BMW has built an award winning engine. The N54 twin turbo that powers the 135,335,535 and soon will power the new Z4 Roadster. This engine has good horsepower and torque through the majority of the engine range but one of the weak spots has been the High Pressure Fuel Pump.
There have been several reports of HPFP going bad and causing a limp mode in which the driver experiences reduced power and has to “limp” to safety or to a garage. We talked about one here. Now it seems like BMW may be stepping up and taking care of those owners. Soon there should be an announcement that BMW is extending the Fuel Pump Warranty to 10yrs or 120,000 miles for any 2007or 2008 owners with an N54 engine.
I think this is great on BMW’s part to step up and take care of these owners. But the question remains is has this issue been corrected going forward? We have already seen reports of a few 2009’s have the High Pressure Fuel Pump Replaced. And what of the new Z4? I would hope this car does not come to market with the same issues.
40 Responses to “More BMW Fuel Pump News…”
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this is true. the pumps are cover for 10yr. 120000mi. the cause of the failures are due to tolerance issue within the pump that came about during the manufacturing process. not sure if there is a new supplier but the new pumps are built to more precise tolerances.
Have not seen this officially done yet; it would be nice if they took care of the 2009s suffering from the same problem. Well, might as well include the Z4s for that matter. For 65K and a known bad issue, I don’t think I would make the purchase if I knew the problem existed. I would most likely search the web for ongoing fuel pump issues with any 35i model from 2007 to 2009, then think about the 65K leaving my wallet as I may be stuck brokedown on the road.
@Charcoal 350:
i cant say i disagree with you. i have no way to or need to justify on behalf ob BMW. we have not seen anyrpoblems with new pumps, and thats hellava warranty. you never have to worry about. and if a failure occurs the DME wiill eneter a failsafe mapping mode so that you can safely get to the nearest repair faclity with out any fear of engine damage.
again im not justifiing this poor manufacture.
My ‘08 330i 3 coupé has just been recalled (letter arrived today, 11 April) for a new high pressure fuel pump, so it’s not just N54 engines but N53 too.
They don’t make 2008 BMW 330’s genius.
i had my fuel pump replaced with the latest and greatest i had fuel sensor replaced i had spark plugs replaced and still when starting the car on a cold start the car is choking for gas. it obviousley is more than a fuel pump issue. no more turbo
My 05′, 760LI just suffered the problem with these pumps
was told i need to replace “both” of them at $3000.00 each
(part cost only)
what the f..ck !
my bmw 525d just suffered high pressure pump failure. only done 45,000 milage. jesus!! they had to pick me up when told the price.my warranty recently expired as well, hope the new one replaced is as tolerant as they say!!!
It’s really great that they have extended the warranty, but when in the middle of the high desert of CA, the desolate corridor between Palm Springs and Vegas, or the plains of KS, it’s really a pain to have the fuel pump go out. That’s right, just got the third engine malfunction on my 2008 with 11K miles on it, and am in the middle of nowhere on a Sunday. (The last pump was replaced on 3/24, and the service mgr mentioned the problem.) I love our 535i, but I’m sad that my husband’s Marine Corp retirement gift has caused such a huge headache, leaving us stranded for the third time with no one, not even BMW Assist, to really care. Yes, they will tow the car to the dealership, but we would need to get a rental car, at our expense, to follow our car being towed the 200+ miles. Not quite the service you would expect after purchasing a $60K car. PLEASE, definitely consider the fuel pump issue before purchasing a BMW with the N54 twin turbo engine.
Just had fuel pump replaced on my three month old 335ci. BMW better extend the warranty on the 2009 models too.
Me too. 08 535xi 15,000 miles. 6/14 high pressure fuel pump replaced; 6/17 sensor on low pressure fuel pump replaced. Will this solve the problem or will it be a chronic problem. Once fixed, have any others experienced repeat fuel pum failures?
I have an 07 335i sedan that I bought new in 2/07. My HPFP went out on me in June of 05 with 5000 miles on the car. Luckly I haven’t had this one fail but sometimes when I have to give it sudden throttle the car hesitates and almost misfires until I let off the gas. I had it in for serive today, oil change and a new rear brake sensor and I mentioned it, but in their test drive, aka beating on my car they found nothing. I did switch to the highest octane, I was using QuikTrip 89 before.
how did you HPP in 07 335 fail ins june of 05?
im sure you just mis wrote. just wanted to point it out.
anyway this may be something not related to the fuel pump. there are a few service bulletins that resemble something like your describing. cant say it is the same but they can be fixed by engine control unit program or a transmission control program. both would get programed at the same time. actually your whole car gets updated anytime its programed. they should have checked what you software level is and if it was not up to date. i would have programed your vehicle if the software was not up to date and informed you that i was not able to reproduce your complaint but have updated the software in you car and ask that you return if the problem returns. if it does further diagnosis can be done. its very common to not be able to reproduce cust complaints especially intermitent ones. most test drives are only around 5 miles unless more is needed. its extemely hard to reproduce complaints that seem to happen after long periods of driving. anyway i would have at least checked the software level and reprogramed if neccassary and informed you of the situation. its better than doing nothing and saying we cant reproduce. maybe it is possible you software was up to date. my dealer will have shop foreman test drive with customers in situations where reproducing a complaint can be difficult.
Just to follow up on bmwtechal’s comments and my 08 535xi experiences noted above. I should have added that the engine light, warning reduced power, displayed as we were traveling across western Nebraska on 5/29. Talked with BMW Assist and light did go off. Made it to Loveland, CO with intermittent power loss. On 6/2, dealer, in response to a directive, did a whole new software update. Fule pump problems started on 6/12 (fixed 6/14) and again on 6/17 as described above. So, in two weeks time, had software update HPFP and low pressure fuel pump sensor replaced.
I sure hope this solves the problem. A little gun shy on the open road in this wonderful “Driving Machine.” Have had great service response to my problems. My issues are not with service but with the manufacturing of a car that is marketed as this wonderful driving maching.
Warranty really doesn’t mean anything. There’s absolutely no excuse for a $45K+ automobile to have this problem. ZERO. It’s embarrassing to the owner and should be an embarrasment to BMW. I for one will either keep my late model BMW or transistion to another make which does not rely on direct injection. The NA motor BMW current offers doesn’t have sufficient power to push around our heavy sleds.
I had 2 pumps replaced within 12,000 miles and when the 3rd one was being replaced I had BMW of NA get involved. It’s called a Lemon Law here in California. They paid off my car and paid me my money back, including the $12K I put down as a down payment. Honda has problems, Toyota and yes BMW does too. But if you look at the bottom line, BMW’s are fun to drive, wonderful to look at, a head turner for sure and most importantly I would rather be in a BMW then any other car in an accident. Some of you out there that say that this car is 45 or 55K should not break down because of the price tag…. PLEASE!! Go look at Ferrari, Lambo and the Veyron records of repairs. Most people couldn’t afford to change one set of brake pads with rotors on some of those cars I just named. Be happy and quit bitching people. …shit happens. That’s why so many people out there think that people who drive BMW’s are rich snobs…so many people give BMW a bad name and that’s not cool. BMW is something that every car manufactorer wants to copy down to the handling which no one can. Lexus tries with the IS250, 350 and the IS F and again NO MATCH. Mercedes tried as well….came close but no cigar. Oh and yeah, try looking at Mercedes Benz…..they did away with the free maint. program to save money and their repair bills make BMW look like it’s cheap. How do I know? I own one of them too. First and last.
Tommy,
How did you ever get BMW to take the car back. My car is in for its 3rd fuel pump and I am thinking lemon law also. I honestly thought BMW just had to keep repairing.
Brad
My 2008 335i has been a complete nightmare: I was lucky to own two cars. 67 days in the shop; countless fuel pumps failures (low and high pressure) It’s obvious a few BMW reps viewed these comments, but be for real..there’s a difference in complaining or bitching when your car is junk and the vendor doesn’t back it up. People are just warning others of the poor craftsmanship. Everything in these comments are opinion; you don’t have to take any warning or opinion if not desired. For me, I prefer a 50K car to at least start; I guess that’s asking too much.
I have a 2009 Z4 Sdrive3.5 with about 2k miles. HPFP BMW Orange County has been great but I have no faith in this auto. This should not be a problem with these engines.
Son’t even get me started on the Nav.It sends me down a one way street the wrong way!
I had my 2008 335xi HPFP replaced at 18,500 miles , at the very first hint of trouble I took it to the dealership and they replaced it with one they had in stock , if they had not had one in stock the other option was to overnight it to Anchorage , as long as the order goes in before 1 PM AST , also the weatherstripping around the doors was showing wear and bingo they overnighted the replacement parts to Anchorage Alaska and I had my car back the next day , in the mean time I had the use of a 2009 335i , the Lithia BMW dealership in Anchorage Alaska is a first class operation . Ah Eastern Alaska and Western Canada where BMW’s can be unleashed and we can run them as the designers designed them to run , running unabated for 100’s of miles on the open road , my biggest worry is hitting a Moose and damaging my Bimmer .
My 4 month old 535 fuel pump just went bad with 7700 miles on the car. What gives.
Nothing is perfect , when I was logging in Southeast Alaska the 009 Madill yarders used Detroit Diesel engines , the weak link was the quill shaft that ran the blower , [yahoo Detroit Diesel 8 71 2 stroke] , the yarder was made by S.A. Madill of Namino British Columbia , he bought used tank carriages from the U.S. goverment to build his yarders on , after a period of time and advances the yarder was too heavy for the carriage and drive train and moving it was a risky deal , but they continued to build them and they were sold and shipped . A brand spanking new Cat D-10 broke one of the main under carriage componets under the strain of ripping frozen ground at a gold mine in the Koyukuk , the part weights almost as much as a 3 series BMW , the dealership sent some boys up and replaced the part with a new one after that the ripping componets started to show signs of strain so we reinforced the ripping unit with more steel , nothing is perfect , everthing breaks and has a weak point .
I bought a 2009 535xi and the other day my car died on the middle of the express lane on the I90 in Chicago due to the high pressure fuel pump. When I called BMW they told me that they cannot send a tow-truck because it is too dangerous. I am shocked. Now, the customer service is giving me the story that they have replaced and so nothing can be done. I am surprised that there is no class action lawsuit against BMW for selling its customers a bad car. I could have died on the highway. I think there should have been a recall. Obviously, I am disturbed and astonished with their stonewalling their customers. I guess their actuarial analysis suggests that it is better to pay for the death of one driver than replace the pump on all the cars.
I have a 2009 535I too that has had two HPFP in the last month; started with hesitate starting, then losing power while driving, then the check engine light. Got it back a week ago and it still doesn’t have the pick up it had when I brought it brand new in April. I called BMW NA also. Waiting to hear from them.
You want to hear this? Not the HPFP but the whole computer system on my 08 535xi. Car has been in the shop for two weeks. Have replaced the hub, I think they called it, reloaded and programmed all soft ware and still have not solved the problem. Since June 1, 19 days in the shop (see my comments above). Next step is to contact BMW North America. This wonderful car is not so wonderful. I do have to say, though, service and dealer responses to date have been excellent. Not a service problem but a product problem.
The HPFP was fixed immediately. I was having problems with the NAV (2009 Z4 35). The dealer was downloading software. I then got a call that the computer froze and the would have to order a new one from Germany and it could take 2 weeks. Not a problem. I then got a call from the Service Manager stating that production had stopped and there was not ETA. I was kinda upset.
The dealer in all of this has been behind me 100%. They ordered me a 2010 Z4 equiped the same way. They took the car to NA and the techs were able to recover the computer system, so I can drive it until the new one comes.
This was all the dealer. NA has been totally useless. One person tried to tell me the Nav is not BMS’s responsibility. He tried to tell me that tires are not covered. I asked him where is this stated. I asked him to tell me what page of the owner’s manual this is on? I told him I have read the owners manual and what he is telling me is FALSE. I went on to ask him if I have a problem with the buttons on the steering wheel do I have to go back to the company who produced the plastic?
Certain problems with the new NAv have been experienced by BMW personal. BMW is claming it is Teleatlas’s faoult and Teleatlas is claming it is BMW’s problem.
i cant wait to see what happens with the new car.
BMW = Bring More Wrenches ! I had a Subaru GT Legacy for 3 years , the front seat are horrible , the raidio-air condition – heater unit computer are all in one and that crashed several times , Subaru = SUper Bad Ass Racing Unit !
I wonder how many lawsuits the N54 has across the nation?
Stop complaining ! If you do not like the BMW line of cars sell it and buy an Audi , oops then you will be on an Audi blog complaining about the short commings of that line of automobiles . I run my BMW 335xi down the coast along Turnagain Arm of Cook Inlet and into the mountians of the Kenai Peninsula weekly or sometimes I’ll head to the Matanuska Glacier racing my Ultimate Mountian Machine through the mountian canyons of the Matanuska River , this machine performs flawlessly , the only problem has been corrected [HPFP] I have spent most of my adult working life in the field doing remote / in town construction , oil rigs , mining operations , logging operations , fishing in Prince William Sound or the Bering Sea , always working with or in close proxcimity of heavy machinery , everthing has a breaking point , cables break , engines blow-up , transmissions strip out , tracks break , huge cast iron compotents break etc etc — most of you guys sit in your office and do not have a clue about how mechanical things work and the stresses placed on them in different situations , you putter around in your shinny Bimmer and complain about minor issues .Guess why in the engine room of the F/T [factory trawler] or C/P [catcher processor] are spare engine parts , pistons , rings , valves , gaskets , berings etc etc , I have worked on Wartsila , Cat , MAN , Detroit Diesel engines and every engine has design flaws / things that need improvement , our attitude is replace the part and get it started — NO SNIVILING — Lawsuits , ha what a loser !
Ha..ha..lordy Paul; that grunt work must be bothering you something fierce. You do have quite the resume, but you did not say you were an astronaut. Therefore…..oh well. I believe they were just making a statement. Looks like Consumer Reports completely agrees with them. Big ol’ black mark for the fuel system for repeated failures. LOL…50K…now on this point calling people loser…YEP..especially bought a 335i or 535i and not a sweet Lexus. Gotta go…late for my manicure.
Paul, while i can appreciate that you use yor vehicles very hard and may not think anyone else knows anything about cars and BMW owners all wear suits…You may know your equipment but apparently you dont know this car because then you would know that The fuel pump failing is hardly minor, and it is not failing under heavy work loads or hard use they go randmly and not always in a safe place. Sometimes they go as your cutting across three lanes of traffic and then the car goes limp. And then the manufacturer denies the problem for a year before they do anything about it. If you like having the screws put to you , have a great time, but when I buy something i expect it to work, I cant afford to throw money away, and I dont just sit there and take BS from companies that dont deliver what they say. (and I dont wear a suit) Now if i only had somecheese to go with my whine.
My car, 2007 335i, has been repaired 3 times, and now needs to be taken in for a 4th time. This is the 3rd 3 series BMW I’ve owned, and will almost certainly be the last. This time I’ll tell them I want a different car, though. We’ll see what kind of response I get.
Has anyone else done this? Asked for a replacement of some kind, i.e. a car that doesn’t have this issue?
Any reports on how they handle it?
Honestly I believe they have so many issues with this car; they can’t handle complaints. You will most likely need to get a lawyer (which is no cost to you) and go after BMW NA. Sorry, but you’re probably one of many. Good hunting…it’ll probably take a year to complete the complaint, but at least you’ll get some money back or resolution. Others will get nothing by just complaining to BMW NA or the dealer. You should take a look at the sales for various vendors this year to explain the happiness people have been relaying on the web.
I have had may Rolex watches , I sold them all after the hands fell off due to the repated re-coil of my .454 Casull Ruger Super Red Hawk , my sisters BMW 7 series caught fire and burned to a crisp [electricial issues] she got another one , I had a turbo Porsche that leaked oil like a screaming jimmy — Detroit Diesel — I purchased my 335xi with the full knowledge of these issues and I’am going to get a new one as soon as the warranty runs out or maby sooner , maby I’ll do a Dinan S2 conversion to this one , these machines are so complex that they will have issues so one has to understand this to really enjoy and be happy with this type of automoblie , if you do not like it sell it and make BMW go bankrupt or respond to the loss of market share . This great constituital republic was built on doers and not complainers , one of you unemployed engineers should design a new HPFP and show BMW how its done !
OOPS spelled Constitutional Republic wrong , you see even I make a mistake once in a while so did BMW with this HPFP , will they correct it , yes , what kind of dialog has traspired between BMW and the vendor of the HPFP ? Will they ever make a part for BMW again , yes . Wells Fargo is a bank with issues , people get mad at them everday and storm out vowing never to deal with them again , yesterday — today — tommorrow — from a historical prepective Bimmers are fine automoblies and Wells Fargo is a decent bank — No man is all things to all men — Abe Lincoln — , this could be some unemployed engineers big break , design a new HPFP and sell it to BMW and make a million or two ! — my real interest are big semi-auto pistols , some parts are very scarse so I and found a man in Detroit with the skills and machinery to make these parts , in a few months a few hundred pistol owners will only have to submitt a C.C. number and how many do you want , solutions !
Here’s my solution to the entire mess. Look this engine has so many problems with the pumps BMW is so pissed off cause it’s costing them and arm and a leg. Most people don’t go reading blogs just before buying their new car. I use to sell Honda’s, Toyota’s, Lexus, BMW’s and all of them have problems here and there but this one is a HUGE problem for BMW and I’m sure it’s embarrising and hurts them tremendously. The service advisor even told me that this is a big problem BMW is dealing with everyday. So I bought another 3 series but I didn’t get another 335i that’s for sure. I am still waiting for the car to be shipped because it’s been built and on the ship for 3 weeks now. It’s the all new 2010 M3. I know there are no issues with any pump on this bad boy. Oh and I have never driven the new M3. When I sold them they were 6 cyl and heavier. This has the V8 and it’s the lightest V8 in the world and lighter them the last 6 cyl. If anything goes wrong with this car I will jump on this board and let you guys know. But the 335, 535 and the the Z4 with the twin turbo engine should be avoided. Only if the general public knew about the pump issues…. It would cost BMW millions upon millions of dollars in the present and the future. Good luck to everyone out there trying to get a new car. All I did btw was call BMW NA and talked to a rep and did some explaining not complaining. If you bitch they will blow you off, it pays to be nice. They paid my car off and wrote me a check for the payments I made for over 2yrs.
Ah now only if they made the M-3 in AWD I would get one also !
I bought my 2008 535i a year ago and today I just had my HPFP go out on me on the highway with 13k miles on it. I should have known the indicators because my car took a long time to start the other day and car jerks sometimes when you start it. I should have had BMW come pick up my car instead of driving to their service and made me rent a Toyota since they were out of loaner cars. Hopefully they will refund me. If the HPFP is replaced more than 3 times is this considered a “Lemmon” and is BMW liable to replace your car? I did not spend 60k to go through this inconvenient issue.
Thanks for posting this, MG. Lemon laws vary from state to state. Here’s a site with some information – choose your state from the drop-down menu, or you can simply google. http://www.yourlemonlawrights.com/23-news.aspx This site is for a lawyer that handles such cases, though I personally prefer not to work through attorneys unless I absolutely have to.
I very much appreciate your post, though, because I just got my car back, 2007, 335i, after taking it in because it was cranking and cranking before starting. They replaced the fuel pump, again. Since it has conked out on me on the highway before, it helps to know that these things can give warning signals.
Ever since I knew what a car was I wanted a BMW. Finally on my 50th Birthday my husband bought me a new 135I Conv. It was one of the happiest days of my life. Sad to say my new car soon experienced the fuel limping problem. Currently my BMW has been setting at the BMW shop for three weeks with no promise of a date to be fixed. Mean while I continue to make good on my end. At this point I don’t think I could even sale the car…worse yet, my son is placing a order on a M3. After reading this website I am going to continue begging him to reconsider. Maybe I’ll offer to pay him to reconsider. So very disappointed in my life time dream!!!