2013 BMW X3 Xdrive28i SUV AWD
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172 Complaints
April 22, 2021 (87181 Odometer Out) Virginia Inspection. Passed. Recommended replacement of front rotors and brake pads. July 22, 2021 (87989 Odometer Out) Oil Change, tune up if needed, front rotors and brake pads replaced. Did not reset vehicle computer: hood light as well as brake light came on over the next week. August 5, 2021 Brought back to repair shop. Computer reset (88148 Odometer Out). Aug 13, 2021 Driving approx 45 miles per hour when the engine cut out, I narrowly pulled over but not quite out of the road--error message: Drivetrain Malfunction, "Drive Moderately. Maximum drivetrain out put not available. Consult Service Center." Dangerous section of road, traffic, extremely hot and humid, with thunder storms. Turned the car off and tried to start, error message flashed, "No service since 2015." Towed first to repair station who performed the recent maintenance on the vehicle. They did not look at the vehicle until several days later. When they did, they informed it was the camshaft position sensor. And further, that the sensor would have to be replaced (@$700) so that the car could start and then they would recheck for the problem. Without a car for several weeks. August 17, 2021 had the car towed to a shop suggested by a neighbor. There, the owner/mechanic stated that he could see glimpses of the "guide" (timing chain), that it was broken and suggested I have it seen by a BMW-specific shop to make the repair. I located a shop in Winchester VA and had it towed there. Confirmed it was the timing chain. 10/19/21 Picked up. Total charge: $3796.19. I found that this was a known issue and the owner confirmed. However, the fix was only extended to 7 years/70K miles. I bought this car from a dealer in 2015. I was never informed of this known issue; not from the Dealer, the service shop, or BMW notification(s) via email or other. The break down and the multiple negative impacts caused could have been avoided.
Driving on the highway, low oil pressure light came on, indicating to slow down. Pulled over to shoulder and as I try to move again, Drivetrain malfunction sign came on. Car engine stalled. Would not restart. Was told by mechanic that catatrophic engine failrue occured and needed to replace engine entirely.
I am reporting a car malfunction that occurred on June 29, 2021. The 2013 BMW X3 accelerated on its own and eventually crashed into a fire hydrant. I was turning left into a parking space in a parking lot at a very low speed when the vehicle accelerated and jumped onto the sidewalk all the while I was pressing the breaks and trying to steer the car to safety. It hit another curve in the parking lot, before crashing into the fire hydrant also in the parking lot. The airbags in the front driver’s side deployed top and bottom and the airbag in the rear, driver’s side. The car was deemed a total loss. I sustained minor burns on my legs from the airbag and a jammed finger. The Insurance Company was going to retrieve the “black box” however they were only installed in vehicles assembled after September 2013 and my vehicle was assembled in June of 2013. Other BMW X3 owners have experienced this problem with outcomes more severe. Fortunately in my case it was only me and the fire hydrant. Several witnesses. The police and insurance company were involved. The car was towed to Co-Part in MD, it may still be there.
I was driving on the highway and took my exit and the car suddenly stopped with the message "Drivetrain malfunction. Drive moderately." After this, the car would not move even with the engine on. It was as if the it was stuck in one gear and wouldn't move to "Drive". I turned the car off and back again. At this time, the car started to sputter after it started. Then, I let it stopped the engine for about 20 minutes. When the problem happened, the check engine light came on. After 20 minutes, I started the car again and I was able to drive it and the check engine light went away. However, since I had to go back on the highway, I was concerned about driving as it might stop suddenly on the highway and create a major accident. As per google, this seems to be a common issue with BMW X3's. The company should recall and repair such an incidence from happening.
More frequent drive train errors and loss of power. Cause defective timing chain guide. This seems to be very common on this year and model of BMW speaking with other BMW owners of the same car. Luckily we were not in heavy traffic and could drive to repair shop.
While driving in the southbound fast lane on Highway 101 on July 28, 2021 near Morgan Hill, California, the computer screen advised that there was a fuel supply problem, and at that instant, the engine shut down and the transmission went into park. There was no opportunity to coast onto the shoulder. The vehicle would not restart, nor would it shift out of park. My wife and I were trapped in a vehicle that would not and could not move, in the fast lane of a major California freeway, surrounded by rush hour traffic, with the likelihood that we would be rear ended and perish in a frozen car. The danger was severe. We put the emergency flashers on. Other cars were passing us on the shoulder and on the right hand side, and getting out of the car was dangerous and impossible. We were convinced that we were going to die or be severely injured. We called 911 and at that moment another driver pulled behind us to offer a buffer of safety with his car, until the California Highway Patrol arrived and a tow truck was called. Until the arrival of the tow truck, we remained in severe danger. The tow truck had to pull the vehicle to the shoulder locked in park, causing it to shudder as the rear wheels hopped on the pavement. Eventually we hired a flat bed tow truck to bring the vehicle to our local BMW dealer, and the problem was diagnosed as a faulty fuel pump. Apparently, if your fuel pump fails with this vehicle, you may die. This problem is documented with other drivers at the website carproblemzoo.com/bmwX3/other-fuel-system-pump-problems.php, all of whom were put in peril as a result of this systemic failure. I hope that this notification may save some lives, and would welcome further contact to discuss the matter further. My wife and I still suffer from emotional distress and PTSD, as a direct result of this incident, and will not drive this vehicle again.
When driving and after using brakes, the brakes do not let off, they drag. I was driving on the highway, and had to slow down for traffic and the car would not accelerate.This happened several times and I brought it to a BMW repair shop. They diagnosed it to be the ABS pump, replaced it with a used one and I have not had any problems since. I have researched this issue and found others with like make & model have had similar problems. Since this could cause the vehicle to slow down without actually braking, I worry about someone hitting the car from the back because the brake lights don't come on when this happens.
The contact owns a 2013 BMW X3. The contact stated that while driving approximately 60 mph, the vehicle suddenly stalled. During the failure, the message "transmission malfunction" was displayed on the instrument panel. The vehicle was towed to the residence and later examined by an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the timing chain had failed. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The local dealer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 100,000.
The engine failed while driving on the highway on 06/22/2021. My safety was put at risk because the traffic was heavy during the middle of a rain storm on the interstate. Cars had to swerve to avoid me as I was only able to coast my vehicle to the side of the highway. I was almost struck by traffic. A number of warning lights suddenly went off without have gone off before in king and oil pressure message and engine failure message and a transmission failure message all at once. I am in the process of getting the vehicle towed to be inspected. This appears to be a known problem with 2013 BMW X3s according to the research I have done since the incident but BMW won’t issue a recall for the vehicles even though they are aware that this is a dangerous vehicle issue according to websites like bimmerpost,com and car gurus.com which have similar incidents to mine posted on their websites. BMW needs to issue a recall and make the appropriate repairs.
Started without any engine warning or oil warning. When drove on highway, "low oil pressure" message popped on dashboard, then engine started giving up. Then "drivetrain: cont driving possible" message showed up, engine completely died, couldn't start or shift gear. The car was towed to dealership for diagnosis and report came back with timing chain failure. But there's no conclusive result/fully-proved diagnosis unless tearing down the engine.
My cars check engine light and drive train alert came on, so I took it to be inspected. It was not running well, seems to have much less power than usual on the way to the mechanic. I have been told that the power chain guides have broken and must be replaced. This could cause the power chain to come off mid-drive and completely shut the car down.The cost of parts and labor for repair will be around $3,300. This car isn’t old, is well cared for and maintained and does not have high mileage.
The contact owns a 2013 BMW X3. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 40 MPH, the vehicle stalled with the "Transmission malfunction, drive accurately," warning message displayed on the instrument panel. The contact coasted the vehicle to the side of the road and had the vehicle towed to an independent mechanic. The contact was informed by the mechanic that the engine had seized and recommended that the vehicle be taken to an authorized dealer. The contact had the vehicle towed to an unnamed dealer where it was confirmed that the engine had seized and needed to be replaced. the dealer provided an estimate for the repair. The contact attempted to reach the manufacturer but was unable to reach a representative. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 77,000.
Vehicle indicated a drivetrain malfunction. It was determined by the dealer that the system that failed was TIMING VALVETRONIC MOTOR. The vehicle stalled as I was making a left hand turn off of a busy highway, putting myself and oncoming traffic at serious risk of collision. Oncoming vehicles were able to slow until I was able to maneuver the vehicle out of the lane of oncoming traffic. The dealer confirmed that they "found the vehicle stalling and not running correctly. Performed vehicle test. Found faults for valvetronic motor. Set multiple additional faults for mixture and air mass. Valvetronic is failing and should be replaced." The vehicle component was inspected by the dealer who sold me the car. There were no warning lights nor other indicators of component failure prior to the vehicle stalling on the highway. This is the second time this vehicle has stalled in dangerous situations. The first time was a drivetrain malfunction/engine failure due to TIMING CHAIN AND TIMING TENSIONER malfunction. Most likely the VALVETRONIC SYSTEM failure is directly related to the TIMING CHAIN TENSIONER malfunction. Both systems failed within a very short period of time, and within fewer than 4,000 miles of each other.
The system that failed was the TIMING CHAIN AND CHAIN TENSIONER. The vehicle stalled while I was driving on the interstate. Immediately, I had no power and had to maneuver the vehicle to the emergency lane, placing me and other drivers in extreme danger. The problem was inspected, confirmed and repaired by the vehicle dealer. Prior to stalling, there were no warning lights to indicate a problem. The lights did come on simultaneously with the engine failure.
MY 2013,_BMW X3 CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WENT ON AND I NOTICED POWER LOSS WHEN IT DIDN'T DRIVE OVER 40MPH. I HAD THE VEHICLE DIAGNOSTICS DONE AT MY LOCAL BMW SHOP AND THEY TOLD ME I HAVE A BAD TIMING CHAIN AND SPROCKETS AND GAVE ME A BILL IN THE THOUSANDS. I CALLED BMW CORPORATE AND SPOKE TO LORI WHO IS AWARE OF THE ISSUE AND SAID, AN EXTENDED WARRANTY WAS ISSUED BUT THAT IT EXPIRED IN 2018. THEY OFFERED ME NO OTHER FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE BECAUSE MY CAR HAS 100,499 MILES. SO THAT'S IT A CAR DIES AT 100,000 MILES AND THEY CAN'T HELP??? THAT'S AWFUL. THERE'S SO MANY COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS ISSUE. MY OTHER 2007 BMW X3 HUGE PROBLEMS TOO OVERHEATING, MY MOTOR MOUNT BOLT BROKE THE ENGINE DROPPED AND BROKE THE WATER PUMP. GARBAGE, GARBAGE, GARBAGE I WILL NEVER BUY BMW. SHAME ON BMW FOR NOT HELPING!!!! MY TOYOTA WENT PAST 200,000 MILES AND IT'S STILL DRIVING.
WHEN AT STOP LIGHT THE CAR STALLS OR WHEN I'M AT A STOP SIGN STALLS ENGINE VERY DANGEROUS AND DEVELOPED ANXIETY DRIVING IT, GUST WEEK OIL CAN OUT BACK AND ODD ENGIN SOUND MAKING NOISE, IT HAD TO GET TOWED BUT IRA TOYOTA SUCKERED ME. THEY CAN'T GET IN THE ENGINE TO INSPECT IT. I CAN'T DRIVE IT ON HIGHWAYS AT ALL SCARED IT WILL ENGINE STOP
WHILE DRIVING DOWN BUSINESS 40 GOING ABOUT 60 MPH, MY CAR SUDDENLY STOPPED IN THE LEFT LANE. THE CAR WAS STILL RUNNING BUT IT WAS AS IF SOMEONE HAD PUT ON THE BRAKES FOR ME -- LIKE A GHOST IN THE MACHINE. THE CAR BEHIND ME WAS ABLE TO STOP BUT WITHIN A COUPLE OF FEET FROM REAR ENDING ME AT A HIGH SPEED. THE CARS BEHIND HIM WERE SWERVING NOT TO HIT HIM. WE ARE LUCKY IT WAS NOT A MULTI CAR ACCIDENT. I WAS ABLE TO GET THE CAR GOING BY CONTINUING TO STEP ON THE ACCELERATOR. NO LIGHTS ON THE DASH CAME ON NOT EVEN A CHECK ENGINE LIGHT. I THOUGHT THAT PERHAPS I HAD DONE SOMETHING TO CAUSE THIS AND KEPT DRIVING IN THE RIGHT LANE AT A LOWER SPEED. THEN IT HAPPENED AGAIN. LUCKILY NO ONE WAS CLOSE BEHIND ME AND THIS TIME I KNEW WHAT WAS HAPPENING. I PULLED OVER AND PUT ON MY HAZARDS AND DROVE ON THE SHOULDER. THE CAR WAS SPUTTERING, THE WHEEL WAS SHAKING. I PULLED OVER AND TURNED OFF THE CAR. LET IT REST AND INSPECTED THE OUTSIDE OF THE CAR. I WENT THE NEXT DAY TO THE BMW DEALERSHIP -- THEY SAID TO REPLACE THE BRAKE CALIPERS BUT I DID NOT THING THAT WAS IT --- AS IT SEEMS ALMOST LIKE A FORCE ENGAGED THE BRAKES, NOT THAT THEY FAILED. MY FOOT HAD NOT BEEN ON THE BRAKES WHEN THEY ENGAGED. I TOOK IT TO ANOTHER MECHANIC WHO WAS ABLE TO REPLICATE THIS AND SAID THE CAR WAS UNSAFE TO DRIVE. I AM ONLY THE 2ND OWNER AND IT HAS LESS THAN 50K MILES. I THEN HAD IT INSPECTED AT A DIFFERENT DEALERSHIP WHO SAID IT WAS THE DSC WHICH SEEMS MORE LIKELY AS THEY WERE ABLE TO RECREATE THE BRAKING WHILE DRIVING. I THEN CALLED BMW NA WHO SENT OUT AND ENGINEER BUT THEY ARE SAYING IT IS REGULAR WEAR AND TEAR ON A CAR. THIS SEEMS IMPOSSIBLE TO ME. I HAVE HAD BRAKES NEED REPLACING AND ROTORS AND NOTHING LIKE THIS HAS EVER HAPPENED. IT WAS INCREDIBLY SCARY, AND DANGEROUS AND I (AND OTHERS) COULD HAVE BEEN SERIOUSLY INJURED.
MY ENGINE WAS REPLACED IN 2019 AT A BMW CERTIFIED DEALERSHIP WHERE I PURCHASED. IN JULY 2020 THE CAR BROKE DOWN AND WAS TOWED IN TO BMW RADIATOR WAS REPLACED AND DID NOT FIX THE PROBLEM. I WAS THEN TOLD IT WAS ENGINE FAILURE, THAT WOULD NOT BE COVERED. I HAVE BEEN WITHOUT A VEHICLE FOR MONTHS.
DRIVE TRAIN MALFUNCTION HAPPENED MULTIPLE TIMES AND THE ENGINE JUST STOPPED WHILE DRIVING AT 55MPH - THE ENGINE STOPPED COMPLETELY IN MAY 2018 AND DIED. I TOOK IT INTO THE DEALERSHIP MANY TIMES BUT THEY COULD NOT FIND OUT WHAT WAS CAUSING THE PROBLEM. I NO LONGER OWN THE CAR BECAUSE OF THE ENGINE FAILURE.
BOUGHT 2013 BMW X3 WITH ABOUT 90,000 MILES ON IT. IN 2/2020 HAD ENGINE OIL PRESSURE LOW LIGHT COME ON AND TOOK TO BMW DEALERSHIP. THEY COULD NOT IDENTIFY A PROBLEM OTHER THAN A MINOR LEAK AND SUGGESTED REPLACING GASKET; IF OIL LIGHT CONTINUED TO COME ON TO BRING IT BACK AND NEXT OPTION WOULD DRAINING OIL/INSPECTING OIL PUMP WITH CAMERA; ALSO MADE COMMENT REGARDING NEEDING TO POSSIBLY REPLACE TIMING CHAIN BUT DUE TO COST WAS THE LAST OPTION. THE BMW STAFF DID NOT MAKE ME AWARE OF WHAT I LATER BECAME AWARE OF... BMW X3 HAVING ISSUES WITH THE CHAIN GUIDE, LATER LEADING TO TIMING ISSUES/ENGINE FAILURE. THE LIGHT CAME ON AGAIN SO I TOOK THE CAR TO AN INDEPENDENT SHOP THAT SPECIALIZES IN FOREIGN CARS. THEY COULD NOT SEE ANYTHING MAJOR AFTER NUMEROUS TEST DRIVES; ENGINE CLEANER WAS ADDED; OIL CHANGED. LIGHT WOULD COME ON OCCASIONALLY (ONCE EVERY MONTH); WOULD PULL OVER, WAIT FOR CAR TO COOL DOWN AND RESTART... NO LIGHT RETURNED. TOOK CAR FOR ANOTHER OIL CHANGE AND MECHANIC REPORTED NOT EVEN SEEING THE ERROR CODES WHEN DIAGNOSTIC COMPLETED? DROVE FOR ANOTHER SEVERAL MONTHS UNTIL LATE OCTOBER, EARLY NOVEMBER WHEN CODES STARTED BACK ON OCCASION. IN NOVEMBER, HAD LEFT THE CAR IDLING TO FOR QUICK STOP AND WHEN ATTEMPTING TO PULL OUT OF DRIVEWAY, THE CAR STALLED. IT SOUNDED LIKE IT WANTED TO START BUT WOULD NOT. WAS 1/2 IN DRIVEWAY AND 1/2 OUT INTO ROAD BLOCKING TRAFFIC. WAS ABLE TO GET PUSHED OUT OF ROAD; STILL WOULD NOT START. TOWED- MECHANIC REPORTED TIMING CHAIN HAD SLACK, CAUSING TIMING ISSUE AND ENGINE TO STOP. MECHANIC ALSO DID RESEARCH ON PROBLEM AND LOCATED CLASS ACTION SUIT. AFTER RESEARCHING REALIZED THERE WERE WARNING SIGNS AND IF BMW DEALER WOULD HAVE BEEN UP FRONT ABOUT WHAT WAS ALREADY KNOWN (TIMING CHAIN GUIDE ISSUES); THE PARTS COULD HAVE BEEN REPLACED 8.5 MONTHS AGO WITHOUT CAR SUDDENLY STOPPING. LUCKILY LOCAL AND NOT ON HIGHWAY WHILE DRIVING 65 MILES AN HOUR.
THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN TO SHOP 2 TIMES.1ST DRIVETRAIN LIGHT CAME ON AND CAR WOULD SLOW DOWN IN THE MIDDLE OF THE HIGHWAY.THEN IT WOULD TOTALLY STOP. 2ND TIME IT DID THE SAME THING EXCEPT OIL PRESSURE LIGHT CAME ON SAYING PRESSURE TOO LOW AND IT STOPPED RIGHT THERE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREET. NOW THE OIL PRESSURE LIGHT COMES ON EVERY TIME I DRIVE IT. I'M AFRAID IT WILL STOP IN THE MIDDLE OF THE HIGHWAY AGAIN.
I BOUGHT THIS PRE-OWNED VEHICLE (A) BECAUSE IT WAS A BMW THAT WAS KNOWN TO BE OF SUPERIOR WORKMANSHIP AND MECHANICAL EXPERTISE, AS HERALDED BY BMW MEDIA, AND (B) BECAUSE IT WAS IN EXCELLENT CONDITION WITH SUPERIOR SERVICE RECORDS ' CARFAX NOTED 'NO ISSUES REPORTED' DURING ITS ENTIRE LIFE ON NEW MEXICO ROADWAYS: 105,508 MILES. MY VEHICLE DROVE PERFECTLY, WITH NO ISSUES, UNTIL APPROXIMATELY 4:00 PM ON OCTOBER 14, 2020, WHEN, AT 110,839 MILES, WITH NO WARNING OF AN ISSUE OF ANY KIND, THE ENGINE EXPERIENCED A CATASTROPHIC FAILURE, CAUSING ME TO QUICKLY SEARCH FOR A PLACE TO PULL OVER IN A CONGESTED AREA. I HAD BEEN TAKING MY GRANDSON TO A LESSON AND WAS LUCKY WE WEREN'T INJURED OR WORSE. IRONICALLY, ALTHOUGH IT WAS OBVIOUS THE VEHICLE WAS EXPERIENCING MASSIVE FAILURE, THE MESSAGE ON THE COMMUNICATIONS MODULE SAID, 'CONTINUE TO DRIVE CAREFULLY.' I HAD THE CAR DELIVERED AN TO A LONG-TIME, AWARD-WINNING, HIGHLY RESPECTED BMW MECHANIC. HIS ANALYSIS INDICATED THAT THERE WAS NO REPAIR AVAILABLE FOR MY CAR, AS THE PLASTIC GUIDE ASSEMBLY FOR THE PRIMARY TIMING CHAIN WAS MADE OF A DEFECTIVE POLYCARBONATE MATERIAL THAT BECAME BRITTLE AND BROKE APART, CREATING DEBRIS THAT LODGED IN THE CRANKSHAFT DRIVE SPROCKETS. THIS DEBRIS CAUSED THE PRIMARY CHAIN TO SKIP, LETTING THE CAMSHAFTS AND CRANKSHAFT FALL OUT OF SYNC, WHICH DESTROYED THE ENGINE. BOTTOM LINE: I WOULD HAVE TO COMPLETELY REPLACE THE N20 ENGINE TO THE TUNE OF $11,163.81 (AT BMW $15K OR MORE). THERE IS A LESS EXPENSIVE OPTION: AN ENGINE WITH AT LEAST 70K MILES. PROBLEM IS, IT HAS A 70K MILE TIMING CHAIN. SO, IT WOULD HAVE TO BE REPLACED AND ONLY HAS A ONE YEAR OPTION, AS OPPOSED TO TWO YEARS. BMW AMERICA WILL DO NOTHING TO HELP, EVEN THOUGH THEY'VE KNOWN ABOUT THE ISSUE SINCE 2012, WHICH IS FRAUDULENT, BASED ON WHAT I'VE SEEN FROM CLAIMANTS WITH THE SAME ISSUE ONLINE!
2013 X3 28I-DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION I HAD AN ISSUE YESTERDAY. 2013 X3 28I; 67K MILES. NO WARNING. ON EXPRESSWAY CAR FEELS LIKE ITS LOSING POWER SO I SLOW DOWN TO PULL TO SIDE. DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION WARNING COMES ON AS CAR IS DYING. HAD IT TOWED TO CLOSEST SHOP, NOT BWM. THEY SAY TIMING CHAIN TENSIONER FAILED AND LIKELY DID EXTENSIVE DAMAGE TO ENGINE. SHOP IS QUOTING $2500 TO REPLACE THE TENSIONER TO SEE IF ENGINE IS SHOT? ONCE THEY CONFIRM ENGINE IS DEAD $10K FOR REPLACEMENT ?? CAR IS OUT OF WARRANTY. ANY HELP MUCH APPRECIATED. THANKS
TIMING CHAIN FAILURE AS I WAS DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY. COMPLETE ENGINE SHUT DOWN. ENGINE HAS TO BE REPLACED.
ION OCT 27, 2020 WHILE DRIVING MY VEHICLE ACCOMPANIED BY MY WIFE, ON A LOCAL STREET IN THE VICINITY OF LAKE ZURICH, IL, A 'DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION' MESSAGE FLASHED ON THE DASHBOARD AND THE VEHICLE WENT INTO PARK MODE. I COULD NOT GET THE ENGINE TO RESTART AND HAD IT TOWED TO THE NEARBY BMW SERVICE CENTER. THE NEXT DAY, THE SERVICE ASSOCIATE SENT ME AN ESTIMATE, INFORMING THAT THERE WAS A CATASTROPHIC ENGINE FAILURE. BOTH THE ENGINE AND THE TURBOCHARGER NEED TO BE REPLACED WITH THE COST FOR SUCH AMOUNTING TO SOME $18000 + TAXES! THE VEHICLE ONLY HAS 73000 MILES AND I WAS TOLD BY THE SERVICE ASSOCIATE THAT I HAPPENED TO BE JUST UNLUCKY THAT THIS HAPPENED AND IT WAS NOT DUE TO ANYTHING I HAD DONE (OR OMITTED TO DO BY WAY OF ROUTINE MAINTENANCE). LOOKING AT ALL SUCH SIMILAR COMPLAINTS FOR THE 2013 MODEL YEAR FOR BMW X3, THERE IS OBVIOUSLY A DESIGN ISSUE WITH THE ENGINE AND ASSOCIATED COMPONENTS. I AM ALSO PARTICULARLY THANKFUL IT HAPPENED ON A SIDE STREET BEFORE I GOT ON TO THE HIGHWAY. THIS IS A HUGE SAFETY ISSUE AND BMW MUST BE HELD TO ACCOUNT FOR NOT ISSUING A RECALL OR CHANGING THEIR SERVICE PROCEDURES TO MITIGATE THE EFFECTS OF THE PROBLEM.
TWICE NOW WHILE DRIVING THE CAR IT JUST COMPLETELY STOPPED. NO WARNING AT ALL. JUST CAME TO A COMPLETE STOP AS I WAS DRIVING. THERE WERE NO WARNING LIGHTS, JUST HAPPENED. THE FIRST TIME WAS ON A BUSY ROAD, THE SECOND WAS ON A MUCH LESS BUSY STREET CLOSE TO MY HOME. I HAD IT FIXED TO THE TUNE OF OVER $3000 THE FIRST TIME A YEAR AND A HALF AGO. NOW MY MECHANIC IS TELLING ME THAT IT IS THE TIMING CHAIN AND OIL PUMP DRIVE AND THAT WILL BE A VERY EXPENSIVE FIX. I AM BESIDE MYSELF. IF THIS HAD HAPPENED ON A BUSY HIGHWAY, LORD KNOWS WHAT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED BUT IT COULD'VE BEEN SOMETHING VERY CATASTROPHIC AND HORRIFIC. I AM A SINGLE MOTHER AND A WIDOW AND WITH THE PANDEMIC, I WAS OUT OF WORK FOR MANY MONTHS. I DO NOT KNOW WHAT I AM GOING TO DO BUT I CANNOT AFFORD TO FIX THIS CAR FOR SEVERAL THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS.
AT 85000 MILES DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION LIGHT CAME ON. COULDN'T GET CAR TO CONTINUE DRIVING. MECHANIC EXPLAINED THE DIAGNOSIS SHOWED A TIMING CODE. THIS IS THE 5TH TIME CAR WAS IN THE SHOP SINCE THE PURCHASE FROM CARVANA ON JULY 2ND 2020. TOLD A NEW ENGINE IS NEEDED..
MY 2013 X3 JUST DEAD ON ME IN MIDDLE OF HIGHWAY, ON MY WAY TO WORK, WITHOUT AND AHEAD NOTICE, IT WAS JUST NOT EVEN 30 SECONDS SIGN OF "OIL PRESSURE LOW" THEN CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ON, CAR WAS SHAKING, IT TOTALLY LOST THE POWER, I CALLED ROAD SERVICE TO TOW IT TO DEALERSHIP. WHEN I CALLED THE BMW SERVICE CENTER, THE GIRL JUST TOLD ME TO CLAM DOWN, DOESN'T NEED BE UPSET. I WAS SUPER UPSET, NEVER EXPECT TO DRIVE A CAR SUDDENLY DEAD IN MIDDLE OF HIGHWAY, IT COULD EASILY GET ME KILLED, OR CAUSE SERIOUSLY CAR ACCIDENT. IT WAS HAPPENED LAST MAY (2019), AT MILEAGE 88K, TWO OPTIONS: TRADE IT IN FOR $2K OR FIX IT $11,500 WITH REPLACE NEW ENGINE. I END PAID IT ALL FROM MY OWN POCKET. IT IS JUST ONE YEAR LATER, THE WARNING SIGN ON FOR " DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION, DRIVE MODERATELY, MAXIMUM DRIVETRAIN OUTPUT NOT AVAILABLE" SENT IT TO DEALERSHIP, I WAS TOLD THE TURBO NEED REPLACE, QUOTE FOR $5500... HOW COULD BMW SOLD THOSE POOR DESIGNED CRAP TO THEIR CUSTOMER, THE ISSUES JUST ONE AFTER ANOTHER, VERY DISAPPOINTED, SUCH SHAME ON BMW, I WOULD NOT BUY ANY BMW ANYMORE
WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY IN HEAVY TRAFFIC, A LIGHT CAME ON AND SAID SOMETHING ABOUT OIL PRESSURE ETC. I COULDN'T READ EVERY WORD, I HAD TO KEEP MY EYE ON THE ROAD. I PULLED TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD BUT THE CAR STOPPED RUNNING AND I BARELY MADE IT TO THE BERM. IT WAS TOWED BY AAA TO A SERVICE STATION WHO DIAGNOSED THAT IT "JUMPED TIME" AND THAT WAS A KNOWN PROBLEM WITH THIS CAR. THE ENGINE WILL HAVE TO BE REPLACED.
I HAVE A 2013 BMW X3 WITH 100,110KM ON IT. ON OCTOBER 15, I WAS DRIVING NORMALLY, AND I GOT A MESSAGE ON MY DASH SAYING THERE WAS A 'DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION'. AFTER A FEW MINUTES, THE MESSAGE WENT AWAY AND LOW ENGINE OIL PRESSURE WARNING AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. THE VEHICLE SLOW DOWN AND CAME TO A STOP AND AT THE END LOCKED TO PARKING POSITION BY ITSELF. I HAD TO GET MY VEHICLE TOWED TO A MECHANIC WHO DIAGNOSE AND CONFIRM IT IS TIMING CHAIN FAILING AND SAID THAT THIS ISSUE IS A KNOWN PROBLEM WITH THIS MODEL OF BMW VEHICLE. I CALLED BMW CANADA THE FOLLOWING MORNING AND WAS TOLD TO GET IT CHECKED OUT BY PERFORMANCE BMW WHICH IS NEARBY DEALERSHIP. THE DEALERSHIP TOLD ME THE DIAGNOSE RESULT OF OIL PUMP CHAIN GUIDES BROKE AND TIMING CHAIN FAILURE AND ALSO TOLD ME THAT MY VEHICLE'S WARRANTY EXPIRED A FEW MONTHS AGO. BECAUSE OF THE PANDEMIC, I ALMOST NEVER DROVE THIS CAR SO IF I DROVE NORMALLY, THIS ISSUE WOULD HAVE COME UP MUCH SOONER, PROBABLY BEFORE THE WARRANTY EXPIRED. I WOULD LIKE TO REQUEST AN EXTENSION OF MY WARRANTY TO COVER THIS ISSUE AS I READ ONLINE THAT IT IS A VERY COMMON ISSUE WITH THIS VEHICLE MODEL (BECAUSE OF THE PLASTIC FRAME FOR THE TIMING CHAIN AND OIL PUMP CHAIN). WHEN IT'S A COMMON ISSUE, BMW SHOULD MAKE A RECALL! SOMEBODY MIGHT GET KILLED SOONER OR LATER IF THE ENGINE FAIL HAPPEN ON BUSY TRAFIC HIGHWAY!!!!
SMELLED GASOLINE WHEN THE CAR WAS RUNNING. TOOK IT TO THE SERVICE FACILITY. THEY DISCOVERED THAT THE NUT ON THE PIPE CONNECTING THE HIGH PRESSURE FUEL LINE FOR CYLINDER 3 HAD CRACKED, LEAKING FUEL ALL OVER THE TOP OF THE ENGINE INCLUDING INTO THE WELLS CONTAINING THE IGNITION COILS AND SPARK PLUGS. THE CRACK ON THE NUT IS VISIBLE ON THE ATTACHED PHOTO. WHEN THE WENT TO REPAIR IT, ANOTHER NUT CRACKED IN A SIMILAR FASHION. THIS IS A SERIOUS FIRE HAZARD SPRAYING FUEL ALL OVER A HOT ENGINE.
ROUTINE OIL CHANGE AND MECHANIC ADVISED IMMINENT TIMING CHAIN FAILURE BECAUSE OF ENGINE WHINING (87280 MILES). SERVICE MANAGER RECOMMENDED NOT DRIVING THE CAR BECAUSE OF LIKELY ENGINE FAILURE. AFTER TIMING CHAIN REPLACEMENT, DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION LIGHT CAME ON REPEATEDLY WHILE DRIVING AT VARIOUS ELEVATIONS AND SPEEDS. TOOK TO DEALER WHO ADVISED NOISY TURBO WASTEGATE LIKELY PROBLEM (88,919 MILES). TIMING CHAIN DEFECT WELL KNOWN TO BMW BUT ONLY WARRANTEED FOR 70,000 MILES IS DISINGENUOUS. ENGINE FAILURE ON A CAR AVERAGING 12.5K MILES A YEAR WITH LESS THAN 100K WITH KNOWN ENGINE DEFECTS IS FRUADULENT AT A MINIMUM.
CAR HAS 89000 MILES. AT LOW SPEEDS, IT DRIVES FINE. ON HIGHWAY, "DRIVE TRAIN MALFUNCTION" LIGHT APPEARS DURING MODERATE-HEAVY ACCELERATION. TODAY, ON A CROWDED 4 LANE HIGHWAY AT ABOUT 70MPH, CAR LOST ALL POWER, GAS PEDAL WAS USELESS. I WAS BARELY ABLE TO LIMP TO BREAKDOWN LANE AND SPEED DROPPED TO ABOUT 15-20 MPH BY THE TIME I COULD GET THERE, THROUGH LOTS OF HONKING AND SEVERAL NEAR ACCIDENTS. EXTREMELY DANGEROUS. I SHUT THE CAR OFF FOR ABOUT 2 MINUTES, RESTARTED IT AND IT WORKED AGAIN. I TRAVELLED AT ABOUT 55MPH IN RIGHT LANE THE NEXT 15 MILES HOME WITHOUT ISSUE. I WAS WITH MY WIFE AND 7 YEAR OLD DAUGHTER. THIS IS A VERY SERIOUS AND DANGEROUS ISSUE TO HAVE WITH A CAR.
CAR HAS AUTOMATICALLY DOWNSHIFTED AND ALMOST STALLED WHILE EITHER IN MOTION OR SLOWING DOWN SEVERAL TIMES. MECHANIC IS UNCERTAIN OF EXACT CAUSE.
VEHICLE STALLED IN THE MIDDLE OF AN INTERSECTION AND GAVE A FUEL SYSTEM ERROR ON THE DISPLAY. SEEMS TO BE A FAULTY FUEL PUMP AT ONLY 7 YEARS OLD. VERY DANGEROUS AND SHOULD BE RECALLED FOR THIS ISSUE. IT'S A GOOD THING I WASN'T ON THE FREEWAY.
CAR DISPLAYED SIGN DRIVE-TRAIN MALFUNCTION/OIL PRESSURE LOW AND WITHIN 30 SECONDS STOPPED. IT WENT FROM 50 MPH TO ZERO IN 30 SECONDS. I BARELY SURVIVED A MAJOR ACCIDENT OVER A BUSY HIGHWAY (RT 78 EAST BOUND IN NJ). LATER ON BMW SERVICE CENTER REPORTED ENGINE FAILED FOR UNKNOWN REASON. I CAME TO KNOW THERE ARE MULTIPLE COMPLAINT AGAINST BMX X3 2013 SIMILAR MODEL AND MANY DRIVERS LIKE ME BARELY SURVIVED A MAJOR ACCIDENT. BMW IS PLAYING WITH OUR LIVES BY NOT RECALLING THIS MODEL. IT IS CLEARLY A MAJOR MANUFACTURING FAULT IN THIS ENGINE. THERE ARE MULTIPLE LAWSUITS ON BMW BUT I DO NOT HEAR ANY POSITIVE OUTCOME. I CAN NOT BELIEVE NO AUTHORITY IS TAKING ANY ACTION ON BMW FOR MAKING FAULTY CAR LIKE THIS AND NOT HOLDING THEM ACCOUNTABLE.
BOUGHT THIS VEHICLE IN OCTOBER, 2018 (72,685 MILES). IN OCTOBER, 2019, VEHICLE STOPPED WHILE DRIVING, WOULDN'T RESTART OR EVEN GO IN NEUTRAL, MILEAGE WAS ONLY AT 87,482. AUTOBAHN DEALERSHIP IN FT WORTH, TX DIAGNOSED TIMING CHAIN DEFECT WHICH CAUSED ENGINE FAILURE & WE WERE CHARGED $193.67 FOR THE DIAGNOSIS AND QUOTED $14,000 TO REPLACE THE ENGINE. BMW N.AMERICA WOULD NOT HELP US AT ALL ON THIS. I HAVE READ THAT THIS N20 ENGINE HAS FAILED (&TIMING CHAIN) IN HUNDREDS OF THESE CARS. SO THIS CAR IS SITTING IN MY DRIVEWAY, I'M STILL MAKING PAYMENTS & INSURANCE ON THIS BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE THE FINANCES TO REPLACE THIS ENGINE. ALSO MY DAUGHTER WAS DRIVING THE CAR AT THE TIME & IT COULD HAVE CAUSED A SERIOUS ACCIDENT.
AUGUST 10, 2020. I WAS DRIVING TO THE STORE ABUT 10 MILES FROM HOME ON A MAJOR HIGHWAY AND MY 2013 BMW X328I, SUDDENLY STARTED TO GO CRAZY IN A MANNER THAT I NEVER EXPERIENCED BEFORE A LOT OF LIGHTS SUCH AS, (ENGINE, ABS, DSC, DTC, BRAKES,POWERTRAIN, AND STIMULATION. THE VEHICLE BECAME NON-DRIVABLE AND A SAFETY HAZARDOUS IN NATURE THAT IT ALMOST CAUSE AN ACCIDENT. I ACT IN A EMERGENCY STATE OF MIND AND WAS ABLE TO PULL INTO A NEARBY PARKING LOT AT 15315 MERRY CAT LN, BELLE HAVEN, VA 23306. I PROCEEDED IN CALLING THE AAA TOWING COMPANY TO TAKE THE VEHICLE TO MY PLACE OF RESIDENT. *DT *TR
I WAS DRIVING ON HIGHWAY 75 S NEAR MONROE, MI. I WAS GOING ABOUT 60 MPH. I RECEIVED A WARNING OIL PRESSURE LOW STOP AS SOON AS POSSIBLE NOTIFICATION FROM MY CAR. I COULD NOT STOP FOR ANOTHER FEW MILES DUE TO HAVING NO WHERE TO STOP IN THE CONSTRUCTION ZONE. MY CAR DIED WHILE PULLING OFF THE NEXT EXIT RAMP. I WAS STRANDED FOR HOURS AND HAD TO HAVE A TOW TRUCK COME GET MY CAR. THE ENGINE WAS DETERMINED TO BE SHOT. THE FAILURE OCCURRED DUE TO THE TIMING CHAIN GUIDE BRAKING INTO MULTIPLE PIECES PLUGGING THE OIL PUMP. THIS WAS CAUSED BY THE ENGINE COMING OUT OF TIME AND CAUSES THE VALVES TO SLAM INTO THE PISTONS. THIS A KNOWN ISSUE WITH THE N20 BMW ENGINE AND IT A SAFETY HAZARD TO ANYONE DRIVING ONE. I PAID OVER $7000 TO REPLACE THE ENGINE OF MY CAR.
MY CAR THAT HAS AROUND 97000 MILES SUDDENLY STOPPED WITH A MESSAGE 'DRIVE TRAIN MALFUNCTIONED'. WHILE SEARCHING ON THE INTERNET THE ENGINE FOR THIS VEHICLE HAD LOT OF ISSUES AND LOT OF PEOPLE EXPERIENCED THE SAME ISSUE. WITH THE NUMBER OF ISSUES THIS ENGINE IS HAVING PRIMARILY DUE TO THE BAD QUALITY, I WOULD LIKE THE MANUFACTURER TO DO A RECALL AND FIX THE ENGINES THAT FAILED.
I HAD 86,000 MILES ON MY CAR. ENGINE FAILED WHILE I WAS VACATIONING 700 MILES FROM HOME, STRANDING ME. WARNING :"DRIVE TRAIN MALFUNCTION" LIGHT CAME ON, THOUGH CAR WAS RUNNING PERFECTLY WELL. WHEN "STOP NOW TO PREVENT ENGINE DAMAGE" LIGHT APPEARED, I WAS FORTUNATELY GOING 25 MPH AND WAS ABLE TO COAST INTO A PARKING LOT AND MY CAR NEVER RAN AGAIN. DEALERSHIP DIAGNOSIS WAS "TIMING CHAIN STRETCHED", NEW ENGINE NEEDED. THE $13,000 REPAIR COST WAS ABOUT THE VALUE OF THE CAR, SO I WAS FORCED TO SELL IT FOR $3,000 TO THE FIRST PERSON INTERESTED, SINCE I WAS NOT NEAR THE CAR AND DID NOT WANT TO INVEST IN A NEW ENGINE, SINCE I HAD ALREADY INCURRED THOUSANDS IN REPAIRS WITHIN THE PRIOR YEAR. THIS CAR IS TERRIBLE! I WISH I HAD READ ALL THE TERRIBLE REVIEWS BEFORE I WAS CONNED INTO PURCHASING IT.
ON AUGUST 1ST, WE EXPERIENCED A DANGEROUS SITUATION ON THE HIGHWAY; THE VEHICLE SLOWED DOWN IN TRAFFIC, HARD JERKING, SMELLED OF BURNING FUEL OR FUMES. WE THEN TOOK IT TO THE BMW DEALERSHIP IN TALLAHASSEE WHICH WAS TWO DAYS AFTER THE INCIDENT. AFTER THEY DID A DIAGNOSTIC ON IT, WE WERE TOLD IT WAS A MECHANICAL FAILURE WITHIN THE BRAKE SYSTEM AND AFTER THEY EXAMINED IT AND TOOK IT FOR A TEST DRIVE, THE BRAKES ON BOTH SIDES BECAME EXTREMELY HOT WITH EXTREME HEAT AND SMOKING FROM BOTH BRAKES. THEY EXPLAINED THE EXPERIENCE WAS VERY UNUSUAL AND COULD HAVE CAUSED DANGEROUS RESULTS ON THE ROAD. WE WERE TOLD IT WASN'T IN OUR BEST INTERESTS NOT TO ATTEMPT TO DRIVE IT MORE THAN 2 MILES. WE HAD NO CHOICE BUT TO LEAVE IT ACROSS THE STREET WITH CARMAX, THE LIEN HOLDER. EVEN THOUGH IT IS A MANUFACTURER'S ISSUE THE BMW DEALERSHIP WOULDN'T HELP US UNLESS WE PAID NEARLY 5K OUT OF POCKET. CARMAX ALSO WOULDN'T HELP UNLESS WE AGREED TO PAY THEM AS WELL. WE ARE OUT OF A MAJOR LOSS CONSIDERING IT'S WAS DEFECTED BY THE MANUFACTURER AND WE'VE ONLY HAD THE CAR 2 YEARS. WE WERE TOLD WE WERE LUCKY AND THAT THE TIRES WOULD HAVE CAUGHT ON FIRE ON THE ROAD.! WE WOULD APPRECIATE YOUR FULL INVESTIGATION INTO THIS MATTER; WE ARE NOT FINANCIALLY STABLE TO INCUR SUCH A FINANCIAL LOSS AS WELL AS LOSING THE VEHICLE. THANKS
I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY WHEN MANY WARNING MESSAGES STARTED TO APPEAR, CHECK ENGINE, CHECK OIL, BATTERY, CHECK COOLANT AND SOME OTHERS AND IN A RAPID SUCCESSION. CAR BEGAN TO SLOW AND POWERED OFF. I WAS UNABLE TO RESTART MY CAR AND HAD TO HAVE THE CAR TOWED. ENGINE IS COMPLETELY DEAD. QUOTED BETWEEN 20K (BMW) TO 8K (USED SHOP) TO REPAIR. BMW HAS REFUSED TO REPLACE THE DEFECTIVE ENGINE OR PROVIDE ANY ASSISTANCE IN THE MATTER.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 BMW X3. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT VARIOUS SPEEDS, THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED AND WENT TO THE FLOORBOARD WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO DIAGNOSED THE VEHICLE WITH A VACUUM PUMP FAILURE. THE MECHANIC LINKED THE FAILURE TO NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 14V627000 (SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC) HOWEVER, THE VIN WAS NOT INCLUDED. BMW OF WARWICK (1515 BALD HILL RD, WARWICK, RI 02886, (401) 298-9457) AND THE MANUFACTURER WERE CONTACTED AND CONFIRMED THAT THE VIN WAS NOT INCLUDED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 100,000.
AS I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY, I HAD AN ALERT THAT SAID "DRIVE TRAIN MALFUNCTION" AND THE VEHICLE BEGAN TO SLOW DOWN. I QUICKLY HAD TO TAKE THE UPCOMING EXIT. AS I WAS TRYING TO CHANGE GEARS, THE CAR REMAINED IN NEUTRAL AND CONTINUED TO DRIVE SLOW. I WAS ABLE TO SAFELY PULL OVER AND STOP THE CAR. AT THAT POINT, THE VEHICLE DID NOT TURN BACK ON.
I AM ON ENGINE NUMBER 3 ON MY 2013 BMW X3. FIRST ENGINE LOCKED UP WHILE REPAIR SHOP WAS INVESTIGATING WHY EGINE LIGHT WAS ON. NO RECALL OR NOTICES AT THAT TIME FOR VEHCLE AND OVER THE 50K MILE WARRANTY. CHEAPEST REPAIR WAS FINDING A USED ENGINE, $8,000 VS $14,000 FOR BMW TO REPAIR. TURNS OUT THIS WAS A HIGHLY NOTED ISSUE WITH N20 CODE. WHILE IN SHOP FOR REPLACEMENT NOTICE COMES FROM BMW FOR EXTENDED MILEAGE SERVICE (NOT A RECALL). AFTER REPAIR I SUBMITTED WARRANTLY PAPERWORK BASED ON LETTER FROM BMW WITH RECEIPTS FROM DEALERSHIP, ONLY TO BE DENIED. 2 YEARS LATER DRIVING DOWN INTERSTATE 85 IN NORTH CAROLINA SUMMER WITH AN INFANT AND 3 YEAR OLD ENGINE STALLED OUT AND LOCKED UP. TOOK TO MECHANIC TO LEARN SAME ISSUE AS BEFORE HAPPENED STILL NO RECALL - BUT THERE WAS A KIT NOT FOR A DIFFERENT TIMING CHAIN! I SPENT $6,000 THIS TIME TO REBUILD AS THE VALUE FOR SCRAPPING WAS MINIMAL, MECHANIC WHICH IS A BMW SPECIALIST WOULD NOT EVEN CONSIDER BUYING FOR SCRAP DUE TO THIS KNOWN ISSUE. HE ALSO REFERRED ME TO THE CLASS-ACTION SUITS OPEN FOR THIS. I HAVE YET TO RECEIVE A DIME FOR THE MFG DEFECT. A KNOWN ISSUE HAS BEEN FOUND, A FIX HAS BEEN RELEASED BUT NO OWNERSHIP OF THE DEFECT BY BMW.
MY [XXX] NOW I'M GOING THROUGH SOMETHING VERY DIFFIDENT IM BUY A CAR IN THE YEAR 2017 MARCH 20 I SPOKE THE SALE MANAGER REPRESENTATIVE ABOUT THE CARCOMBINATION OF MY CAR HIS NAME IS [XXX] EVERYTHING WAS FINE WELL MY CAR HAS BEEN DAMAGE SINCE 2017 BY THE MECHANIC OF THE G0GGIN BMW TREASURE COAST 4429 S US HWY 1 FT PIERCE FL 34982, TEI 429-8300 ...MY CAR NOW SERIOUS DAMAGE DON'T KNOWI IWAS GOING TO START A MOTOR SO OTHER MECHANIC TELL ME I HAVE TO REPLACE ENGINE I SING A 72 MONTH CONTRACT INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *CC *TR
WHILE BMW X3 WAS UNDER WARRANTY, WE HAD DRIVETRAIN FAILURE COME ON AND REPEATEDLY TOOK TO BMW SLUGGISH BUT BARELY DRIVEABLE . THE DEALER SERVICE NEVER MADE SUBSTANTIAL REPAIRS UNDER WARRANTY. FINALLY MY WIFE HAD A SHUTDOWN IN THE MIDDLE OF I-90 AND WE INSISTED THEY TAKE A CLOSER LOOK FOR WHICH THEY CHARGED US $3000 JUST OUT OF WARRANTY TO GET IT BACK, CLAIMING THERE WAS A CAM DEFICIENCY. 6 MONTHS LATER, THE X3 HAD A CATASTROPHIC SHUTDOWN AGAIN IN MIDDLE OF I-90 HIGHWAY OUTSIDE ROCKFORD IL. GOING 65 MPH AND NEARLY CREATED AN ACCIDENT. VEHICLE WAS PUSHED TO ROADSIDE AND TOWED TO BMW DEALER . BMW DECLARE IT UNREPAIRABLE AND OUT OF 75,0000 MILE EXTENSION FOR BREAKAGE OF TIMING BELT CHAIN . SERVICE MANAGER ADMITTED TIMING BELT ISSUE WAS EVIDENT DURING THE 75,0000 PERIOD, HOWEVER THE DEALER SERVICE INDICATED THEY ARE NOT ABLE TO WARN CONSUMERS. BMW NOAM CHARGES US $6900 TO REPLACE THE ENGINE. BMWS HANDLING OF A DANGEROUS PROBLEM IS FRAUDULENT AT BEST. THEY HIDE BEHIND PERIPHERAL PROBLEMS TO ADDRESS THE BIG PROBLEM THAT CAUSES CATASTROPHIC ENGINE FAILURE SO AS MANY 2013 X3 MODELS MAY AGE PAST THE 75,0000 TIMING BELT CHAIN LIMIT AND THEY WON'T BE RESPONSIBLE FOR 100% OF THE ENGINE REPLACEMENT. THEY ARE CREATING A GREAT RISK TO PUBLIC SAFETY.
ON SEPTEMBER 1, 2019, WE ([XXX]) WERE TRAVELING SOUTHWEST ON FM2322 (PACE BEND ROAD), WHICH IS WELL TRAVELLED, AT APPROXIMATELY 55 MILES PER HOUR IN OUR 2013 BMW X3. THE ENGINE LOST POWER AND POWER STEERING BUT WE WERE ABLE TO COAST TO THE SHOULDER OF THE ROAD. THIS ROAD (FM2322) LEADS TO LAKE TRAVIS AND WAS WELL TRAVELED, IT BEING ON A HOT WEEKEND DAY. AT THE TIME OF THIS INCIDENT, BMW KNEW THAT THE BMW X3'S N20 ENGINE (SEE MULTIPLE CLASS ACTION LAWSUITS STARTING IN 2017) WAS PRONE TO SUFFER CATASTROPHIC ENGINE FAILURE DUE TO FAULTY MATERIALS USED TO MANUFACTURE THE BMW'S X3 N20 ENGINE. TO MY KNOWLEDGE WE DID NOT RECEIVE A NOTICE OR RECALL FOR THE CORRECTION OF THE N20 ENGINE DEFECTS. REDACTED TO PROTECT PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *CC
I WAS DRIVING MY 2013 BMW X3 ON I-280 FREEWAY SOUTHBOUND AROUND 11AM 6/10/2020, ALL OF SUDDEN MY CAR SHOWS BATTERY DISCHARGE RESULTED IN LOST OF POWER,WHEN THE SUV WAS AT 104,000 MILES. WITHIN 30 SECONDS, THE DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION WARNING ENGAGED. THE CAR BEGAN SHUTTING DOWN WHILE THEY WERE DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY. I WAS ABLE TO SAFELY NAVIGATE ACROSS TWO LANES OF MERGING TRAFFIC TO GET OFF THE ROAD BEFORE THE ENGINE DIED. THE SITUATION COULD HAVE GONE VERY DIFFERENTLY WITH DISASTROUS RESULTS, SO I QUICKLY MANEUVERED THE VEHICLE AND PULLED OVER ON THE EMERGENCY PARKING LINE ON THE FREEWAY
ON 6/23/20, AT APPROX., 6:15 AM, MY 2013 BMW X3 VEHICLE (APPROX. 68,000 MILES) LOST ENGINE POWER AS I WAS ATTEMPTING TO PULL OUT FROM A BUSY AND CONGESTED N/B 215 FREEWAY (NEAR THE W/B 10 FREEWAY EXCHANGE) IN COLTON, CALIFORNIA. PRIOR TO LOSING ENGINE POWER, AND AT ABOUT LESS THAN ONE MINUTES BEFORE, MY VEHICLE'S LOW OIL LIGHT SENSOR HAD COME ON, THEN QUICKLY CHANGED TO A DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION SENSOR -- WARNING ME TO DRIVE MODERATELY, BUT THAT WAS MEANINGLESS BECAUSE MY VEHICLE HAD ALREADY BEGAN TO LOSE ENGINE POWER. I SLID TO A SLOW STOP INTO THE EMERGENCY LANE OF THE FREEWAY AFTER CUTTING OFF NUMEROUS VEHICLES BEHIND ME IN AN EFFORT TO MAKE IT OFF THE FREEWAY.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 BMW X3. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHEN HIS WIFE ARRIVED HOME, THE CHECK ENGINE WARNING LIGHT WAS ILLUMINATED. THE CONTACT STATED THAT HIS WIFE ATTEMPTED TO START THE VEHICLE HOWEVER, THE VEHICLE FAILED TO START. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO PACIFIC BMW (800 S. BRAND BLVD, GLENDALE, CA 91204, 8182-46-5600) TO BE DIAGNOSED. THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THE TIMING BELT NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS INFORMED OF THE FAILURE AND A CASE WAS FILED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 91,450.
I WAS DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD AND MY VEHICLE WENT INTO LIMP MODE. THE MALFUNCTION TRANS LIGHT CAME ON. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALERSHIP FOR DIAGNOSTICS AND WAS TOLD I HAD A OIL LEAK AND THE AIR TUBE NEEDED TO BE REPLACED AS WELL AS THE PROGRAMMING UPDATE. THE NEXT DAY BMW SERVICE ADVISOR, [XXX] CALLED TO TELL ME MY TIMING CHAIN NEED TO BE REPLACED AND IT WOULD COST OVER 7000$. I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO. HE GAVE ME HIS ADVICE OR TWO OPTIONS I HAD, I COULD PAY FOR THE COST OF REPAIRS AND HAVE A VEHICLE OR JUST FIX WHAT WAS DISCUSSED AND TRY TO SELL MY VEHICLE TO SOMEONE ELSE. I ASKED HIM TO HELP ME AND PUT ME INTO ANOTHER VEHICLE, HE SAID OH NO WE CAN'T DO THAT. I ASKED WHY, IT'S YOUR CAR YOU SOLD IT TO ME. [XXX] TOLD ME BMW KNOWS WHAT IS WRONG WITH THE CAR YOU WON'T GET ANYTHING FOR IT, YET HE WANTED ME TO SELL IT TO ANOTHER FAMILY AND ENDANGER THEIR LIVES. I WASN'T GOING TO HEAR FROM HIM AGAIN, VERY UNPROFESSIONAL. IT MADE ME SICK. I CALLED AND SPOKE WITH CUSTOMER RELATIONS A WOMAN BY THE NAME OF [XXX] AND WAS TOLD AFTER 4 DAYS OF INVESTIGATION, THERE'S NOTHING THEY CAN DO FOR ME. I TOLD THEM THEY COULD HAVE THE VEHICLE, I'M NOT PAYING FOR THEIR MANUFACTURE DEFECT. SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE. BMW IS ENDANGERING LIVES BY ALLOWING CONSUMERS TO PURCHASE VEHICLES WITH KNOWN DEFECTS. I WOULD HAVE NEVER PURCHASED MY 2013 BMW X3 28I IN MARCH 2017 IF I HAD KNOWN I WOULD HAVE PROBLEMS @ 80,000 MILES. THIS IS CRAZY. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR
ENGINE SEIZED AT ONLY 58K MILES RIGHT AT THE AIRPORT, WOULD NOT START AGAIN. IT WAS LATER TOWED TO THE DEALER AND A NEW ENGINE WAS REPLACED. 6 MONTHS LATER AT 61K MILES, HUGE PLUMES OF WHITE SMOKES IS COMING OUT OF THE EXHAUST. DROVE TO THE DEALER AGAIN AND WAS INFORMED THAT THE TURBOCHARGER IS BROKEN. *TR
TIMING-CHAIN BREAK DUE TO TIMING GUARD WHICH IS MADE FOR A PLASTIC BREAK AND ENGINE FAILURE, ITS A MAJOR ISSUE WITH BMW N20 ENGINE, THEY UPGRADE THE EFFECTED PART IN 2015 TO FIX IT BUT CARS THAT HAVE THESE N20 MODEL EARLIER GETTING THIS FAILURE AND BMW NOT TAKE OWNERSHIP IF ITS AFTER 7 YEARS OR 70000 MILES. *TR
ON 11/12/2019, ON MY WAY TO WORK DRIVING AT 40-44 MPH ON CITY ROAD, THE ACCELERATION SUDDENLY DROPPED, A SCREEN MESSAGE READ, "INCREASED ENGINE PRESSURE," AND ADVISED ME TO, "STOP ENGINE IMMEDIATELY," WHICH I HAD NO CHANCE TO DO BECAUSE THE SUV CAME TO A COMPLETE HALT. THANKFULLY I WAS ABLE TO TURN INTO THE DRIVEWAY OF A BUSINESS, BUT UNABLE TO PARK. THE CAR TURNED ITSELF OFF AND "LOCKED." A BMW DEALERSHIP SERVICE DIAGNOSED THE SUV'S TIME-CHAIN NEEDED REPLACEMENT (MILEAGE WAS 95515. BMW STATED THAT THE WARRANTY FOR THIS MODEL'S TIME-CHAIN WAS 7 YEARS/70,000 MILES. IN REPLACING THE TIME-CHAIN, THE MOTOR WAS RUINED WITH METAL SHAVINGS. COMPLAINTS LISTED AT HTTPS://DRIVING-TESTS.ORG/VIN-DECODER/ REPORT CONSUMERS WHO HAVE HAD SIMILAR BAD EXPERIENCE WITH THE TIMING CHAIN AT ABOUT 100,000 MILES. I PURCHASED THE BMW USED WITH 95899 MILES AND DROVE IT FEWER THAN 3,000 MILES BEFORE THE TIMING CHAIN AND ENGINE WERE RUINED. BMW NORTH AMERICA, LLC, DOES NOT WANT TO HELP CUSTOMERS WITH THE BAD TIMING CHAIN ISSUE. THE DEALER FROM WHOM I PURCHASED THE USED BMW IS BENZ & BEEMER IN SCOTTSDALE, AZ, WHOM ORIGINALLY BELIEVED THAT THE TIMING CHAIN HAD "LIFETIME WARRANTY," BUT BMW SCOTTSDALE CORRECTED THEM. BENZ & BEEMER REFUSES TO NOW REPLACE THE BMW'S MOTOR AT THEIR EXPENSE, OF COURSE. ESSENTIALLY, THE BMW SUV IS AN EXPENSIVE VEHICLE, EVEN AS USED, TO NOT HAVE A "LIFETIME WARRANTY" ON THE TIMING CHAIN. IN ADDITION, THE FAULTY TIMING CHAIN POSES A GREAT ACCIDENT RISK, IF NOT DEATH, TO THE DRIVER BECAUSE THE VEHICLE HALTS TO A COMPLETE STOP, WHICH MAKES IT DIFFICULT FOR THE DRIVER TO MOVE TO SAFETY, DIRE IF THE DRIVER IS IN THE FREEWAY TRAFFIC. IF THE MANUFACTURER CANNOT CHANGE THE WARRANTY ON THE TIMING CHAIN, THEN YOU MUST MAKE A RECOMMENDATION TO PUT THIS VEHICLE OUT OF SERVICE BEGINNING AT 90,000 MILES. DIAGNOSE AT BMW SCOTTS 480-538-3991. THANKS, [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *CC *TR
THE NIGHT OF 11/9/2019, I WAS DRIVING MY 2013 BMW X3 WHEN MY ENGINE PRESSURE LOW LIGHT CAME ON THEN FOLLOWED BY DRIVE TRAIN MALFUNCTION LIGHTS AND INSTANTLY MY SUV DIED/LOST ALL POWER AND I HAD TO DANGEROUSLY PULL TO THE SHOULDER OF THE ROAD WHILE AVOIDING OTHER CARS. THIS IS EXTREMELY UPSETTING SINCE MY LITTLE ONES WERE IN THE CAR WITH ME AND WE WERE ON THE FREEWAY A FEW MINUTES EARLIER. THE SUV LOCKED UP AND WAS UNABLE TO START BACK UP. I HAD THE SUV TOWED TO THE BMW SERVICE DEPARTMENT, THEY FOUND THE TIMING CHAIN GUIDE (MADE OF PLASTIC) HAD BROKEN AND THE BROKEN PIECES BLOCK THE OIL PUMP. IT TOOK OUT THE OIL PUMP AND STARVED THE ENGINE OF OIL AND NOW I HAVE A DEAD ENGINE. MY SUV HAVE ONLY 75K MILES ON IT WAS REGULARLY MAINTAINED BY BMW SERVICE DEPARTMENT. I WAS QUOTED $17,437.02 TO HAVE THE ENGINE REPLACED. BMW SERVICE DEPT CONTACTED BMW AMERICA TO FILE A CLAIM AND GET THE REPAIRS COVERED. BMW REFUSED THE CLAIM STATING THAT IT WAS PAST THEIR 7 YEARS /70K MILES TIMING CHAIN WARRANTY. I HAD PURCHASE THE BMW PLATINUM EXTENDED WARRANTY THAT COVERS 7 YEARS/ 100K MILES, BUT IT EXPIRED 2 MONTHS AFTER THIS INCIDENT. IT'S A DEFECTIVE TIMING CHAIN/BRACKET THAT CAN RESULT TO TOTAL ENGINE DAMAGE. BMW NEEDS TO BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE AND SHOULD HAVE AT LEAST HAVE A MINIMUM OF 10 YEARS/ 150K MILES WARRANTY OR ISSUE A RECALL. PEOPLE CAN LOSE THEIR LIFE WHEN THE ENGINE SHUTS DOWN AND THE CAR LOSE POWER. AFTER RESEARCHING ONLINE FOR BMW N20 TIMING CHAIN FAILURE, IT IS QUITE COMMON ON THE N20 AND THE N26 ENGINES. BMW KNOWS THIS AND ARE REFUSING TO BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DEFECTIVE PARTS.FOR THE SAFETY OF DRIVERS, PLEASE HAVE BMW NORTH AMERICA HELD RESPONSIBLE. ALSO, ITS NOT FAIR FOR THE CUSTOMERS TO BE LIABLE FOR REPAIRS DUE TO THE DEFECTIVE PARTS. THE COST TO REPLACE THE ENGINE IS ENOUGH TO PURCHASE A NEW CARS. THAT'S LUDICROUS AND TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE! *TR
MY 2013 BMW X3 SHOWED A LOW OIL PRESSURE WARNING ON THE DISPLAY. STOPPED THE CAR, AND HAD IT TOWED TO THE DEALER. THE DEALER SAID THE TIMING CHAIN NEEDED TO BE REPLACED AND IT WAS A KNOWN ISSUE WITH THE N20 ENGINE. THE COST TO REPLACE IS CLOSE TO $6000. THE TIMING CHAIN IS NOT PART OF THE MAINTENANCE OF THE VEHICLE AND IT NOT SUPPOSE TO FAIL. THE DEALER TOLD ME TO CALL BMW NORTH AMERICA FOR ASSISTANCE TO REPLACE SINCE THE PROBLEM IS DUE TO A DESIGN DEFECT AND NOT A MAINTENANCE ISSUE. I CALLED AND AFTER 2 WEEKS BMW NORTH AMERICA GOT IN TOUCH WITH ME AND TOLD ME THEY ARE NOT GOING TO HELP ME OUT, NOT EVEN PARTIALLY. I CANNOT DRIVE OR SELL THE VEHICLE WITHOUT THE REPAIR BECAUSE THE ENGINE WILL EVENTUALLY FAIL WHICH COULD POTENTIALLY CAUSE SOMEONE TO GET INJURED IN AN AUTOMOBILE ACCIDENT IF THE FAILURE OCCURS WHEN DRIVING IN TRAFFIC. *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 BMW X3. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE IN TRAFFIC ON THE FREEWAY, THE CONTACT DEPRESSED THE BRAKE PEDAL WHICH FAILED TO ENGAGE PROPERLY AS THE PEDAL WENT TO THE FLOORBOARD. THE VEHICLE WAS SLOWLY DRIVEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO DIAGNOSED THE VEHICLE, BUT WAS UNABLE TO DUPLICATE THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE RECURRED WITH THE DSC, X5, TRAC CONTROL WARNING LIGHTS ILLUMINATED. EXCLUSIVELY EUROPEAN (900 LANSING DR, MOUNT PLEASANT, SC 29464, (843) 856-3343) WAS CONTACTED AND INFORMED OF THE FAILURE. THE CONTACT REFERENCED NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 13V454000 (SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC) HOWEVER, THE VIN WAS NOT INCLUDED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 95,772. *LN*JB *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 BMW X3. THE CONTACT STATED WHILE DRIVING 40 MPH AND APPROACHING A TRAFFIC LIGHT, THE VEHICLE STALLED WITH THE CHECK ENGINE WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DRIVABLE. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO INDEPENDENT MECHANIC, WHERE SHE WAS INFORMED THE TIMING CHAIN NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE CONTACT CALLED COGGIN BMW OF TREASURE COAST IN FT. PIERCE LOCATED AT 4429 US-1, FORT PIERCE, FL 34982, (772) 742-5582, AND NOTIFIED THE DEALER OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED NOR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS INFORMED OF FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 100,000. *LN *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 BMW X3. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT AN UNDISCLOSED SPEED, THE VEHICLE STALLED WITH THE TRANSMISSION WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS RESTARTED FOR A FEW MINUTES BUT STALLED AGAIN. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS PUSHED TO A SERVICE STATION AND LATER TOWED TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC TO BE DIAGNOSED. THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THE TIMING CHAIN NEEDED TO REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE CONTACT CALLED COGGIN BMW OF TREASURE COAST IN FT. PIERCE LOCATED AT 4429 US-1, FORT PIERCE, FL 34982, (772) 742-5582 AND WAS INFORMED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS NOT COVERED UNDER WARRANTY. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE AND THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED TO TAKE THE VEHICLE TO A DEALER. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 100,000. *LN CONSUMER HAS 2 DIAGNOSTIC TESTING DONE WITHIN FEW DAYS OF EACH OTHER. CONSUMER HAS A 10 YEARS 120,000 MILES LIMITED WARRANTY WHICH COVERS TIMING CHAIN AND OIL PUMP CHAIN.*JB
MY TIMING CHAIN CAUSED MY ENGINE TO FAIL AT 90,000 MILES AND BMW WOULD NOT COVER THE COST EVEN THOUGH THEY INCREASED THE WARRANTY TO 70,000 MILES, I THEN HAD A USED ENGINE WITH 40,000 MILES ON IT AND 120,000 MILES LATER THAT TIMING CHAIN BROKE AND RUIN THE ENGINE. I STILL OWE $10,000 ON AN $8,000 VEHICLE WITH BMW WANTING $12,000 TO REPLACE THE ENGINE. THE FIRST TIME I WAS ON THE FREEWAY CLOSE TO HOLE AND THE DRIVE TRAIN MALFUNCTION LIGHT CAME ON THE I PULLED OVER. THE SECOND TIME THE ENGINE WENT OUT I WAS OVER 2 HOURS FROM HOME AND HAD TO HAVE IT TOWED TO A DIFFERENT DEALERSHIP. *TR
I WAS DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY. I RECEIVED AN ERROR MESSAGE ABOUT LOW OIL PRESSURE AND WITHIN A MINUTE MY CAR LOST POWER AND PUT ITSELF IN NEUTRAL. LUCKILY I WAS ABLE TO GET OFF THE FREEWAY SAFELY BECAUSE IT COULD HAVE BEEN VERY DANGEROUS LOSING POWER SUDDENLY IN THAT WAY. THE ENGINE WOULD NOT START BACK UP AND I HAD TO HAVE IT TOWED. ANOTHER ONGOING ISSUE I HAVE HAD, IS THAT THE POWER TRAIN MALFUNCTION ERROR LIGHT COMES ON ALMOST EVERY TIME I DRIVE AND THE AUTO SHOP HAS NOT BEEN ABLE TO IDENTIFY THE PROBLEM. I HAVE REPLACED THE BATTERY AND HAD OTHER WORK DONE THAT DID NOT SOLVE THIS PROBLEM.
WHINING NOISE FROM LOWER ENGINE AREA NEAR ENGINE OIL PUMP CAUSED BY WEAR ON ENGINE OIL PUMP CHAIN DRIVE SPROCKETS
ENGINE STOPPED WORKING COMPLETELY (NO POWER/POWER STEERING/ENGINE SHAKING) WHILE ON HIGH SPEED ROAD WITH WIFE AND 2 YEAR OLD VEHICLE. MECHANIC NOTED OIL PUMP/DRIVE TRAIN FAILURE ASSOCIATED WITH A CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT CURRENTLY UNDERWAY WITH BMW. ENTIRE ENGINE MUST BE REPLACED.
AS MY WIFE AND I WERE DRIVING DOWN THE THE BUSY HIGHWAY, THE VEHICLE WENT INTO NEUTRAL AND THE ENGINE COMPLETELY CUT OUT. WE LUCKILY COASTED TO SAFETY OFF THE HIGH SHOULDER--BARELY OFF THE MAIN TRAFFIC. THE VEHICLE THEN WENT INTO PARK AND WOULD NOT START OR SHIFT INTO NEUTRAL, SO WE WERE STUCK THERE UNTIL THE TOW TRUCK CAME.
TIMING CHAIN ISSUE. I HAVE A DRIVETRAIN WARNING IN WHICH I HAVE READ NOTHING BUT COMPLAINTS ON THIS. TIMING CHAIN BREAKING EVEN WITH VERY LOW MILE AND YES I AGREE WITH THE PUBLIC THAT THIS SHOULD BE A RECALL DEAL. THIS SO BAD FOR BMW WITH THEIR REPUTATION FOR BEING SUCH GOOD CARS.
MY VEHICLE HAS 98,902 MILES AND I HAVE BEEN GETTING A 'DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION' ERROR MESSAGE WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY. I TOOK THE CAR TO TWO MECHANICS AND WAS TOLD THAT I NEEDED TO REPLACE THE TIMING CHAIN. AFTER DOING SOME RESEARCH TO FIGURE OUT WHAT THIS ISSUE IS, I FOUND COUNTLESS FORUMS OF OTHER OWNERS HAVING THE SAME ISSUE.
AT ROUGHLY 71,000 MILES, WHILE PARKED AT A RED LIGHT, 200 MILES FROM HOME ON A HOLIDAY WEEKEND, MY CAR HAD A MAINTENANCE WARNING AND WOULDN'T MOVE.THE TIMING CHAIN BROKE, CAUSING THE ENGINE TO HAVE TO BE REPLACED. THE TOTAL COST OF THE REPAIRS WERE AROUND $7,000. ACCORDING TO ONLINE FORUMS, THIS IS A KNOWN PROBLEM.
ANOTHER TIMING CHAIN STOP IN THE MIDDLE OF DRIVING. MY TIMING CHAIN FAIL ON ME WHILE DRIVING. I HAVE UNDER 70 000 MILES ON THE CAR BUT BMW NA TOLD THAT I AM OUT OF WARRANTY BECAUSE THE CAR ARRIVE AT A LOT IN SEPTEMBER 2012 AND THE 7 YEAR WARRANTY START FROM SEPTEMBER 2012. MY CAR IS A 2013 BMW AND 7 YEARS WOULD PUT ME IN 2020 . BMW LOOK FOR ANYTHING NOT TO HONOR THEIR WARRANTY ON THEIR FAIL ENGINE. I OWE OVER $10K ON A CAR THAT HAVE A FAIL ENGINE. PLEASE LOOK INTO THIS IT IS SO NOT RIGHT
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 BMW X3. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS PARKED AND UNOCCUPIED, THE VEHICLE EXPLODED AND CAUGHT ON FIRE. THE FLAMES AND HEAT DAMAGED TWO PARKED AND OCCUPIED VEHICLES. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE MICHIGAN FIRE DEPARTMENT WAS PRESENT. THE FIRE DEPARTMENT WAS UNABLE TO LOCATE WHERE THE FIRE INITIATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS CONTACTED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 101,400. THE VIN WAS INVALID. *DT *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 BMW X3. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY AT 60 MPH, THERE WAS AN ABNORMAL SOUND IN THE REAR OF THE VEHICLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE REAR HATCH BECAME AJAR. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THERE WERE NO WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED. THE CONTACT PULLED OVER AND LOCKED CLOSED REAR HATCH. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. NEITHER THE DEALER NOR THE MANUFACTURER WERE CONTACTED OR INFORMED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 70,000.
ANOTHER TIMING CHAIN VICTIM. TIMING CHAIN HAD BEEN REPLACED 2/2017, 51K MILES AND EVIDENTLY WAS REPLACED WITH THE DEFECTIVE PARTS, PRIOR TO BMW'S ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF AN ISSUE. 30 MONTHS LATER WE SIT AT 80K MILES AND THE CHAIN HAS BROKEN AGAIN CAUSING CATASTROPHIC MOTOR DAMAGE. BMW NA WAS CONTACTED AND WE WERE DELIGHTFULLY DENIED OUR ASSISTANCE REQUEST. WE WERE HOWEVER OFFERED A VERY GENEROUS 10% DISCOUNT TOWARDS A NEW MOTOR FROM OUR LOCAL DEALER.
MY HUSBAND WAS DRIVING HOME FROM WORK ON A CITY STREET WHEN THE CAR GAVE AN ALERT: 'DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION'DRIVE MODERATELY.' THEN MY HUSBAND GOT ANOTHER ALERT: 'OIL PRESSURE LOW' WHICH WARNED NOT TO DRIVE. FORTUNATELY, BY THAT POINT HE WAS ON OUR BLOCK SO HE MOVED THE CAR VERY SLOWLY TOWARDS OUR HOUSE. THE CAR SHUT DOWN, BUT HE WAS ABLE TO COAST TO PARK THE CAR STREETSIDE. WE HAD THE CAR TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP THE NEXT DAY AND LEARNED THAT THE TIMING CHAIN HAD MALFUNCTIONED AND THE CAR WAS INOPERABLE UNTIL THE PROBLEM WAS FIXED. JUST THE DAY BEFORE THIS VEHICLE FAILURE, WE WERE COMING HOME FROM SEEING FAMILY FOR THE HOLIDAYS. IF THIS HAD HAPPENED ON THE HIGHWAY OR ANY OTHER BUSY ROAD, WE COULD HAVE BEEN IN SERIOUS DANGER. THERE WAS VERY LITTLE TIME TO GET TO A SAFE PLACE BECAUSE THE CAR SHUT DOWN SO QUICKLY. I'M GRATEFUL THAT MY HUSBAND WAS SO CLOSE TO HOME WHEN THIS HAPPENED. AS IT IS, WE'LL BE INCURRING CONSIDERABLE EXPENSE TO REPAIR A CAR THAT BMW SEEMS TO KNOW HAS A MAJOR DEFECT. THE CAR IS A 2013 BMW X3 WITH AN N20 ENGINE; IT HAS ABOUT 107,000 MILES ON IT. THAT'S A LOT OF MILES, BUT NOT NEARLY SO MANY THAT SUCH A MAJOR VEHICLE MALFUNCTION COULD REASONABLY BE EXPECTED. THERE IS NO REASON THAT THE TIMING CHAIN SHOULD FAIL ON A CAR THAT WE HAVE MAINTAINED AND CARED FOR. THIS IS THE KIND OF PROBLEM YOU MIGHT REASONABLY EXPECT AROUND 150,000 MILES, BUT WE'RE NOT AT THAT POINT. I'VE SINCE LEARNED THROUGH SOME RESEARCH THAT MANY BMWS WITH N20 ENGINES MADE IN 2010-2015 HAVE HAD THESE TIMING CHAIN ISSUES AND THAT IT IS WELL KNOWN TO MANY OWNERS AND TO BMW ITSELF. IN 2017, THEY PROVIDED AN EXTENDED WARRANTY TO COVER TIMING CHAIN ISSUES UP TO 7 YEARS/70,000 MILES. THAT'S AN ABSURD LIMIT FOR AN ESSENTIAL COMPONENT OF A VEHICLE'S BASIC ENGINEERING, ESPECIALLY COMING FROM A LUXURY CARMAKER THAT CLAIMS TO PROVIDE "THE ULTIMATE DRIVING EXPERIENCE."
1. WARNING DRIVE TRAIN MALFUNCTION 2. DROVE MODERATELY ON WAY DRIVING IN TO DEALERSHIP FOR REPAIR 3. OIL PRESSURE LOW STOP OR RISK DAMAGE TO ENGINE 4. PULLED OVER, HAD IT TOWED TO BMW 5. THEY CALLED THE NEXT MORNING STATING IT WAS 17,000 MOL DUE TO ENGINE BEING DAMAGED AFTER FRAGMENTS WENT IN FROM TIMING CHAIN 6. INSURANCE ADJUSTER WENT OUT AND CONQUERED BMW ISSUE TIMING CHAIN BROKE EFFECTING ENGINE OIL PUMP AND BATTERY 7. ENGINE INOPERABLE FUCNTIONALLY TOTALED CAR WAITING FOR BMW N AMERICA CASEMNGR TO RETURN MY CALL AND HOPEFULLY OFFER TO EXTEND WARRANTY OR OFFER GOOD WILL AND FIX -REPAIR ENGINE AND ALL RELATED TO MALFUNCTION 8. FOUND OUT USA CONSUMER CLASS ACTION SUIT IS CURRENTLY UNDER WAY FILED 12/12/19 AGAINST BMW FOR TIMING CHAIN ENGINE ISSUE... STILL WITHOUT RELIEF OR VEHICLE AND NO PERSONAL FUNDS TO GET CAR BACK AGAIN HOPING FOR RELIEF FROM BMW!
WARNING LIGHT REVEALED THAT PASSENGER SIDE FRONT AIRBAG IS FAULTY AND REQUIRES REPLACEMENT.
CAR WAS IN MOTION ON A SUBURB ROAD WHEN DASHBOARD LIGHT UP WITH 'DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION'.TIMING CHAIN BROKE AND DAMAGED THE ENGINE. THE CAR STOPPED IN THE MIDDLE OF ROAD ON AN INCLINE, BLOCKING THE TRAFFIC THAT COULD CAUSE ACCIDENT. VEHICLE ODO WAS 84666. THERE IS A TSB SI B11 03 17 ON THIS ISSUE, BUT THE WARRANTY EXPIRED AT 7 YEARS / 70,000 MILES.
WE EXPERIENCED A COMPLETE ENGINE FAILURE WHILE DRIVING THE VEHICLE AT APPROXIMATELY 40 MILES PER HOUR ON A CITY STREET. WE RECEIVED A "DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION" WARNING, SOMETHING THAT WE HAVE RECEIVED INTERMITTENTLY OVER THE PAST YEAR, WHICH WAS PREVIOUSLY DIAGNOSED AS A MINOR ISSUE. WE NOTICED A CHANGE IN ENGINE NOISE AND PERFORMANCE, WHICH WAS UNUSUAL. WHILE ATTEMPTING TO BRING THE CAR TO A BMW DEALERSHIP FOR SERVICE, A "LOW OIL PRESSURE" WARNING CAME ON AND THE ENGINE QUIT APPROXIMATELY 10 SECONDS LATER. I WAS ABLE TO COAST THE VEHICLE INTO A PARKING LOT, WHERE WE HAD IT TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP. THE DEALERSHIP DIAGNOSED IT AS A FAILURE OF THE TIMING CHAIN GUIDES AND ADVISED US THAT THE ENGINE NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THANKFULLY, WE WERE OPERATING UNDER THE FAVORABLE CONDITIONS TO SAFELY STOP THE VEHICLE; HOWEVER, THE FAILURE IS SUDDEN AND POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS. THROUGH RESEARCH, WE NOW KNOW THAT THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH THE ENGINE FOR THIS PARTICULAR YEAR AND MODEL. WE ATTEMPTED TO RESOLVE THE ISSUE WITH BMW NORTH AMERICA. THEY ARE AWARE THAT THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM AND WERE UNWILLING TO PROVIDE ANY ASSISTANCE.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 BMW X3. WHILE THE CONTACT'S FIANC WAS DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 35 MPH, THE VEHICLE SHUT OFF. ALSO, 'DRIVE TRAIN MALFUNCTION, DRIVE MODERATE SPEED' WAS ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO WAS UNABLE TO DIAGNOSE THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO BILL DODGE AUTO PARK (888-464-1978, LOCATED AT 2 SAUNDERS WAY, WESTBROOK, ME 04092) WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE VALVE COVER WAS CRACKED AND NEEDED TO BE REMOVED TO INSPECT THE TIMING CHAINS. THE TECHNICIAN STATED THAT THE ENGINE MAY NEED TO BE REPLACED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE AND DID NOT ASSIST. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 122,000.
UPON START UP THERE IS NO POWER ASSIST FOR 5-20 SECONDS. THIS STARTED TO OCCUR AT APPROX 60 THOUSAND MILES. DIAGNOSED AS FAILING EPS STEERING RACK.
THE ENGINE EXPERIENCED A SUDDEN ENGINE FAILURE WHILE DRIVING ON A HIGHWAY. THE FAILURE APPEARS TO BE FROM THE FAILURE OF THE PLASTIC GUIDE AND TENSIONING MECHANISM THAT IS USED IN TIMING CHAIN ASSEMBLY. THE PLASTIC BREAKS AND WEDGED BETWEEN THE TIMING CHAIN AND CRANKSHAFT TIMING SPROCKET CAUSING THE TIMING TO JUMP AND DAMAGE THE VALVETRAIN.
WHILE DRIVING STEERING STOPPED WORKING AND BECAME HARD TO STEERING , ERROR -DRIVE MODERATELY , INCREASED STEERING EFFORT REQUIRED ON DISPLAY , WHICH WAS EXTREMELY DIFFICULT AT SLOW SPEEDS , DEFINITELY A SAFETY ISSUE
WE PURCHASED A 2013 BMW X3 IN DECEMBER 2012. THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN DEALER SERVICED FROM DAY ONE. IN 2018, FAIRFAX BMW REPLACED THE TIMING CHAIN AT NO COST WHEN THE VEHICLE HAD ONLY 45K MILES WHICH IS HIGHLY UNUSUAL. IN EARLY AUGUST I WAS DRIVING ON INTERSTATE 81 SOUTH TRAVELLING FROM VIRGINIA TO ARIZONA. THE CAR BEGAN MAKING A TICKING SOUND WHICH BECAME PROGRESSIVELY LOUDER. I EXITED THE BUSY HIGHWAY AND BARELY MADE IT TO BMW OF ROANOKE, VA. I WAS TRAVELLING THE SPEED LIMIT WHEN THE PROBLEM BEGAN, AND WAS BARELY ABLE TO GO 45 MILES PER HOUR WHEN I EXITED. I SOON LEARNED THAT MY PARTICULAR ENGINE (F-25/N20) HAS A MAJOR DEFECT AND WILL LITERALLY BLOW UP WHILE DRIVING. BMW IS AWARE OF THE PROBLEM, AND HAS ENDANGERED MY HEALTH AND SAFETY BY REFUSING TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM. A CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT HAS BEEN FILED IN NEW JERSEY (CHRIS WILLIAMS, ET.AL. V. BMW NORTH AMERICA). THE DEALER IN ROANOKE SAID THE ENGINE IS UNREPAIRABLE WITH ONLY 51K MILES ON THE ODOMETER. ONE LAST OBSERVATION IN NOTICED IS THAT PRIOR TO STARTING MY TRIP I CHECKED THE ENGINE OIL LEVEL AND IT WAS ALMOST A QUART LOW WHICH HAD NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE. I FILLED THE ENGINE TO IT'S RECOMMENDED CAPACITY AND BEGAN MY TRAVEL. THERE IS A LIST OF AFFECTED VEHICLES WITH ENGINE DEFECTS, AND MY VEHICLE IS ON THE LIST.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 BMW X3. WHILE DRIVING 15 MPH AND APPROACHING A STOP SIGN, THE CHECK ENGINE WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED AND "DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION" AND "LOW OIL PRESSURE" APPEARED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. IN ADDITION, THE CONTACT STATED THAT A RATTLING NOISE WAS COMING FROM THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT AND THE VEHICLE STARTED TO SHAKE. THE CONTACT COASTED THE VEHICLE TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND POWERED OFF THE ENGINE. THE VEHICLE FAILED TO RESTART AND WAS TOWED TO THE CONTACT'S RESIDENCE. THE FOLLOWING DAY, THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE TIMING CHAIN WAS FRACTURED AND THE ENGINE NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT TAKEN TO A DEALER AND WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 79,000.
DRIVING ON HIGHWAY AROUND 70 MPH, DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION MESSAGE CAME ON MONITOR WITHIN A FEW SECONDS ANOTHER MESSAGE SAYING LOW OIL PRESSURE PULL TO SIDE AND CALL FOR SERVICE. MANGED TO PULL TO THE SIDE, BUT POTENTIAL WAS THERE AFTER LOSING POWER TO GET INTO AN ACCIDENT. I WAS 300 MILES FROM HOME ON JULY 4, 2019 NO SHOP WAS OPEN, SO HAD AAA TOW THE VEHICLE TO BMW DEALER, MET WITH THEM THE NEXT DAY AND FOUND OUT IT WAS A TIMING CHAIN ISSUE AND NEEDED A NEW ENGINE, HE ALSO INFORMED THIS WAS A KNOWN ISSUE AND THE BMW HAD EXTENDED THE WARRANTY TO 70K MILES, BUT SINCE I HAD 115K IT WAS OUT OF WARRANTY. CALLED CORPORATE BMW AND INFORMED THEM THAT THIS IS THE KNOWN ISSUE OF TIMING CHAIN AND THEY SHOULD PROVIDE ASSISTANCE, I HAVE BEEN DRIVING BMW FOR OVER 10 YEARS AND CURRENTLY OWN 2. THEY CAME BACK AND SAID THEY WILL NOT BE GIVING ANY GOODWILL OR ANYTHING TO HELP WITH THE REPAIR. THEY WOULD NOT STAND BY THEIR VEHICLE ON A KNOWN ISSUE WITH A LOYAL CUSTOMER. NEEDLESS TO SAY, I WON'T BUY A VEHICLE FROM A COMPANY THAT DOES NOT STAND BY THEIR VEHICLE. I HAVE LOOKED AT THE DATABASE AND FOUND MANY VEHICLES WITH THE SAME EXACT ISSUE, ENOUGH FOR BMW TO EXTEND THE WARRANTY FOR THIS ISSUE BUT CURRENTLY NOT ENOUGH FOR AN INVESTIGATION OR RECALL.
THE PASSENGER SENSOR MAT LINKED TO THE AIR BAG SYSTEM IS REPEATEDLY MALFUNCTIONING. IT IS OF THE SAME DESIGN AS PREVIOUSLY RECALLED SENSORS IN OTHER BMW MODELS. IT IS A SAFETY HAZARD AND SHOULD ALSO BE RECALLED.
FAULTY PLASTIC TIMING CHAIN GUIDE THAT FAILS PREMATURELY. AT 113,000, MY MECHANIC IS TELLING ME TO EITHER REPLACE THE TIMING CHAIN AND COMPONENTS, OR GET RID OF THE VEHICLE, AS THE ENGINE WILL EVENTUALLY FAIL IF THIS IN NOT ADDRESSED. AT NEARLY 5K OR MORE IN REPAIRS, THAT IS BASICALLY 50% OF THE VEHICLE'S RESALE VALUE. BMW IS AWARE OF THE ISSUE AND SHOULD ISSUE A RECALL FOR A BAD DESIGN AND FAULTY COMPONENTS. MANY OTHERS WITH THE BMW N20 ENGINE HAVE HAD THEIR ENGINE FAIL COMPLETELY, OR HAD TO PAY ASTRONOMICAL REPAIR COSTS TO CORRECT BMW'S DESIGN ERROR. A MULTI-BILLION DOLLAR COMPANY SHOULD BE HELD RESPONSIBLE FOR SELLING A PROBLEMATIC ENGINE, NOT THE OWNER.
DRIVING WEST ON I84 IN CT. JUST EAST OF EXIT 33 BEFORE RT 72 MERGE LOW OIL PRESSURE MESSAGE COMES ON. WITHIN 30 SECONDS DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION MESSAGE APPEARS AND THE ENGINE STARTS TO POWER DOWN. BARELY MADE IT ACROSS THE 2 LANES MERGING ON THE RIGHT AND ONTO THE SHOULDER BEFORE THE ENGINE LOST POWER ENTIRELY AND SHUT DOWN. COULD HAVE BEEN A TOTAL DISASTER GIVEN THE HIGH SPEED MERGE AND VOLUME OF TRAFFIC.
I WAS DRIVING DOWN A BUSY ROAD, MOVING AT ABOUT 25 MPH AND RECEIVED THE DRIVE TRAIN WARNING AND AS I WAS PULLING OVER, IR, THEN STUDENTLY I GOT A MESSAGE, ENGINE LOSS POWER, AND THE CAR SUDDENLY STOP NOT HAVE A CHANCE TO PULL OVER ..HOW DANGEROUS IS THIS I WAS WITH MY GRAND KIDS IN THE CAR . THE CAR WOULD NOT RESTART AND HAD TOW TO THE DEALER .. WAITING FOR ESTIMATED ..DANGEROUS SITUATION PULLING INTO TRAFFIC SPECIALLY ON A HIGHWAY WOULD NEVER RECOMMEND THIS "ULTIMATE DRIVING MACHINE" TO ANYONE! THEY WAITING FOR A FATAL CRASH TO TAKE ACTIONS ??????
DRIVING ON HIGHWAY BRAKING TO SLOWDOWN AT A LIGHT AS I WAS COMING INTO TOWN. MESSAGE CAME ON THAT OIL PRESSURE WAS LOW AND TO CALL ROADSIDE ASSIST. MOVED OFF HIGHWAY AND CUT ENGINE ON AND OF TWICE. MESSAGE CLEARED BUT DECIDED TO DRIVE HOME. MESSAGE CAME ON DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION DRIVE MODERATELY SO I CONTINUED ON FOR ABOUT 1.5 MILES AT SLOW SPEED. A CLICKING SOUND COULD BE HEARD. THE CAR JUMPED INTO NEUTRAL SO I COASTED TO A SAFE SPOT AND TRIED TO PUT CAR IN DRIVE UNSUCCESSFULLY. TURNED ENGINE OFF AND WOULD NOT RESTART. TOW TRUCK PUT ON FLATBED TO MECHANIC WHO THEN RAN A A SCAN. HE SAID THE ENGINE IS RUINED AND WILL NEED REPLACING. THE DEALER IN SAN ANTONIO, TX REPLACED THE TURBOCHARGER TWICE WITH THE LAST BEING IN THE FALL OF 2017. NOTHING WAS MENTIONED THAT THERE WAS SUCH A PROBLEM WITH THIS THAT AN EXTENDED WARRANTY HAD BEEN GIVEN. OUR CAR HAS 94,000 MILES. WE HAD JUST DRIVEN THROUGH HOUSTON IN A STORM. THIS COULD HAVE COST US OUR LIVES IF WE HAD BEEN STRANDED IN THE FLOODING HIGHWAY BLOCKING TRAFFIC LET ALONE OTHER LIVES.
DRIVING AT NORMAL SPEED. NOTIFICATION APPEARED OF DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION. I STOPPED THE CAR ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND TURNED THE ENGINE OFF. RESTARTED THE ENGINE AND THE NOTIFICATION WAS OFF. STARTED DRIVING AGAIN AND NOTIFICATION CAME ON LOW OIL PRESSURE. THE ENGINE STARTED TO MAKE A LOUD TICKING NOISE WHILE I PULLED OFF THE ROAD. CAR WAS TOWED TO MY HOME. CONTACTED THE DEALER FOR SERVICE. THEY STATED THAT IT WAS LIKELY A TIMING CHAIN ISSUE WHICH THEY HAVE EXTENDED THE WARRANTY TO COVER. MY CAR HAS 88K MILES. WHEN I TOLD THEM THE MILEAGE THEY TOLD ME IT WASN'T COVERED OVER 70K MILES. THEY SAID THAT IT SOUNDED LIKE THE DAMAGE WOULD LIKELY RUIN THE ENGINE AND REQUIRE POSSIBLY A NEW ENGINE. EITHER WAY, IT WOULD BE AT LEAST $1000 FOR THE INSPECTION AND DIAGNOSIS. I HAVE HAD REGULAR SERVICE AT THE DEALER AND THEY NEVER MENTIONED NO CHECKED FOR THIS POTENTIAL PROBLEM WHILE MY VEHICLE WAS IN FOR SERVICE WHEN THE MILEAGE WAS UNDER 70K.
VEHICLE STOPPED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD AND SENSORS LITE UP AND VEHICLE STALLED. MECHANIC DETERMINED IT WAS THE TIMING CHAIN, WARRANTY COMPANY DEMANDED ENGINE BE OPENED UP TO CHECK VALUES, FOUND TIMING CHAIN BOLT BROKEN OFF IN THE ENGINE NOT TO BE FOUND. WARRANTY COMPANY BLAMED BOLT AND REFUSED TO PAY REPAIRS, NEW ENGINE REQUIRED SINCE BOLT COULD NOT BE FOUND. NONE ISSUE WITH BMW
THERE IS A FAULTY CHIP IN THE TAIL LIGHT. THIS CAUSES A FAILURE OF THE TAIL LIGHT WITH NO ADVANCED WARNING. TYPICALLY WHEN A BULB GOES OUT THE DRIVER WILL GET A WARNING IN THE GAUGE CLUSTER. THIS FAULTY CHIP PREVENTS THE WARNING.
MY 2013 X BMW WAS GIVING A MESSAGE ON THE DASH BOARD STATING IF I STOP THE ENGINE I MAY NOT BE ABLE TO RE-START THE CAR. ON APRIL 17, 2019 I DROVE TO PRIME MOTOR GROUP BMW OF NORWOOD, MA FOR SERVICE. I WAS TOLD THAT THE REPLACE A PART AND THE CAR CANNOT START, AT THIS POINT I WAS GETTING AN E-MAIL FROM THE DEALER WITH AN ESTIMATE COST OF CLOSE TO $5,500 TO REPAIR IT. AT THE TIME TAKING THE CAR FOR THE PROBLEM, THERE WERE 5 RECALLS PENDING FOR MY CAR THAT NEEDED IMMEDIATE ATTENTION REPAIR, BUT THE RECALLS WAS KEPT SECRET FROM ME UNTIL ON APRIL 24, 2019 I TOWED THE CAR BACK TO THE DEALER TO REPLACE THE BATTERY FOR $525 AS I WAS TOLL BY THE SERVICE COUNSELOR TO GET THAT START BACK. AS OFF NOW, MY CAR IS STILL SEATING AT THE DEALER, BUT I DON'T HAVE $5,500 TO REPAIR THE ENGINE AND THE ELECTRICAL ISSUES.
WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY LOW OIL PRESSURE LIGHT CAME ON AND THE ENGINE LOCKED ITSELF. GOT TOWED TO THE DEALER AND WAS TOLD TIMING CHAIN PROBLEM AND NEW ENGINE POTENTIALLY. AFTER SOME RESEARCH FOUND THE SAME INCIDENT HAPPENING TO LOTS OF PEOPLE. I ALSO FOUND THAT THERE IS AN EXTENDED WARRANTY ON THIS 7/70,000. WE WERE LUCKY TO HAVE 69,550 MILES.
I WAS DRIVING IN THE HIGHWAY WITH MY 7 MONTH OLD BABY AND ALL OF THE SUDDEN MY CAR STOPS, IT WAS TOWED TO THE CLOSEST BMW DEALER. ONE DAY LATER I GET A NOTIFICATION IN MY EMAIL THAT THE ENGINE IS NO LONGER WORKING DUE TO A TIMING CHAIN PROBLEM. THE TOTAL COST FOR REPAIR IS 15K!
2013 BMW X3 SDRIVE28I (F25) TIMING CHAIN RAIL GUIDE FAILED AT 70,800 MILES ON ROUTE 80, NEAR AKRON, OHIO. "LOW OIL PRESSURE" WARNING DISPLAYED ON DASHBOARD, TRAVELING AROUND 77MPH ON CRUISE CONTROL. BMW OF AKRON SAID THAT BMWNA WILL COVER 35% OF THE COST OF A "GOODWILL" ENGINE REPLACEMENT. OUT OF POCKET EXPENSE: $7,706.67. THE CAR IS CURRENTLY WORTH $14,000 RETAIL AT THIS POINT (APRIL 2019).
INTERMITTENT WARNING MESSAGE DISPLAYING PASSENGER RESTRAINT SYSTEM MALFUNCTION. SERVICE ADVISER STATED THIS IS COMMON ON X3S. EXACT ISSUE WAS DEFECTIVE PASSENGER SEAT OCCUPANCY MAT (COST $1380). COMMON DEFECTS SHOULD BE COVERED UNDER A RECALL, BUT NO RECALL EXISTS FOR THIS ISSUE.
IN THE MORNING OF MARCH 25TH, 2019 IN RUSH HOUR HIGHWAY TRAFFIC THE BMW X3 2013 WITH 92,000 MILES ON ODOMETER CEASED NORMAL OPERATION AND WAS MAKING VERY LOUD METALLIC NOISE. CAR WENT TO "LIMP" MODE AND WAS ABLE TO BE DRIVEN OFF THE HIGHWAY AND PARK. CAR COULD NOT BE RE-STARTED AT THAT TIME. CAR WAS TOWED TO LOCAL BMW DEALERSHIP WHERE THE SERVICE DEPT DIAGNOSED CAR WITH MAJOR ENGINE FAILURE, ADMITTING WAS LIKELY RELATED TO MALFUNCTIONED TIMING CHAIN GUARD A KNOWN ENGINEERING DEFECT FOR THE BMW N20 28I ENGINE FOR THE 2013 MODEL YEAR. SUGGESTED RESOLUTION WAS NEW ENGINE QUOTED ORIGINALLY AT $16,000 BUT LOWERED TO $11,300 PLUS TAX FOR A CAR VALUED AT ROUGHLY $12,000. BMW NA OFFERED ASSISTANCE IN DISCOUNTING THE REPAIR TO THE QUOTED AMOUNT OF $11,300 BUT WILL NOT AUTHORIZE FULL COVERAGE FOR REPAIR COST AS CAR IS OUTSIDE OF THE EXTENDED WARRANTY OF 7 YEAR/70K. THE ORIGINAL WARRANTY WAS INCREASED DUE TO KNOWN DEFECTS AND FAILURES OF THE N20 ENGINE AND APPARENTLY NO PROACTIVE OFFER AT BMW NA'S EXPENSE TO FIX THIS ISSUE.
FOR THE PAST 3 MONTHS, I KEEP GETTING THIS MESSAGE ON THE DASHBOARD: DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION: DRIVE MODERATELY. MAXIMUM DRIVETRAIN OUTPUT AVAILABLE. CONSULT SERVICE CENTER. I HAD THE TURBO, VACUUM HOSE, REPLACED LAST MONTH. NOW IT IS DOING THE SAME THING OVER AND OVER AGAIN. WHY IS THIS HAPPENING?? PLEASE ADVISE!!
JANUARY 12, 2019 CAR WAS PARKED UNOCCUPIED ON STREET FOR 2+HOURS AFTER DRIVING IT 20 MILES. VEHICLE SPONTANEOUSLY CAUGHT FIRE AND BURNED TO THE GROUND, TOTAL LOSS. ENGINE REPLACED BY BMW ONE YEAR PRIOR UNDER WARRANTY FOR TIMING CHAIN GUIDE FAILURE. COMPLETE SERVICE PERFORMED BY BMW IN OCTOBER 2018. APPROXIMATELY 66,000 MILES ON VEHICLE.
JAN/25/2019 4P CST, WIFE WAS DRIVING AT LOW SPEEDS, CAR SHOWED "ENGINE OIL PRESSURE LOW" WARNING, AND THEN STALLED AT THE INTERSECTION OF 15TH ST SE AND 5TH ST SE, MINNESOTA, MN. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO MOTORWERKS BMW SERVICE DEPT, 1300 AMERICAN BLVD W, BLOOMINGTON, MN 55420. SERVICE ADVISOR, LORREN, SUGGESTED THAT THE TIMING CHAIN BROKE, AND HAS CAUSED CATASTROPHIC, IRREPARABLE DAMAGE TO THE MOTOR, AND A NEW MOTOR WOULD BE REQUIRED. NOW, I'M NO CAR EXPERT, BUT THERE 1 THING FOR SURE THAT THERE NO WAY A TIMING CHAIN SHOULD JUST BREAK LIKE THAT, AND DESTROY THE ENGINE, UNLESS THERE A MAJOR DESIGN FLAW SO, I DID SOME DIGGING, AND THERE ARE A LOT OF SIMILAR CASES FOR 2013 X3 28I WITH N20 MOTORS. IT SEEMS LIKE BMW HAS AWARE OF THE DESIGN FLAW, AND BMW REDESIGNED THE PROBLEM COMPONENTS, HAD EXTENDED THE WARRANTY TO 7YRS/70K MILES, BUT NEVER ISSUED A SAFETY RECALL. THIS ISSUE IS SO WIDESPREAD THAT THERE'S ALREADY A CLASS ACTION FILED FOR THIS ISSUE - HTTP://BMWENGINEFAILURECLASSACTION.COM/ SOME REPORTS: HTTPS://DEFECTIVECONSUMERPRODUCTS.WORDPRESS.COM/2017/05/08/BMW-N20-N26-ENGINE-TIMING-CHAIN-ANDOR-OIL-PUMP-DRIVE-CHAIN-COMPONENT-FAILURE/ HTTP://BMWENGINEFAILURECLASSACTION.COM/?FBCLID=IWAR3-WGGD2DJJSWTIPHSQSUM9AVL43Q3LP3ZWJEQREXN3LUXIPQAR2V2O9YK HTTPS://WWW.CARCOMPLAINTS.COM/NEWS/2017/BMW-N20-N26-ENGINE-LAWSUIT-BLAMES-TIMING-CHAINS.SHTML HTTP://WWW.CARPROBLEMZOO.COM/BMW/X3/ENGINE-FAILURE-PROBLEMS.PHP HTTPS://WWW.CARCOMPLAINTS.COM/BMW/X3/2013/ENGINE/BROKEN_TIMING_CHAIN_GUIDE.SHTML HTTPS://WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/PAGES/CATEGORY/COMMUNITY/BMW-PROBLEM-TIMING-CHAIN-293617047394760/ HTTP://WWW.RIGHTFOOTDOWN.COM/CARS/AUTOMOTIVE-NEWS/BMW-REDESIGNS-N20-TIMING-CHAIN-COMPONENTS-N26-TOO/ HTTPS://WWW.BIMMERFEST.COM/FORUMS/SHOWTHREAD.PHP?T=901376 HTTPS://WWW.BIMMERFEST.COM/FORUMS/SHOWTHREAD.PHP?T=912547 HTTPS://X3.XBIMMERS.COM/FORUMS/SHOWTHREAD.PHP?T=1496333
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 BMW X3. AFTER THE CONTACT ADDED COOLANT TO THE VEHICLE, THE CHECK ENGINE INDICATOR ILLUMINATED AND "COOLANT LOW, REFILL COOLANT AND CHECK STATUS" APPEARED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO STEVEN'S CREEK BMW (4343 STEVENS CREEK BLVD, SANTA CLARA, CA 95051, (800) 298-1501) WHERE IT WAS DETERMINED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS NOT INCLUDED IN A RECALL. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE AND DID NOT ASSIST. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 70,000.
TIMING CHAIN BROKEN
I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY AT SPEED 55 - 65 MILES PER HR, THEN STUDENTLY I GOT A MESSAGE, ENGINE LOSS POWER, AND THE CAR SUDDENLY STOP. I WAS ABLE TO SLIDE TO THE SIDE OFF ROAD. CAR WAS TOWED TO BMX DEALER. THE I RECEIVED LATER, I HAD ENGINE FAILURE. THEY SAID IT IS COMMON PROBLEM DUE TO MANUFACTURER PROBLEM. CAR WAS 106,117 MILES. REALLY SURPRISING TO SEE CAR ENGINE FAILED THIS WAY. SOMETHING MUST BE WRONG WITH THE MANUFACTURE. ALSO SO DANGEROUS FOR A CAR TO FAILED STUDENTLY ON ROAD THIS WAY. RISK OF ACCIDENTS.
PASSENGER RESTRAINT SYSTEM MALFUNCTION WARNING APPEARS MOSTLY WHEN NO ONE IS IN THE SEAT
VEHICLE HAD POOR ACCELERATION WHEN DRIVING ON THE ROAD. BROUGHT IT INTO BMW SERVICE CENTER AND WAS INFORMED THAT THE TIMING CHAIN AND OIL CHAIN HAD FAILED AND I NEEDED A NEW ENGINE. NO PRIOR PROBLEMS BEFORE THIS. ONLY 90000 MILES ON THE VEHICLE.
DRIVING THE CAR ON THE HIGHWAY WHEN THE SCREEN ON THE CAR FLASHES A 'DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION ERROR', NO PRIOR ISSUES OR WARNINGS AND IT SAID TO DRIVE MODERATELY, NO OTHER WARNING OR TO STOP. I PULLED INTO THE NEAREST DEALER WHICH WAS LESS THAN A MILE AWAY AND TURNED THE CAR OFF, THE SERVICE MANAGER CAME OUT AND TRIED TO TURN THE CAR BACK ON AND COULDN'T, SO THEY REPLACED THE BATTERY AND WERE ABLE TO START IT EXCEPT THEY COULDN'T GET THE CAR OUT OF PARK, THE CAR WAS FLAT BEDDED TO THE BMW DEALER AND AFTER A MONTH THEY LET ME KNOW THAT MY CAR HAD COMPLETE ENGINE FAILURE DUE TO THE TIMING CHAIN BREAKING WHICH CAUSED THE 'CATASTROPHIC ENGINE FAILURE'. I HAVE READ HUNDREDS IF NOT THOUSANDS OF OTHER STORIES THAT MIRROR MY EXPERIENCE TO A TEE, SOME HOWEVER WERE NOT AS LUCKY AS I WAS TO BE ABLE TO GET OUT OF THE MIDDLE OF THE HIGHWAY/ROAD BEFORE THEIR CAR COMPLETELY LOCKED UP AND DID NOT MOVE. BMW ADMITS THAT THESE CARS HAVE ISSUES WITH THE TIMING CHAIN MATERIAL THEY USED, WHICH HAPPENS TO BE PLASTIC; HOWEVER, DUE TO THE COST OF REPLACING ALL OF THESE PARTS IN THE KNOWN CARS THAT THEY WOULD COST BMW NA MORE $500 MILLION. IF THE NHTSA DOES NOT STEP IN AND FORCE THEM TO FIX THESE FAULTY PARTS THEY WILL END UP HAVING ONE OF THESE BMW'S WITH THE N20 OR N26 ENGINES FAIL WHILE DRIVING ON A ROAD AND SOMEONE IS GOING TO END UP GETTING KILLED BECAUSE OF IT. BMW IS HIDING THE SEVERITY OF THESE FAILURES IN THEIR PARTS AND BECAUSE NOBODY HAS DIED OR FACED AN INJURY THEY WILL NOT TAKE THE INITIATIVE AND ISSUE A RECALL, THEY JUST EXTENDED THE WARRANTY FOR THE REPLACEMENT OF THESE PARTS FOR AN ADDITIONAL 10K MILES BECAUSE THEY KNOW THE PLASTIC TIMING CHAIN LASTS ON AVERAGE TO ABOUT 70K WHICH IS WHY THE WARRANTY IS NOW FOR 7 YEARS/70K MILES OR WHICHEVER COMES FIRST. IN CLOSING, MY CAR ENGINE FACED ENGINE FAILURE AND COMPLETELY SEIZED AT 77K MILES.
FAULTY TIMING CHAIN AND GUIDES. BMW IS ALREADY AWARE OF THIS ISSUES WITH THE N20 TYPE OF ENGINE AND EXTENDED OUT A WARRANTY MANY OF THE VEHICLES BUT MOST OF THE TIMING CHAIN FAIL JUST AFTER THE 70K MILE LIMIT IMPOSED IN THE EXTENSION. BMW OFFERED ME NO HELP IN THIS MATTER AND I HAD TO PAY OUT OF POCKET FOR A REPAIR ON A VEHICLE THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN REPAIRED.
DRIVE TRAIN LIGHT CAME ON AS I WAS ON PARKWAY AND CAR LOST POWER GOING FROM 55 TO 30 MPH. INFORMED THAT THERE IS A TIMING CHAIN ISSUE
STOPPED AT A STOP SIGN IN A RESIDENTIAL AREA, WARNING LIGHT CAME ON INDICATING A DRIVERTRAIN PROBLEM, CAR LOST POWER. RESTARTED CAR; WOULD ONLY MOVE SLOWLY (AT 20-30MPH). COMPUTER RECOMMENDED DRIVING MODERATELY. LATER GOT THE PROBLEM FIXED BY LOCAL DEALER. ABOUT 5 MONTHS LATER, SAME ISSUE OCCURRED. STARTED CAR AT WORK TO DRIVE HOME. SAME WARNING LIGHT CAME ON INDICATING THE SAME ISSUE. CAR WOULD MOVE ONLY AT UP TO 30MPH. LUCKY BOTH TIMES THE PROBLEM CAME UP AT LOCAL STREETS. IF ON HIGHWAY, CATASTROPHIC CONSEQUENCES WOULD OCCUR.
AT APPROX. 60,200 MILES, I WAS DRIVING DOWN A SECONDARY ROAD, MOVING AT ABOUT 45 MPH AND RECEIVED THE DRIVE TRAIN WARNING AND AS I WAS PULLING OVER, I RECEIVED THE LOW ENGINE PRESSURE WARNING. I WAS ABLE TO PULL OVER AND TURN OFF THE ENGINE AND HAVE MY VEHICLE TOWED.
I HAVE A 2013 BMW X3 WITH 85K MILES AND WAS DRIVING ON A 4-LANE HIGHWAY AT 55 MPH WHEN A WARNING LIGHT CAME ON INDICATING A DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION AND THAT I SHOULD 'DRIVE MODERATELY'. WITHIN SECONDS, A SECOND WARNING LIGHT CAME ON INDICATING LOW OIL PRESSURE AND THAT I SHOULD 'ADD A QUART OF OIL'. I IMMEDIATELY PULLED OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD WHERE THE CAR SHIFTED INTO NEUTRAL WITHOUT ME TOUCHING THE GEAR SHIFT. I TURNED THE CAR OFF TO CHECK THE OWNER'S MANUAL ABOUT THE DRIVETRAIN WARNING LIGHT, AND THE CAR WOULD NOT RESTART. THE ENTIRE SCENARIO LASTED ABOUT 10-15 SECONDS, AND PRIOR TO THIS, I HAD NO PROBLEMS WITH THE CAR AND WAS DILIGENT ABOUT PERFORMING ROUTINE SERVICE ACCORDING TO THE MANUFACTURER'S INSTRUCTIONS. THE CAR WAS TOWED TO THE CLOSEST BMW DEALERSHIP. I RECEIVED A CALL THE FOLLOWING DAY NOTIFYING ME THAT CATASTROPHIC DAMAGE HAD OCCURRED TO THE ENGINE AND THAT I NEEDED A NEW ENGINE! APPARENTLY, THE TIMING CHAIN GUIDE BROKE, THE PIECES FELL INTO THE OIL PAN AND LODGED AGAINST THE SCREEN THAT KEEPS DEBRIS OUT OF THE ENGINE, AND STARVED THE ENGINE OF OIL. WHILE I AM CONCERNED ABOUT THE $12,000 REPAIR BILL, I AM EQUALLY CONCERNED ABOUT THE DANGER THAT IS POSED BY THE SUDDEN AND COMPLETE DISABLEMENT OF THE VEHICLE THAT COULD RESULT IN INJURY OR DEATH TO THE CAR OWNER OR TO ANOTHER DRIVER WHO ENCOUNTERS THE DISABLED CAR ON A BUSY HIGHWAY. THIS IS A RECURRING PROBLEM. I SPOKE WITH 3 SERVICE ADVISORS AT 3 DIFFERENT DEALERSHIPS, AND THE SERVICE ADVISORS SAID 'IT IS A RECURRING PROBLEM'. I ALSO REVIEWED NHTSA AND CARCOMPLAINTS.COM WEBSITES AND FOUND NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS ABOUT THE SAME PROBLEM. I ANTICIPATE MORE INCIDENCES OF TIMING CHAIN GUIDE FAILURE MORE DRIVERS REACH 75K PLUS MILES.
VARIOUS FAILURES IN POWER TRAIN INCLUDING TRANSFER CASE, TURBO, HIGH PRESSURE FUEL INJECTION, AND TRANSMISSION. FAILURES HAVE HAPPENED WHILE TRAVELING ON CALIFORNIA FREEWAYS. FAILURES SOMETIMES REQUIRE TOWING. SOMETIMES CAUTION DRIVER TO PROCEED AT LOWER SPEEDS.
THE BRAKES ARE LESS OR NOT RESPONSIVE IN CITY DRIVE. I NOTIFIED 3 TIMES TO DEALER BUT THEY SAID NO PROBLEM WITH THE BRAKES. IT MUST BE SOMETHING WRONG IN ELECTRONICS. ALOT OF OTHER OWNERS OF 2013 BMW X3 HAVE SAME COMPLAINT. IT IS VERY RISKY. IT HAPPENED 3 OUT OF 4 TIMES WHIKE DRIVING IN 35 MPH LIMITS. THOUGH THE BRAKES FEEL GOOD AT HIGH SPEED OR HIGHWAY LIMITS
WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY AT 60-70 MILES, THE LOW OIL PRESSURE LIGHT CAME ON, IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWED BY A DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION INDICATOR LIGHT THEN CAR COMPLETELY LOST ALL POWER INCLUDING BREAKS AND STEERING. LUCKILY WAS ABLE TO PULL OVER TO A SERVICE LANE. THE CAR WOULD NOT RESTART AND HAD TOW TO THE DEALER. DEALER PERFORMED AN OIL ANALYSIS AND FOUND LOTS OF METAL SHAVINGS/PARTICLES IN THE OIL WHICH CAUSED THE ENGINE TO SEIZE. MEANWHILE THE OIL WAS JUST CHANGED 3 WEEKS PRIOR. CLEARLY THIS IS MANUFACTURE DEFECT. BMW NORTH AMERICA DOES NOT WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THIS EVEN THOUGH THERE ARE NUMEROUS CLASS ACTIONS SUITS REGARDING TIMING CHAIN FAILURE WHICH CAUSES THE ENGINE TO SEIZE DUE TO FAILURE OF PLASTIC TIMING CHAIN GUIDES. HAD TO PAY OUT OF POCKET TO REPAIR DEFECTIVE ENGINE. THERE NEEDS TO BE A RECALL AS THIS COULD HAVE BEEN CATASTROPHIC IF SOMEONE WAS SERIOUSLY HURT OR EVEN KILLED. BMW DOES NOT VALUE THE SAFETY OF THEIR CONSUMERS NOR DO THEY STAND BY THEIR PRODUCTS. THIS IS TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE. IN GOOD CONSCIENCE, I WOULD NEVER RECOMMEND THIS "ULTIMATE DRIVING MACHINE" TO ANYONE!
AS WITH OTHER BMW'S, THESE TOO HAVE FAULTY OCCUPANCY SENSORS WHICH SHOULD NOT BE GOING BAD ACROSS OTHER LINES. THERE IS NO REASON THIS VEHICLE SHOULD NOT BE INCLUDED IN THE RECALL FOR EXACTLY THE SAME REASON AS OTHERS ARE RECALLED FOR FAULTY SENSORS.
DIGEST: - ENGINE STOPPED OPERATION SUDDENLY WHEN RUNNING ON A CITY STREET, I FELT DANGEROUS SINCE THE VEHICLE BEHIND ME HONKED LOUDLY. - THE ENGINE WAS SEIZED. THE DEALER AND BMW CUSTOMER CENTER DETERMINE THAT REASON IS LACKING IN ENGINE OIL CHANGE. - THE TRUE ROOT CAUSE IS THAT THE CAR HAS NO ENGINE OIL LEVEL WARNING MESSAGE OR SIGN SHOWN ON EITHER CLUSTER OR CONTROL DISPLAY. DESCRIPTION: WHEN I WAS DRIVING THE CAR ON CITY ROAD THE ENGINE SUDDENLY STOPPED. THERE WAS A NEAR ACCIDENT SINCE THE CAR BEHIND HONKED LOUDLY. SINCE THE ENGINE OIL IS RELATED THE CRITICAL SAFETY ISSUE, I BELIEVE ALL PASSENGER CAR SHOULD BE EQUIPPED WITH ENGINE OIL WARNING FEATURE (I SEE IT IN FMVSS REQUIREMENT). BMW OWNER'S MANUAL DESCRIBES "THE OIL LEVEL IS MONITORED ELECTRONICALLY DURING DRIVING AND SHOWN ON THE CONTROL DISPLAY" (SEE ATTACHED 1), BUT MY CAR DID NOT SHOW THIS KIND OF WARNING. THERE ARE TWO POSSIBILITIES: (1) THE FUNCTION OF WARNING DEFECTED OR (2) THIS FUNCTION WAS NOT ACTUALLY EQUIPPED ORIGINALLY (MANUFACTURER LIES TO CONSUMER). EACH WAY, THERE IS A DESIGN DEFECT. BY THE WAY, I CHECKED THE ENGINE OIL LEVEL AFTER THE ENGINE MALFUNCTIONED. THE CONTROL DISPLAY SHOWS GREEN "ENGINE OIL LEVEL IS OK (SEE ATTACHED 2) I BELIEVE THAT SAME DEFECT EXISTS IN MULTIPLE MODELS OF BMW CAR. THERE ARE POTENTIALLY MORE DRIVERS WILL MISS THE ENGINE OIL CHANGE BECAUSE THERE IS NOT ENGINE OIL CHANGE WARNING. THEREFORE THERE ARE HIGH POTENTIAL HIGHWAY ACCIDENTS HAPPEN IN THE FUTURE SINCE THIS DEFECT. BMW SHOULD IMMEDIATELY RECALL ALL MODELS WITH THIS DEFECT. I SEE THERE IS A RECALL CASE IN NHTSA WEBSITE DUE TO "LACK OF DRIVER WARNING FOR LOW ENGINE OIL PRESSURE", RECALL NUMBER IS 13V592000.
THE BAFFLES ARE LOOSE IN MY MUFFLER CAUSING A TERRIBLE NOISE. I BELIEVE THIS IS ALSO CAUSING MY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT TO COME ON. MY CAR IS RUNNING RICH. BMW SAYS IT'S ANNOYING BUT NOT CAUSING AND ISSUES ON MY CAR. THEY SAY IT'S $1,200 TO FIX. IT STARTED OUT ONLY MAKING THE NOISE SOMETIMES. IT THEN PROGRESSED TO WHEN STANDING STILL. NOW IT DOES IT EVEN WHEN DRIVING. PEOPLE CONSTANTLY ASK ME WHAT'S WRONG WITH MY CAR.
ENGINE FAILURE WHILE DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY AT 10PM DURING INCLEMENT RAINY WEATHER 350 MILES FROM MY HOME. FIRST, THE OIL PRESSURE WARNING REDUCE SPEED APPEARED. WHILE TRYING TO SAFELY GET OFF THE FREEWAY THE DRIVE TRAIN WARNING APPEARED. AT THAT TIME, VEHICLE LOST ALL POWER AND I PULLED TO THE SHOULDER IMMEDIATELY. AFTER VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE CLOSEST EUROPEAN CAR MECHANIC, THE MECHANIC DIAGNOSED THE VEHICLE AND INDICATED THE TIMING CHAIN BROKE WHICH CAUSED ENGINE FAILURE. THE TIMING CHAIN IS ONLY WARRANTED UP TO 70K MILES. VEHICLE HAS 83K MILE. THERE ARE NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS ABOUT ENGINE ISSUES WITH THIS VEHICLE AND BMW SHOULD OFFER A RECALL FOR FAILED COMPONENTS. UNACCEPTABLE TO HAVE A FAILED ENGINE AND I PLAN TO TAKE THIS ISSUE TO BMW CORPORATE.
I OWN A 2013 BMW X3 AND I RECEIVED A NOTIFICATION OF A TIMING CHAIN ISSUE FROM BMW. APPARENTLY, THIS WAS AN ISSUE ONLY FOR THE 2013 N20 ENGINES, WHERE THE TIMING CHAIN GUIDE IS PRONE TO BREAKING DUE TO THE USE OF A SOFT METAL, WHICH TYPICALLY RESULTS IN A COMPLETE ENGINE REPLACEMENT. BMW WILL REIMBURSE YOU ON THIS REPAIR IF THIS BREAKS PRIOR TO 7 YEARS OF OWNERSHIP OR 70K MILES. I'D HATE TO GET TO THE POINT WHERE I HAVE TO BE BROKEN DOWN, GET THE CAR TOWED AND PAY FOR REPAIRS SO I WANTED TO KNOW IF THIS COULD BE FIXED WHILE STILL UNDER THE LIMITED WARRANTY COVERED BY BMW, WHICH THEY STATED THEY WOULD NOT AS IT IS NOT A RECALL. THE FACT THAT THIS ISSUE CAN RESULT IN 'CATASTROPHIC ENGINE FAILURE', IS NOT A RECALL, AND BWM IS NOT WILLING TO PROACTIVELY REPLACE A KNOWN DEFECTIVE PART TELLS ME THEY ARE NOT CONCERNED WITH THE SAFETY OF THEIR OWNERS OR TO STAND BY THEIR OWN MANUFACTURING MISTAKES.
2013 BMW X3. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO VEHICLE BRAKE REPAIRS NOT COVERED UNDER EXTENDED WARRANTY. *LD *JS
LAST WEEK WHEN IN CITY TRAFFIC, I DEPRESSED THE BRAKE TO SLOW DOWN, THEN LIFTED MY FOOT OFF THE BRAKE. MY CAR LURCHED FORWARD AND I IMMEDIATELY BRAKED AGAIN TO SLOW DOWN AND STOP. THIS WAS NOT NORMAL, HAD NOT HAPPENED BEFORE, AND I DECIDED TO MENTION IT DURING MY NEXT VISIT TO BMW SERVICE. LAST SATURDAY, FEB. 17, I WAS DRIVING 20 -25 MPH IN A NEIGHBORHOOD, APPROACHING A RED LIGHT ON RIVER RD, BETHESDA. THERE WAS ONE CAR AT THE LIGHT. I BRAKED TO SLOW DOWN, AND REALIZED THAT THE CAR WAS NOT SLOWING DOWN, BRAKED AGAIN AND IT LURCHED FORWARD AND ACCELERATED. I SAW THE SPEED THE SPEEDOMETER MOVING BETWEEN 20-25, AND THE TACHOMETER VARYING WILDLY BETWEEN 1.5 - 2.5. I PRESSED VERY HARD ON THE BRAKE, WHICH WAS HARDER TO PRESS DOWN THAN EVER BEFORE, PRESSED THE PARK BUTTON AND FINALLY GOT THE CAR TO GO INTO PARK BEFORE I ARRIVED AT THE STOPPED VEHICLE IN FRONT OF ME. THIS ALL HAPPENED IN LESS THAN 10 SECONDS. I IMMEDIATELY CALLED BMW AND TOOK MY CAR IN, EXPLAINING WHAT HAPPENED, STILL VERY SHAKEN AND AFRAID TO DRIVE THE CAR. AFTERWARDS, I LOOKED ON THE INTERNET, AND READ ABOUT OTHER 2013 X3 DRIVERS WITH THE SAME EXPERIENCE. IT DID NOT APPEAR THAT BMW WAS ABLE TO REPLICATE THE PROBLEM OR THAT THEY REPAIRED THE CARS TO FIX THE PROBLEM. ONE PERSON DID HAVE AN ACCIDENT AND TOTALED THE CAR. THUS FAR, BMW HAS TOLD ME THEY CANNOT REPLICATE THE PROBLEM. I REQUESTED THE SERVICE MANAGER TO GET INVOLVED AND WILL ASK TO SPEAK TO THE FACTORY REP AS WELL. THIS IS A MAJOR SAFETY HAZARD PUTTING MY LIFE AND OTHERS AT RISK. IT IS NOT SAFE TO DRIVE MY CAR. I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW HOW MANY SIMILAR COMPLAINTS HAVE BEEN FILED WITH NHTSA AND WHAT NHTSA HAS DONE TO ADDRESS THIS SERIOUS SAFETY FLAW.
I WAS DRIVING DOWN THE INTERSTATE AT 75MPH AND PUT THE CAR INTO SPORT MODE, IT SUDDENLY WENT FROM 2000 RPM CRUISING TO 6000 RPM AND BACK TO ZERO. THE CAR HAD LOST COMPLETE POWER. I PUSHED THE GAS AND NOTHING HAPPENED; LUCKILY I WAS ABLE TO COAST TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND PULL OVER. I TRIED TO RESTART THE CAR BUT NOTHING HAPPENED. THE RADIO, AIR, AND WINDOWS STILL WORKED BUT NOTHING ELSE. I HAD AAA TOW THE CAR TO THE CLOSEST BMW DEALERSHIP. THE BMW DEALERSHIP CALLED ME TO ASK IF I HAD A DEAD BATTERY; I TOLD THEM BATTERIES DO NOT DIE DRIVING DOWN THE INTERSTATE. BMW THEN CALLED ME BACK TO TELL ME THAT THE ENGINE SEIZED AND IT WAS TOTAL FAILURE, BUT THEY COULD NOT TELL ME ANYTHING SPECIFIC WHEN I ASKED. THEY SAID I COULD PAY $6,000 IN LABOR TO HAVE A MECHANIC RIP IT APART TO FIND THE EXACT CAUSE AND THEN PAY THE ADDITIONAL COST TO HAVE WHATEVER WAS BROKEN REPLACED OR THAT I COULD GO AHEAD AND PAY $10,000 UPFRONT TO HAVE THE ENGINE REPLACED. A 2013 CAR, THAT HAS ROUTINE MAINTENANCE SHOULD NOT HAVE THIS HAPPEN. I COULD HAVE BEEN IN A SERIOUS ACCIDENT FROM THIS, AND NOW I HAVE NO CAR TO DRIVE.
VEHICLE STALLED ON THE HIGHWAY DUE TO THE TIMING CHAIN GUIDE BREAKING, I WAS TOLD IT IS MADE OF PLASTIC AND DAMAGED OTHER PARTS OF THE ENGINE THAT NEEDS TO BE REPLACED AS WELL TOTALING $7,000. AFTER EXTENSIVE RESEARCH THIS ISSUE SEEMS TO BE RECURRING ON 2013 BMW X3S. ADDITIONALLY, THE REPORTS I HAVE RESEARCHED ONLINE INCLUDE NEW VEHICLES TO OLDER BMWS RANGING FROM 30,000 MILEAGE TO 100,000 MILEAGE. I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE USED AT ABOUT 57,000 AND WAS NEVER TOLD ABOUT THIS ISSUE. I AM AWAITING FOR A CALL FROM BMW NORTH AMERICA TO SEE IF THERE IS ANYTHING THEY CAN DO. I WAS TOLD THERE WAS AN EXTENDED WARRANTY FOR THESE PARTS WHEN THEY IDENTIFIED THEY WERE FAULTY BUT SINCE I HAD PURCHASED THE VEHICLE USED I NEVER RECEIVED THIS NOTICE.
START/STOP SWITCH CAUSES TRANSMISSION MALFUNCTION STOPPING FORWARD MOTION OF VEHICLE FROM STANDING START CAUSING FAILURE TO PROCEED SUDDENLY. TURNING OFF THE SYSTEM IS THE ONLY WAY TO STOP THIS FROM HAPPENING. DANGEROUS SITUATION PULLING INTO TRAFFIC IS THE RESULT. THIS HAS HAPPENED DAILY.
WHILE DRIVING IN A LOW SPEED STREET THE ENGINE WITH ANY NOTICE, LOST ALL THE POWER SUDDENLY AND DID NOT ACCELERATE. IT SHOWED A MESSAGE ON THE SCREEN INDICATING A TOTAL LACK A POWER; THE THROTTLE DID NOT WORK AND DESPITE THE ENGINE KEPT RUNNING IT STAYED AT THE MINIMUM RPM. IT HAPPENED TWICE IN A THREE MONTHS PERIOD. THE FIRST TIME (OCTOBER 2017) THE LOCAL IMPORT SERVICE SHOP DID NOT FIND ANY ABNORMALITY AND JUST RESET THE COMPUTER FAILURE SIGNAL. THE SECOND TIME IN DECEMBER THEY IDENTIFIED A FAILURE IN A REGULATOR OF THE ADMISSION SYSTEM. THE CAR IS STILL AT THE SHOP BECAUSE WE WROTE TO BMW HEADQUARTERS IN GERMANY AND ARE STILL WAITING FOR A RESPONSE. WE CONSIDER THAT FAILURE AS A MAJOR AND HAZARDOUS QUALITY ISSUE AND HAVE REQUESTED A FULL REPAIR DESPITE THE WARRANTY IS ALREADY DUE. THE LOCAL DEALER REFUSED TO DO IT SO. THE VEHICLE IS BMW X3 2013 WITH 42.000 KMS AND ALL THE OFFICIAL WARRANTY CHECKS AND MAINTENANCE AT THE OFFICIAL BMW DEALER. DESPITE I LIVE IN PANAMA AND THE CAR WAS BOUGHT HERE AND NOT IN THE US AND MAYBE IT IS NOT YOUR JURISDICTION, I THINK THE FAILURE IS EXTREMELY RISKY AND COULD CAUSE A FATAL ACCIDENT IF IT HAPPENS IN A HIGHWAY AT HIGH SPEED AND IN THE MIDDLE OF HEAVY TRAFFIC SUCH AS TRUCKS AND HAULERS. BMW SELLS THE SAME CAR IN THE US AND OTHER MODELS WITH THE SAME ENGINE.I THINK IT WOULD BE OF YOUR INTEREST TO INVESTIGATE IF THE SAME FAILURE HAS OCCURRED IN THE US TERRITORY OR ACCIDENTS WITH THESE VEHICLES HAVE HAPPENED DUE TO A SUDDEN LOSS OF POWER. I HAVE THE QUOTATION FOR THE REPAIR ISSUED BY THE LOCAL DEALER IN US DOLLARS. IF YOU THINKS IT IS IMPORTANT I AM FULLY AVAILABLE TO SEND IT TO YOU. AS I DO NOT LIVE IN THE US I AM WRITING WITH MY SISTERS ADDRESS IN FLORIDA. MY HOME ADDRESS IN PANAMA IS: CALLE FONTANA # 23. PH COSTA SERENA. COSTA DEL ESTE. PANAM CITY. PANAMA. ZIP CODE 11111. MOBILE PHONE: (507) 6249 8159. HOME: (507) 3941823
TAIL LIGHTS WILL FAIL WITH NO WARNING LIGHT OR MESSAGE DISPLAYED IN DASH BOARD. X3'S EQUIPPED WITH HID HEADLAMPS COME WITH FOUR LED TAIL LAMPS. IN EACH LAMP, THERE IS A CIRCUIT BOARD THAT WILL FAIL DUE TO POOR QUALITY CONTROL (THE RESISTORS AND/OR CAPACITORS WILL GET DETACHED FROM CIRCUIT BOARD) , THEREFORE, THE LAMPS WILL STOP WORKING. USUALLY, WHEN LIGHTS BURN OUT, THE DASH WARNS THE DRIVER, BUT NOT FOR THIS FAILURE. THE OWNER COULD BE DRIVING AT NIGHT WITH NO TAIL LAMPS, AND IT COULD LEAD TO A REAR END COLLISION
2013 BMW X3. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO POSITION OF FRONT SEAT HEAD RESTRAINTS. *LD THE CONSUMER STATED THE POSTION OF THE HEAD RESTRAINTS WERE UNCOMFORTABLE AND PAINFUL. UPDATED 11/06/2017*JS
EMISSIONS PROBLEM AND REDUCED ENGIN POWER PROBLEM. BMW 2017 X3 ISSUE: WORN WASTE GATE VALVE/REPLACE TURBOCHARGER AND OIL FEED LINE TO THE TURBOCHARGER JULY 11, 2017: MILEAGE =79998/80008. ENGINE/SERVICE LIGHT ON. BMW DEALER CHECK, VEHICLE TEST, REPLACED VACUUM HOSE, TEST DROVE 10 MILES, NO WARNING. TJH ADVISED WARRANTY EXPIRED. SERVICE CHARGE= $168.42 AUG 10, 2017: MILEAGE = 81700. BMW CHECK ENGINE LIGHT DIAGNOSTICS, AIR PRESSURE TOO LOW, TURBOCHARGER WASTE GATE SHAFT WORN. TJH ADVISED WARRANTY EXPIRED. SERVICE CHARGE = $125. AUG 10, 2017:MILEAGE = 81700. BMW OBSERVATION: WASTE GATE SHAFT WORN. SERVICE NEEDED: REPLACE TURBOCHARGER AND ENGINE OIL FEED LINE TO THE TURBOCHARGER. WARRANTY EXPIRED. SERVICE FEE = $4,111.50 CALIFORNIA AND STATES THAT FOLLOW CALIFORNIA EMISSIONS LAW, SUCH AS PA, REQUIRE WARRANTY ON TURBOCHARGER TO BE EXTENDED TO 100,000 MILES.
SUNDAY, 9/10/17 @ 11:30AM I WAS DRIVING SOUTH ON 294 IN CHICAGO AND THE OIL PRESSURE MESSAGE CAME ON, SHORTLY FOLLOWED BY ENGINE TRAIN MESSAGE SUGGESTING I PULL OVER AND TURN OFF THE ENGINE!! THANKFULLY I WAS ABLE TO GET TO AN EXIT AT LAKE COOK ROAD JUST AS THE CAR STOPPED RUNNING. IT WOULD NOT START AND WAS TOWED TO A REPAIR SHOP WHEREBY THEY SAID IT WAS THE TIMING CHAIN AND THE ENGINE IS PROBABLY SHOT. THIS CAR HAS 71K MILES AND HAS BEEN SERVICED RELIGIOUSLY YET WARRANTY EXPIRED. NEW TO BMW I NEVER EXPECTED SOMETHING LIKE THIS!
ENGINE COOLANT PUMP AND THERMOSTAT FAILED AT 52000 MILES. IT'S 2000 MILES AFTER THE WARRANTY EXPIRED. IT WAS FAILED WAY TOO EARLY BY ANY MEASURE FOR ANY ON ROAD VEHICLE. I HAD ENGINE OVERHEAT WARNING, POSSIBLY DUE TO COOLANT PUMP FAILURE. HOWEVER, THE OIL TEMPERATURE GAUGE ON THE DASH SHOWED NORMAL TEMPERATURE. AFTER VEHICLE STOPPED, TRIED TO INSPECT THE VEHICLE WITH HOOD OPENED. WITH OIL TEMPERATURE GAUGE SAYING NORMAL TEMPERATURE, COOLANT WAS OVER HEATING, WHICH COULD CAUSE THE INJURY FROM CONFUSION. ONE TEMPERATURE GAUGE SAYING NORMAL WHILE THE COOLANT WAS OVER HEATING. BMW SHOULD ADDRESS THIS ISSUE ON THEIR OWN. THEY IGNORE THIS PROBLEM AND PASSES TO CUSTOMERS. THIS SHOULD BE SERIOUSLY CONSIDERED FOR RECALL.
STEERING DRIVES OFF THE ROAD TIRES BLEW. AIRBAGS RECALL
WHEN MY HUSBAND WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY AT 10:30 A.M. ON THE 8/8/2017 THE CAR LOST POWER AS IF IT RAN OUT OF GASOLINE. THANK GOD HE WAS ABLE TO PULL OVER TO THE SERVICE LANE WITHOUT GETTING INTO A MAJOR ACCIDENT (HE IS ALWAYS COOL UNDER PRESSURE AS HE RETIRED AS A CAPTAIN IN THE ARMY). HE SHUT OFF THE ENGINE, AND RESTARTED A FEW MINUTES LATER WHEN "DRIVE TRAIN MALFUNCTION" MESSAGE CAME ON. HE CALLED THE DEALERSHIP SERVICE AND WAS TOLD TO BRING THE CAR IN ON 8/10/2017 IN THE MORNING. HE TOLD THEM WHAT HAPPENED AND WAS TOLD HE WILL RECEIVE A CALL BACK THAT EVENING. HE WAS NEVER CONTACTED, AND 3 DAYS LATER WENT TO CHECK WHAT HAPPENED. HE WAS TOLD THAT THE TIMING CHAIN HAS TO BE REPLACED AND IT WILL COST AT LEAST $2,700.00 PLUS... ALMOST A YEAR AGO I WENT TO THEM BECAUSE I HAD WHITE SMOKE COMING OUT OF THE TAILPIPE. SO THEY WERE AWARE THERE WAS A PROBLEM ALREADY AND THEY SHOULD HAVE CHANGED THE TIMING BELT AT THAT TIME (WHILE THE CAR WAS STILL UNDER WARRANTY.) INSTEAD THEY TOTALLY DISREGARD PEOPLE'S SAFETY AND SECURITY AND CREATE UNNECESSARY HAZARDOUS CONDITIONS. I SPENT MORE THAN $50,00 0 ON THE BRAND NEW VEHICLE AND IT ALMOST KILLED MY HUSBAND, READING THROUGH YOUR WEBSITE I SAW MANY OTHERS HAD THE SAME PROBLEMS SOMETHING MUST BE DONE BEFORE SOMEONE GETS KILLED.
DRIVING (2013 X3 28I) VEHICLE WITHOUT CONCERNS, INCIDENTS OR WARNINGS UNTIL THE OIL PRESSURE WARNING" LIGHT CAME ON. SLOWING DOWN TO TRY AND MAKE IT THE MILE LEFT TO MAKE IT HOME. AFTER THE "OIL PRESSURE WARNING" CAME ONE, LESS THAN A MINUTE LATER THERE WAS A "DRIVE-TRAIN MALFUNCTION" WARNING. NOW LOOKING FOR A PLACE TO PULL OVER, IT WAS LESS THAN ANOTHER MINUTE WHEN CAR LOCKED UP AND STOPPED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD. LIVING ON A CURVY ROAD, I WAS IN A VERY BAD SITUATION, DUE TO BEING BETWEEN TWO CURVES, JUST AFTER DARK. CAR WOULD NOT START OR GO INTO NEUTRAL. IT HAS BEEN 10 WEEKS AND CAR DIAGNOSIS HAS NOT BEEN DETERMINED. WITHOUT WARNINGS AND TOTAL ENGINE FAILURE. I WAS NOT HURT IN ANY WAY, AND THANKFULLY SOMEONE STOPPED TO BLOCK THE CURVE SO PEOPLE WOULD SLOW DOWN. I WAS STUCK WAITING FOR HELP FOR AN HOUR. TOW-TRUCK DRIVER COULDN'T GET INTO NEUTRAL TO LOAD ON HIS TRUCK. I DID BUY THIS AS A 1 OWNER, LEASE RETURN, AND PUT THE TOP ASC WARRANTY ON IT. THE OWNER OF A QUALITY IMPORT REPAIR SHOP SAYS HE HAS NO IDEA AND HAS NEVER COME ACROSS ANYTHING LIKE THIS BEFORE. SHORT OF PULLING EVERYTHING APART TO TRY AND FIGURE OUT A SPECIFIC PROBLEM, HE DOES NOT WANT TO TRY AND REPAIR IT. GOING TO HAVE TO TOW IT TO THE DEALER AND HOPE THEY WILL GIVE SOME ANSWERS. 10 WEEKS AND NO CLOSER TO AN ANSWER THAN ON DAY ONE.
ON JULY 9TH I WAS DRIVING DOWN THE HIGHWAY 495 SOUTH IN MASSACHUSETTS WHEN ALL OF THE SUDDENLY MY CAR LOST POWER TOTALLY SHUT DOWN AND WENT INTO NEUTRAL. I HAD A VERY EXTREMELY HARD TO MOVING OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE HIGHWAY, WHEN ALL OF THE SUDDEN THE CAR STARTED SMOKING AND BLEW UP ON THE SIDE OF THE HIGHWAY. I BARELY MADE IT OUT OF THE CAR. I HAVE VIDEO OF THE CAR ENGULFED IN FLAMES
THE BRAKING SYSTEM HAS STOPPED WORK AND ALMOST CAUSED A CRASH. THE BRAKE GUILD AND BRAKE PADS ALL CHECK OK BUT VACUUM HAS BEEN LOST TO THE BOOSTER. YOU CAN HERE THE CAM MAKING NOISE WHEN YOU START THE VEHICLE AND THE NOISE HAS BEEN SINCE WE PURCHASED IT AND BMW STATES THAT'S NORMAL. I FEEL LIKE THE RECALL REPAIR WAS NOT DONE CORRECTLY. ALSO THERE SEEM TO BE A DRIVE TRAIN MALFUNCTION THAT BMW CAN NOT FIGURE OUT. PLEASE HELP
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 BMW X3. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 35 MPH, THE LOW OIL PRESSURE AND DRIVE TRAIN MALFUNCTION WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE LOST POWER AND THEN STALLED. THE CONTACT COASTED THE VEHICLE TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND HAD IT TOWED TO THE BILL JACOBS BMW DEALER (LOCATED AT 2495 AURORA AVE, NAPERVILLE, IL 60540). THE DEALER DIAGNOSED THAT THERE WERE METAL SHAVINGS IN THE OIL, CAUSING IT NOT TO HAVE COMPRESSION. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE ENGINE NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED DUE TO THE REPAIR COST. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE AND STATED THAT THEY WOULD PAY HALF OF THE REPAIR FEES. THE CONTACT WOULD BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE OTHER HALF. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 30,300.
EARLIER THIS YEAR WHILE DRIVING MY 2013 BMW X3 ON THE HIGHWAY IT BROKE DOWN WITH LITTLE WARNING. FORTUNATELY I WAS ABLE TO GET TO AN EXIT RAMP BEFORE MY CAR COMPLETELY FAILED. AFTER HAVING IT FLAT BEDDED TO A MECHANIC WHO HAD TO PUSH THE VEHICLE INTO THE SHOP THEY VERIFIED THAT THE VEHICLE WOULD CRANK OVER AND NOT START. IT WAS RELATIVELY CLEAR FROM THE SOUND THE ENGINE WAS MAKING DURING THE STARTER ENGAGEMENT THAT THE CAMSHAFT TIMING WAS OFF. THE VALVE COVER WAS REMOVED AND THE MECHANIC VERIFIED THAT THE TIMING WAS INDEED OFF. THE TIMING CHAIN HAD JUMPED TIME ON BOTH THE INTAKE AND EXHAUST CAMSHAFTS. THE TIMING WAS OFF DUE TO EXCESSIVE SLACK IN THE TIMING CHAIN DUE TO A FAILED CHAIN TENSIONER. THIS SHOULD NOT HAPPEN ON A 2013 BMW WITH MAINLY HIGHWAY MILES. I WAS TOLD I NEED A NEW ENGINE THAT WILL COST UPWARDS OF $15,000 OR BUY A SLIGHTLY USED ONE FOR APPROXIMATELY $9,000. I'VE REACHED OUT TOT HE DEALER AND BMW NA WITH NO RELIEF. SIMILAR ISSUES HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED IN THE X5 AND OTHER BMW CARS WHICH WERE RECALLED BUT FOR SOME REASON NO RECALL WAS SENT OUT ON THE N20 ENGINE FOR THE X3. FROM A QUICK INTERNET SEARCH THERE ARE MANY X3 OWNERS THAT HAVE THE SAME OR SIMILAR PROBLEMS. SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE TO GET RELIEF FOR THESE OWNERS. UNFORTUNATELY THIS ONCE PROUD VEHICLE MAKER THAT NO LONGER BACKS THE LONGEVITY OF THE LUXURY CAR THEY BUILD.
I HAVE A 2013 X3 28I THAT WAS PURCHASED FAIRLY NEW WITH 15K MILES ON IT AND HAS HAD ALL BMW RECOMMENDED MAINTENANCE AT A BMW DEALER. I HAVE EXACTLY 50K MILES ON THE CAR. A COUPLE OF DAYS AGO, WITH NO WARNING THE TIMING CHAIN BROKE AND BLEW THE ENGINE. I HAD JUST TAKEN IT TO THE DEALERSHIP A COUPLE OF WEEKS PRIOR FOR MAINTENANCE AND THEY SAID EVERYTHING LOOKED GREAT. THE DEALER FIRST TOLD ME IT WAS GOING TO COST OVER 20K TO REPLACE THE ENGINE. BMW GOT INVOLVED AND NOW I'M TOLD IT WILL COST JUST OVER 15K PLUS TAXES. I STARTED CHECKING ONLINE AND NOTICED THAT BMW HAS HAD A LOT OF PROBLEMS WITH THE TIMING CHAIN, HOWEVER THEY DON'T LIST THE X3 AS ONE OF THE CARS WITH THE PROBLEM. AT 4 YEARS OLD AND 50K MILES, I WOULD THINK THE TIMING CHAIN SHOULDN'T BREAK, AND DEFINITELY SHOULDN'T COST 1/3 OF A NEW CAR TO REPAIR.
2013 BMW X3 28I. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO VEHICLE RUN FLAT TIRES, ABSENCE OF OEM APPROVED SPARE TIRES AND ABSENCE OF SPARE TIRE COMPARTMENT/ MOUNTING ARRANGEMENT. *SMD
SHIFTING IS ERRATIC, ESPECIALLY ACCELERATING FROM A STOP. BOTH WIFE AND MYSELF NOTICED THIS ON SEPARATE OCCASIONS DRIVING BY OURSELVES. DEALER SAYS THERE ARE NO CODES AND IT DRIVES LIKE ALL OTHER X3'S. IT DOES NOT DRIVE LIKE OTHER X3'S AS WE WERE GIVEN A NEW X3 AS A LOANER.
MY CAR HAS APPROX 78000 MILES ON IT. I AM THE ORIGINAL OWNER. CAR HAS BEEN MAINTAINED ROUTINELY AT BMW DEALERS AT ALL THE RECOMMENDED TIME MARKS BY THE MANUFACTURE. RECENTLY, MY CAR STALLED WHILE I WAS DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY, AND HAD TO BE TOWED TO THE BMW DEALERSHIP. AFTER 1 WEEK OF RUNNING DIAGNOSTIC TESTS, I WAS INFORMED THAT THE TIMING CHAIN HAS BROKEN, AND PIECES FROM THE CHAIN FLEW INTO THE ENGINE AND COMPLETELY RUINED IT.
I HAVE 3 PARTS IN MY VEHICLE THAT ARE NOW IDENTIFIED AS NEEDING REPLACEMENT BY MY MECHANIC. I WENT TO THE MECHANIC AFTER MY VEHICLE WENT INTO "LIMP" MODE WHILE DRIVING AT 45MPH IN NORMAL CONDITIONS AND I RECEIVED A MESSAGE STATING MY VEHICLE WAS OVERHEATING. MY MECHANIC ADVISED THAT I NEED A NEW WATER PUMP, A NEW THERMOSTAT, AND WHILE IT'S NOT RELATED, I ALSO NEED A NEW OIL HOUSING GASKET. IT SOUNDS LIKE THESE ARE ALL COMMON FAILURES ON THESE VEHICLES AND MY MECHANIC NOTED "IT'S NOT A MATTER OF IF THESE ITEMS WILL FAIL, BUT WHEN". MOREOVER, ONE SIMPLE GOOGLE SEARCH WILL TELL YOU THE SAME. IF THESE PARTS ARE TRULY AN ISSUE, WHY ARE THEN NOT RECALLED? MY CAR GOING INTO LIMP MODE WHILE DRIVING ON A HIGHWAY SHOULD BE CONSIDERED A SAFETY CONCERN, PARTICULARLY IN POPULATED METRO AREAS WITH A TODDLER IN THE BACK SEAT. UNFORTUNATELY, TO REPAIR THESE 3 PARTS, I'VE BEEN QUOTED $1500 FOR THE REPAIRS, WHICH IS ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS FOR A CAR THAT HAS 60,000 MILES ON IT.
ENGINE OVERHEAT WARNING DUE TO WATER PUMP ISSUES. JUST UNDER 5 YEARS OF BRAND NEW PURCHASE. SEE SIMILAR PART HAS EXCESSIVE COMPLAINTS. HTTP://X3.XBIMMERS.COM/FORUMS/SHOWTHREAD.PHP?T=1219853&PAGE=2 BMW INITIALLY CHARGED ME AS A THERMOSTAT ISSUE, AND REPLACED IT AFTER 3 MONTHS BACK-ORDERED PARTS. 1 DAY AFTER THERMOSTAT REPLACEMENT, SYMPTOMS RE-APPEARED. THIS TIME THEY ARE REPLACING OTHER PARTS. WITH NUMBER OF PEOPLE COMPLAINING ABOUT IT, IT SHOULD BE CONSIDERED AS A RECALL. EVERY REPAIR WITH BMW IS VERY EXPENSIVE.
TIMING CHAIN MALFUNCTION/ENGINE FAILURE
THIS MESSAGE JUST KEEP POPPING UP ON THE SCREEN "PASSENGER RESTRAINT SYSTEM MALFUNCTION." PASSENGER AIRBAGS INDICATED AS OFF EVEN THE PASSENGER SEAT IS OCCUPIED. I HAD CONTACTED BMW CUSTOMER RELATIONS, AND THERE WAS A RECALL FOR AIRBAG SENSOR ISSUE BUT NOT INCLUDING THE MODEL X3.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 BMW X3. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE WARNING INDICATORS FLASHED FOR THE OIL PRESSURE LOW AND DRIVE TRAIN, AND THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY DECELERATED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE STARTED TO COAST AND RANDOMLY STALLED. THE VEHICLE WAS UNABLE TO RESTART AND WAS TOWED TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO WAS UNABLE TO REPLICATE AND DIAGNOSE THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT METAL SHAVINGS WERE IN THE OIL. FURTHER DIAGNOSTIC TESTING WAS REQUIRED TO DETERMINE THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS THEN TOWED TO A SECOND INDEPENDENT REPAIR SHOP FOR FURTHER TESTING. THE DEALER AND MANUFACTURER WERE NOTIFIED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 78,000.
ENGINE HOOD LATCH FAILURE
ON YEAR AFTER PUCHASING CAR, AND AFTER WARRANTY PERIOD, STARTING GETTING DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION ERROR. SMOKED ON TURNING ON IGNITION A COUPLE OF TIMES. TOOK TO BMW AND WAS TOLD IT NEEDED A TURBO. WAS TOLD BY BMW MECHANIC THAT EVERY ONE OF THIS MODEL NEEDED A NEW TURBO. $6000. INTERNET BLOG SITES ALSO INDICATE THAT THE TURBO GOES OUT ALL THE TIME. IF IT IS A MANUFACTURERS DEFECT NEW THEN THIS SHOULD BE A RECALL. PEOPLE CAN'T PAY $6000 ON NEW CARS FOR TURBOS WHEN THEY KNOW IT IS DEFECTIVE.
HAD BEEN DRIVING FOR APPROX. 5 MINUTES IN RESIDENTIAL AREA. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT, LOW OIL PRESSURE WARNING & BLACK SMOKE THRU DASHBOARD. COULD SEE FLAMES UNDER THE HOOD. WITHIN 5-6 MINUTES CAR WAS FULLY ENGULFED IN FLAMES. NOTHING LEFT EXCEPT FOR THE FRAME. TOTAL LOSS, ALMOST NO WARNING.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 BMW X3. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 65 MPH, THE VEHICLE STALLED. THE CONTACT MANEUVERED TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. THE CONTACT ALSO STATED THAT THE CHASSIS STABILIZATION, DRIVE TRAIN MALFUNCTION, AND CHECK ENGINE WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL MODULE FAILED AND HAD TO BE REPLACED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 31,475.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 BMW X3. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT VARIOUS SPEEDS, THE VEHICLE STALLED WITHOUT WARNING. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE FAILURE RECURRED INTERMITTENTLY. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE ENGINE NEEDED TO BE REPAIRED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 60,000.
THE BATTERY OF THE VEHICLE DRAINS EVEN WHEN IT IS NOT RUNNING. THE BATTERY GETS SO DRAINED THAT IT CANNOT BE RECHARGED AND NEEDS TO BE REPLACED.INITIALLY THE SERVICE MAN KEPT TELLING ME THAT I HAD LEFT SOMETHING ON AND THAT IS WHY THE BATTERY DRAINED. BUT SOMEONE TOLD ME OFF THE RECORD THAT IT IS POSSIBLE THAT THE COMPUTER SYSTEM DID NOT SHUT DOWN PROPERLY AND THAT WAS DRAINING THE BATTERY AND SINCE I WAS NOT DRIVING A LONG DISTANCE (I DRIVE APPROX 25 MILES TOTAL EACH DAY), THAT WAS NOT ENOUGH TIME FOR BATTERY TO RECHARGE. THE CAR MAKES WEIRD NOISES WHEN THE ENGINE HAS BEEN TURNED OFF FOR HOURS AND IT IS PARKED IN THE GARAGE INDICATING SOMETHING IS STILL RUNNING. THINGS THAT I WAS TOLD TO DO TO ENSURE THAT THIS DOES NOT HAPPEN AGAIN IS TO LOCK THE CAR WHEN IN THE GARAGE, TO NOT RUN IT IN ECO MODE WHICH TURNS OFF THE ENGINE IF STOPPED FOR A LONG DURATION (LET'S SAY AT A TRAFFIC LIGHT), SINCE I AM NOT DRIVING IT LONG DISTANCE.ECO MODE IS ONE OF THE SELLING POINTS FOR THIS CAR FOR FUEL EFFICIENCY AND NOW I AM BEING ASKED TO TURN THAT OFF. MY CAR IS ONLY 2 YEARS OLD AND I HAD TO ALREADY CHANGE THE BATTERY. BECAUSE OF THIS ISSUE THE VEHICLE AUTOMATICALLY WENT INTO PARK ON TWO SEPARATE OCCASIONS WHEN I WAS STOPPED AT A RED LIGHT, WHICH IS VERY RISKY AND MAY CAUSE AN ACCIDENT. THERE ARE MULTIPLE COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS ON THE INTERNET. I REQUEST YOU TO PLEASE INVESTIGATE THIS ISSUE. I HAVE ASKED THE DEALERSHIP FOR SYSTEM REPORT WHEN THE CAR WAS TOWED IN BECAUSE IT WOULD NOT START (EVEN THOUGH IT HAD BEEN JUMP STARTED THE PREVIOUS NIGHT), BUT SO FAR I HAVE NOT RECEIVED ANYTHING.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 BMW X3. WHILE DRIVING 25 MPH, THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT PICK UP SPEED AND STARTED HESITATING. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE DRIVETRAIN WARNING LIGHT WAS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE ENGINE AND TRANSMISSION NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 45,000.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 BMW X3. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 60 MPH, THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED BUT THE VEHICLE HESITATED TO STOP. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER FOR DIAGNOSTIC TESTING. THE CONTACT RECEIVED NOTIFICATION OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 13V454000 (SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC); HOWEVER, THE PARTS WERE UNAVAILABLE TO PERFORM THE REPAIRS. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 3,000.
WHILE TRAVELING AT RELATIVELY SLOW SPEED I ATTEMPTED TO BRAKE AND BRAKES WERE BASICALLY UNRESPONSIVE. HAD TO REALLY STOMP ON PEDAL TO EVENTUALLY GET IT TO STOP. SCARY INCIDENT AND COULD HAVE BEEN REALLY BAD IN DIFFERENT CONDITIONS. SO FAR ISOLATED ONE TIME INCIDENT. NOTICED THERE IS A RECALL FOR THESE VEHICLES FOR THIS TYPE OF PROBLEM BUT FOR SOME REASON MY VEHICLE DOES NOT SHOW IT IS INCLUDED. SHOULD IT BE?
I WAS DRIVING NORTHBOUND ON CT-104 LONG RIDGE ROAD, A 2-LANE STATE ROAD ON MONDAY JUNE 22ND, 2015 AROUND 8AM. I WAS TRAVELING FROM STAMFORD CT TO BEDFORD. ABOUT MIDWAY ON LONG RIDGE ROAD DRIVING AT AROUND 25PMH AT MILLERS MILL INTERSECTION THE CAR STALLED. I WOULD SEE I WAS IN MIDDLE OF MY NORTHBOUND LANE THE DASHBOARD LIGHTS WERE ON, BUT SPEEDOMETER WAS AT 0 RPM AND KNEW THE ENGINE HAD DIED, I IMMEDIATELY TRIED RESTARTING THE ENGINE. WHILE THE ENGINE CRANKED, I WAS IN PARK, THE ENGINE WOULD NOT KICK IN DESPITE TURNING OVER. AFTER REPEATED TRIES, AND BEING UNABLE TO MOVE OFF THE LANE, I PRESSED BMW SOS BUTTON. I HAD TURNED ON MY FLASHERS. CARS WERE RACING IN MY LANE AND STOPPING BEFORE GETTING TO MY CAR REAR-END. I KNEW I WAS IN A HAZARD ZONE. BUT THIS A CELL-PHONE DEAD ZONE. IN ANY CASE BMW ASKED I GET OUT OF THE HAZARD ZONE, BUT TOLD THEM THE CAR WAS SIMPLY UNMOVEABLE AND WOULD NOT START-UP. SO THEY CALLED IN THE TOW AND INFORMED THE BEDFORD POLICE. FOR 20 MINUTES I SAT THERE IN THE CAR. THEN THE FLASHERS QUITE OPERATING AND INCREASED THE RISK OF REAR-END CRASHES. THATS ANOTHER ISSUE BMW MUST LOOK INTO. FINALLY THE POLICE ARRIVED SOME 20 MINS LATER THE TOW TRUCK CALLED BY THE POLICE SHOWED UP. THE BMW X3 WAS TAKEN TO BMS MT KISCO NEW YORK. A 2-YEAR OLD CAR FAILING SUDDENLY IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD WITHOUT ANY WARNING AND CREATING A ROAD HAZARD WAS UNNERVING. BMW DEALER INFORMED ME ON TUESDAY JUNE 23RD THE FUEL PUMP HAD FAILED. IT WOULD TAKE A FEW DAYS TO REPAIR. ..THE FACT THAT A NEW CAR WITH 25000 MILES HAS A SIGNIFICANT FAILURE SUDDENLY AND CREATES A LIFE-THREATENING SITUATION WITH CARS BARRELING DOWN IN A 45 MPH IS WORRISOME AND POSES ISSUES WITH QA OF CRITICAL COMPONENTS AND A RECALL IF LARGE NUMBER OF CARS HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN SUDDEN FUEL PUMP FAILURES MAYBE INDICATED AS A PROACTIVE STEP...UPDATED 08/27/15*BF UPDATED 12/3/15 *JS
ON APRIL 5TH, 2015 AT 10:00AM. I DROVE MY CAR TO CHURCH (20 MIN DRIVE / 10 MILES @ 35-60MPH SPEED) WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS OR INDICATION OF ISSUES. AT 11:15AM I WAS IN ROUTE TO GO HOME TRAVELING ABOUT 35MPH. WHEN I REACHED A STOP LIGHT...MY CARS ECO-TECHNOLOGY KICKED IN, AND IT TURNED OFF. NOTHING OUT OF THE ORDINARY ON ANY OTHER DAY EXCEPT THAT DAY. THE ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON, THE ABD LIGHT CAME ON, AND ALERTS INDICATING MY TRANSMISSION WAS MALFUNCTIONING AND MY BRAKES WEREN'T WORKING. WHEN THE LIGHT TURNED GREEN, MY VEHICLE DID NOT TURN ON. IT SHUT OFF AND WOULD NOT RESTART. AFTER 5 MINUTES OF BEING IDLE IN THE MIDDLE OF ONGOING TRAFFIC AND ME PANIC-KINGLY PRESSING BUTTONS ON MY KEY AND ON THE DASH...MY CAR OUT OF NO WHERE... TURNED BACK ON. BUT MY CAR WAS LIKE IN A "SAFE MODE", I COULD NOT ACCELERATE MORE THAN 15-20 MPH AND I'M NOT SURE BECAUSE THE TACHOMETER WASN'T WORKING OR MY INDICATORS. THE LIGHTS INDICATING THAT MY TRANSMISSION, BRAKES AND ENGINE WERE ALL STILL ON AND THE ALERTS KEPT SHOWING UP ON MY NAVIGATION SCREEN. I TRIED CALLING GLOBAL ASSIST, BUT THE CALL WOULD NOT GO THRU GIVEN MY ELECTRICAL ISSUES. I TRIED SENDING A SERVICE REQUEST BUT THAT WAS ALSO USELESS...AND ALL OF THE SERVICE CENTERS WERE CLOSED ON SUNDAY. I DROVE HOME PARKED MY X3 AND CALLED THE SERVICE CENTER FIRST THING MONDAY APRIL 6TH. (7:30AM). THEY TOLD ME TO DRIVE IT IN, AND ONCE AGAIN DEALT WITH THE CAR NOT WANTING TO START... PUSHING BUTTONS RANDOMLY ON THE REMOTE UNTIL IT DECIDED IT WAS READY TO START. I DROVE IT IN THIS "SAFE MODE" FOR APPROX 10 MILES. AND WE ARE GOING ON 4 WEEKS... AND THE DEALER HAS BEEN UNABLE TO REPAIR MY CAR AND HAS NOT GIVEN ME ANY RESOLUTION. MY CAR HAS LESS THAN 35K MILES AND IS A 2013. IT SEEMS LIKE I SHOULDN'T BE DEALING WITH THIS KIND OF ISSUE SO EARLY ON. I JUST WANT A NEW CAR AT THIS POINT. *TR
FIRSTLY APPROXIMATE INCIDENT DATE IS APPROXIMATE AND MAY BE OFF. ITS JUST BEEN OVER 2 YEARS I HAVE OWNED THIS BMW AND I HAVE KEPT MY BMW FOR CHECK ENGINE ERROR REPAIR FOR 4 TIMES AT STEVENS CREEK BMW. 3 TIMES OUT OF THIS 4 HAS BEEN BETWEEN JUNE 2014 TO TILL DATE. ONCE AGAIN THE CHECK ENGINE ERROR IS ON WHICH MAKES IT THE 5TH TIME. AT THIS POINT I DON'T THINK THIS BMW IS RELIABLE AND I DON'T HAVE THE ENERGY AND PATIENCE TO KEEP TAKING APPOINTMENTS AND GETTING SUCH ERRORS FIXED ON MONTHLY BASIS. I DON'T INTEND TO KEEP USING THIS VEHICLE AND GETTING IT FIXED ON MONTHLY BASIS. ITS GOOD THAT MY BMW IS STILL UNDER THE 4 YEAR COVERAGE BUT IF THIS WASN'T AVAILABLE THEN I WOULD HAVE INCURRED HUGE EXPENSES ON MONTHLY BASIS TO GET THESE ERRORS FIXED. GETTING THE SAME ERROR ON REPEATED BASIS PROVES THAT THIS BMW HAS A MANUFACTURING DEFECT. BMW CUSTOMER RELATIONS ISN'T HELPING ME ON THIS. THEY ARE JUST WASTING TIME SAYING WE ARE GETTING REPORTS FROM DEALER AND AWAITING THE BMW WESTERN REGIONAL TEAM TO LOOK INTO THIS. THE LAST CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON DURING THANKSGIVING BREAK AND I TOOK AN APPOINTMENT WITH STEVENS CREEK BMW FOR 12/03/2014. ON 12/02/2014 THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT DIDN'T COME ON. I CHECKED WITH STEVENS CREEK BMW AND THEY SAID SINCE THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ISN'T ON WE CAN'T DIAGNOSE THE REASON WHY IT HAD SWITCHED ON SO PLEASE DON'T BRING IN THE BMW AS WE WONT BE OF ANY HELP. SO I DIDN'T BRING MY BMW TO DEALER WORKSHOP. BASED ON THIS BMW REGIONAL MANAGEMENT HAS DENIED LOOKING INTO MY CASE AND SAID WE CAN'T PROVIDE ANY ASSISTANCE. *TR
MY WIFE WAS DRIVING ON A LOCAL SIDE STREET (SPEED LIMIT 25 MPH) AT A SPEED OF APPROXIMATELY 20 MPH AND I WAS SITTING IN THE PASSENGER SEAT. WE WERE COMING UPON NUMEROUS STOP SIGNS, SO IN ORDER TO AVOID THE BMW AUTOSTART/STOP FEATURE (THIS FEATURE SHUTS THE CAR ENGINE OFF WHEN THE CAR STOPS TO SAVE FUEL) FROM ACTIVATING, I REACHED OVER TO TURN OFF THE AUTOSTART BUTTON. THIS BUTTON IS LOCATED DIRECTLY NEXT TO THE START/STOP BUTTON. INSTEAD, I ACCIDENTALLY HIT THE START/STOP BUTTON (THIS IS A KEYLESS CAR) AND WHILE TRAVELING AT 20 MPH THE CAR ENGINE SHUT OFF AND WE HAD TO COAST TO A STOP WITHOUT POWER STEERING OR ANY POWER, BEFORE BEING ABLE TO START THE CAR. IN ORDER TO RESTART THE CAR, THE BRAKE PEDAL MUST BE PRESSED. IF THIS HAPPENED WHILE AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS, AN ACCIDENT WOULD HAVE BEEN VERY LIKELY TO HAVE OCCURRED. THIS IS A DESIGN SAFETY ISSUE THAT NEEDS REPLACEMENT/RECALL. *TR
THE REAR HATCH DOOR OPENS UNEXPECTEDLY. THIS HAS OCCURRED ABOUT 6 TIMES IN THE LAST 1-1/2 YEARS. IT LAST OCCURRED ON AUG. 3 AND OUR DOG -- WHO WAS SITTING IN THE REAR OF THE CAR -- FELL OUT OF THE CAR AS WE WERE DRIVING. THIS IS THE SECOND TIME OUR DOG HAS ABRUPTLY FALLEN OR JUMPED OUT OF THE CAR DUE TO THE HATCH UNEXPECTEDLY OPENING WHILE WE WERE DRIVING. THE PROBLEM: 1) MY WIFE AND I BOTH HAVE KEYS TO THE CAR. THE KEYS ELECTRONICALLY LOCK & UNLOCK THE DOORS. 2) WE PARKED THE CAR ON THE STREET, AND I LOCKED THE CAR SUCCESSFULLY WITH MY SET OF KEYS. 3) MY WIFE LEFT HER KEYS IN THE CAR. THE CAR REMAINED LOCKED. 4) AFTER AN HOUR, WE ARRIVED BACK AT THE CAR AND I OPENED THE BACK HATCH WITH MY KEYS IN MY POCKET. 5) AFTER THE DOG HOPPED INTO THE BACK OF THE CAR, I PRESSED THE "LOCK" BUTTON ON THE HATCH. THE HATCH SUCCESSFULLY CLOSED. 6) I WALKED TO THE DRIVER'S SIDE AND UNLOCKED THE DOORS, GOT IN, STARTED THE CAR AND BEGAN DRIVING AWAY. 7) AFTER MOVING ABOUT 20 FEET AND PREPARING TO MERGE ONTO A MAJOR ARTERY, PEOPLE ON THE STREET STARTED YELLING THAT THE BACK HATCH OF THE BMW HAD OPENED AND OUR DOG HAD FALLEN OUT OF THE CAR. THERE WAS NO BEEP OR ALARM INDICATING THAT THE HATCH HAD AUTOMATICALLY OPENED. 8) THE DIAGNOSIS: BMW EXPLAINED THAT IF A SET OF KEYS IS LEFT IN THE CAR, THE BMW IS PROGRAMMED TO NOT LOCK. 9) THE DANGER: INSTEAD OF SIMPLY NOT LOCKING, THE REAR HATCH AUTOMATICALLY OPENS. THE LOCKING/UNLOCKING IS INCONSISTENT AND THERE IS NO ALARM TO INDICATE THAT THE HATCH WILL OPEN. THIS HATCH IS HEAVY, SO IF THIS BEHAVIOR OCCURS IN A PARKING LOT, FOR EXAMPLE, IT CAN EASILY INJURE A PASSERBY. MORE IMPORTANTLY, ANYTHING IN THE BACK OF THE CAR -- DOG, CHILD, GROCERIES -- CAN EASILY FALL OUT. 10) TAKEAWAY: DOORS AND HATCHES SHOULD NOT OPEN AUTOMATICALLY. AN ALARM INDICATING THAT A SECOND SET OF KEYS HAS BEEN LEFT IN THE CAR IS A SAFER SOLUTION. *TR
IN STOP AND GO TRAFFIC ON THE INTERSTATE I WAS BRAKING AFTER MOVING FORWARD A FEW FEET AND THE ENGINE STARTED RACING CAUSING THE CAR TO LURCH FORWARD (GIVEN I WAS ON THE BRAKE) UNTIL THE BRAKE WOULD NOT HOLD ANY LONGER AT WHICH POINT THE CAR ACCELERATED IN TRAFFIC DESPITE ME PUSHING EVEN HARDER ON THE BRAKE. THE BRAKE WAS COMPLETELY UNRESPONSIVE AT THIS POINT. I AVOIDED REAR ENDING THE CAR IN FRONT OF ME BY SWERVING AROUND HIM BUT COULD NOT AVOID THE VEHICLE FARTHER AHEAD IN TRAFFIC AND HIT THE RIGHT REAR OF A UHAUL STORAGE UNIT TOWED BY A VEHICLE AND THE BMW FLIPPED ONTO ITS RIGHT SIDE. MIRACULOUSLY, WE WALKED AWAY WITH ONLY MINOR CUTS, SCRAPES, AND BRUISES. SEAT RESTRAINTS AND AIRBAGS WORKED PERFECTLY WHICH IS THE ONLY KIND THING WE CAN NOW SAY DESPITE HAVING NO PRIOR ISSUES. WHETHER IT IS AN ONBOARD COMPUTER MALFUNCTION OR NOT WE WILL NEVER OWN ANOTHER BMW... AND IF THE OTHER ONLINE POSTS HAVE BEEN THERE WHEN I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE IN SEPT 2012 (AND HAD I READ THEM) THEN I NEVER WOULD HAVE PURCHASED THE VEHICLE. COUPLED WITH OTHER CARCOMPLAINT.COM, BMW COMMUNITY BLOGS, AND NHTSA POSTS SURROUNDING 2012 AND 2013 X3 EVENTS OF THE IDENTICAL NATURE THERE SHOULD BE AN IMMEDIATE INVESTIGATION AS TO THE SIMULTANEOUS AND CONCURRENT EVENT OF THE THROTTLE ACCELERATION WHILE BRAKING, AND THE BRAKES FAILING (AS IF THE COMPUTER THINKS THE BRAKE PEDAL IS THE GAS PEDAL?) .. AND A RECALL BEFORE DEATHS OCCUR ... THOUGH IT IS LIKELY THEY'VE ALREADY OCCURRED SINCE THE DEAD CAN'T TESTIFY AS TO A PROBLEM THAT OTHER BMW DEALER SERVICE DEPARTMENTS FAIL TO REPLICATE AND THEREFORE DISCOUNT. THE BACK HATCH OF OUR VEHICLE ALSO FLIPPED OPEN ALLOWING ITEMS TO FALL ONTO THE HIGHWAY (DESPITE NO IMPACT TO THE REAR OF THE VEHICLE) THOUGH ALL PASSENGER CAR DOORS REMAINED CLOSED. THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN TOTALED. WE WOULD CERTAINLY NOT GET INTO THAT CAR EVER AGAIN EVEN IF IT WERE REPAIRABLE. *TR
ON FEBRUARY OF 2013 WHILE I WAS BACKING OUT OF A PARKING LOT, THE REAR WINDSHIELD WIPER STARTED BY ITSELF AND SPRAYED ALL THE WASH FLUID UNTIL THE TANK DRAINED AND KEPT MAKING A LOUD NOISE (AUDIBLE FROM INSIDE AND OUTSIDE OF THE CAR) EVEN AFTER I TURNED OFF THE CAR ENGINE. I TOOK THE CAR TO A DEALER AND I WAS TOLD THE PROBLEM IS DUE TO FAULTY JUNCTION BOX. IT TOOK THEM TWO WEEKS TO GET A NEW JUNCTION BOX & REPLACE IT. AFTER ONE YEAR, ON FEBRUARY 7 2014, THE SAME PROBLEM OCCURRED BUT THIS TIME IT IS THE FRONT WINDSHIELD WIPER THAT STARTED BY ITSELF, DRAINED THE WASH FLUID TANK AND KEPT MAKING A LOUD NOISE. TOOK THE CAR TO A DEALER THE SAME DAY & I'M STILL WAITING FOR MY CAR TO BE FIXED. I WAS TOLD BMW IS AWARE OF THE PROBLEM WITH THE JUNCTION BOX WITH X3 CARS AND YET THEY DON'T NOTIFY OWNERS AND REPLACE THE FAULTY JUNCTION BOX UNTIL AFTER THE PROBLEM OCCURS (IT USUALLY TAKES MORE THAN A WEEK TO GET A REPLACEMENT JUNCTION BOX). IN MY OPINION THIS COULD BE A SAFETY ISSUE; FOR INSTANCE IF THE WASH FLUID TANK IS DRAINED WHILE THE CAR IS BEING DRIVEN IN A BAD WEATHER DAY ( SUCH AS HEAVY SNOW) WHICH REQUIRES TO FREQUENTLY CLEAN THE WINDSHIELD, IT PREVENTS THE DRIVERS ABILITY TO CLEAN THE WINDSHIELD AND COULD IMPAIR HIS/ HER VISION AND COULD LEAD TO AN ACCIDENT. BMW SHOULD RECALL ALL AFFECTED CARS AND REPLACE THE JUNCTION BOX BEFORE SOMEONE GET INJURED. *TR
CPSC: I1410202A. 2012 BMW X3. CONSUMER STATED THE HEATED STEERING WHEEL HEATS UP TO 105 DEGREES WHICH IS UNSAFE AND HAS TO BE TURNED OFF MANUALLY. *LN THE DEALER INFORMED THE CONSUMER, THERE WAS NOTHING WRONG WITH HEATED STEERING WHEEL.
MY COMPLAINT IS SIMILAR TO THE FOLLOWING: QUOTE NHTSA ID NUMBER: 10546733 THE ISSUE IS WHEN YOU STEP ON THE BRAKE THE ENGINE RACES AND THE CAR CONTINUES TO MOVE FORWARD. IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW HARD YOU PRESS ON THE BRAKE YOU STILL GO FORWARD. END QUOTE BRAKE AND ACCELERATOR PEDALS CAN BE ENGAGED SIMULTANEOUSLY, PARTICULARLY IN HARD BRAKING THIS 4D 4X4 XDRIVE 28I (AND NEVER HAPPENED WITH OUR THREE PREVIOUS BMWS, WHICH WERE SEDANS). BRAKE PEDAL APPLICATION TRAVEL CAN EASILY FALL UNDER THE DISTANCE TO THE FLOOR OF UNAPPLIED ACCELERATOR PEDAL. TRAVELING THAT DISTANCE THE ACCELERATOR CAN SIMULTANEOUSLY BE DEPRESSED. BMW FACTORY INSPECTION FOUND NOTHING OUT OF SPEC. I CAN ONLY CONCLUDE IT'S A DESIGN DEFICIENCY, A CONDITION TYPE BMW NEVER ADMITS, EVEN IF IT CORRECTS THE CONDITION LATER. *TR
THE ISSUES STARTED HAPPENING IN JULY 2013. IT PROGRESSED. THE ISSUE IS WHEN YOU STEP ON THE BRAKE THE ENGINE RACES AND THE CAR CONTINUES TO MOVE FORWARD. IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW HARD YOU PRESS ON THE BRAKE YOU STILL GO FORWARD. THE CAR HAS BEEN IN THE DEALERSHIP 3 TIMES IN THE LAST MONTH, A TOTAL OF 13 DAYS AND THEY ARE COMING TO PICK IT UP AGAIN TODAY. YESTERDAY I SUFFERED THE MOST SCARY INCIDENT AS THE CAR WOULD NOT STOP UNTIL I WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE INTERSECTION AND WAS ALMOST HIT ON BOTH SIDES. *TR
I WAS UNLOADING A BOX FROM THE REAR LIFTGATE OF THE 2013 BMW X3 AND BRUSHED AGAINST THE PROTRUDING CHROME EXHAUST TIPS. I SUSTAINED A SIGNIFICANT BURN (2ND DEGREE) AFTER MERELY BRUSHING AGAINST THE EXHAUST. THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN A VERY SERIOUS INCIDENT HAD IT INVOLVED A SMALL CHILD. THE PROBLEM IS THAT THE EXHAUST TIPS EXTEND WELL BEYOND THE BUMPER AND ARE EXTREMELY HOT AFTER ONLY DRIVING A SHORT DISTANCE (5MILES). THIS BMW X3 HAS THE 2.0L TURBOCHARGED ENGINE. *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 BMW X3. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE REAR WINDSHIELD WIPER WOULD NOT STOP AND IT DRAINED THE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM. THE DEALER STATED THAT THERE WERE PARTS SENT OUT TO CORRECT THIS FAILURE BUT THAT THE MANUFACTURER WAS STILL LOOKING INTO CORRECTING THE PROBLEM. THE VEHICLE HAD NOT BEEN REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE AND CURRENT MILEAGES WERE 740. *TR
CAR WAS TRAVELING 35 MPH WHEN THE BRAKES SUDENLY STARTED SLOWING IT DOWN AND DASH LIGHTS WERE FLASHING. WITH THE CAR STOPPED I SHUT THE ENGINE OFF AND RESTARTED THE CAR AND WORKED AS IT SHOULD HAVE. A FEW DAYS LATER THE CAR HAD BEEN DRIVEN AND PARKED WHEN I LATER WENT TO START THE CAR AND NOTHING WORKED. THE PARKING BRAKE WAS ON AND IT COULD NOT BE TURNED OFF. AFTER BEING TOWED TO THE DEALER, I WAS TOLD THE PROBLEM WITH ALL THE ELECTRICAL MALFUNTIONS WAS A LOOSE GROUND. *TR
ON THE FIRST OCCURRENCE I BRAKED SMOOTHLY AT A TRAFFIC LIGHT THAT WAS RED AS I APPROACHED. THE VEHICLE STOPPED AND THEN THE ENGINE REVVED AND LURCHED FORWARD SLOWLY 3 TO 4 TIMES TAKING ME THROUGH THE INTERSECTION AS I WAS PRESSING ON THE BRAKE. I COULD NOT STOP THE VEHICLE. ONCE THROUGH THE INTERSECTION I TOOK MY FOOT OFF THE BRAKE AND APPLIED THE GAS PEDAL AND DROVE TO A NEARBY PARKING LOT. WHEN I CAME OUT OF A STORE AFTER 45 MINUTES, I TESTED THE BRAKES BY DRIVING SLOWLY IN THE PARKING LOT AND APPLYING THE BRAKES SEVERAL TIMES. EACH TIME BUT ONE THE ENGINE REVVED WHILE I HAD MY FOOT DELIBERATELY ON THE BRAKES, NOT ON THE GAS OR GAS AND BRAKE. IF I REMOVED MY FOOT FROM THE BRAKE, THE REVVING STOPPED AND GAS OPERATED APPROPRIATELY. I DROVE HOME AND CALLED THE DEALER WHO HAD IT TOWED, CHECKED IT OUT FOR A COUPLE OF DAYS, COULD NOT REPRODUCE THE PROBLEM AND SAID IT WAS FINE. IT WAS RAINING ON THE DAY OF THE OCCURRENCE. THE SECOND OCCURRENCE HAPPENED 6 DAYS AFTER THE FIRST, ANOTHER RAINY DAY. I BRAKED AT A STOP SIGN. THE VEHICLE STOPPED AND THEN THE ENGINE REVVED AS I WAS PRESSING ON THE BRAKE, THEN LURCHED FORWARD ONCE INTO THE INTERSECTION. I IMMEDIATELY REMOVED MY FOOT FROM THE BRAKE AND DROVE FORWARD. THIS DID NOT REPEAT AS I DROVE HOME. AGAIN THE CAR WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER, CHECKED OUT BY THE DEALER AND AN ENGINEER FROM BMW NA AND NOTHING COULD BE REPRODUCED. THEY TOLD ME TO TAKE THE CAR HOME. IT HAD TO BE MY ERROR. I OBJECTED THAT I HAVE NEVER HAD ANY SIMILAR PROBLEM WITH ANY OTHER CAR I'VE DRIVEN INCLUDING THE TWO BMW LOANERS THEY SUPPLIED. I TOLD THEM I WAS UNHAPPY WITH THE DECISION NOT TO CHECK IT OUT FURTHER ESPECIALLY SINCE THEY HAD NOT MADE ANY ATTEMPT TO TEST IT IN THE RAIN. BMW NA REPRESENTATIVE WAS ADAMANT THAT IT COULD NOT BE THE VEHICLE. *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 BMW X3. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE TRYING TO ACCELERATE FROM A STOP THE VEHICLE STALLED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER. AFTER INSPECTION, THEY ADVISED HER THAT THE VEHICLE WAS ACTING AS NORMAL. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS CONTACTED AND THEY OFFERED NO ASSISTANCE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 150. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 200. THE VIN WAS UNAVAILABLE. *TR
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Combines Driver and Passenger star ratings into a single frontal rating. The frontal barrier test simulates a head-on collision between two similar vehicles, each moving at 35 mph.