Body Problems of BMW 3 Series

Water leaks in my car on driver side front and back seat carpet is soak and smell. Not the first when going to get a car wash leaks occur. This is my second BMW I had a 2004 325l same problem with leakage. Also, no doubt rust have occur in this vehicle with on going leaks.

See all problems of the 2007 BMW 3 Series 🔎.

Doors will not unlock, serious hazard in emergency situation if doors won't unlock. Doors lock/unlock problem, I've had to exit thru windows. No manual unlock from inside vehicle. Mechanism is operational, must be computer problem. Fuse replaced,ckd many threads with same issue. . Read more...

See all problems of the 2006 BMW 3 Series 🔎.

As I put the vehicle in park and tried to exit the vehicle the door would not open. I pulled the handle and tried the key fob and nothing would make it unlock. I had to crawl to the passenger side to exit the vehicle. This is the second time this has happened and it is a known fuse problem that is faulty and very dangerous if you happen to be in an accident and need to escape your vehicle quickly. Having a driver door that absolutely will not open is a complete disregard for common sense and public safety.

Black mold formed on rear seats, dashboard intermittently worked (1/2 of dashboard active, 1 fuse powers the dash), 6" of water pooled in rear back passenger footwell (location of main electrical unit); water was dripping on my foot when resting on petal of my 42000 mile, $50,000, 2008 BMW 328xi coupe. I contacted BMW of na who advised me not to use the car because it was dangerous. After several attempts to work with BMW of na & BMW dealership (place of purchase) a vapor barrier leak was found but more was believed to be at cause. The dash needed to be removed, for $1800. I refused to pay; requested BMW of na to pay. Request denied. The dealer said BMW of na would only pay vapor barrier repair costs. I asked for no repairs; towed the car home. Finally reaching linda vitale, exec. Customer services of BMW na, NJ, she told me the dealer did do the repairs. This was against my expressed wishes. I wanted the car investigated elsewhere too. In a later conversation, ms. Vitale claimed the reason for the water was from a leak from a 3rd party windshield instillation. Note: mold, water, and electrical problems existed previous to 3rd party windshield installment. Ms. Vitale, proven wrong, due to dates, stated, in a subsequent recorded conversation, per the dealer, the water entered the car because the doors were dismantled and incorrectly put back. Note:amica has proof that the doors were never removed. Amica totaled the car due to black mold contamination, health risks; risk of injury to me and others due to mold, the electrical compromised, and possible power cut to engine while in motion. A paid loan but having no car, BMW of na wished only to compensate me with $1000 towards a new BMW. I found many forums, on the internet, regarding 2002-2015 BMW's w/the same problems & owners sustaining same loss of property with no ethical or sustainable compensation from BMW of na.

See all problems of the 2008 BMW 3 Series 🔎.

I arrived home with my son who was sitting in the front passenger seat. When he tried to get out of the car, the door would not open. The lock button stayed down and would not open with two pulls on the handle as it should, with use of the interior locking/unlocking button , or with the remote control key fob. It has now remained non-functional. In the event of a crash on the driver's side, there would be no way to leave the car or received help without breaking a window and trying to slither out through broken glass. In addition, someone who was infirm (e. G. , back trouble) and could not climb over the console and driver's seat would be stuck in the car. This is a safety and health hazard and from what I have seen on line, is not unique to me. BMW should be required to make modifications that would eliminate this safety and health hazard.

See all problems of the 2003 BMW 3 Series 🔎.

Rear door lock actuator would not allow rear door to open. Had fixed and then drivers door actuator failed and would not open. Could not get out of vehicle.

Driver's side door will not open, either with the inside door latch or the outside latch. The lock plunger goes up and down normally with either the key, the key remote, or the inside door lock/unlock button, but in no case can either door latch open the driver's side door. All other doors operate normally. This makes entering or exiting the car difficult, necessitating either climbing in/out through the window or by climbing across the console from the passenger seat. If there were an emergency, it would be impossible to exit the vehicle quickly. No event appeared to cause this to happen. I entered the vehicle, drove it, exited the vehicle a few times during the morning before driving, parking, stopping the vehicle, and then having the door stick shut.

Doors will not unlock using the key fob or central locking button. Locked doors will not open from interior of vehicle, no way to unlock the rear doors and front passenger door when they are locked. Only way to exit vehicle is through driver's door if manually unlocked with key. Passenger doors will not open and gas door will not open.

I was rearended, on the freeway, on the passenger side, by an SUV going about 40mph, I slammed in to another SUV in front of me. My vehicle is totaled. The display indicated that there was an airbag deploy error. Also, the reason my car was totaled was because all of the electrical wires for the computer system are behind the rear tail light, and they were melted after impact. This is concerning because this is also where the fuel tank is. Luckily, I walked away with a sore neck and few bruises, but it is concerning that the airbags did not deploy, when they were clearly suppose to. I had the car for less than 2 months prior to the accident, and bought it brand new.

See all problems of the 2013 BMW 3 Series 🔎.

Vehicle leaks rainwater profusely through the doors/vapor barriers to the interior of the car. Rain water pools in the footwells excessively. Could pose potential danger if feet are wet and slipping on brake, clutch or gas pedals. Also worried about pooling of water affecting safety sensors/systems located under driver seat.

See all problems of the 2005 BMW 3 Series 🔎.

This car has no "safety catch" on the hood latch that the owner opens after first releasing the hood from inside the car. Instead, the owner opens the hood by pulling twice on the hood release level inside the car in the driver's footwell. The hood then opens freely without further unlatching outside the car. The problem is that this latch system fails to close the hood properly. Often one side or the other will not latch firmly into place. So, instead of two latches holding the hood down, only one does. I took my car to a dealer for this problem, who diagnosed it has being caused by "leaves" in the mechanism. However, the problem has recurred on both the side they cleaned (the passenger's side) and on the driver's side latches. It is unsafe to drive this car with the hood only partially latched closed, as I am sure you will agree. Owners are complaining of this safety problem. . Read more...

See all problems of the 2012 BMW 3 Series 🔎.

Power door locks failed. No way to open passenger door even with internal handle. Passenger trapped and had to crawl over to driver's seat. Would be a catastrophe in an accident.

The passenger side door lock will not work. The door stays locked and when it first occured the passenger had to crawl out the window. Neither the electronic key lock nor the pushbutton lock control on the console will open the door lock on the passenger side. All other locks work fine, including the trunk. The manual door opener will not open the passenger door either. This is extremely dangerous since, in the case of an accident, the passenger would be trapped in the vehicle.

I heard a squeaking noise coming from the rear end, took it to my mechanic, and was told the subframe has torn off of the rear suspension. He checked to see if there is a recall, but none has been found. He did notice online that this has been an ongoing problem, with many complaints, and that a class action lawsuit had been filed.

See all problems of the 2000 BMW 3 Series 🔎.

I took my year 2000, BMW 328ci in to replace a rear differential bushing. The mechanic discovered frame damage where the driver-side rear differential bushing attaches to the car body/frame. The mechanic suggested I call my insurance agent to see if this was covered. The insurance company sent an investigator who informed me over the phone & email (including photo attachments) that the damage could not be caused by any collision and was not covered by my insurance policy. The agent stated that this was a BMW issue. . Read more...

I was driving on the motorway and cleaned my windscreen when a piece of my vehicle fell off and became potentially a dangerous projectile. The failure is due to the screen wash jet cover and jet attached to it coming separated from the vehicle. BMW state that this can come off due to ice forming on the washer jets, so can occur at any time when temperatures are below freezing. The consequences are the cover and jet become separated from the vehicle potentially causing other vehicles to swerve, item acts as a projectile so could damage/crack a windscreen or potentially burst a tire if contact is made. To correct the failure the part needed to be replaced. Old part is not available due to coming off vehicle whilst on the motorway.

I have a 2000 323ci BMW my problem is the weld from the straps that hold the gas tank detached from the metal there seem to be e defect on the weld and the gas tank dropped to the floor!! please don't wait for someone to get hurt before something is done about it!! I drilled some holes and attached a metal plate through the inside of the body(metal to weak) then I used bolts and pressure washers to reattach it!.

A horrible creaking noise starting developing in the rear of my 2000 BMW 323ci (with 82000 miles) while driving. . Read more...

BMW did not properly design the rear floor of the car body where it supports the rear subframe. As a result under normal driving, many of the BMW e46 3-series cars (325, 323, 330, in the I, ci, or cic trims, example 325ci or 330i) suffer from torn sheet metal where the rear subframe attaches to the body. This eventually causes a major safety hazard as the rear subframe and associated suspension can separately entirely from the vehicle resulting in a loss of control and severe crash. This can affect any e46 3-series car but is most common in models built from 1999-2001 and more common in manual transmission cars. The repair costs anywhere from $800 (pre-emptive strengthening of sheet metal if it has not torn already) to $5,000 (replacement of rear body subfloor). BMW settled a class-action lawsuit in 2009 allowing 3-series owners to have their cars inspected and in some cases repaired by BMW but this did not cover all affected cars and expired in December 2010 so not all owners were able to have their cars inspected or repaired by that date. In addition many cars have experienced subframe mounting failures after Dec 2010. BMW should be required to inspect, repair, and reinforce all e46 (1999-2005) 3-series bodies where the rear subframe mounts.