1998 BMW 3 Series Problems
Owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA, grouped by component
Data refreshed
What this page shows
Everything below is an owner-reported complaint submitted to NHTSA about the 1998 BMW 3 Series, grouped by the component NHTSA recorded on the report. These are not confirmed defects, and they are not recalls. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a category with more reports in it is not evidence that a part is defective.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Reports by component
Ranked by how many owner reports name each component category
- Airbags250.0%
- Electrical125.0%
- Suspension125.0%
Percentages are of component mentions. A single complaint can name more than one component, so these do not sum to the total complaint count.
Each component in detail
What the reports in each category say, in the owners' own words
Airbags
Reports naming the air-bag system — deployment behaviour, inflators, sensors and warning lights.
From owner reports, verbatim
THEY HAVE NOT HAD ANY PARTS TO SERVICE THE RECALL ANY TIME I HAVE TAKEN MY CAR IN FOR REPAIRS OR HAVE CALLED ABOUT THE RECALL.
AT APPROXIMATELY 4:45 P.M. CT ON FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016, I WAS DRIVING MY 1998 BMW M3 CONVERTIBLE HOME FROM WORK. I WAS ON STATE HIGHWAY 75 IN TULSA, OKLAHOMA, HEADING SOUTH. I DON'T HAVE A SPECIFIC RECOLLECTION OF MY SPEED AT THAT EXACT MOMENT, BUT WOULD ESTIMATE IT TO BE IN THE AREA OF 55-60 MILES AN HOUR, AS THERE WAS SOME TRAFFIC, BUT IT WAS NOT HEAVY. I WAS IN THE RIGHT-HAND LANE ON A PART OF THE HIGHWAY WHERE THERE IS NO CURB. I DID NOT SWERVE OFF THE SHOULDER. TULSA ROADS ARE NOTORIOUSLY BAD, BUT THIS PARTICULAR STRETCH OF HIGHWAY WAS REPAVED RELATIVELY RECENTLY. MY PASSENGER DOOR AIRBAG DEPLOYED SPONTANEOUSLY. I WAS NOT INVOLVED IN A COLLISION. I DID NOT HAVE A FLAT TIRE. BMW OF NORTH AMERICA HAS ASSURED ME THAT THE AIRBAG OPERATED APPROPRIATELY AND THERE MUST HAVE BEEN SOME STIMULUS TO CAUSE ITS DETONATION. I STRUGGLE TO ACCEPT THAT THERE WAS ANY STIMULUS AT THAT SPEED THAT WOULD CAUSE DETONATION OF JUST ONE AIRBAG WITHOUT CAUSING SOME DAMAGE TO THE VEHICLE.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Electrical
Reports naming the electrical system — wiring, battery, charging, control modules, infotainment and electrical accessories.
From owner reports, verbatim
THEY HAVE NOT HAD ANY PARTS TO SERVICE THE RECALL ANY TIME I HAVE TAKEN MY CAR IN FOR REPAIRS OR HAVE CALLED ABOUT THE RECALL.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Suspension
Reports naming suspension components — springs, struts, shocks, control arms and related hardware.
From owner reports, verbatim
THE CONSUMER IS EXPERIENCING PROBLEMS WITH FRONT END SUSPENSION. EVERY TIME THAT VEHICLE IS DRIVEN OVER A BUMP, A LOUD RATTLING NOISE OCCURS. THE CONSUMER HAS TAKEN THEIR VEHICLE TO BE FIXED FOR THE SAME PROBLEM, BUT IT WAS NOT FIXED PROPERLY BECAUSE THE PROBLEM STILL REMAINS. THE MANUFACTURER HAS BEEN CONTACTED. *AK
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Elsewhere on this vehicle
Data sources
- NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation — owner-reported complaints and the components recorded on them
Data on this page last refreshed .