BMW 328i Complaints

2,583 consumer complaints on file.

#11555524November 16, 2023
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Engine and transmission mounts are collapsed. The car started making a rattling sound that seemed to start from the center of car traveling towards the steering wheel. There was never an alert or a system warning lamp advising of the issue. BMW dealer inspected the car and determined that the Engine and Transmission mounts were collapsed. Still no warning or alert came on. The potential risk of an entire engine and transmission to fall out without any warning can pose a huge danger and possible fatality.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11555553November 16, 2023
POWER TRAIN
My drivetrain malfunction light comes on and my vehicle stalls while I’m driving it.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11555302November 15, 2023
AIR BAGS, AIR BAGS:SENSOR:OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION
Fortunately, an incident has yet to occur, but the Front Passenger Air Bag Occupancy Sensor is faulty causing the deactivation of the air bag rendering any passenger at risk. BMW of North America has been contacted about this faulty sensor. Recall B651017 & 17V-428 have addressed this faulty sensor on many BMW models with replacement as the remedy…a stated (3) hour repair. My BMW model (328i - 62k miles) unfortunately, is not listed on the recall notice, but, nonetheless, is still a safety issue. Serious enough that on the Recall it states that no passenger should sit in the front passenger seat while this faulty condition exists and further recommends passengers sit in the rear seats! Regardless of warranty status and recall model omission, I have reached out to BMW of North America. First response was refusal of any repair assistance with a textbook definition of a car warranty. It was further reviewed by their Escalation Team and the response was an echo of the first. If this wasn’t a safety issue that wasn’t addressed on other models via a recall, I wouldn’t be writing this and would abide by the car warranty and take care of myself. Since this is a known issue by BMW, I feel this repair should be taken care of as it affects the safety of my family. It affects any future owner as well, which now leaves me a car that is basically unsafe to sell leaving me in double jeopardy. After researching costs for this repair, it seems the average is $1500-$2000 which I cannot afford. I have offered to pay for parts and some labor but the Escalation Team (Clay) has offered zero in assistance. I leave this correspondence on record in case of an unfortunate event that could’ve been easily rectified and avoided. Thank you for allowing me to explain my situation. Sincerely, [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11555373November 15, 2023
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Front driver side door will not open from the outside and the inside. Mechanical issue- electrical opening will not make the door open on the driver side
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11554684November 11, 2023
POWER TRAIN, UNKNOWN OR OTHER, ENGINE
car stops while driving, battery also draws while not in use. which is very dangerous. Already filed report with dealer ship for car. We will be having an another baby this winter and it is getting to the point where It can be very dangerous for my family. We got it checked but since it’s a manufacturer issue is what they said. Since this car doesn’t have any recalls dealer doesn’t want to do anything. We noticed that many other cars of same year have the same problem.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11553614November 5, 2023
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, SEAT BELTS, LANE DEPARTURE: BLIND SPOT DETECTION
I was driving hearing music, I did a reverse and hit the poll
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11553330November 3, 2023
ENGINE, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The engine component caught fire spontaneously when car was pulled into a parking lot. There was no warning sign. It did not show any service required notice like it usually does on the dashboard for example if oil is low. There were no recalls pending on this vehicle. The fire was big enough that we had to call fire department to put out. It would have affected other vehicles if not put out. The vehicle was declared total loss after an inspection by insurance company. The car manufacturer (BMW) was contacted but not responded yet. It is available for detailed inquiry and inspection in a secure place.
Crash:
No
Fire:
Yes
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11553023November 1, 2023
ENGINE
In July 2023, my 2016 BMW 328i sedan with N26 engine began emitting a large plume of smoke for 15-30 seconds from the exhaust after a cold startup. I identified the following recalls which described the same situation as mine (SI B11 11 16 and SI B11 17 16) but was informed by the local BMW dealership my VIN was ineligible for both. In early October 2023, I brought my car to a local repair shop, where the mechanic confirmed the issue to be the oil feed line and replaced it with part # 11-42-8-678-840, removing original part # 11-42-8-626-652. The aforementioned recalls specify the smoke from the exhaust is caused by faulty oil feed lines or carbonization of the turbocharger sealing ring, both of which may be resolved by installing part # 11-42-8-678-840 that includes a check valve to prevent this issue moving forward. While my car was experiencing the same problem and required the same part # to resolve, it was classified as ineligible due to the very limited scope of the recalls, namely the production and model years of eligible cars (2011-2013). While my car was manufactured in January of 2016, it still received an inadequate oil feed line that did not contain the check valve. This is problematic as no recall was issued for my car thereafter once BMW identified this issue as early as October of 2016. I have since spoken with the parts manager at my local dealership as well as a case manager with BMW of North America and was informed no further assistance could be provided. I feel my car should have been included in a recall to replace the oil feed line was it did not receive one with a check valve upon production.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11552642October 30, 2023
SERVICE BRAKES
The rear brakes cable holder is broken. This is a very common issue with this vehicle and appears to be a safety issue as the cables will hang and rub on the driveshaft. My service advisor, from BMW of Pembroke Pines, FL, Ramon Trull, also advised/ confirms the same. It's an inexpensive part, however, the cost to replace is exorbitant. If you search the web, you'll find many examples. I feel this should be covered under a recall. Please review and advise. Thank you!
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11551734October 24, 2023
ENGINE
Engine camshaft bolts sheered off inside top of motor , did searching online and found this common problem in certain years and model. Bmw offered a 10 year replacement campaign for faulty bolts and damage they caused. The only problem is mine is beyond that time period as it just happened. similar to many other BMW owners "it happened after the warranty period has ended" even though defective bolts are still causing problems. This should be a simple be a recall with no warranty period , because bolts are defective and still damaging motors.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11551212October 22, 2023
AIR BAGS, SEAT BELTS, SEATS
Passenger restraint system malfunction alert when car is turned on. Air bag and passenger seatbelt warning lights are on. Passenger seat belt light will never turn off even with no passengers in the car. Air bags for passenger are off when there is a passenger in the car causing a safety concern. BMW wants $1000 to diagnose what the issue is for the airbag light only but not to fix it or check the seat belt light. Already paid them $100 just to tell me exactly what the message said on the car screen. Seeing the same issue all over the internet with flaws in the passenger restraint system for this model and similar models but no fix. Found an extended warranty but does not list the E92 model, all other models are listed.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11551066October 20, 2023
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
The contact owns a 2008 BMW 328I. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V119000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. An undisclosed dealer was contacted and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11549720October 13, 2023
AIR BAGS, SEAT BELTS, SEATS
Passenger restraint system malfunction. My vehicle as well as thousands of others have the chronic and unsafe issue of the passenger occupancy sensor malfunctioning. In order to remove warning on dash it’s either a $2,000 repair, or a $40 bypass which basically places the seat as constantly occupied, sticking the passenger airbag in the ‘on’ position. Vehicle is available for inspection. With this malfunction, any person that sits in the passenger front seat is at risk of injury or death in the event of a collision. Malfunction has been confirmed by both a dealer and an independent service center. Vehicle was inspected by the dealer, but no police or insurance company. Vehicle was purchased with the malfunction and the warning lights have been on for several years. With the massive number of vehicles of this make with a range of different mileage, with this issue, a recall is not only needed but warranted and should be mandated with this being a major safety issue.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11549722October 13, 2023
STRUCTURE:BODY, LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:DOORS:LATCH
My interior door handle cannot unlock the door. As I pull on the interior door handle, the door lock pin would come up partially, but it doesn’t unlock or open the door. I tried multiple pulls, because this car required two pulls to unlock.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11549738October 13, 2023
ENGINE
VANOS Assembly Bolts Broke and engine stalled. Vehicle was taken into dealership two weeks earlier due to check engine light being on. Dealer checked and cleared "check engine errors" and reset and reported that I would need to replace "VANOS Solenoids" intake and exhaust soon so I was told I could drive the car and if the solenoids went out I could still drive the car. two weeks later is when the bolts broke and car stalled and would not restart. At this time I arranged to have the car towed in and after inspecting car I was told that the "VANOS assembly bolts" broke. To better understand the repair I went online and found this. Recall Campaign No. 14V-176: VANOS Assembly Bolts. This is the same issue as the recall so I don't understand why this car or vin was not part of the recall.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11549479October 11, 2023
SERVICE BRAKES, POWER TRAIN
The clip holding the emergency brake line is made out of plastic and mine broke (which I found out is common with these cars). When this happens, it rubs on the driveshaft which can wear through and sever the emergency brake line. This is a very dangerous situation and easily be avoided if BMW used a metal part vs. the current, plastic flimsy one.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11549243October 10, 2023
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, ENGINE
The contact owns a 2016 BMW 328I. The contact stated that after parking and turning the vehicle off, moments later the front end of the vehicle was engulfed in flames. The fire department was called to the scene and extinguished the flames. During the incident, a bystander who attempted to extinguish the flames was treated by EMS at the scene for headaches and smoke inhalation. A fire report was taken at the scene and the vehicle was towed away. The cause of the failure was not determined. The manufacturer and local dealer were notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 180,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
Yes
Injuries:
1
Deaths:
0
#11547681October 2, 2023
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The contact owns a 2012 BMW 328I. The contact stated that the temperature sensor on the instrument panel had initially failed to operate as needed; over time, the entire instrument panel had gone blank while the vehicle was being driven. In addition, the battery would continue to run while the vehicle was turned off; as a result, the vehicle would shut off while driving at various speeds. The vehicle was taken to various independent mechanics and each stated that the instrument cluster was defective. Despite multiple battery and temperature gauge replacements, the failure persisted. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed him that there were no recalls on the vehicle and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 84,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11547050September 28, 2023
POWER TRAIN
The contact owns a 2014 BMW 328I. The contact stated while driving at speeds above 55 MPH, the rear end of the vehicle was shaking and vibrating abnormally. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who replaced the rear differential, but the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken back the dealer who later determined that the transfer case was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The contact was also informed that the suspension arms and bushing also needed to be replaced. The failure mileage was 39,800.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11546518September 26, 2023
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Drive train malfunction. Throws itself in to neutral while driving. Lost the power to accelerate so had to coast to the shoulder.. Turned the car off and restarted it. Took to automotive shop via extended warranty suggested and I paid to have the pressure fuel piece. This same piece, apparently has a recall on the 2015 but not my year. Very upset. While out of town the same thing happened again. With a passenger. Very scary my car lost power and almost caused an accident.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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