BMW X3 Complaints (2006)

143 consumer complaints on file.

#11740974May 30, 2026
AIR BAGS, SEAT BELTS
1. The front passenger airbag light is continuously on. 2. Fasten seat belt audible alarm, and fasten seat belt dash light are continuously on when front passenger seat is NOT occupied.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11498224December 20, 2022
AIR BAGS:SENSOR:OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION
Dealer states my occupancy detection mat was already reworked, however the original mat is still in the seat and no evidence exists to show what was done to prevent future fatigue of the mat. The date code on the mat is 2005 and the dealer stated it only needed replacing if it showed visible cracking during inspection. They stated it wasn't required to replace it but the date of warranty started from date of inspection.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11491031October 26, 2022
AIR BAGS
The contact owns a 2006 BMW X3. The contact stated while driving 30 MPH, the front passenger's side air bag warning light illuminated. The dealer and the manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact associated the failure with NHTSA Campaign Number: 17V605000 (Air Bags) however, the VIN was not included. The failure mileage was approximately 83,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11455860March 9, 2022
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
I can smell a burning smell at times coming out from my blower and the heat and air condition is not functioning properly. Also my rear hatch lights on the interior are always on and when I hit bumps they flash off and on.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11443820December 14, 2021
AIR BAGS
The contact owns a 2006 BMW X3. The contact stated that while driving at 30 MPH, the contact rear-ended another vehicle. All the air bags except for the passenger’s side air bag deployed upon impact. The contact suffered a migraine from the collision but did not receive medical attention but planned to go to urgent care afterward. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence. The vehicle was not totaled. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. Prior to the failure, the dealer serviced the recall under NHTSA Campaign Number: 17V605000 (Air Bags). The failure mileage was approximately 130,000.
Crash:
Yes
Fire:
No
Injuries:
1
Deaths:
0
#11443453December 11, 2021
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, SEATS
I turned on my heated seat and within about a minute and a half I smelled a burning smell. Pulled over as I started to feel a burn on my leg because the seat heater has burnt through the leather in my car. This is a known problem at BMW and they have not issued a recall for this.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11399912March 9, 2021
AIR BAGS, UNKNOWN OR OTHER, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
FAULTY CLOCK SPRING BMW AIRBAG LIGHT ON HORN DOESN'T WORK BMW STEERING WHEEL BUTTONS DON'T WORK, PADDLE SHIFTER NOT WORKING, FAULT CODE: DRIVER SQUIB CIRCUIT OPEN OR HIGH RESISTANCE, CODE B1049 AND B1054.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11386209January 3, 2021
AIR BAGS
NHTSA WEBSITE CLAIMS THAT MY VEHICLE HAS HAD AN UNREPAIRED RECALL. THE RECALL IS FOR: FRONT PASSENGER SEAT OCCUPANT DETECTION MAT: THIS SAFETY RECALL INVOLVES THE FRONT PASSENGER SEAT OCCUPANT DETECTION MAT. DEPENDING ON SEAT CONFIGURATION AND VEHICLE GEOMETRY, THE MAT CAN FATIGUE DURING FIELD USAGE DEPENDING ON THE MANNER AND FREQUENCY OF THE FRONT PASSENGER'S ENTRY AND EXIT. SPECIFICALLY, OVER TIME MICRO-CRACKS COULD DEVELOP IN THE SIDE FLANKS OF THE MAT. IF A MICRO-CRACK LEADS TO A BREAK OF A CONDUCTIVE PATH, THE SYSTEM WILL RECOGNIZE A FAILURE. CONSEQUENTLY, THE FRONT PASSENGER AIR BAGS WITH THE EXCEPTION OF THE HEAD PROTECTION SYSTEM WILL BE DEACTIVATED.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11351786August 28, 2020
SEATS
DRIVER SEAT HEATER COIL BURNED UP WHILE I WAS SITTING IN THE GARAGE PREPARING TO LEAVE CAUSING HOLE IN THE SEAT AND MY PANTS.. I SEARCHED ON YOUTUBE AND IT SHOWED THAT THERE WERE SEVERAL INCIDENTS OF THIS HAPPENING. SHOULDN'T THERE BE A RECALL FOR THIS PROBLEM
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11289704December 17, 2019
SEATS
WHILE DRIVING, WITH DRIVER'S HEATED SEAT SET ON HIGH (3 LIGHTS FOR HEATED SEAT CONTROL), DRIVER NOTED A BURNING SMELL. DRIVER TURNED OFF CABIN HEAT, HEATED SEAT AND PULLED OFF THE ROAD TO IDENTIFY THE SOURCE OF THE STRONG BURNING SMELL. HEATED SEAT HAD BURNED THROUGH THE LEATHER SEAT AND THE EXTERNAL LAYER OF THE DRIVER'S DOWN FILLED WOOL COAT. VEHICLE WAS IN MOTION ON A RESIDENTIAL STREET, MANUAL TRANSMISSION IN 3RD GEAR, STRAIGHT ROAD. OCCURRED ON 12/16/19. INCLUDED 2 PICTURES OF THE BURNT LEATHER SEAT AND 1 PICTURE OF THE DRIVER'S BURNT COAT. SEAT AND COAT WERE BURNED, NO LIVE FLAME.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11288114December 10, 2019
SEATS
HEATED SEAT GETTING TOO HOT TOO FAST. BURNING SMELL.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11286503December 2, 2019
SEATS
WITHIN TWO MINUTES OF DRIVING, ON A CITY STREET, THE CAR WITH THE HEATED SEATS ON, I SMELLED A BURNING SMELL AND THOUGHT IT WAS COMING FROM ANOTHER CAR. BUT THE SMELL GOT STRONGER AND IT DIDN'T SMELL LIKE A CAR-RELATED SMELL. EVENTUALLY, THE SMELL GOT SO STRONG AND PUNGENT AND I SUDDENLY HAD A SHARP PAIN ON MY LEFT HIP AND I REALIZED IT THE HEATED SEAT WAS BURNING ME. THE PAIN WAS SO ACUTE I HAD TO LIFT MYSELF OFF OF THE SEAT, WHICH WAS DANGEROUS AND COULD'VE RESULTED IN AN ACCIDENT, AND I IMMEDIATELY PULLED OVER AND TURNED OFF THE HEATED SEATS. ONCE I TURNED THE HEATED SEAT OFF THE PAIN AND SMELL DISSIPATED. I GOT OUT OF THE CAR AND THERE WAS A CLEAR BURN HOLE BOTH ON THE SEAT AND ON MY PANTS. THE SMELL OF BURNT FABRIC LASTED IN THE CAR FOR SEVERAL DAYS AND FOR THE REST OF THE DAY I EXPERIENCED SHARP PAINS ON MY LEFT HIP AS IF IT WAS GETTING BURNED AGAIN.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
1
Deaths:
0
#11277158October 30, 2019
SEATS
WHILE USING DRIVER SIDE SEAT HEATER, ELEMENTS OVERHEATED BURNING THROUGH THE LEATHER SEAT AND BURNING THE LEFT SIDE/HIP OF THE DRIVER. CAR WAS IN MOTION AND ALMOST CAUSED AN ACCIDENT. PULLED OVER AND TURNED OFF THE HEATER IMMEDIATELY AND HAVEN'T USED IT SINCE.
Crash:
No
Fire:
Yes
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11265234September 30, 2019
AIR BAGS
BMW OF DALLAS ,TX SAID PASSENGER SEAT SENSOR MAT BACK ORDERED, IT HAS BEEN OVER 6 MONTHS. WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO USE THIS SEAT SAFELY. THEY SAID THEY WOULD CALL WHEN AVAIL.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11222555June 25, 2019
AIR BAGS
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 BMW X3. THE CONTACT RECEIVED NOTIFICATION OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 17V605000 (AIR BAGS). THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE MANUFACTURER EXCEEDED A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME FOR THE RECALL REPAIR. BMW CONCORD (1967 MARKET ST, CONCORD, CA 94520, (925) 682-3577) WAS CONTACTED AND CONFIRMED THAT THE PARTS WERE NOT AVAILABLE FOR THE RECALL REMEDY. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE ISSUE AND INFORMED THE CONTACT THAT THE PARTS WERE AVAILABLE. WHILE DRIVING VARIOUS SPEEDS, THE AIR BAG WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER A SECOND TIME AND THE AIR BAG MATS WERE REPLACED; HOWEVER, THE AIR BAG WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED AGAIN. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE AND INFORMED THE CONTACT THAT THE RECALL REPAIR WAS COMPLETED; THEREFORE, ANY FURTHER REPAIRS WOULD NOT BE COVERED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 127,609. PARTS DISTRIBUTION DISCONNECT.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11218323June 6, 2019
AIR BAGS:SENSOR:OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION:FRONT PASSENGER, AIR BAGS, AIR BAGS:SENSOR:OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION
WHEN A PERSON IS SITTING IN THE FRONT PASSENGER SEAT THE "PASSENGER AIRBAG OFF" LIGHT COMES ON AND THE AIRBAG LIGHT SHOWS ON THE DASH LIKE THE SENSOR ISN'T REGISTERING THAT SOMEONE IS SITTING THERE, THEN AFTER A FEW MINUTES IT GOES OFF AGAIN AND DOES THIS FREQUENTLY.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11203652April 25, 2019
AIR BAGS
ON APRIL 15 THE VEHICLE WAS IN A COLLISION WITH SEVERE FRONT END DAMAGE. THE TEAR DOWN ESTIMATE WAS OVER $10,000. FUNNY THING WAS THE AIR BAG DID NOT DEPLOY.
Crash:
Yes
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11203607April 24, 2019
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
ELECTRICAL AND HAS BEEN AFFECTED SINCE THE CAR WAS LESS THAN 5 YEARS OLD, RADIO WOULD SUDDENLY GET LOUD IF VOLUME WAS ADJUSTED. AFTER THE ELECTRICAL ISSUES STARTED ABOUT 2 YEARS LATER MY A/C STARTED HAVING ISSUES THOUGHT IT MAY BE A LEAK BUT NOW AFTER SEEING THE RECALL ON ELECTRICAL ISSUES ON SOME MODELS THIS SUV X3 SHOULD HAVE BEEN ON THE LIST BUT IT'S NOT, AND SHOULD HAVE REPORTED THIS A LONG TIME AGO THAT THIS IS A LEMON. THE BACK WINDOW ALSO SLIDES DOWN ANOTHER ELECTRICAL ISSUE. CAR WAS DRIVEN FOR PLEASURE EVERY FEW DAYS BUT HAS MORE ISSUES THAN OLDER CARS.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11196953April 17, 2019
AIR BAGS
THE AIRBAG LIGHT IS ON, THERE IS A RECALL ON AIRBAG SENSORS. DEALER WANTED ME TO PAY $170 FIRST BEFORE THEY CAN LOOK AT THE PROBLEM. I TOLD THEM THE AIRBAG SYSTEM HAS A RECALL ON AIRBAG SENSORS, BUT THEY REFUSED TO FIX THE PROBLEM OR EVEN DIAGNOSE THE PROBLEM BEFORE I PAID THEM $170.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11179810February 13, 2019
SEATS
HEATED SEATS GETS TOO HOT AND BURNT ME ON THE LEFT BUTT CHEEK. DEFINITELY A FIRE HAZARD AS I COULD ALSO SMELL SOMETHING BURNING IN THE CAR.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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