U.S. public vehicle records

2002 Bmw 745I problems and owner complaints

Explore the records behind recurring owner reports.

Key facts

54 owner complaints analyzed

2 distinct recall campaigns

95,400 mi median reported failure mileage

Scope: 2002 model year. Data snapshot: 2026-09-12 (September 12, 2026). 42 complaints include usable failure mileage.

Owner-reported patterns

Most common problems

Air Bags is the most frequently named component, appearing in 9 of 54 complaints (16.7%). A complaint can name multiple components.

Recurring terms in complaint narratives
Topic	Matching reports	Share of complaints
Braking behavior	16	29.6%
Transmission and shifting	13	24.1%
Engine operation	5	9.3%
Steering behavior	2	3.7%
Fuel system concerns	2	3.7%
Electrical and battery issues	1	1.9%

Topic matches use published keyword rules. They describe mentions, including negations or comparisons, and do not confirm a diagnosis. Read the matching rules.

Component breakdown

Number of unique complaints naming each component. Top eight shown.

Air Bags

Power Train

Power Train:Automatic Transmission

Service Brakes, Hydraulic

Electrical System

Engine

Parking Brake

Seat Belts

Air Bags: 9; Power Train: 8; Power Train:Automatic Transmission: 8; Service Brakes, Hydraulic: 8; Electrical System: 6; Engine: 3; Parking Brake: 3; Seat Belts: 3

Reported problems by failure mileage

Complaint counts in mileage bands. These are not failure rates per vehicle or mile.

Under 25,000

25,000 to 49,999

50,000 to 74,999

75,000 to 99,999

100,000 to 149,999

150,000 and above

Under 25,000: 5; 25,000 to 49,999: 0; 50,000 to 74,999: 5; 75,000 to 99,999: 12; 100,000 to 149,999: 18; 150,000 and above: 2

100,000 to 149,999 miles has the most reports with usable mileage (18). 12 complaints have missing, zero or invalid mileage.

Complaints over time

Year the complaint was filed, not the vehicle model year or incident year. The snapshot year is partial.

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2020

2002: 2; 2003: 8; 2004: 2; 2005: 1; 2006: 1; 2008: 1; 2009: 2; 2010: 4; 2011: 9; 2012: 10; 2013: 6; 2014: 2; 2015: 2; 2016: 2; 2017: 1; 2020: 1

Pattern summary

Air Bags leads the component reports. Braking behavior appears in 16 complaint narratives. Transmission and shifting appears in 13 complaint narratives. Engine operation appears in 5 complaint narratives. Use these patterns to inspect individual reports and prepare questions for a mechanic.

Calculated from recorded counts. An AI narrative has not been published for this selection.

Complaint evidence

Examples provide context, not a representative sample or a verified diagnosis.

Owner report 10000689 · 2003-01-02 (January 2, 2003)

BRAKES FAILED FOR 2ND TIME IN 2 WEEKS, RESULTING IN FENDER DAMAGE TO 3 VEHICLES; ACCIDENT OCCURED AT 5 MPH. THE SAME FAILURE HAD OCCURED 2 WEEKS EARLIER (WITHOUT ANY DAMAGES), AND THE LOCAL BMW DEALERSHIP "REPAIRED" THE BRAKE WHEEL SENSORS, STATING THIS WAS THE CAUSE OF THE BRAKE FAILURE. THERE WAS NO EMERGENCY BRAKE HANDLE THAT COULD BE USED IN SUCH AN EMERGENCY (ONLY A BUTTON ON THE DASH).

Owner-reported narrative. 3,500 miles reported. Look up ODI 10000689 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10040971 · 2003-09-30 (September 30, 2003)

I LEASED THIS VEHICLE JUNE/2002 AND HAVE HAD CONSTANT AGGRAVATION AND FRUSTRATION BY THE NUMEROUS FAILURES OF THIS CAR, THIS CAR HAS BEEN AT THE BMW SERVICE CENTER 6 TIMES IN THE YEAR I HAVE HAD IT -- 3 TIMES FOR THE ENGINE FAILING TO START,LEAVING ME STRANDED AT NIGHT IN UNFAMILLAR AND DANGEROUS AREAS-- 2 TIMES THIS VEHICLE HAD TO BE TOWED TO DEALER AT NIGHT, EACH TIME WAITING MORE THAN 3 HOURS FOR BMW ASSIST TO HAVE A TOW TRUCK COME AND GET CAR -MOST RECENTLY I WAITED MORE THEN 4 HOURS -- I DO NOT FEEL SAFE DRIVING THIS CAR AS I DON'T KNOW WH…

Owner-reported narrative. 7,620 miles reported. Look up ODI 10040971 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10022997 · 2003-06-13 (June 13, 2003)

VEHICLE HAS HAD MULTIPLE FAILURE OF THE TRANSMISSION, FUEL DELIVERY RELATED MALFUNCTIONS INCLUDING FAILED AND RUPTURE FUEL LINES, MULTIPLE PROBLEMS WITH VARIOUS CONTROLS IN DASH, IT HAS BEEN AT DEALER OVER TEN TIMES DURING THE FIRST YEAR AND IT STILL MALFUNCTIONS. *NLM

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10022997 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10284931 · 2009-09-22 (September 22, 2009)

I TOOK MY CAR TO BMW SERVICE DEPT. IN MARCH AND APRIL TO GET MY CAR SERVICED FOR SCHEDULED SERVICE AND FOR THE "CHECK ENGINE SOON" LIGHT DISPLAYED. IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING THE SERVICE I EXPERIENCED MY CAR HESITATING TO START AND ALSO SOUNDED ROUGH AND IDLED. I CALLED THE NEXT MORNING AND SPOKE WITH A SERVICE ADVISOR ABOUT MY CAR AND HE SAID TO BRING IT IN. I STOPPED THERE ON MY WAY TO WORK THE NEXT MORNING AND THEY STARTED MY CAR AND ASKED ME WHAT TYPE OF GAS I WAS USING AND I SAID EXXON. I WAS TOLD THAT I PROBABLY GOT A HOLD OF SOME …

Owner-reported narrative. 102,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10284931 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10031547 · 2003-07-30 (July 30, 2003)

GNITION COIL FAILURE RESULTED IN VEHICLE STALLING WHILE DRIVING ON HIGHWAY.*AK

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10031547 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10335559 · 2010-06-09 (June 9, 2010)

SUBJECT: TRANSMISSION FAILSAFE ISSUE ON BMW 745 I'VE BEEN HAVING ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION FAILSAFE ERRORS ON MY VEHICLE FOR THE PAST 2 YEARS. BMW OF MANHATTAN COULDN'T REPLICATE THE PROBLEM TWICE WITHIN A 2 YEAR PERIOD. NO ONE WANTS TO DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT BUT MY VEHICLE STALLS, LOSES GEARS AND DOESN'T START. THESE FAULTS OCCUR EVERY WEEK RIGHT NOW. THIS IS A VERY COMMON ISSUE ON THESE CARS AND BMW DOESN'T WANT TO DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT! WHEN I HAD THE WARRANTY ON THE VEHICLE THEY DIDN'T DO ANYTHING AND NOW THAT THE WARRANTY HAS EXPIRED THEY DO…

Owner-reported narrative. 85,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10335559 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10103329 · 2004-11-23 (November 23, 2004)

DEFECTIVE BRAKES, TRUCK LID, STEERING AND SUSPENSION. WHEN DRIVING VEHICLE TO L WHEN TURNING R AND VICE VERSA. *BF UPON MAKING A RIGHT TURN FROM STOP OR SLOW SPEED WHEN STRAIGHTENING THE VEHICLE TO TRACEL IN A STRAIGHT LINE THE STEERING WHEEL WAS CRANKED TO THE LEFT AND OFF CENTER BY 45 DEGREES. THERE WAS A DELAY IN THE STEERING WHEEL TO RETURN TO A NORMAL POSITION. WHEN DRIVING 55 MPH THE STEERING WHEEL NOTICEABLY FIGHTS THE DRIVER AND ATTEMPTS TO TURN IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION OF THE WAY THE CONSUMER IS TURNING. THE VEHICLE OVER STEERS …

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10103329 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10532883 · 2013-07-31 (July 31, 2013)

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 BMW 745I. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 65 MPH, THERE WAS A SUDDEN LOSS OF POWER AS THE STEERING WHEEL SEIZED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO A DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE DIGITAL ENGINE MANAGEMENT CONTROL UNIT NEEDED TO BE REPROGRAMMED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE AND STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS NOT INCLUDED IN NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 03V240000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING). THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 120,000.

Owner-reported narrative. 120,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10532883 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10473900 · 2012-09-05 (September 5, 2012)

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 BMW 745LI. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE FUEL SYSTEM FAILED AND THE VEHICLE COULD NOT BE STARTED. THE VEHICLE WAS INSPECTED BY A LOCAL MECHANIC WHO LOCATED THE FAILURE AT THE FUEL PUMP. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 80,000.

Owner-reported narrative. 80,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10473900 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10511472 · 2013-05-11 (May 11, 2013)

MY VEHICLE JUST SHUT OFF WHILE I WAS DRIVING THIS HAS HAPPENED A TOTAL OF FOUR TIMES WHILE DRIVING AND THREE TIMES TOTAL WHILE IDLE. JUST RECENTLY WHEN THE VEHICLE SHUT OFF I ALMOST GOT REAR ENDED. THE VEHICLE ALSO WOULD NOT START AFTER IT HAD SHUT ITSELF OFF. I TRIED TO START IT BUT IT WOULDN'T TURN OVER. THEN A MESSAGE ON THE THE DISPLAY READ "TRANSMISSION DRIVE FAIL SAFE MALFUNCTION ONLY GEARS P,N,R, D3 AND D5 CAN BE ENGAGED WITHOUT PRESSING THE PARKING BRAKE." AND IT ALSO DISPLAYED SOMETHING ABOUT BATTERY DISCHARGED AND WILL BE DISCONNECTED…

Owner-reported narrative. 139,345 miles reported. Look up ODI 10511472 at NHTSA ↗