545iBMW

BTW, thanks again turboawd.

545iBMW

.....

545iBMW

Update:

Got an indy shop to look at the issue.
Found out that the brake booster is the culprit.

Shop quote me $990 for parts and labor.
Shop owner says his labor is $350, plus $20 brake fluid plus $620 brake booster and related parts.
I know shops usually make a few bucks on the parts so I gave Garry Romani a call just to double-check prices. Garry quoted me $469 for the part ($20 for ground, $45 for 2-day and $120 for overnight plus two-days to order the parts).
Shop told me they will not warranty parts if I don't buy from them so I asked the shop owner for a discount - gave me 10% - so total charge is $900 plus tax.

I'm hoping this will fix the issue.

545iBMW

I just want to update this and hoping it will help someone here.

Had my car fixed (brake booster, check valve, and vacuum pump) for $1300 last May. It has working great after this.
Since BMWNA think this is not a serious matter, I went and filed a report at NTHSA's site (safecar.gov).

I received a call from them this morning asking me to describe the issue.
It was 10-15 minute call.

After that, I received another call from the same person asking me to scan my receipts to her with a @dot.gov email address with a DC phone which I think is very legit.
BTW, she also asked me if I still have the old parts - I guess they want to study these parts to make a more solid case. Unfortunately, I don't collect these kind of things.

I'm hoping it will push BMW to acknowledge that these is a very serious safety issue and they will issue a recall soon.

525iEnjoy

Glad you got this fixed. There was another thread with these symptoms post not to long ago(Thread), How many miles on your car?

Uh I was referencing the booster units cause I wanted to make sure I had enough pressure for the M5 Brakes and I found that my booster number was the predecessor to the ones on the 545, M5 etc..I believe the 525 & 530's got the earlier version if you call it that. Maybe this info will help your cause?