1998 BMW 528I: problems, recalls and reliability

“The wiring harness that enters the trunk lid that supplies the lights for the rear license plate and the trunk lid release has frayed at the exact point where the harness enters the trunk lid. The wiring comes in direct contact with the sharp edge at the opening in the trunk lid, and several of the wires have broken at this point, resulting in failure of the license plate lights. In addition, the dashboard indicator shows that the trunk lid is open even though it's locked. I performed an internet search and this seems to be a common problem with several bmw models.”Owner report · Electrical System · Oct 2010

“My 1998 bmw 5-series 528i started accelerating on it's own when I was driving, and I had to keep my foot on the brake and almost ran a few red lights. When I parked my car I had to put it in neutral to turn it off and I tried starting it again (with my foot on the brake) and it accelerated w/out being in drive. Now my car jerks every time I'm driving slow and it feels like it's not shifting properly any more. *tr”Owner report · Power Train · Mar 2010

“Tl* the contact owns a 1998 bmw 528i. The contact stated that after engine start up, the air bag warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the dealer confirmed that the air bag sensors needed to be reset. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 85,000 and the current mileage was 93,000.”Owner report · Air Bags · Mar 2009

“While driving down the highway (maricopa hwy) my steering wheel began to spin around and it had no affect on the steering of my bmw, in other words I could not or I have lost the steering capacity, the steering wheel just spins. *tr”Owner report · Steering · Jan 2009

“98 528i, airbag light flashed and remained illuminated. Repair made by bmw dealer as per tsb 61-2000. Defective wiring harness. Repair bypassed original configuration. Dealer and bmw n/a declined to cover repair although acknowledging defect in the wiring harness. Stated that there hasn't been a recall even though they have clearly identified a defect in the harness as outlined in the service bulletin 61-20-00 from 2003. *tr”Owner report · Air Bags · Dec 2007

“Tl*the contact owns a 1998 bmw 528i. While the engine was running, the contact smelled something burning. He discovered that the brake light for the window burned through the housing and fell into the trunk. The bulb landed by the fuel tank. No repairs have been made and the cause of the failure was unknown. Furthermore, the passenger and driver side handles failed to open the doors from inside the passenger compartment. The doors would only open from the outside. The failure mileage was 138,000 and current mileage was 166,000.”Owner report · Structure · Sep 2007

“Tl*the contact owns a 1998 bmw 528i. The contact stated that the driver side door handle inside the passenger compartment would fall off in her hand. The failure occurred a total of eight times and prevented her from exiting the vehicle. There were no warnings prior to the failure. The contact repaired the failure herself on seven occasions because it would cost $249 to repair it at a dealer. The current mileage was 117,000 and failure mileage was approximately 50,000.”Owner report · Latches/Locks/Linkages · May 2006