10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
1 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
57,491 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2012 BMW 328 engine problems

engine problem

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2012 BMW 328 Owner Comments (Page 3 of 3)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #12

Aug 062016

328

  • 71,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

August 6, 2016 - car stalled at about 50mph, just when about to go uphill. I wasn't able to make it to the shoulder leaving the car blocking traffic with my wife and daughter in it. Once it stops, it puts itself in park, making it impossible to push aside. We created a traffic jam and police barricaded while we were trying to move the car. Eventually, in about 30 mins, the car turns on. Happened after an hour of highway driving. Car seemed fine after that. August 17, 2016 - on another long trip, the car stalled on the highway. Would crank but not turn on. Almost exhausted the battery. Called a tow truck but by the time it got there, after about an hour, the car restarted. Had my odb-II scanner with me and got code used my obdii reader and got code P142E - pressure too low in high-pressure system, which is consistent with not starting and the and the fuel system malfunction message. I took the car to autogermana service center, that same day. September 22, 2016 - stalled on a main road, with my daughter, on the way to the pediatrician. I was able to maneuver to the right lane and park on a gas station. Ambient temp was 94F. Waited about 30mins and the car re-started. The dealeship would not acknowledge a fuel system problem because they could not replicate the failure. Sent email to BMW customer relations but they referred me back to the dealership.

- San Antonio, PR, USA

problem #11

Jul 312016

328

  • 25,989 miles
While in line in a drive thru the vehicle turned off suddenly losing all electrical power and power steering. Upon trying to start "charging malfunction" appeared on the information screen in with a red warning sign. Tried 2-3 times to turn over starter. When vehicle turned on it was time to move forward. When trying to exit drive thru drive way vehicle was very heavy and almost impossible to turn. Finally after several back and forth attempts vehicle was moved about 50 feet to a safe parking location.

- El Cajon, CA, USA

problem #10

Jan 232016

328

  • 57,000 miles
While driving in the evening I started to accelerate from a stop light and the car just stuttered out of no where and had trouble accelerating. A warning popped up that said drivetrain malfunction. The car is still not outputting enough power and the warning is still up. It goes away and then pops up after drivi G 40mph. I have done, plenty of research on this and there are a ton of hits and complaints on this. BMW needs to figure out what is wrong with their vehicles and send out a recall. Its scary knowing a luxury car does this not just with me but with hundreds of otherw going through this and there is no answer.P

- Covina, CA, USA

problem #9

Jan 152016

328

  • 58,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

While driving this afternoon I started to accelerate from a stop light and the car just stuttered out of no where and had trouble accelerating. A warning popped up that said drivetrain malfunction. I took it to the closest repair shop and they ran diagnostics on it and cannot figure out what is wrong. The car is still not outputting enough power and the warning is still up. I have done research on this and there are a ton of hits on this. BMW needs to figure out what is wrong with their vehicles and send out a recall.

- Richmond Hill, GA, USA

problem #8

Jul 232015

328

  • 51,279 miles
Vanos bolt failure. 4 vanos bolt broken. Car stalled while driving. The car was driving on a city street while turning. No power at all. It is a 2011 328I.

- San Ramon, CA, USA

problem #7

Nov 272014

328 6-cyl

  • 38,000 miles
Came out of the parking lot into a busy main road and engine suddenly stopped in the middle of the road. There was no indication before engine stopped. Tried to restart the engine (the car has keyless push button start) but did not start. When tried to restart, the dashboard message said something like "engine will not start". there was no indication before the problem occurred. I was on the busy highway in Chicago area an hour before the incident. The car was serviced in Maryland dealership two days before the incident and drove to Chicago from Maryland and the incident happened in Chicago. The car was then towed to the nearest dealership in Chicago and after two days they said the fuel pump broke/burned out and have to be replaced and will take 3-4 days to fix it. Note that the car is less than two years old, under full warranty and at around 30800 miles. Also note that the scheduled 30,000 mile service was done the day before the incident happened and the car was inspected and cleared for any issues/problems. An incident like this can be dangerous if the vehicle stops like that on a highway or a busy road with no apparent signs. After this incident I lost confidence in the vehicle and also do not want something like this happen to anybody else. I would like the company/manufacturer to take serious note of this incident so that it does not happen to anybody else. I was also stranded in Chicago for 3-4 days with family and three small kids. As the part was back-ordered the dealer in Chicago was not sure when it will be ready and I and my wife had to get back to Maryland for work and school for kids. So I rented a car and drove back to Maryland. The car is now in Chicago and have to figure out a way to get it back to Maryland. BMW is saying that they can only haul it for 250 miles.

- North Potomac, MD, USA

problem #6

Nov 152014

328

  • 49,990 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Driving my 2012 BMW 328I on the interstate I-10 in Arizona MM163 at approx. 80mph and I get an error code "drive train malfunction, drive moderately" after this message I was not able to accelerate as the power train was nonexistent. Had to coast through heavy traffic in a construction zone to get my family to a safe area. I just bought the vehicle from the dealership 4 months prior as it was cpo'ed and I have the extended warranty. Vehicle mileage at time of incident was 49990 (still under full BMW warranty).

- Casa Grande, AZ, USA

problem #5

Mar 202013

328

  • 5,100 miles
In March, 2013 service engine soon light would go on and off and engine idle would suddenly surge. Made service appointment with dealer where I purchased the car and service department diagnosed the issue as a faulty secondary air valve, fc 2A00, DC D1170-000 07-001, and secondary air valve was replaced. Parts replaced: 11-72-7-506-214 and 11-72-7-557-909. Car was purchased on 10/8/2012 and had 5,333 miles when it required repair. After the repair was done, the service engine soon light was no longer on, but the car continued to experience engine idle surges, but they were not as abrupt and significant as before the repair and a lot less frequent. However, in July, 2014 the car started to experience issues relating to the engine overheating, and the engine began to have frequent and sudden surges both while at idle and while driving. In addition, the car's A/C was no longer providing cold air, and the car's performance was erratic. When max cool was engaged, the car's engine would surge loudly until the A/C was turned off. The car became increasingly difficult to steer and drive. During the time the car was experiencing these issues, no warning light was illuminated and the on board system check indicated that there were no issues with the car. At this point the car had been driven14,000 miles (approx). Service appointment was scheduled and according to service department, the A/C system was leaking and there was very little refrigerant left, and the A/C compressor was replaced. However, the service department stated no other issues were found with the car and when the service tech test drove the car it performed without any issues and they did not observe any sudden surges with the engine.

- Ross, CA, USA

problem #4

May 232014

328 4-cyl

  • 18,000 miles
Unable to accelerate safely, engine gives out intermittently at varying speeds. Called every dealership around alpharetta, ga; gwinnette BMW told me they wouldn't work on it or help me and then hung up-all on a recorded line. Still waiting for a manager to call me. Called another dealer and they said to wait a few hours and try again meanwhile I can only hope my car doesn't shut off on my during rush hour or on my way to work. This has been on ongoing issue with the F30 BMW 3 series as many customers indicated this issue for at least two years.

- Alpharetta, GA, USA

problem #3

Sep 122012

328

  • 8,000 miles
Bought brand new 2012 328I. Within 2 months engine malfunction warning would show up and car would go into "limp mode" and barely drive able. Sometimes could be reset by turning off, then back on. Happened multiple times, and every time the dealer told me no one else was having this problem. They blamed the fuel injectors and replaced them multiple times. It was in the shop a total of 6 times for same "drive train malfunction" warning. I made them buy the car back from me, assuming it was a fluke with the car, because they continued to assure me that no one else was having this problem, anywhere, I bought a brand new 2013 328I. Within a month I had the same problem. Except this time it was worse. It couldn't be fixed by turning it off then back on. Every time it happened, 3 times now, it has required a trip to the dealership for the exact same "drivetrain malfunction" warning. They still say there's no problem. When it happens the engine shakes violently and the car will barely run 55mph if pushed. This is a consistent problem that is being ignored by BMW. Every time I have to take the car in they say their "guidelines" just call for a computer reset, and that it has been fixed, only to leave me on the side of the road a month later.

- Tallahassee , FL, USA

problem #2

Jun 282013

328

  • 8,682 miles
Went to start car and got a drive train malfunction message. Had it towed to a BMW dealer to diagnose the problem. They will replace the intake vanos solenoid sensor.

- Lemoore , CA, USA

problem #1

Apr 012013

328 4-cyl

  • 14,000 miles
April 2013, a warning signal on my vehicle notified me there was a need for coolant. I scheduled maintenance for 4/18/13. I informed them of the coolant warning and also inquired about recall notices. On 4/19/13, I called weber BMW myself to check the status, louie informed me there were 3 recall notices on my car that were apparent and needed to be repaired, and that they would need to hold my car until Monday 4/22/13.I picked up my car on 4/23/13 and louie informed me all the recalls were fixed and my car was good to take home. On 4/24/13, the coolant warning signaled again. That evening, my car began to exert even more issues than before! first the coolant warning, then warning telling me to drive moderately, then pull over immediately engine overheating. I pulled the car over, stopped the engine allowing it to cool down, and starting it back up, the car would not go over 17 mph. I contacted weber BMW for another service scheduled for 4/30/13. A representative from weber BMW contacted me on 4/29/13 and informed me louie advised I casually stop by to top off my coolant, ' and that should resolve my problems. I found this resolution skeptical, lazy, and knew it would not be adequate to resolve the issues with my car. I stopped by weber on 4/29/13 and the service adviser attempted to 'top off my coolant, when we both noticed the coolant spilling out of the other side of the engine (I emphasize spilling and not leaking). I was advised not to drive the vehicle. Louie called me on 4/30/13 to reported a hole in the part that was replaced per the recall causing the coolant to spill out. He let me know that the car would be ready next day 5/1/13 for pick up. I do not feel safe driving this vehicle any longer. I purchased this car 4/10/12, and it began showing issues of poor manufacturing just shy of a year, I only have 14,000miles on the vehicle.

- Fresno, CA, USA

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