Seats Problems of BMW X3 - part 2

The driver seat heating element burnt a hole through the leather seat. This happened while I was driving and wearing my seat belt. I felt the heat through my clothes and I was afraid it would catch my clothes on fire. I pulled over unstrapped my seat belt and examined the seat to find the hole burnt through.

See all problems of the 2005 BMW X3 🔎.

My heated driver side seat shorted out and burned a hole in the leather seat, and luckily being in the auto industry and having a knowledge of seat construction I immediately turned the seat off. There are numerous reports of this issue on various BMW forums. , including fires! I think this is a serious safety defect that BMW should be held accountable to fix and repair.

See all problems of the 2006 BMW X3 🔎.

This is the info. Directly from BMW website regarding the reacll safety issue. Sep 28, 2017 | recall campaign no. 17v-605 front passenger seat occupant detection mat description of problem this safety recall involves the front passenger seat occupant detection mat. Depending on seat configuration and vehicle geometry, the mat can fatigue during field usage depending on the manner and frequency of the front passenger's entry and exit. Specifically, over time micro-cracks could develop in the side flanks of the mat. If a micro-crack leads to a break of a conductive path, the system will recognize a failure. Consequently, the front passenger air bags with the exception of the head protection system will be deactivated. Safety risk in a crash of sufficient severity, the front passenger air bags may not deploy, increasing the risk of injury. Description of repair BMW will replace the front passenger seat occupant detection sensor mat. Final owner notification letters are being mailed on a staggered basis as parts become available.

See all problems of the 2007 BMW X3 🔎.

Head protection system was deactivated the air bag warning lamp illuminated and the air bag "on-off" lamp illuminated as well. After purchase there was no illumination of these lights and then about 2 years later while driving in the city at about 45 mph, both lamps illuminated when my son and I were heading to the store. I called BMW and they told me then that it was probably due to a cracked seat mat sensor and a recall on those sensors was being extended for 2006 X3 models. I called our local BMW today to schedule a repair of the seat and have the car parked in the garage since August 2017 due to a possible vehicle safety issue with a system failure of airbag deployment. My son has been unable to use the car for college which is 4 hours away. Now I would like to understand why this vehicle is not considered under the extended warranty notices of 08v384000 or 17v605000.

The interior of the BMW X3 has an unfamiliar odor that has given me itchiness in the eyes and makes all the passengers sick to the stomach.

Since the beginning of November BMW confirmed me that my car has 2 recall involving pcv valve and seat occupant detection mat. My car is overheating and I can smell plastic smell . The smoke comes from the hood compartment when and I have to tow the car to BMW minnetonka. I was so scared to drive vehicle in such condition and I have tried so many time to get these issue resolved or get alternative transportation which BMW gave me authorization through BMW repair center in minnehaha, mn. But until no loaner vehicle is gave to me nor my car is not completely repaired. I still have the car with BMW minnetonka and the service manager would ask me to talk to BMW services and when I talk to BMW services they also ask me to talk to my service manager. I need help to get the alternative transportation. Thanks.

Heated seat malfunctioned when turned on the seat got so hot it burned the back of my thigh, strong smell of something burning. Turned it off right away. I had just turned th car on it happened within seconds of turning the heated seat button on.

I checked online from NHTSA that my car has a recall which is in incomplete status, while I called BMW they told me there is no such record for a recall for my car.

See all problems of the 2017 BMW X3 🔎.

Passenger air says off when a passenger is in seat ## VIN passed ## BMW X3 2005 ##.

Was driving down my BMW X3 down the road with my seat warmers on and the inside of my car started to smell like something was burning I figured something was wrong with my seat warmer so I turned it off a little ways down the road I pulled over to check and make sure my seat was okay and noticed a small burn on the bottom left on the back of my seat and I checked my sweater and there was a burn mark on it too.

Both seats. Purchased this vehicle with 183k miles. Was getting cold out, turned on the heated seat function and noticed a burning smell upon driving down the country roads from my house. The side of the drivers seat melted through. Could see it glowing inside of the seat. Someone had done a seat repair previously to cover this issue. Approx. 1 year later I was driving down the highway when my passenger had turned on his heated seat. He started yelling and noticed the seat had burned through the leather. Luckily no accidents were caused.

There is an active recall campaign 08v-384 for defective front passenger airbags that will not deploy and protect the passenger occupant in the event of a severe accident. The active recall campaign which is extended for 10 years only covers model years 2004-2006 of the BMW X3 despite the first generation of the vehicle being produced from 2003 - 2010 and vehicles from all other years exhibiting the same symptoms. For instance my own vehicle is model year 2009 and exhibits all symptoms of the air bag issue as described in the recall campaign notice however I have no matter of recourse and have been unable to petition the dealership or BMW north America llc to remedy the issue as they have refused citing the recall campaign makes them liable only for those specific model years which is ridiculous since this is a serious safety issue and is not receiving as much attention due to the massive takata recall. I would like to petition the NHTSA to have BMW expand the airbag recall campaign to cover additional model years of the same production generation of the X3.

See all problems of the 2009 BMW X3 🔎.

I'm filing this complaint on behalf of my wife. She was driving down the highway utilizing the heated seat function of the vehicle today when she smelled burning and the seat became dangerously hot. She pulled over and turned the heating function off which temporarily resolved the the problem. A little research on the internet reveals that this is a common problem with 2006 model BMW X3s. Some cases being so severe that people's seats have burned them and even caught fire. This is extremely dangerous.

While driving my 2008 BMW X3, the driver side heated seat was turned on, than shorted out, burned through the protective layers, a stinky smoke created, melted my leather seat, and partially burned my jeans and leg. Due to the year and miles on the vehicle, BMW would not fix any of the parts.

See all problems of the 2008 BMW X3 🔎.

I own a 2005 BMW X3, purchased new 5-5-05. On 12-19-11, while at the dealer for service, tech advised that during short test, he noted faulted pass seat mat sensor. Dealer replaced pass seat mat sensor and enabled. At no time were prior recalls on this issue mentioned nor was I provided documentation concerning any extended warranty. On 5-14-15 (note the date) the srs warning light on the dash came on and remained lit while the pass seat air bag light would not go off. Took car to dealer 5-19-15. They confirmed the same seat mat sensor they replaced on 12-19-11 was again faulty. However, this time they would not replace as it was beyond the heretofore "extended warranty" by 14 days. Took vehicle to local shop who replaced seat mat sensor. Faulty seat mat sensor retained for possible testing. This is a significant safety issue that BMW is ignoring. How many more complaints need to be made before this issue is resolved? do people need to be injured (or worse) before BMW is held accountable? with seat bag recalls being in the news daily, how much bad publicity does BMW want before they actually do what is right?.

While idling for less than five minutes with the seat heat turned on, I smelled smoke but wasn't sure where it was coming from and ignored it. After driving home I found that there was a hole burned through the leather driver's seat and an exposed wire was showing through the hole. Luckily my jacket didn't catch on fire. The outside temperature was in the mid 20s at the time.

While I drive my car , I turned on my seat heat , I start feeling burning pain while am driving on highway , the second time when I finished my work and I start my car to head home , I start smelling burning and my leg was burning so bad , I got out of the car , and my seat leather was burning , I saw hole in my seat and the wires inside was burned and smelled terrible , that is safety issue , if it happened while I was driving on highway , I would get in an accident.

See all problems of the 2004 BMW X3 🔎.

Driver side seat warmer was set on the medium setting, smelled something burning and then started to feel pain in my leg, because the heated seats had melted the leather and burned my pants and my leg.

While driving smelled something burning and also realized my upper leg was in pain. Turned off the seat warmer and investigated after reaching my destination. There was a scorch mark in the seat near the bottom left bolster. Lucky this didn't cause a fire or bodily injury.

While driving my BMW X3 2005, I turned my seat warmer on and it ended up burning a hole through the seat. My pants were burned and so was I. Luckily I had turned the seat warmer off without any additional damage or shock during my drive.

The heated seat was so intense it burned through the seat and burned my leg. I originally thought the area affected was a burn hole in the seat from a cigarette, afterwards I realized that the burn hole had been created by an heating element that was exposed in that area and burned through the leather and then my leg. We've been afraid to drive the car for other electrical issues. I contacted both the dealership and the manufacturer and no one has helped me to this date.

Driver side heated seat switch was turned on while driving. Few minutes after switch turned-on, burning smell was felt inside the car. Stopped the car and checked the engine (first guess). It was not from the engine. Sat on the seat and then realized the fume was coming from the seat. The driver seat was burned, my pant bottom was burned and my butt was also burned (not serious).

The contact owns a 2007 BMW X3. The contact stated that the front passenger side air bag sensor illuminated and dimmed intermittently even though the front passenger seat was unoccupied. The air bag sensor would not illuminate when a passenger occupied the seat. The dealer stated that the front passenger seat needed to be replaced. The test plan indicated that the sensor was defective from the local dealer. The vehicle was not repaired and the manufacturer was notified. The approximate failure mileage was 91,000. Updated 08/19/lj BMW agreed to pay half of the charge for the repairs. Updated 08/21/14.

Upon turning on my driver side heated seat within 2 minutes of driving started to smell a burning and then a burn/shocking sensation on left thigh. Adjusted while driving then realized my seat was burning me on the left leg. Pulled over and got out of car and saw my seat was smoldering (smoke and burning). Realized it must be the heated seat. Turned off seat warmer and waited for 5 minutes and realized had a small hole through my pants. After seat cooled, drove home and inspected a burn hole better at home and put ice on a 1st to 2nd degree burn on my left upper thigh.

I was driving when I smelled smoke and realized that the driver's side seat had caught fire. I stopped the car, jumped out, and saw that a hole had burned through the car seat and I could see flames. I don't understand how this has not triggered a recall as it is obviously extremely dangerous to have your car catch on fire while driving.

Driver side heated seat caught on fire.

Driver seat heat mat got too hot causing smoke, damage to clothing, and skin injury in less than a minute after turning the system on high. The seat had been functioning normally the day before. The seat cover is visibly damaged at a single point about the size of a quarter. The spot is on the left seat pan bolster 2/3's back from the front edge of the seat pan.

I turned on the heated seat feature on my 2005 BMW X3 and about 5 minutes later my leg started to get very hot. I reached down with my hand and it was so hot that it burnt my hand. I started to smell smoke and quickly turned off my heated seat. When I got home I looked on my driver seat and noticed a small brown burnt spot on the left side cushion of my driver side seat. Thankfully I noticed it right away, if it was on any longer I'm not sure what would have happened! this is very dangerous and I could have been badly burnt.

The passenger seat heating element got so hot that it started to smoke, burnt through the leather and burnt my wife's coat and leg.

Driver side heated seat heats up to the point of injury. Unusable.

Heated seat was on "medium" setting, within one minute I noticed a burning smell then felt pain in left leg. Heated seat element burned through seat material and burned pants! no real injury but seat was hot enough to burn through the leather and my pants. Seems extremely dangerous.

When testing the heated seats in this vehicle, after 5-10 secs, I felt a strong heat sensation on my left thigh. The there was a burn hole in the driver's seat on the left side. Switched off heat warmer right away.

When I use the heated seat on the drivers side, there is a hot spot that gets so hot if you don't roll onto your right hip you will get a serious burn.

The contact owns a 2007 BMW X3. The contact stated that the driver's seat emitted a strong burning odor. The contact found that the driver's seat was on fire and had burned through her clothing, injuring the contact. The contact was able to extinguish the fire by pouring water on the seat. The vehicle was taken to the dealer to have a diagnostic performed but was not repaired. The failure and current mileage was 68,000.

While using the heating device for the seats I smelled something burning and felt heat on my pants. I turned the heating device off. There was a small burn stain left on the seat, which has turned into a small hole.