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.
Arrived at home, turned the vehicle off, and saw smoke coming from hood and smell of something burning. Opened the hood, and saw that the smoke was due to oil dripping onto the catalytic converter. There was no fire. The vehicle was then towed to dealer due to risk of fire. Video is available if needed; please contact me.
I purchased my vehicle with $7000 down and the first week the "drivetrain malfunction" warning came on as I was entering the freeway. They said it had to do with the turbo. It has been less than 2 years and my car has been in the shop 7 times for a "drivetrain malfunction". I have had to pull over in the middle of traffic most of the time off the freeway. And, again today (12/3/2017) I was entering the freeway and also hit a semi when my car lost power due to the drivetrain malfunction.
Travelling at 60 mph on the highway I got a message "drivetrain malfunction". before I was able to stop, the car shut down. It was towed to the dealer and they told me the plastic timing chain cover broke off and permanently damaged the engine. It will cost me $8300 to repair. After some research, I found others have had this happen and that BMW has since changed the design.
On 6/5/2017 I was driving on a very busy garden state parkway in the afternoon at about 65 mph (which is a legal speed limit) when my car started shuddering, shaking and slowing down and a message came on saying "drive train malfunction." I immediately called my husband who told me to pull over and shut off the car for 5 minutes. He managed to calm me down. When I restarted the car, the message was gone and it drove ok. I was very scared to drive it but the message has not come back. Instead my husband's BMW X3 2013 had the same message 2 months later and he was also on the highway during the incident. BMW service told him that the problem is the timing belt. We were reading all the complaints and primarily they are about the drive train malfunction - it has a faulty plastic part, which since 2015 was replaced by a metal part. I was driving in the middle lane of a very busy highway and I could have been killed (and my husband too). What does it take for BMW or NHTSA to issue a recall for this problem - a death or few?
Timing chain is making a whine and a rattle sound when engine is running. The N20 engine (twin turbo 4 cylinder) in this car any many other BMW vehicles timing chains are known to stretch and break along with the original brown/dark orange color plastic timing chain guard rail. The timing chain guard rail was made out of a defective plastic until around 1/1/15 when BMW realized there were owners having catastrophic engine failure not if the chain breaks, but when. The only repair if the engine fails is to replace the engine at a cost of approx. $12K and $8K in labor totaling about $20K which exceeds the value of my vehicle. Vehicles with this engine manufactured after 1/1/15 have the redesigned more durable white plastic timing chain guard rail allowing the engine to run smoother and without the risk of engine catastrophic failure. There is a grave safety risk for owners with this engine with the original pre-2015 timing chain & guard rail design because if you are traveling in normal traffic or attempting to cross a train track or other dangerous intersections, occupants can be killed as a result of the vehicle stalling. Contacted BMW North America on 5/19/17 regarding the issue and had the vehicle inspected by my local BMW dealership who indicated there was nothing wrong. The total cost to replace my original timing chain and timing chain guard rail with the re-designed version would cost $4600 with parts & labor. BMW usa and the dealership refused to cover the cost and denied this important safety defect. I also provided them a copy of a web link with a youtube video of the issue narrated by an independent BMW technician explaining the defect. See the link below which contains photos and the youtube video related to this issue. Https://bmwtechnician.com/2016/08/07/N20-timing-chain-issue/
- Fayetteville, GA, USA
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The contact owns a 2013 BMW 328I. While driving 65 mph, the vehicle independently drifted from side to side. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the wheels needed to be aligned; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer where it was determined that the vehicle was functioning as designed. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer a third time, but the failure was not diagnosed or repaired. The vehicle had previously been serviced per NHTSA campaign number: 13V454000 (service brakes, hydraulic). While driving at an unknown speed, the contact noticed a burning oil odor and noticed smoke coming from the vehicle. The contact drove home and discovered that the vehicle had an oil leak. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the vacuum pump failed, was leaking, and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and stated that the VIN was not included in a recall. The approximate failure mileage was 45,000.
While driving car completely stalled out for no specific reason. This occurred on freeway with cars all around I was lucky to be able to coast to shoulder. Checked on board vehicle status all checked "ok". after a short time car started right up drove it home and next morning it stalled out again while on a city street. This time unable to put into neutral, electronics worked, had to flat, had to flat bed it to the dealer. This makes this car dangerous and unreliable. Car is currently in for repairs. Attached is the recommended services have not received completed work report.
While I was on stanby waiting for somebody to move out of spot so I can park and my foot on the brakes the engine reved up above the 6000 RPM on its own.
This is now a repeat problem (3 times). Driving at speed on local roads the car drops to idle speed and there is no response from the gas pedal. This morning I had just gotten the car back from BMW service and was driving back to work when the same thing happened. This time it happened as I was turning across the oncoming traffic lane and I was let basically stationary in the oncoming lane.
It seems that I have damage to my valve cam, well just looked up and the vehicle was involved in an accident that was never reported to me at the time of purchase - I am looking at paying over 1700 for a valve cover (labor and material). My air bag lights came on in July and I am told that my VIN is not under recall - when I took to mechanic I was told to take to BMW to have added to recall.
The vehicle can't handle heavy rain with medium sized puddles. The owner's manual clearly states, "drive through calm water only if not deeper than 9.8 inches, no faster than walking speed up to 6mph." This puddle was under 4 inches as I measured and took photos, but BMW refuses to warranty the work. They claim the engine hydrolocked resulting in full replacement of the engine. A quick trip to google and you will see many people complaining of the same issue. We were the only car disabled. 2 dealers admitted to engineering flaws, but laughed at BMW covering the repairs. BMW usa was of no help either.
The car has been taken back 3X in the past 3 months for the same issue the car turns off by itself when stopped. BMW dealership could not find any mechanical problems or reasons for engine shutting off.. they shut off the feature and the car continues to shut off... on the morning of July 3, 2014, as I was coming to a red light the brake pedals got very hard and I had to push the pedals all the way to the floor for the car to stop completely. The car is currently in the shop being checked out. I called BMW to find out what can be done, I dont feel safe in this car anymore.
In light of recent hearings into GM failure to correct vehicle issues resulting in deaths, and BMW past history of not reporting malfunctions I submit the following: On 2 occasions while driving on a high speed highway the engine malfunction indicator came on, the vehicle lost power and started to vibrate violently. I was able to get off the highway and the vehicle was returned to BMW for repair. I was told that in both incidents it was computer error. I don't believe them especially when they will not return my phone calls and E-mails, and I want to be on record as reporting both incidents.
The car has displayed "drivetrain malfunction, drive moderately" twice now in less than one year of ownership. When this display has occurred, the car goes into "limp mode" and can only be driven at low speeds or with very sluggish acceleration. This is a safety hazard, as it becomes easy to be rear-ended by another driver when it slows substantially.
I received a service required light to bring in for service. After I received the first oil change within the next 3 months I had to add oil to the car consistently. I brought the car back in for service on 11/20/2013 - 15,240 miles I was advised all the systems were reset and the if the add oil light came back on to bring the car back into for service but do not add oil. The add oil light came on again on 12/2/2013 and I brought the car back into service on 12/9/2013 - 15,975. During this time only 735 miles were driven however the light came on a week before I brought the car into service. I was advised that oil is required every 750 miles and this is normal for bmws. I have spoken to many other BMW owners and they stated that they do not have to do this. I have contacted BMW usa and advised of this problem and they stated that they feel this is normal usage. I stated that having to add 4 quarts of oil into a car is not normal. I have taken the car back in for service on 1/28/2014 for the matter to be resolved.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Bartlett, IL, USA