Front Seat Heater/cooler Problems of BMW X3 - part 1

On December 19, 2020 while driving with my driver's seat heater on warming my seat due to cold weather, I was on my way to pick up medication at the pharmacy when I noticed a sharp sting and burning sensation on my lower right side. I looked down and noticed my coat on fire. I immediately pulled over and turned the car off. I got out, frantically patted my coat that was burning, and looked at my seat to see if there was a fire and there was a hole where the heater had burned completely thru the leather seat. I got back in, didn't turn the heater on, and when I arrived home I didn't drive until that Monday, December 21, 2020 I drove to my local BMW dealership that regularly services my vehicle and explained what happened and asked if there was a known recall or issues. He explained it was a known issue with the heater system in the seats failing and causing damage but currently no recalls for the issue. I asked how could that be with the danger involved? I explained it could have been tragically worse if I had caught fire and couldn't get it out. I was lucky I felt it quickly and was able to pull over and get out of the vehicle. Chris at cain BMW, north canton, ohio inspected mu vehicle and gave me an estimate of $1,495. 00 to replace the part of my seat affected with a new heating system and repair. I feel that this should be a recall due to the manufacturer already knowing there's an issue. I just want them to recall vehicles they know are affected and repair. Or at least voluntarily repair vehicles that report the issue. (just for clarification: I was driving thru town on a state highway and city streets) I kept the coat that caught fire just in case it would be needed later.

See all problems of the 2008 BMW X3 🔎.

The driver's seat heater malfunction. The seat over heated and a hole was created as a result of burn on top of the coil.

See all problems of the 2010 BMW X3 🔎.

After turning on the driver's seat heater, it defaults to high, the left side seat bolster started to smoke. A few seconds later before my wife realized what was happening she felt her left arm and side getting a lot hotter than the rest of her seat. The seat heater then immediately burned a hole through the leather seat while my wife was driving down a city road.

The driver's side seat heater got excessivly hot and almost burnt my side. I could smell a burning smell so I turned it off. Now you can see the imprint of the coil through the leather seat. I've been in contact with michael pigoncelli at BMW north America and he suggested I file a complaint with the NHTSA. You issued a recall for this exact problem in 2004 with the BMW 5 & 7 series. I feel the issue never got resolved and it is still a problem. There should never be an interior part of a car that could catch on fire and burn someone regarless of the age of the car. I tried to get united BMW to do a "goodwill" fix, but they wouldn't. Mr. Pigoncelli is reaching out to united BMW to have a free diagnostic test run on the seat heater to determine the problem and estimate to fix it, but I don't feel I should have to pay for the entire repair cost.

See all problems of the 2007 BMW X3 🔎.

Vehicle was parked at ski resort since about noon/12pm. Outside tempurature between 24f & 35f. Started vehicle about 4:20pm. Warmed up engine to just under normal operating tempurature. Proceeded to put vehicle in gear & turned on vehicle heater to 91f full speed (auto)circulate, followed by both driver and passenger seat heaters (to level 3 of 3 green lights on button). Drove 15mph speed limit & after about 3 minutes, less than 1/4 of a mile. Smoke began filling the cabin, meanwhile passenger paniced screaming I'm burning, I'm on fire. Immediately pulled over & turned off vehicle, aired out vehicle by opening doors, & invested cause. Found burn on right side of passenger seat. Passenger right leg thigh was burned through seat & clothing. Vehicle has 230k actual oem miles.

While using driver side seat heater, elements overheated burning through the leather seat and burning the left side/hip of the driver. Car was in motion and almost caused an accident. Pulled over and turned off the heater immediately and haven't used it since.

See all problems of the 2006 BMW X3 🔎.

Tl- the contact owns a 2007 BMW X3. The contact stated that when the front driver's seat heater was turned on, the contact perceived smoke odor and immediately saw smoke from the side of the seat without warning. The contact turned off the seat heater and opened the window. There was no injury. The contact noticed that part of the seat burned. The dealer was not called. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was approximately. 124,000. Fe.

River's seat heating unit overheats when on high setting, to the point of burning skin through the seat and clothing. Lower left lumbar . Per service shop, the seat heater grid is broken, causing 40 degree higher temperatures than normal in the left leg area. Ongoing issue, not a single occurrence.

See all problems of the 2005 BMW X3 🔎.

When driver side seat heater was turned on this month, my wife could smell "burning" material order. She turned it off and reported her problem to me. I took the car out for a test drive, activating the passenger seat heater and noted no odor. I then activated the driver seat and could smell "wire burning order" I left the switch on for another 30 seconds and could feel the seat getting abnormally warm. Turned it off and will not use until trouble shooting completed by BMW service techs, in both instances, we were driving the vehicle.

Daughter turned on vehicle, turned on heated drivers seat, as she was driving on a city street, began to smell something burning, pulled car over & got out, left vehicle running, continued to smell burning and began to see smoke. Saw that a burn hole was forming in the left side, bottom of leather seat. Turned seat heater off and smell and smoke diminished. Upon inspection of he clothing it was also discovered that the seat began to but a hole in her outer jacket. It did not burn through her clothing and she was not injured (thankfully).

Seat heater on drivers side is burning through. If left on it would burn through clothes and burn skin.

See all problems of the 2004 BMW X3 🔎.

The contact owns a 2008 BMW X3. While driving, the driver's seat heating element burned through the seat to the contact's clothes. The contact sustained a burn on the right side of his behind, which required medical attention. The dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 203,000. The VIN was not provided.

Seat occupation detection mat and positive crankcase ventilation (pcv) valve heater. Both recalls but no remedy since September 2017. Dangerous conditions that need to be resolved immediately.

When I turned on the driver's side seat heater, the seat heater burned through and burned a hole through my clothes.

Driver's seat heating unit overheats when on high setting, to the point of burning skin through the seat and clothing. Lower left lumbar and seat bottom appear to be impacted. Per service shop, the seat heater grid is broken, causing 40 degree higher temperatures than normal in the left leg area. Ongoing issue, not a single occurrence.

Driver seat heater caught on fire this morning dealership said no recall yet million msg boards clearly show faulty issue I have documented over 30 separate cases already since 2009! smoke filled car burn smell burned hole right thru seat happened in minutes safety issue 100% Bmwgallerynorwood said not covered to fix?!?! have on video&pics glad my 16 year old son was only in driveway when this happened his sweatshirt ruined with burn marks imagine if he was on main rd!!.

As I drove home from a long flight home after the holidays, the engine caught fire due to a frozen crank case ventilation system which caused oil to spray out in the engine compartment. I pulled over when I noticed smoke in the passenger compartment and smoke coming out of the hood. I was able to blow out the fire. Temperatures were 5 degrees f that night. The dealer stated there was a "more robust crank case ventilation system" that they would install at my cost. After the week long repair, the dealer brought my car to the front and turned on the seat heaters. I drove about 5 miles before noting a pinching/painful sensation on my left upper thigh. I pulled over to find a burn mark on the leather seat and a burn on my left upper thigh. It appears to be due to a short in the seat heater.

Driver's side seat burned through the seat and burned the jacket when the seat heater was turned on while my wife was driving. This is the second time it happened in this car. First time it happened while the car was under warranty, and the dealership (silver spring BMW of MD) replaced the seat under warranty. In this case got lucky it did not catch fire or cause any injury to us. This situation easily could have ended up in a car fire. I was stunned to hear how lithely BMW na approach towards my concern when I called to lodge a complaint. At highway speed this could have been a fatal situation due to distraction this burn created worst car on fire.

Had been ongoing for a couple months the heated seat was malfunctioning. You would turn it on and the driver seat in the left side would start to heat up beginning from the butt area ending by the knee to the point where it was starting to sting and making it really uncomfortable to sit. Just recently the seat heater got really hot to the point it burned the leather and burned my wifes butt. Go to inspect it while it was on and while pushing down slightly where the burnt hole was, sparks began coming out.

-takata recall -front passenger seat occupant detection mat recall -positive crankcase ventilation (pcv) valve heater.

Driver's side seat heater wire burned through the seat, melted a spot on my vinyl raincoat and subsequently burned my buttock. Vehicle was in motion on a city street at the time.

The contact owns a 2004 BMW X3. While driving 45 mph, the contact noticed that the heated seats became hotter than normal. The contact pulled over, exited the vehicle, and noticed that the heated seat coils burned holes through the leather seats and the seat covers. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 109,000.

I turned on my seat heaters to the lowest setting (1out of 3) just as I left work. After about 20 seconds as I drove down the road, I felt a sharp burning through my wool jacket in my left thigh/butt area. I turned it off immediately. When I got home and looked at the seat, it had left a burn area in the leather. After looking at different websites and forums online, it seems to be a very common problem with this model. However, based on owner's comments, the dealers aren't taking responsibility.

Driver seat heater coil burned up while I was sitting in the garage preparing to leave causing hole in the seat and my pants. . I searched on youtube and it showed that there were several incidents of this happening. Shouldn't there be a recall for this problem.

Due to cold weather, engaged the driver side seat heater. Noticed a sharp pain in my leg and then began to smell and see smoke. Fortuneatly, I was quickly able to realize the seat heater appeared to have a short in it, and turned off before burning through the leather and setting my cloths on fire. I will be contacting my local BMW dealership to see what, if anything they are will to do. I feel there should be a recall before someone is seriuosly hurt or killed. The engine was idling when seat heater was on. I was backing out of driveway and driving down street when I noticed. If I would have had seat heater on and then stepped away from vehicle as it was warmimg up, I am confident the driver seat would have caught on fire or at least severly damaged it.

The contact owns a 2006 BMW X3. While driving 55 mph, the passenger seat warmer became extremely hot and burned the passenger's leg. The wiring began to smoke and the contact oberved a spark. No medical attention was required. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The VIN was invalid. The failure mileage was approximately 115,967.

While driving less than 5 minutes with driver seat heater on, smelled electrical smell, felt pain in leg, then felt shock/burn. Not sure which. Turned off seat heater. Electrical smell comes and goes. Small burn hole in seat. Not able to use seat heater anymore.

Driver's seat heater element overheating. Turned on seat Dec 2015, got too hot. Used diaper to insulate leg. Seat heater melted diaper to leather. I have not used it since. An internet search indicates this is happening to other cars of this model.

The car is equipped with seat heaters. One of the heating elements failed, overheated and burned through the seat surface. In doing research, this appears to be a problem with the vehicles. BMW did do a recall on the x5, but does not show a recall on the X3. On various sites, this issue has occurred many times with owners, some with the vehicle catching on fire. I found complaints on the following sites; carcomplaints. Com, bimmerfest. Com and arfc. Org. Just on carcomplaints, this complaint is shown 23 times; madbury, nh, portland, or, westfield, in, derwood, MD, tampa, FL, annapolis, MD, louisville, ky, bergenfield, NJ, holderness, nh, liberty township, OH, laurel, MD, novi, mi, cromwell, CT, prairie village, KS, hillsborough, nc, daly city, CA, alexandria, va, saginaw, TX, bethesda. Md, pittsburg, PA, selah, wa. Same issue with each. BMW of north America was contacted and their response was "it's a part of wear and tear. . . . No offer to assist" from BMW na. Yet, the issue has continued to arise and BMW na did replace the heater element and seat surface in some instances, making the replacement a matter of preference or discrimination, or dealer's opinion of the car owner versus correcting the manufacturing/design defect problem. I would request the assistance of NHTSA to review this matter and protect the public from hazardous over-heating/ fire threats. I was fortunate to have been just getting into the vehicle and smell the burning leather and turned off the seat heating system before a fire could occur.

Two minutes after turning on driver's side seat heater, I began to smell something burning. Lower left lumbar section of the seat was extremely hot, felt hot instantly even through a winter coat and sweatshirt. Immediately turned the seat heater off. Extremely considered the car would catch fire. Car has 102,000 miles. No visible wear or burn marks on this seat.

The left side of the drivers side seat heater has overheated and burned through the leather and my pants. There appears to be similar complaints on this website and a NHTSA recall bulletin number 04v575000 for older 5 series vehicles. I think this investigation should be expanded since so many people have experienced this behaviour.

The heated seat got hot enough to burn a hole in the seat. When I felt the hot spot I turned off the heater , there was no fire. I understand from the internet that this isn't that uncommon and I was hoping the NHTSA could work towards a recall so those that have had this problem could get it warranted.

I was driving and noticed a burning smell. I had my seat heater on and noticed a very, very hot spot on the bottom part of the seat on the left side. I hurried and shut the seat heater off, but noticed burn marks on the leather. The seat would have definitely caught on fire if I hadn't shut off the seat heater.

While driving my X3 at interstate speeds, I activated the driver side seat heater. Approximately two to three minutes later, my upper leg began feeling very hot and it started smelling like something was burning. I lowered the seat heater temperature from the hottest setting to the lowest/coolest setting, and the temperature remained the same - was extremely hot. A short time later, I also saw smoke. When I was able to pull over, I saw a hole on the seat where the seat heater had burned through. It had also burned through the coat I was wearing creating a hole. Called the BMW dealership to see if they would repair and/or replace the seat heater and seat, and they refused saying they would not pay for the repair since there was not a recall for this defect. Called BMW na and received a similar response.

I left home and turned on the seat heater for the driver seat. In just a few seconds I felt discomfort in my left buttock. I repositioned thinking something was pinching me and then smelled something burning. I was able to pull off the roadway and get out of the car. I saw the seat bottom scorching and immediately turned off the seat heater. No further damage was noted, but now afraid to use either seat heater.