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UPDATE:
- This case was dismissed April 15, 2021.
A Colorado federal judge ruled that plaintiffs can proceed with a class action lawsuit over an alleged BMW engine defect which causes low oil levels.
Lead plaintiffs say that a defect in the twin turbocharged N63 engine causes them to use an excessive amount of oil in a class action lawsuit filed against the car maker.
The allegedly defective engines were installed in certain 2013 through 2015 model year BMW vehicles. According to the original complaint, BMW knew of the defect but failed to do anything about it or even warn consumers.
The BMW engine defect class action lawsuit contended with headwinds shortly after it was filed in March 2019, when the car maker asked for the complaint to be dismissed.
In January, U.S. Magistrate Judge Scott T. Varholak sided with plaintiffs in a finding which recommended that the class action continue.
Judge Varholak issued a report and statement indicating that the BMW engine defect is a potential danger because the excessive oil consumption can cause unexpected engine failure, putting vehicle occupants at risk.
In another recent ruling, U.S. District Court Judge Christine M. Arguello agreed with the magistrate judge’s findings, preserving BMW engine defect class action lawsuit claims that the car maker violated Colorado consumer protection laws and is in breach of warranty.
Each of the three plaintiffs, Matthew Ingram, Rachel O’Connor, and David Cruz, claim that they purchased BMWs with the twin turbo charged N63 engines with the alleged defect between 2013 and 2015. They say that they relied on the warranties provided by BMW when deciding to purchase their vehicles.
Specifically, the lead plaintiffs contend that they relied on BMW’s promise to repair or replace defective components in the vehicles during the first four years or 50,000 miles of their ownership. However, after their purchase, they claim that their vehicles exhibited the BMW engine defect – namely excessive consumption of oil.
Further, despite reporting the problem to BMW authorized dealerships, the plaintiffs say they were only told that excessive oil consumption was normal in the vehicles. They claim they were not offered the option for repair or replacement of the defective BMW engine.
The magistrate judge’s report pointed out that BMW issued several technical service bulletins over consumer complaints about excessive oil consumption by the N63 engine.
Further, the judge referenced a 2015 study on excessive oil consumption conducted by Consumer Reports included vehicles affected by the alleged BMW engine defect.
Judge Arguello agreed with the magistrate judge’s recommendation regarding the plaintiffs’ claims for breach of warranty and violation of Colorado consumer protection laws.
Additionally, the judge agreed with the finding that it was too early to determine whether a three-year statute of limitation, or deadline, applied to the class action lawsuit claims.
“Although factual development through discovery may show that plaintiffs should have known about the alleged defect when they purchased their vehicles based on, e.g. information that was publicly available at the time, that is not conclusively established by the allegations in the operative complaint,” wrote Judge Arguello in her order.
“Rather, viewed in the light most favorable to plaintiffs, their allegations plausibly suggest that plaintiffs were unaware of the defect and defendant concealed the fact that the engines may have been defective.”
For its part, the car maker has objected to the conclusion that the BMW engine defect class action lawsuit is not barred by the statute of limitations.
BMW contends that the plaintiffs knew or should have known of the defect at the time they purchased their vehicles because of publicly available information about excessive consumption of oil claims. BMW also asserts that the plaintiffs have not sufficiently established that the company concealed the defect from them and other consumers.
Regarding the warranty claims, Judge Arguello likewise agreed with the magistrate judge’s finding to uphold the class action lawsuit at this point in the proceedings. BMW argued that the warranty does not cover the alleged engine defect, because it is a design, rather than manufacturing defect.
“At this point in the instant case, it is unclear what type of defect, if any, resulted in the excessive oil consumption of the N63 engine,” points out Judge Arguello in her order. Later, the order concludes, “Plaintiffs, in the First Amended Complaint, plead sufficient facts to support the claim that the defect was a manufacturing defect covered by the Warranty.”
Similarly, Judge Arguello upheld the magistrate judge’s recommendation regarding the BMW engine defect class action allegations, as well as rejecting the car maker’s argument that the plaintiffs had incorrectly asserted claims on behalf of the proposed Class, otherwise known as misjoinder.
Was your vehicle affected by the alleged BMW engine defect? Tell us what happened in the comment section below!
The plaintiffs are represented by Sergei Lemberg and Vlad Hirnyk of Lemberg Law LLC.
The BMW Engine Defect Class Action Lawsuit is O’Connor, et al. v. BMW of North America, et al., Case No. 1:18-cv-03190, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado.
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81 thoughts onBMW Engine Defect Class Action Preserved in Colo.
I have a 2012 550GTi M sport pkg. 8 cy with twin as well and the car is thirty all the time! I love the car – I knew nothing about this situation. Classic BMW of Plano, TX never said a word. I thought it drank oil because of the high performance vehicle it is. Last week the car lost complete power…scary – on the road & I had to pull off… Took the car in the next day to Classic BMW – $3200 defective fuel pump bank 2 + $800 for new spark plugs! There was a fuel pump recall on my make, model and year~~but my vin.# didn’t come up – So I’m told I have to pay. Appears the vin.# lottery system is unfair. Life isn’t always fair I’m told.
I had the same issue with my 2013 BMW M5. I had the same issue with some of the other people on here. I was driving home one day and the engine just shut off at the light. Wouldn’t turn back on. I had it towed to my house as it was a saturday. On that next Monday I had it towed to my dealership ( Sandia BMW in Albuquerque,NM). They said they looked it over and all I needed was a battery, which seemed very odd as this was my 7th BMW and I had never had this issue besides the oil consumption issue. Tried to sell me a better for $500, which I found odd because the car started back up. They couldn’t explain it to me and said everything was fine. I told them the batter wasn’t even a year old and if it was the battery then why did it start back up? I didn’t believe what they were saying, but they told me the car was fine. I took the car home and the next time I drove the vehicle I got a horrible rattling sound. Drove it back in they said the rod bearings had spun and that I needed a new engine to the tune of $38,000. Car only had 46,000 miles on it and it was fitting as the warranty had expired 6 days prior. The S62 engine in the M5 is the same engine block as the N63. There are just less of them out there. So it seems they keep getting left off the list. I had to pay $10,000 to have the engine basically rebuilt because BMW wouldn’t cover it even though it was in their shop.
All bmw models made 2012 to 2015. 4 cylinder engines. Timing chain guides. Defective. Result cause. Engine to lock up or timing chain get so loose. It brakes. With even low mileage. Bmw. Need to extend warranty on these car Till 150,000 mileage. All break. And cause oil consumption.
I have a 2012 X5 that consumes about 5 quarts every 3 to 4 weeks. Took it to BMW and was told it would be covered under the class action lawsuit, however, I was told they would only cover 5% of the cost. They estimated the repar to be about to $12k, but could be more if in the process they required more parts. I still owe money on the car and am unsure of what to do.
I have a BMW Dealer will not pay charges said I need timing change my engine is covered in oil that look like tar my car note almost 700 dollars it’s a pandemic I’m livid I don’t have money for a engine this is not right please help I haven’t driven my car no money to get fixed
I have a 2008 5 Series uses alot of
Oil as well as a 2013 – 2015. Sounds like our vehicles are burning oil from a manufacturing defect.
$4,000- $4,500 for repair yep! @ the shop Mechanic stated
I own a 2013 BMW 750LI XDrive, issues with high oil consumption, dealer said normal numerous times. They also sold me a battery, I just learned about the problems from reading this post. Previous owner of my car also complained about excessive oil consumption too at almost new
My BMW X5 2013. It drinks sooo much oil. I have to add oil nearly every 3-4 weeks. The engine light comes on and the add oil light every 30 days. It has a awful smell also. The oil has to be purchased at BMW, of course, and it is $10.00 per quart. This car was supposed to be my forever vehicle, but now all I want to do is give it back. Everytime I take the car in for repairs, it is always over $1,000. The last time it was $4500.00. The warranty does not cover anything, especially the oil problem!!!!HELP!
I have a 2011 BMW X5 50i twin turbo. The oil consumption is out of control. I have to had a quart of oil every 10-14 days. The exhaust from the oil is sickening to smell. This has been an issue since I have owned the car. We had all the recall fixes done on the vehicle, in addition we had the engine replaced because the original engine went out after 5 years or so. I do not like this car.
The same thing happened to me in Chicago. Car came to complete stop , lost of steering occurred as motor cut off. They told me it was a battery 550$ then they said it was voltage regulator 900$, you may pick up your car from Ziegler’s BMW ORLAND PK. I drove 2miles happen again, tow back , next day he says no oil in car motor is gone. 48,000$ sir.
I have a 2013 BMW x5 4.4l twin turbo, my car completely shut off as I was perfect a turn as the light turned green. I was able to drive home that day. The next day as I was driving I heard a rattling noise inside the engine. I took the car to the dealership where they informed me that I need a new engine. My car tells me I need to put oil in it a bit every two weeks. I had asked several dealership about this frequency of replacing oil, they all said it was normal. Now I see this article and facing the reality of a $10000 repair bill.