AI Damage1991 BMW 850I: common problems
Owners of the 1991 BMW 850I filed 9 complaints with NHTSA, most often about exterior lighting and air bags. Details by component below, with sources.
Key figures
- Owner complaints
- 9
What fails most often
- 1 Exterior lighting 56% of all complaints
- 2 Air bags 11% of all complaints
- 3 Engine and cooling 11% of all complaints
- 4 Service brakes 11% of all complaints
- 5 Suspension 11% of all complaints
- Exterior lighting: 5 complaints (56% of all).
- Air bags: 1 complaints (11% of all).
- Engine and cooling: 1 complaints (11% of all).
- Service brakes: 1 complaints (11% of all).
- Suspension: 1 complaints (11% of all).
Symptoms owners describe
How many of the 9 NHTSA complaints mention each symptom (automatic count from complaint text; one complaint can mention several).
Components owners complain about
| Component | Owner complaints | involving a crash | Technical service bulletins (TSB) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exterior lighting | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Air bags | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Engine and cooling | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Service brakes | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Suspension | 1 | 0 | 0 |
What owners report
Short excerpts of NHTSA complaints in the original wording. These are owner statements not verified by NHTSA; personal data removed.
Started my bmw 850i, drive half a block down the street, the airbag blow , burn my hands. I can take picture of the broken airbag in the steering wheel if needed.
The driver noticed that the headlight adjuster was broken. This caused poor visibility while driving at night. The consumer took the vehicle to the dealer and was informed that the headlights adjuster needed to be replaced.
Both headlight adjustment mechaisms have repeatedly failed. This is an ongoing complaint with bmw 8 series owners. When the adjustment mechanism fails the headlight buckets point downwards so that the amount of road visible to the driver is 25 feet or less.
After failure, bmw tells you to buy new headlight buckets for $650 with new adjusters in them, which will fail again after two to four years, depending on the mileage. After failure the lights shine extremly low without covering the street in front of you, resulting in a real safety hazard.
This car loses coolant, overheats, and blows a head gasket, and now possibly needs new cylinder heads. Bmw mechanic states that the temperatute gauge is not supposed to tell you the engine is overheating if the coolant has already completely leaked out of the system.
Shock support came completely out of the body of the vehicle on two occasions.
When owners complained
NHTSA complaints by filing year. The peak shows at what age the problems show up most.
Comparison
By complaint count this model year ranks 11,366 of 36,656 model years in the NHTSA data (top 31% most complained about).
On average one model year of the 850I has 6 complaints (3 years in the data). This year has 9, above average.
What to check before buying
- Exterior lighting. Headlamps, leveling, sensors and mounts after a frontal hit.
- Air bags. Check the SRS light, stored codes and airbag/curtain status after any impact.
- Engine and cooling. Radiator and fan after a frontal hit, coolant level and condition, overheating.
- Service brakes. Pedal feel, ABS operation, leaks, discs and hoses.
Other years of this model
Questions and answers
What are the most common problems with the 1991 BMW 850I?
Owner complaints to NHTSA most often mention: exterior lighting, air bags, engine and cooling. Total complaints: 9. The most frequent symptoms in complaint texts: headlights and tail lights (56%), overheating, coolant loss (11%).
How many service bulletins (TSB) were issued for the 1991 BMW 850I?
NHTSA lists 0 manufacturer service bulletins for this year. A bulletin tells dealers how to diagnose or fix a known issue; it is not a recall.
Should I buy a 1991 BMW 850I from a US auction?
Owner complaints describe defects, not crash damage. Before bidding, check the components listed above and review the lot photos: VinWind builds a report of visible and hidden damage by VIN.
Other 1991 models
Read also
Sources: public NHTSA data (USA): service bulletins and owner complaints; YouTube: links to videos credited to their authors. Complaints are owner statements not verified by NHTSA, and describe defects rather than crash damage. Data updated 2026-11-05.