2007 BMW 335I Problems

What owners report

Owners of the 2007 BMW 335i most often describe sudden loss of engine power, long cranking at cold start and rough running, which complaints and dealer repairs tie to the high-pressure fuel pump and fuel injectors. Many of these reports come at low mileage, sometimes within the first few thousand miles, and recur after parts were replaced. Later complaints, typically at higher mileage, describe electrical faults that cut power to the car, door lock systems that leave only the driver's door operable, and airbag or seat-occupancy issues.

1. 1
   Fuel system

   High-pressure fuel pump failure and limp mode

   • 107 complaints (37%)
   • median 23,750 mi at 2.7 yrs old (100 state mileage)
   • 3 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2007–2023

   Complaints describe long cranking before the engine catches, rough or fluctuating idle, and then a sudden drop in power while driving, often at highway speed, with the engine warning light on and the car limited to reduced power. Several owners say the pump failed more than once, and that dealers replaced the pump, sometimes with a remanufactured unit, or first tried a software update. Some report the car stalled and would not restart and had to be towed. Mostly reported below about 60,000 miles, many under 20,000 miles, and often on cold starts or during acceleration onto a highway.

   3 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask for service records showing whether the high-pressure fuel pump has been replaced and how many times, and have a pre-purchase inspection read stored engine fault codes. Note any long-crank behavior on a cold start during the test drive.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Was driving at approximately 55 MPH when my car started to shutter. My Bmw started to slow despite me depressing the gas pedal. I had to pull off the side of the road even though there was not a good spot to stop. Bmw attempted to fix it once by updating the car's software. However, they ended up replacing the fuel pump. It took two service sessions to fix the problem.”

   NHTSA complaint #10345239, filed 2010-07, 55,000 miles

   “Owner of a 2007 Bmw 335I coupe. Noticed a problem with rough idles and long cranks at start-up. As time went by, the long cranks and rough idles became more frequent. While driving onto the freeway via freeway on ramp, fuel pump failed while I was merging and engine was cut to half power limp-mode. Car had significant loss of power and I was almost rear-ended by a semi that was driving in the slow lane.”

   NHTSA complaint #10345702, filed 2010-07, 53,000 miles
2. 2
   Fuel system

   Fuel injector leakage and misfire

   • 55 complaints (19%)
   • median 49,200 mi at 4.1 yrs old (50 state mileage)
   • 2 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2008–2023

   Owners describe hesitation, misfiring and rough running that persisted after spark plugs and ignition coils were replaced, with mechanics identifying leaking fuel injectors. Several complaints say the car is covered by the same symptoms as an injector-related service action but the owner was told the vehicle was outside the affected build range. Dealers in some cases replaced injectors together with the fuel pump and updated software. Reported from roughly 20,000 to 90,000 miles, often after other ignition parts had already been replaced.

   2 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask whether the injectors have been replaced and whether any injector-related service action was applied to this vehicle's build date. A fault-code scan and a check for fuel smell or white smoke from the exhaust are useful.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “There is already a recall for the fuel injectors in vehicles like mine but my VIN number is not apart of the recall. I am having the same issues stated in the recall. Recall sib 13 01 20 which is for vehicles like mine manufactured between 04/07 and 11/08. My vehicle was manufactured in 07/07 but somehow it was not included. I have been troubleshooting an issue with the vehicle hesitating and misfiring and it is due to the fuel injectors leaking into the cylinder. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11331092, filed 2020-06, 87,354 miles

   “While I was driving in a highway traffic, without any warning the car started vibrating severely, smoke coming out of the tail pipe, engine almost dying and I was forced to take the shoulder lane away from traffic. I tried to restart the engine but only white smoke with fuel smell coming out of tail pipe, but I was still able to drive the car slowly to home. Took to mechanic and eventually was told that engine is completely shot - 3 or 4 cylinders were cracked, combustion failure, etc. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10615772, filed 2014-07, 64,200 miles
3. 3
   Electrical system

   Electrical failure, stalling and battery cable faults

   • 34 complaints (12%)
   • median 72,584 mi at 8.0 yrs old (23 state mileage)
   • 6 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2008–2026

   Owners describe the charging malfunction warning appearing intermittently, sudden stalling with all electrical components failing, and a car that needed jump starting. Dealers identified the alternator, the positive battery cable or its connector as the cause, and some owners note their vehicle was not included in an electrical system campaign covering similar complaints. Another report describes steering lock warnings that left the car unable to start. Mostly reported between about 60,000 and 130,000 miles.

   Recall 13V044000Recall 17V6760002 related service bulletins

   What to check: Check for open recalls by VIN, ask about battery and alternator replacement history, and have the charging system and battery cable connections inspected.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I was driving to work and the steering lock malfunction lite up out of nowhere. The car can not move. This is an electrical problem that's dangerous and expensive to fix. Very common problem expressed by many owners with the same model and year as my car. They should've conducted a recall on this!!”

   NHTSA complaint #10716143, filed 2015-05, 125,000 miles

   “I went to start my car and there was a red warning light that is a steering wheel with a padlock. I am not able to start my car or do anything with it for that matter, so I am stuck. Thank goodness I was home and parked in the driveway or worse, driving and it lock on me! So now I am stuck without a car and hard telling what its going to cost me! Ive been reading that a lot of other people are having or have had the same issue.”

   NHTSA complaint #11389998, filed 2021-01, 202,000 miles
4. 4
   Latches, locks and linkages

   Doors will not unlock; only driver door opens

   • 19 complaints (7%)
   • median 33,000 mi at 3.6 yrs old (17 state mileage)
   • filed 2008–2013

   Complaints describe the central locking failing so that only the driver's door can be opened, either from inside or outside, leaving passengers to exit through the driver's door. Owners report the issue recurring and being traced to a door actuator, and say they were told repairs were needed but received no assistance from the manufacturer. Reported from about 30,000 to 50,000 miles, typically noticed while the car was parked.

   1 related service bulletin

   What to check: Test every door from inside and outside, and with the key fob and dash lock switch, before buying; ask whether an actuator has already been replaced.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “The central locking system failed and only the driver door could be open from the inside. My wife was traveling with my newborn baby in the back seat and could not get outside the car, because the remaining (three) doors could not be opened from the inside neither from the car's outside handles. I reach for my newborn baby boy from the driver's seat and my wife had to exit through the rear window, because she could not make it through the center console. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10224152, filed 2008-04, 31,557 miles

   “Central locking failure causing only the drivers side door to be operable. The passenger and rear doors cannot be opened from the inside or outside. In the event of fire passengers could not let themselves out or emergency personnel would not be able to open the 3 doors from the outside.”

   NHTSA complaint #10289049, filed 2009-10, 33,000 miles
5. 5
   Air bags

   Airbag warning light and seat occupancy sensor

   • 37 complaints (13%)
   • median 98,035 mi at 8.6 yrs old (16 state mileage)
   • 2 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2011–2021

   Complaints describe the airbag warning light staying on because the passenger seat occupancy sensor failed, with one owner saying a coverage program was declined because the car had sport seats. Other reports describe airbags not deploying in a collision and an owner bringing the car in after a driver airbag recall notice. Mostly reported above about 100,000 miles, though some appear at much lower mileage.

   Recall 24V513000Recall 20V017000Recall 13V5640003 related service bulletins

   What to check: Check whether the driver airbag and occupancy sensor recalls or support programs have been completed for this VIN, and confirm the airbag light goes out after the self-test on startup.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “So I got a paper saying I had a recall on my air bags so I called and got my car takin to Bmw in bellevue. Bmw's road side assistants gave the wrong address to the tow company and would not answer the phone tow for them> I even attempted to call and was placed on hold for approximatyely 40 minutes to fix this problem. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11404084, filed 2021-03, 168,000 miles

   “I was driving down the road at 35 MPH after getting off work at 7:00pm. Upon less than half a mile from my employment another vehicle drifted in to my lane causing a head on collision. Upon impact my 2007 Bmw 335I was immediately pushed back in to my knees and the only airbag to deploy was the front driver airbag. The seatbelt that I was wearing also did not lock and I sustained injuries to my head from hitting it against the windshield. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10763292, filed 2015-09, 139,650 miles

Buying note. These cars reward a thorough pre-purchase inspection: ask for records of fuel pump and injector work, scan for stored fault codes, and confirm any open recalls are closed for the specific VIN. Expect that some of the most commonly reported repairs, particularly fuel system and electrical work, may already have been done more than once on a given car.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.