Chevrolet C Series vs BMW X5 SAV

Both cars' complete complaint records, side by side.

Read the totals carefully. NHTSA publishes no sales figures, so the car that sold more collects more complaints regardless of quality. The rows worth weighing are the proportions — the share of complaints that involved harm, and which part dominates.

Measure	Chevrolet C Series	BMW X5 SAV
Complaints on file	119	293
Model years covered	1968–2008	2003–2013
Worst model year	1996	2007
Best model year	1995	2013
Crashes reported	6	14
Fires reported	6	5
Injuries reported	2	13
Deaths reported	1	0
Most complained-about part	Windows, Mirrors & Wipers	Airbags
Share of complaints involving harm	12.6%	10.9%

Chevrolet C Series by year

1 1 2 1 1 1 13 2 12 14 39 19 4 2 3 3 1

68 82 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 01 02 07 08

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded

What breaks

Windows, Mirrors & Wipers 25 21.0%

Brakes 20 16.8%

Transmission & Drivetrain 10 8.4%

Fuel & Propulsion 10 8.4%

Engine & Cooling 8 6.7%

Electrical System 6 5.0%

Steering 6 5.0%

Airbags 5 4.2%

BMW X5 SAV by year

1 36 82 34 30 27 38 29 16

03 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded

What breaks

Airbags 57 19.5%

Engine & Cooling 48 16.4%

Brakes 32 10.9%

Fuel & Propulsion 31 10.6%

Transmission & Drivetrain 28 9.6%

Electrical System 28 9.6%

Seats 13 4.4%

Acceleration & Cruise Control 10 3.4%