Vehicle report
2021 BMW 540I
This model year
What the record shows
The 2021 Bmw 540i is a midsize car, and the 33rd model year of a nameplate NHTSA records from 1989 to 2025.
The EPA rated one configuration: a single 3-litre six-cylinder engine, rear-wheel drive only, a single transmission, Automatic (S8) and running on premium gasoline.
Combined fuel economy is 27 mpg.
The federal record holds 8 owner complaints, 6 safety recalls and 120 service bulletins for it.
Counts are reports, not rates. A complaint is something an owner chose to file; it is unverified and unadjusted for how many of these cars were sold, so the useful comparison is against other model years of the same car. Recalls and investigations carry more weight because a manufacturer or regulator acted on them.
Reading this report
Complaint counts are reports filed with NHTSA, not failure rates. A common model collects more of them than a rare one that breaks more often.