Other fuel system problem on the 2005 BMW X5
Only 6 reports for this mode came with an odometer reading, which is too few for percentiles to mean anything. The page is here because someone linked to it; treat the figures as anecdotes, and see the full report for this year instead.
When other fuel system problem gets reported
There are 6 reports of other fuel system problem on the 2005 BMW X5, 6 with a mileage attached. That is too few to place the failure on the odometer with any confidence.
A part like this is normally expected to survive 90,000 miles. It is the 5th most-reported problem on this model year.
The whole distribution
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | — | 77,250 miles | — | — |
Read the 10th percentile as “one report in ten arrived this early”. Exact figures are shown in this table because it is the table of record; everywhere else on the site they are rounded to the precision the sample can carry.
What a percentile can and cannot tell you here
These five numbers describe the readings owners gave, in order. The median is the middle one: half the reports arrived below it. The 10th and 90th are the edges of the bulk of the distribution, and the distance between them is the part worth reading. A tight spread — say 70,000 to 95,000 miles — points at something that wears out on a schedule, and the schedule is knowable. A wide one, 20,000 to 190,000, points at a fault that hits some cars and never troubles others, which means the mileage on the listing in front of you tells you very little about your odds.
What these figures are not is a survival curve. Every reading here comes from a car whose owner filed a complaint, so the sample contains only failures: it cannot say what share of the fleet made it past 150,000 miles untouched, because those owners had nothing to report. Nor is the mileage the moment of failure — it is the odometer reading as recalled at the time of filing, which may be weeks later and is sometimes rounded to the nearest ten thousand by the person typing it.
Percentiles are shown at all only once 8 readings exist for the vehicle and mode. Below that the middle of a handful of numbers is noise wearing a decimal point, so the figures are withheld rather than dressed up.
What happens, and what it costs
Putting it right typically runs $300–$2,200 at an independent US shop. That range is an editorial estimate held in this site's failure-mode catalogue, not a figure from NHTSA, and it is a repair cost rather than a diagnosis cost.
The same failure on other years
The same failure is reported on 16 model years of this car. It shows up earliest on the 2021, at a median of 5,000 miles, and latest on the 2009 at 100,000 miles.
By volume the 2015 carries the most reports, with 23; the 2005 has 6. A mode that appears across most years of a model is usually a design choice rather than a bad batch.
If one year stands out to the left, that is the year to avoid; if the whole line sits at a similar mileage, this is wear rather than a defect in one production run.
Tick median reported mileage Solid middle half of reports Faint 10th to 90th percentile Colour how bad the failure is when it happens
What owners wrote
Verbatim from NHTSA complaint narratives, trimmed for length. The mileage is the one the owner gave.
I bought a 2005 bmw x5 this may. I feel dizzy and nausea each time I drive it and I didn't know the reason until recently. I bought a gauss meter to check computer emf in my study room recently. Emf is showing as safe in front of every computer in my study room. To my surprise, it showed as danger after I started my bmw x5, even at the back row of the car. I tried it in another car I have, it showed as safe also. So I think this is the reason that caused the dizziness and the nausea. I am not sure what to do with it. I don't want to have any car accident due to dizziness. *tr
I am reporting a design flaw with bmw and a major safety issue. I have had 2 oil separators go bad over the last 6 years. This issue has to be escalated from a "service bulletin" to a full blown recall. I this problem is not only a safety issue, but greatly depreciates the resale value of our vehicles not to mention the out of pocket costs due to repairs, lost wages, and towing to mention a few. None of us in good conscience could sell our vehicles in a midwest or northern climate and pass this problem on to the next owner - we need to unite and pass the problem back to the source: bmw. *tr
On 1/6/14 I went outside and started up vehicle and let it warm up for a bit and then I drove about 2miles and car was acting funny as I drove it. It didn't want to go so I gave it some gas and RPM's revved up but odometer was moving up and down all crazy. I left vehicle cranked as I went into store and drove it back home. Didn't want to turn it off in case it didn't start back up. On 1/8/14 I went out and cranked car to warm up for a minute and then put car into drive and heard a loud pop. I then put car back into park. Car acted as if it didn't want to stay started so I gave it some gas and then a bunch of smoke came out from exhaust pipes. Turned car off and let all smoke clear and tried to restart car but it wouldn't turn over. Had car towed to import specialty and 2 days later they informed me this is a common issue with make & model that the diaphragm bust and the tcc valve breaks and throws oil everywhere. Thank goodness I bought a extended warranty that covers power train but not this issue $1,725.00 on the low side to just clean oil out and then we will be able to look further into car to see if engine is salvageable or…
Also reported on the 2005 BMW X5
Other engine problem
Other electrical problem
Other body or interior problem
Other powertrain problem
Airbag warning light or occupant sensor fault
Oil leak
How far this goes
This page is kept out of search results because 6 reports is not enough to publish percentiles from. It stays reachable because somebody looking at this exact car would rather see the reports than be told there are none.
Complaints are voluntary, so 6 is a floor and not a count of affected cars. Mileages are typed in by owners and cluster on round numbers. And the mode itself is assigned by software reading the complaint text, which is reliable in bulk and fallible one report at a time.
Questions this page answers
At what mileage does other fuel system problem happen on the 2005 BMW X5?
Across 6 owner reports that included an odometer reading, half were filed by 75,000 miles. A quarter were filed before — and a quarter after —. These are the mileages owners reported when they complained, not a prediction for any individual car.
How common is other fuel system problem on the 2005 BMW X5?
6 reports have been filed with NHTSA, about 18 per 1,000 vehicles. Complaints are voluntary, so this is a floor rather than a count of affected cars.
What this is and is not. These are the mileages at which owners chose to complain to a federal agency, which is not the same as the mileage at which the part fails on every car. It skews toward failures that happened outside warranty, cost real money, or frightened someone. It is still the only public dataset that carries failure mileage at all, and the shape of a few hundred readings is informative even when a single one is not. Methodology · JSON · this failure on other cars
Source Owner complaints and recall records published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, model years 1996–2027 Figures rebuilt Published by AtWhatMileage How every figure is computed