Table 1 shows two common visibility related problems of the 2005 BMW 330.
| Problem Category | Number of Problems |
|---|---|
| Interior Rearview Mirror problems | |
| Wiper problems |
On this date my wife complained to me about a "bubble" in her inside rear view mirror. I looked at it and it is indeed a bubble of air in her mirror. The vehicle is a 2005 BMW 330xi with an auto-dimming inside rear view mirror. Today I called BMW customer service at 800-831-1117 and spoke to a representative who told me that the vehicle was out of warentee and therefore BMW felt no responsibility to repair, replace, or help in any way with this problem. The part cost from my local BMW dealer is over $500. 00 not including labor for installation. This cost is for the entire mirror assembly, which includes the housing the electronics mounted on the housing and of course the mirror itself. The service writer at the local dealership told me that he has seen more than a few mirrors come in like that, and that one was even leaking the fluid into the interior of the car. Apparently there is a seal in the mirror that has ruptured and is now leaking air into the space between the glass plate and the mirror surface itself. The result of the "bubble" is that now the mirror refracts and relects bright light points (headlights at night or sun glare from windshields for example) into multiple spots so as to make the mirror nearly impossible to use under these conditions. I feel that BMW knows that this is a problem that they have with their mirrors and that this is definatley a safety issue with my wife's car now. I believe that if just the glass portion of the mirror were replacable this would substancially reduce the cost of repair to the consumer.
I have owned this vehicle for a while. I was stationary while I discovered the following. Door locks did not work consistently with the key fob, convertible top also, windows sometimes worked, wipers also. I read forums to realize the general module failed relays is a known problem. This known problem endangers the operator, passengers, and the public, and a recall and redesign should be ordered for the safety of the public. I tried to add pictures, but the form crashes.