The contact owns a 2002 BMW X5. The contact stated that he did not secure the vehicle's hood latch when he put the hood down. The contact then drove the vehicle at 35 mph, when the hood flung up. No warning lights illuminated. BMW of North Liberty (525 madison ave, North Liberty, ia 52317) was contacted and made aware of the issue. The dealer informed that they could not come to a conclusive decision as to determine if the vehicle was equipped with the hood warning system. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the shocks inside the hood had ripped loose and the hood needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but informed that the rearview mirror would alert, if the hood was open and the complaint would be forwarded to their safety engineer, however since the vehicle was not taken to a certified BMW mechanic for routine maintenance, no further assistance was provided. The failure mileage was 117,000.

- Cedar Falls, IA, USA

In September of 2014 my 2002 BMW X5 front passenger side power window failed in the down position. Upon taking it into my original dealer, it was manually raised-closed and I had to return days later for installation of a new "regulator" at a cost of about $500. I was told this problem was "unusual". now, nine months later and less than an additional 5,000 miles on this vehicle (76,710) the front driver side window and rear passenger side window have failed; the front manually tweaked into the closed position and the rear opening covered with cardboard exposed to the elements and theft while the same original dealer awaits parts delivery four days from now before scheduled repair...at I expect another cost to me of about $1000!...I have reviewed the many complaints in this section about this same issue!! to wit, it was well said by this one quoted here: "2002 BMW X5 window regulator. Car has 41K miles and already going on 5th window regulator issue. All four window regulators have been replaced and the issue occurred twice on the driver's side window. I have been told multiple explanations from the dealer including lack or use or too much use but this issue occurs on all BMW makes and models. BMW still has no solution that fixes this issue permanently and charges $300 to $600 for each window depending on front or rear. Too much to pay for a bad design." I agree!!...it is time for a recall on this issue. Now.....updated 08/17/15 updated 08/20/15

- Pensacola Beach, FL, USA

I've had to replace all 4 window regulators, my rear hatch seems to open for no reason, my rear window wiper is working with the switch in the off position, led's are going out again and now the dreaded apparent oil separator with tons of grey smoke billowing out the back of the car after being left in an airport parking lot for 4 days whilst it snowed outside. Seems I've had every typical problem other than the car catching fire for no apparent reason. I have owned bmws in germany and the us for a long time, however, I think I'll be switching brands with my next vehicle. BMW doesn't seem to be proactive enough for my liking with some of these way too common issues. This is a very low mile vehicle for it's age and it's acting like a model T.

- Denver, CO, USA

The contact owns a 2002 BMW X5. The contact stated that the front driver and passenger's side locks failed to work when the temperature dropped. The contact mentioned that there was an occasion where she was driving in the highway and the door opened independently without warning. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the technician diagnosed that the locks needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The VIN was not available. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 60,000 and the current mileage was 78,000.

- Elmont, NY, USA

On many occasions before as well as today I had a problem with the front door locks latches malfunctioning, usually, in cold weather. Either the doors cannot be opened at all or. If opened (usually manually) they cannot be closed/latched at all, this usually happens in cold weather and the problem goes away when the temperature outside goes up. This is a serious design flaw that is, potentially, safety related as driving with door not latched is unsafe. I'm wondering if this could have resulted in injuries and/or deaths in accidents involving affected BMW X5.

- Swampscott, MA, USA

As my wife and I driving to her md appointment on 11/26/12. I've noticed gas smell inside the car, and car suddenly losing power, when I've step on the gas pedal. It's like gaining power to go and suddenly loses power. I was kind of confused what happened. We were on the road right behind the intersection. We had to stop for the red light, when I've tried to go, the car was not moving like it should. We made it to the other side of the intersection, which there is denny's restaurant parking lot. By the time I've pulled over to see what is going on, we were still in the car. All of the sudden there was a loud sound, like explosion under the hood of the car and fire started.thanks god, we got out of the car just in time. The fire was burning out of control. Couple of passerby had fire extinguishers in their cars, tried to put the fire out, while I was on the 911 call, but no luck. In just a less than a minute the whole car was engulfed in flames. It took fire dept like 20-30 minutes to put the fire out, and my car just melted front of my eyes.

- San Ramon, CA, USA

Two safety concerns: (1) led on dashboard faded out. Key driving information is now not available in order to safely drive the car. (2) rear tailgate will now unexpectedly un-latch and pop open in which I have to pull over, get out of the car and close it. It is caused by poor sealing which doesn't keep out rain and snow. Once I close the tailgate, it will eventually open again! BMW knows about these safety problems on the X5 and would not help with material and labor cost of $ 1565.

- West Simsbury, CT, USA