Jerking or juddering when accelerating on BMW: causes by model

• High severityFrequency: CommonBMW N52 / N53N53 piezoelectric injector failureThe N53's piezoelectric direct injectors fail frequently and cause misfires, rough idle and limp mode; replacing them is expensive and they must be coded.

In Serie 3 E90, Serie 5 E60 and Serie 5 F10

• High severityFrequency: CommonBMW X3 E83Fragile xDrive transfer case, with jerking under accelerationThe xDrive transfer case on the X3 E83 has gears that are not very robust and can fail if mismatched tyres, uneven pressures between axles or old oil are combined, causing jerking under acceleration; fiches-auto.fr lists around 43 cases among its owner testimonies.

• High severityFrequency: OccasionalBMW Serie 2 Active Tourer F45Jerking and overheating in the Steptronic automatic gearbox, and worn synchromesh in the manualfiches-auto.fr gathers testimonies of the 8-speed Steptronic automatic gearbox jerking and overheating (hydraulic unit, solenoid valves or shift sensors), and of the manual gearbox struggling to engage second gear because of worn synchromesh.

• High severityFrequency: OccasionalBMW Serie 3 F30Campaign over the clutch pressure plate bolts (manual gearbox)Yes: in July 2013 BMW recalled 3 Series F30 cars with a manual gearbox over a risk related to the clutch pressure plate bolts. Check with the chassis number whether your car has already been repaired.

• High severityFrequency: OccasionalBMW Serie 5 E60Wear of the ZF 6-speed automatic gearbox and of the clutch and dual-mass flywheel assemblyThe 5 Series E60's ZF 6-speed automatic gearbox needs an oil change sooner than BMW suggests despite being advertised as "lifetime", and the clutch and dual-mass flywheel assembly on manual versions tends to wear out from around 160,000-200,000 km, according to fiches-auto.fr and gebrauchtwagenberater.de.Appears at around 160,000 km

• Medium severityFrequency: CommonBMW N47Clogged or seized EGR valveYes, as on most diesels of its generation: the N47's EGR valve seizes or clogs with carbon, especially on cars used in town, causing an unstable idle, jerking and loss of power; it is not usually a serious fault if it is cleaned or replaced in time.Repair (garage): €400–€1,500

In Serie 1 E87, Serie 1 F20, Serie 3 E90, Serie 3 F30, Serie 5 E60 and Serie 5 F10 and 3 more models

• Medium severityFrequency: CommonBMW N47Dual-mass flywheel wear (manual gearbox versions)Yes: on manual-gearbox BMW N47s, the dual-mass flywheel can wear, especially after a lot of town mileage or driving in high gears at low revs; the typical symptoms are vibrations, a metallic rattle at idle and jerking when pulling away.Appears at around 150,000 km

In Serie 1 E87, Serie 1 F20, Serie 3 E90, Serie 3 F30, Serie 5 E60 and Serie 5 F10 and 3 more models

• Medium severityFrequency: CommonBMW M47Blocked and seized injectorsOver the miles, carbon builds up around the M47's injector seats and can seize them; a German used-car guide adds that the high-pressure pump on the first common rail units (before the first facelift) is relatively prone to failure.

In Serie 1 E87, Serie 3 E46, Serie 3 E90, Serie 5 E60 and X3 E83

• Medium severityFrequency: CommonBMW M47Dual-mass flywheel wear (manual gearbox versions)On BMWs with the M47 engine and a manual gearbox, the dual-mass flywheel can wear with mileage, especially with a lot of urban use or long spells in high gears at low revs; typical symptoms are vibrations, a metallic rattle at idle and jerking when pulling away.Appears at around 150,000 km

In Serie 1 E87, Serie 3 E46, Serie 3 E90, Serie 5 E60 and X3 E83

• Medium severityFrequency: CommonBMW N54/N55N54 piezoelectric injector failureThe N54's piezoelectric injectors can clog or leak and cause intermittent misfires. The N55 has solenoid injectors, so it does not share this weak point.

In Serie 3 E90, Serie 5 E60, X6 E71 and Z4 E89

• Medium severityFrequency: OccasionalBMW N20High-pressure fuel pump (HPFP) failureThe high-pressure pump that feeds the N20's direct injection (High Precision Injection) can fail, especially on high-mileage units, leaving the car with hard starting, jerking or, in the worst case, unable to start.

In Serie 1 F20, Serie 2 F22, Serie 3 F30, Serie 4 F32, Serie 5 F10 and X1 E84 and 2 more models

• Medium severityFrequency: OccasionalBMW N13High-pressure fuel pump (HPFP) failureThe high-pressure pump that feeds the N13's direct injection can fail. English Wikipedia generically documents several cases of extended-warranty replacement within the Prince family, with no specific figures or N13-specific recall.

In Serie 1 F20 and Serie 3 F30

• Medium severityFrequency: OccasionalBMW X1 F48Delay in power engagement when pulling away on the 7-speed dual-clutch Steptronic gearboxIt is a known trait and not an isolated fault: on X1 F48 cars with the 7-speed dual-clutch (DKG) Steptronic gearbox, the engagement of power when pulling away is noticeably delayed, something Gebrauchtwagenberater.de recommends checking on the test drive.

• Medium severityFrequency: OccasionalBMW X4 F26xDrive transfer case failure: jerking and vibrations at low speedAccording to reports on fiches-auto.fr, the xDrive transfer case can cause jerking, vibrations and noise at low speed; in one case it was replaced at 110,000 km. The fiche points to worn actuator gears or tyres of different circumference.

• High severityFrequency: RareBMW Serie 5 G30Jerking and failure of the xDrive transmission on all-wheel-drive versionsfiches-auto.fr documents the complete replacement of the xDrive transmission on a 2017 530d (€5,680 invoiced by BMW and covered by the warranty at 81,000 km); there are no statistics indicating what proportion of cars fail.Repair: €5,680

• High severityFrequency: RareBMW X5 F15Transfer box judder under part throttle on the X5 F15Gebrauchtwagenberater.de identifies the transfer box as a weak point of the X5 F15 with four-wheel drive (all except the sDrive25d): the fault shows up as judder when accelerating under part throttle.

• Medium severityFrequency: RareBMW Serie 5 G30Traction control interferes with acceleration on the M550i and 540i xDrive (fixed by software, 2021)In November 2021, the M550i xDrive and the 540i xDrive had a fault in which the traction control interfered with acceleration; BMW fixed it with an over-the-air (OTA) software update, with no need to visit a garage.

• Medium severityFrequency: RareBMW X3 G01Jerking and uneven shifts in the automatic gearbox and xDrive transfer casefiches-auto.fr collects reports of the X3 G01's xDrive transfer case causing jerking, vibrations or noises, and of the automatic gearbox going into limp mode or shifting unevenly because of hydraulic pressure faults.

• Medium severityFrequency: RareBMW X6 F16Thumps and vibrations from the xDrive transfer caseAccording to the fiches-auto.fr data sheet, two reports on the X6 50i with 450 hp at 88,000 km describe thumps, vibrations when manoeuvring or transmission faults; the data sheet points to internal discs, the actuator, oil or tyres of different circumference.

• Low severityFrequency: OccasionalBMW M47Faulty air flow meter on the BMW M47 (loss of power)On the 2.0 M47 diesel the air flow meter appears among parts that can fail with age and cause loss of power or judder. It is fixed by replacing the sensor; other causes must be ruled out first.Repair (garage): €100–€300

In Serie 1 E87, Serie 3 E46, Serie 3 E90, Serie 5 E60 and X3 E83

• Low severityFrequency: OccasionalBMW N52 / N53N53 ignition coils from 2007-2008 (BMW service action)BMW replaced the coils of 2007-2008 N53 and N43 engines free of charge, because they could fail early through temperature and insulation problems and cause misfires. Autobild describes it as an issue not related to safety.

In Serie 3 E90 and Serie 5 E60