Table 1 shows one common power train related problems of the 1998 BMW M3.
| Problem Category | Number of Problems |
|---|---|
| Manual Transmission problems |
Repeated failure of the shift gate. Tranny sticks in 5th gear position, causing dangerous shift delays while in traffic. . Read more...
The gear shift in my manual transmission, 1998 BMW M3 (4 door), sticks under fifth gear and often I am also unable to shift into fifth gear. The issue with this is well known by BMW of north America. The danger here is that when I want to shift into fifth gear I cannot, and more importantly, it is extremely difficult to downshift from 4th to 3rd because the gear shift naturally wants to go into fifth. This can be a very serious problem when going into a turn or needing to downshift to control engine speed rather than using brakes when conditions may be too slick to safely apply the brakes.