2014 BMW 535D Transmission and drivetrain Problems

“I was driving on a freeway in ca, the engine stalled suddenly, and transmission went into to park whilei was in traffic. There is no way to override the electronic transmission from in the car; only way to get it into neutral is from underneath the vehicle (not accessible unless on a lift and not possible on a busy freeway). This is a shockingly bad design and extremely dangerous. I was a dead duck in traffic. …”

“When accelerating from a stop (e.g., from a stop sign, red light, or merging onto a highway), the car accelerates normally for a second or so and then acts as if the fuel supply was cut off (or as if it runs only on one cylinder) and slows down to almost a standstill. Several seconds thereafter it picks up speed again and then the message 'drive moderately. Maximum drivetrain output not available. Consult service center.' appears. This happened initially twice in may 2017 (once to me, another time to my wife). …”

“On 12/03/2016, my 2014 Bmw 535D abruptly stalled in the middle of the road, blocking traffic. It had spontaneously locked itself into 'park' without warning. The engine would not start, and there was no way to overcome the electronic lock on the transmission and put the transmission into 'neutral' to push the car out of traffic. It had to be towed. Fortunately this happened on a slow moving road. On a fast highway, this event would have posed a mortal hazard. I am concerned about the safety of a vehicle that becomes dysfunctional in that way. …”

“I hit a piece of truck tire debris on I-495n in marlboro ma at night and I was unable to stop and inspect for damage due to heavy traffic. All seemed ok. 15 minutes later in chelmsford ma, the car gave drivetrain malfunction, reduced power, drive gently message and continued to lose power and slow down. I pulled over safely to the breakdown lane and then the engine stopped and could not be restarted again. Tire debris from earlier ruptured part of the fuel system and caused the car to dump diesel fuel on the highway and the engine eventually stopped due to running out of fuel. …”

“On/around 4/24/2023, I was driving home at approximately 35mph when I heard a loud noise under the car as if I had run over something. I was able to safely pull into a parking lot and immediately shut off the engine. The vehicle was hard to steer but I managed to do it. There were no warning lamps or messages and the control center said all systems are okay I looked under the car and saw a significant amount of oil coming from underneath the car. I opened the hood and saw significant oil on the lower engine. …”