it should be rectified by the manufacturer prior to serious injury or death.

- Blythewood, SC, USA

Replacing the daytime running light bulb that failed, I removed the headlight assembly from the vehicle to have easier access to the bulb recessed deep inside the headlight housing. Upon opening the access panel, I discovered the wiring insulation of most of the inner wiring harness of headlight brittle and flaking off, exposing the bare wires. The short circuit probability is high with the exposed wires in close proximity.

- Missouri City, TX, USA

LH and rh adaptive headlights wiring insulation is crumbling possibly resulting in a electrical headlight fire from the exposed bare wires.

- Fife, WA, USA

The contact owns a 2007 BMW 530I. The contact stated that the head lights malfunctioned. The contact attempted to replaced the lights and noticed that the wires had frayed, prompting the contact to tape the wires in order to avoid wire contacts which caused sparks. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 95,000.

- Davenport, FL, USA

My headlight was emitting smoke, upon closer investigation I can see the wires were red hot and the plastic coating was on fire, no apparent reason is know for the cause of this incident.

- Garden City, MI, USA

My headlight assemblies, manufactured by hella for BMW, have crumbling and decaying insulation on the internal wires. Many of the wires are bare, and can cause short circuits and failures. All of the dozens of internal headlight wires are rotten and failing. There is the potential for sudden lighting failure at night, as well as the possibility of short circuit, combustion and fire. This is a major safety problem across many BMW's, and has been reported by many owners to safercar.

- Fort Lauderdale, FL, USA

I am contacting you in an attempt to obtain assistance / remedy in the repair of a burned outer tail lamp socket in my 2007 530xit. I am the original owner of this vehicle. On 12/31/2014 I received a right tail lamp malfunction warning via I-drive and when I arrived home I inspected the right tail lamp assy and found the outer tail lamp bulb socket contacts to be melted and no longer making contact with the bulb holder. The stock and original bulb tested faulty. Unfortunately, due to the damaged and melted contact on the socket assy, the BMW replacement bulb will not function either. I have a photo of the socket assy should it be needed for investigation. As is the case with the 2008-2010 E60 & E61 models, there have been substantial failures in the rear lighting system resulting in a recall. I feel that this failure reduces the vehicles ability to warn other motorists of the driver's intentions, increasing the risk of a crash and should be investigated for a potential recall on pre lci E61 models.

- Oldsmar, FL, USA

All active xenon headlight wiring protective coating is/has flaked off exposing wires, making it vulnerable to electrical short, lose of driving lights and potential fire hazard.

- Dequincy , LA, USA

The sheathing on my headlight's wiring is flaking off which could lead to potential fires. I was quoted $1500 per headlight to replace them with the same crappy headlight housings that are made with the same material that will eventually do the same thing. All I need is to have the car parked in my garage and it causing a fire that could burn down our home or worst injure my family.

- New Caney, TX, USA

The vehicle headlight internal wiring insulation is falling apart, thus leaving bare wires exposed.this is a faulty design that could possibly lead to a fire or accident due to loss of lights at night. This should not be happening under normal conditions.

- Naples , FL, USA

I discovered failures of multiple wires in the tailgate/rear window wiring harnesses. Through research online I have found this is a common problem with this vehicle over several model years - search for BMW E61 tailgate wiring problems. The failures are caused by a poor design where the wires entering the hinge guides (4) for the glass and tailgate are repeatedly flexed at a sharp angle until the insulation, then the copper wire breaks. Safety issues - possible electrical short circuit leading to fires (highest load is for rear defroster); lighting failures (rear high brake light, license plate lamps and others); reduced visibility due to loss of wiper/washer/defroster; rear glass latch opening while underway, possibly resulting in loss of cargo or ingress of exhaust fumes. This is not an easily repaired problem. It would be beyond the capabilities of all but a skilled mechanic with proper tools. I discovered it when the remote lock/unlock using the key fobs failed. As I investigated I found the broken wire, along with several others with broken insulation, some with broken copper strands.

- Kirkland, WA, USA