Vehicle report
1997 BMW 740IL
This model year
What the record shows
The 1997 Bmw 740il is a large car, and the 5th model year of a nameplate NHTSA records from 1993 to 2001.
The EPA rated one configuration: a single 4.4-litre eight-cylinder engine, rear-wheel drive only, a single transmission, Automatic 5-spd and running on premium gasoline.
Combined fuel economy is 18 mpg.
The federal record holds 19 owner complaints and 16 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.