2008 BMW 3 Series Engine Problems

WAS DRIVING ON HIGHWAY GOING 80 AND THE CAR JUST SHUT DOWN, WAS UNABLE TO STEER, LEFT ME AND MY 9 YEAR OLD STRANDED FOR ABOUT 30 MINUTES UNTILL IT STARTED BACK UP, EVERYDAY EVERYTIME I DRIVE IT NO MATTER WHAT THE SPEED IT SHUTS DOWN AND HAVE TO PRAY THAT I DON'T GET HIT BY A CAR OR AM ABLE TO GLIDE TO SAFETY, VERY UNSAFE NOT KNOWING WHEN THE CAR WILL SHUT DOWN ON ME, TOOK TO MECHANIC THERE WERE NO CODES NO CHECK ENGINE LIGHT OR ANYTHING, THEREFORE COULDN'T BE FIXED, SOMETHING IS NOT RIGHT WITH CAR, CAR ONLY STARTED DOING THIS FROM APRIL 2019 TO PRESENT,IT DOESN'T MATTER IF I'M ON HIGHWAY, STREET, STOPPED HAS ALWAYS HAPPENED, LIKE I SAID I DON'T KNOW WHEN IT'S GOING TO HAPPEN.IM GOING TO GET KILLED ONE OF THESE DAYS OR SERIOUSLY INJURED

NHTSA ID

11220155

Incident

Apr 22, 2019

Mileage

140,000 mi

ABOUT A MONTH AGO, MY 2008 BMW 3 SERIES ENGINE STALLED WHILE DRIVING AT SPEED 45 MPH. I RECEIVED NO WARNING BEFORE THE ENGINE STALLED. IT WAS A MIRACLE THAT I WAS ABLE TO MOVE OVER A LANE AND GET OFF THE ROAD BEFORE AN IMPACT FROM OTHER VEHICLES. THIS OCCURS EVERY TIME I DRIVE THE VEHICLE, MULTIPLE TIMES AND AT VARIOUS SPEEDS. IT'S VERY DANGEROUS BECAUSE I RECEIVE NO WARNING BEFORE IT HAPPENS. THE VEHICLE IS ALWAYS IN MOTION WHEN IT HAPPENS AND AT VARIOUS SPEEDS, ON HIGHWAYS, STREETS, ANYWHERE WHILE DRIVING STRAIGHT, TURNING AND ANY OTHER MANEUVERS.

NHTSA ID

11104658

Incident

May 30, 2018

Mileage

107,000 mi

BLOWER MOTOR WIRING AND PCV RECALL ISSUED NOV. 2017 REMEDY UNAVAILABLE

NHTSA ID

11093924

Incident

Nov 1, 2007

WHILE THE CAR WAS TRAVELLING AT A RATE OF ABOUT 45 MPH, IT DID SOMETHING I NEVER EXPERIENCED BEFORE. IT STARTED TO SHAKE, SPUTTER AND LOSE POWER WHILE ASCENDING A ON A PAVED CITY STREET THAT HAD ABOUT A 20 DEGREE UPHILL GRADE. THE VEHICLE BEHIND ME DIDN'T EXPECT MY SUDDEN SPEED CHANGE AND NEARLY REAR ENDED ME.. THE ENGINE ICON APPEARED ON THE DASH AND I SPUTTERED ALL THE WAY HOME.

NHTSA ID

11083091

Incident

Apr 2, 2018

Mileage

140,000 mi

RECENTLY I GOT A LETTER FROM BMW THAT MY VEHICLE WAS RECALLED FOR TWO ISSUES WHICH I HAVE BEEN EXPERIENCING SINCE A YEAR. 1 OVERHEATING 2. PLASTIC BURNING SMELL INSIDE THE COMPARTMENT. I BROUGHT THIS TO THEIR BMW'S NOTICE MANY TIMES WHICH THEY IGNORED. AND RECENTLY WHEN I GOT THIS RECALL LETTER FROM BMW I GAVE THEM A CALL(PRINCETON BMW), THEY GAVE ME AN APPOINTMENT SAYING THEY WILL FIX THAT. I TOLD THEM CRYSTAL CLEARLY THAT I WAS THERE FOR THE TWO RECALL ISSUES ONLY AND NOTHING ELSE. AND TO MY SHOCK ,LET ALONE REPAIRING THE MANDATORY RECALL ISSUES, THEY GAVE A BIG LIST OF OTHER THINGS, WHICH I DID NOT EVEN ASK FOR, AND THEY CHARGED ME AROUND 170 DOLLARS(ATTACHED COPIES). I AM BRINGING THIS TO YOUR NOTICE FOR SOLELY ONE REASON, AND THAT IS THERE ARE MILLIONS OF UNSUSPECTING PEOPLE WHO ARE UNAWARE OF THIS MALPRACTICE WHO WILL BE FALLING INTO THIS KIND OF TRAP. BMW IS TRYING TO MAKE MONEY OUT OF THIS SITUATION TOO. I AM ATTACHING ALL THE COPIES. PLEASE LOOK INTO THIS MATTER AND PLEASE MAKE THEM REALIZE THERE IS AN AUTHORITY WATCHING. I FELT LIKE SOMEBODY STOLE MONEY FROM ME. HOPE TO GET A RESPONSE FROM THE DEPARTMENT. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

NHTSA ID

11052943

Incident

Dec 6, 2017

I EXPERIENCED A BREAK DOWN WHEN I WAS DRIVING ON A CITY STREET. MY CAR WAS THEN TOWED TO THE LOCAL DEALER AND DEALER DISCOVERED WATER PUMP WAS BAD SO IT WAS THEN REPLACED UNDER WARRANTY. 3 YEARS LATER MY CAR BROKE DOWN AGAIN AND WAS TOWED TO LOCAL DEALER AN AGAIN THE WATER PUMP WAS DETERMINED BAD AND REPLACED. I CONTACTED BMW NORTH AMERICA TO SEE IF THEY WOULD HELP CONSIDERING THE WATER PUMP HAS BROKEN TWICE BUT NO HELP FROM THEM.

NHTSA ID

10836295

Incident

Feb 1, 2016

Mileage

70,000 mi

DRIVING CAR AND VEHICLE STARTED TO SHAKE, MAKE RUMBLING NOISE AND FEELS SLUGGISH WHEN ACCELERATING. DOESN'T FEEL SAFE TO DRIVE WITH SLUGGISH, ENGINE POWER INTERMITTENT. *TR

NHTSA ID

10714294

Incident

May 2, 2014

Mileage

72,000 mi

THREE BOLTS ON ENGINE MOUNT BRACKET SHEARED OFF AND ONE BOLT ON THE SAME ENGINE MOUNT BRACKET WAS MISSING. THE THREE BOLTS THAT SHEARED ARE IN THE ENGINE BLOCK. THIS INCIDENT OCCURRED ONLY TWO WEEKS AFTER BRINGING IN MY CAR TO THE PETER PAN BMW DEALERSHIP TO HAVE MY CAR INSPECTED. *TR

NHTSA ID

10641853

Incident

Oct 3, 2014

Mileage

59,670 mi

I WAS INFORMED THE VALVE COVER GASKET AND OIL FILTER HOUSING GASKET WERE LEAKING, WHICH CAUSED A PROBLEM WITH THE ECCENTRIC SHAFT SENSOR. I PAID FOR A NEW VALVETRONIC MOTOR, ECCENTRIC SHAFT SENSOR, VALVE COVER AND GASKETS, AND OIL FILTER HOUSING GASKET, AND THE ASSOCIATED REPAIR. FAST FORWARD 3 MONTHS, I GO IN FOR A OIL CHANGE AND AM TOLD THAT AGAIN I HAVE A SIGNIFICANT LEAK FROM THE VALVE COVER GASKET AND OIL FILTER HOUSING GASKET. *TR

NHTSA ID

10621149

Incident

Aug 9, 2014

Mileage

66,000 mi

I WAS GOING OVER A SMALL BUMP IN THE ROAD AT 30 MPH AND MY ENGINE MOUNT FAILED. ALL FOUR ALUMINUM BOLTS SHEARED OFF AND THE ENGINE DROPPED. THIS DROP SNAPPED MY PASSENGER DRIVE SHAFT (HALF AXLE) IN TWO PIECES. *JS I THINK BMW HAS A SERIOUS PROBLEM WITH THE STRENGTH OF THE ENGINE MOUNT HARDWARE. THE ENGINE MOUNT BOLTS SHOULD BE STRONGER. THE FAILURE MODE IS DANGEROUS. *JS

NHTSA ID

10616761

Incident

Jul 18, 2014

Mileage

76,000 mi

NOTICED AN UNUSUAL ENGINE VIBRATION. WENT TO MY MECHANIC WHO INSPECTED VEHICLE. POINTED OUT BROKEN MOTOR MOUNT BOLTS. HIS COMMENT I HAVE SEEN SEVERAL OF THESE OVER THE YEARS. THE BOLTS ARE MADE FROM ALUMINUM -- THEY BREAK. SAID HE THIS WAS AN ONGOING AND WELL KNOWN ISSUE WITH BMW FROM THAT YEAR AND 2009. SAID BMW WOULD NOT COVER IT. HE ALSO STATED THE CAR HAD NO VISIBLE SIGNS OF DAMAGE, TO UNDERCARRIAGE THAT WOULD SUGGEST ANY DAMAGE. HE SAID IT JUST HAPPENS, AND A LOT OF PEOPLE HAVE COMPLAINED TO BMW, ALL TO NO AVAIL. INSTEAD OF BEAMERS... THEY SHOULD CALL THIS CAR A BUMMER. IT IS AN VERY EXPENSIVE PROBLEM, CREATED BY POOR ENGINEERING AND MANUFACTURING. ALUMINUM BOLTS HOLDING AN ENGINE. *TR

NHTSA ID

10574906

Incident

Feb 20, 2014

Mileage

75,000 mi

AS AN EXAMPLE, WHEN ATTEMPTING TO ACCELERATE THE VEHICLE ONTO A MOVING TRAFFIC SITUATION THE CAR HESITATES/LAGS/DELAYS BEFORE THE ENGINE CATCHES, THEN IT TAKES OFF LIKE A RABBIT WHEN YOU DON'T EXPECT IT. THIS VEHICLE BEHAVIOR HAS CAUSED NEAR MISS ACCIDENTS MORE THAN ONCE WHEN I WAS DRIVING. IT'S NOT A DELAY WHICH DECREASES A TRANSIENT SURGE. IT INCREASES THE TRANSIENT SURGE AS THE CAR DOES NOT RESPOND TO THE THROTTLE FOR A HALF SECOND THEN BOLTS FORWARD WITH AN AWKWARD LURCH AND A SLAM. IT'S MUCH ROUGHER THAN A NORMAL TAKEOFF WOULD BE. IT'S NOT AT ALL SMOOTH. SOME HAVE DESCRIBED IT AS BEING REAR-ENDED. THE HAS BEEN HAPPENING SINCE I PURCHASED THE CAR IN NOVEMBER 2010 MANY BMW OWNERS HAVE REPORTED THE PROBLEM TO BMW AS I HAVE. THE ANSWER I GOT AS WELL AS MANY OTHERS FROM BMW WAS, "IT'S NORMAL". *TR

NHTSA ID

10550802

Incident

Nov 9, 2010

Mileage

38,000 mi

I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY AT ABOUT 70 MILES AN HOUR WHEN THE ENGINE JUST SUDDENLY STOPPED. WHILE THE CAR WAS SLOWING DOWN I HAVE TO PULL OVER AND RESTART THE CAR. THEN AFTER DRIVING FOR ANOTHER 10 MIN THE ENGINE STOPPED AGAIN THIS TIME I DIDN'T HAVE TIME TO PULL OVER AND STOPPED IN THE MIDDLE OF A HIGHWAY. I HAVE TO KEEP TRYING BEFORE IT RESTARTED. I STOPPED AT A GAS STATION AND WAS AFRAID TO DRIVE IT AGAIN. FINALLY WITHOUT A CHOICE AFTER AN HOUR I STARTED THE CAR BACK UP AND WAS ABLE TO DRIVE BACK HOME. *TR

NHTSA ID

10499301

Incident

Jul 26, 2012

Mileage

40,000 mi

WHEN TRAVELLING ON HARLEM RIVER DRIVE MIDDLE LANE, MY CAR ALL THE SUDDEN DISPLAYED AN ENGINE OVERHEAT LIGHT YELLOW THAT TURNED RED WITHIN 3 SECONDS AND STARTED LOSING POWER (FROM 50-60 MPH TO 1 MPH) WITHIN 5 SECONDS...THE CAR HAD TO BE TOWED TO THE NEAREST DEALERSHIP. THIS IS AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS SITUATION, AS I DID NOT HAVE ENOUGH WARNING TIME TO PULL TO THE SHOULDER. THE DEALERSHIP IS STATING THAT THIS IS A WATER PUMP FAILURE. I AM AWARE THAT THERE ARE RECALLS ON X5S BUT NOT ON MY CAR. MY FRIEND WHO OWNS THE SAME CAR AND YEAR HAD THE EXACT SAME PROBLEM RESULTING IN THE SAME COST OF REPAIR ($1600). MY VEHICLE ALREADY HAS MANY RECALLS INCLUDING SEAT BELTS, AIR BAGS, AND HIGH PRESSURED FUEL PUMPS. THIS SHOULD NOT HAPPEN TO A CAR THAT HAS BEEN MAINTAINED BY BMW AND JUST OUT OF WARRANTY (LESS THAN 60000 MILES). NOT EVEN 4 YEARS YET. I HAVE OWNED MANY BMWS AND OTHER CARS AND NEVER HAD A WATER PUMP FAILURE THAT CAUSED A DANGER OF THIS MAGNITUDE... I WOULD APPRECIATE IF YOU WOULD INVESTIGATE THE SITUATION TO PREVENT THIS FROM HAPPENING TO OTHER OWNERS. *TR

NHTSA ID

10452625

Incident

Mar 17, 2012

Mileage

55,000 mi

MY 335I 2008 HAS HAD THREE RECALLS ALL RELATED TO THE FUEL SYSTEM. WITH 24,000 MILES IT NOW HAS ISSUES WITH STARTING.I RECENTLY HAVE TAKEN IT BACK TO MY DEALER,LEFT IT FOR FOUR DAYS, PICKED IT UP WITH "CANNOT DUPLICATE CUSTOMER COMPLAINT". IN LESS THAN A WEEK THE START UP HAS GONE FROM THREE TO FIVE UN,UN,UN,UN,UNS TO CRANK. THE CAR IS ABOUT TO GO OUT OF WARRANTY AND I BELIEVE THAT BMW KNOWS THERE ARE SERIOUS PROBLEMS AND IS REFUSING TO REPAIR UNTIL THEY ARE ABLE TO GET REPAIRS INCOME. I GUESS I SHOULD HAVE CANCELLED MY SPECIAL ORDER WHEN TWO WEEKS BEFORE DELIVERY THEY CALLED AND SAID MY CAR HAD ARRIVED IN US BUT WOULD NOT BE RELEASED DUE TO "ENGINE COMPRESSION PROBLEMS". ALL OTHER ISSUES I HAVE ASKED TO BE REPAIRED ARE NOT WITH DEALER NOTING "CANNOT DUPLICATE CUSTOMER COMPLAINT". AN ACCIDENT WAITING TO HAPPEN. I HAVE CALLED AND EMAILED BMW AND DEALER NO ONE RESPONDED. AND LET'S NOT EVEN GET TO THE TIRES! *TR

NHTSA ID

10436491

Incident

Aug 21, 2009

2008 BMW 328I STALLS WHILE DRIVING. ONCE STALLED UNDER POWER AS I WAS MAKING A LEFT TURN ACROSS TRAFFIC - DEALER SAID NO CODE WAS THROWN SO THEY WERE UNABLE TO ADDRESS. THE OTHER STALLS HAVE NOT DURING SLOWDOWN PERIOD, NOT AS CRITICAL BUT THEY COME WITH NO WARNING WHATSOEVER WHICH IS DANGEROUS! NO ACCIDENT FROM IT YET BUT I NO LONGER FEEL SAFE DRIVING THIS CAR. FIRST OCCURRENCE IN 2010, TWO MORE RECENTLY DEC 2010 & JAN 2011. *LN

NHTSA ID

10378357

Incident

Jan 23, 2011

ON THREE OCCASIONS SINCE I PURCHASED THIS VEHICLE NEW, WHILE DRIVING AND ACCELERATING THE ENGINE CUTS OUT AND RPM'S SUDDENLY DROP. THE DATE REFERENCED BELOW WAS THE FIRST TIME THIS HAPPENED. THIS HAS HAPPENED TWICE SINCE THEN. I HAVE TAKEN THE VEHICLE IN ALL THREE TIMES. THEY CHANGED SOME PARTS, BUT THIS CONTINUES TO HAPPEN. AT ONE TIME, I WAS TRY TO GET THROUGH AN INTERSECTION WITH ONCOMING TRAFFIC, ALTHOUGH THERE WAS NOT AN ACCIDENT, IT WAS SCARY. ANOTHER TIME WAS CHANGING LANES ON A HIGHWAY. THIS SEEMS TO BE INTERMITTENT PROBLEM. *TR

NHTSA ID

10313845

Incident

Mar 15, 2008

Mileage

1,000 mi

I TOOK THE VEHICLE FOR THE FOLLOWING SYMPTOMS: 1.) LONG(ER) CRANK 2.) ENGINE MALFUNCTION, REDUCED POWER 3.) SERVICE ENGINE SOON 4.) HEAVY, ERRATIC SHAKING AND SHUDDERING 5.) ENGINE SOUNDED LIKE A UNION PACIFIC TRAIN WITH LOUD PUMPING SOUND 6.) BECAUSE OF 4 + 5, DECIDE TO TURN-OFF THE ENGINE OR SOMETIMES IT JUST STALLS BEFORE 7.) AFTER RESET, THE CAR BECOMES DRIVABLE BUT SYMPTOMS WILL REOCCUR. 8.) ABLE TO RECREATE PROBLEM WHEN I MASH THE GAS AFTER DOING SOME RESEARCH ON AN AUTO FORUM, I SUSPECTED THAT THE CAUSED OF THE PROBLEM WAS A FAILING HIGH PRESSURE FUEL PUMP. THE DEALERSHIP KEPT THE CAR FOR 3 DAYS TO RUN SOME TESTS AND CONCLUDED THAT THE FUEL PUMP WAS THE PROBLEM. SINCE THEY REPLACE THE PART, THE CAR HAS NOT BROKEN DOWN AGAIN. HOWEVER, THEY INTRODUCE ANOTHER PROBLEMS. 1) THE CAR'S EXHAUST NOISE IS MUCH LOUDER NOW 2) THE CAR IS LESS FUEL EFFICIENT, LOWER MILES PER GALLON 3) THE CAR NOW HAS A TURBO LAG WHICH WAS PREVIOUSLY NON-EXISTENT. THIS MEANS BMW IS FALSELY ADVERTISING THE 335I TWIN-TURBO HAS ZERO LAG. THIS WAS TRUE BEFORE THEY UPDATED THE CAR'S SOFTWARE BUT IS NOT LONGER TRUE AT THIS MOMENT IN TIME. *TR

NHTSA ID

10242095

Incident

Sep 10, 2008

Mileage

15,500 mi