RoadVitals

1998 BMW 318TI Owner Complaints

Reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers, shown in full

Data refreshed

Complaints on fileComplaints are reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a complaint does not establish that a defect exists. Volume is influenced by how many of a vehicle were sold, how long it has been on the road, and how much attention an issue has received.
11
Latest Dec 28, 2007
Crash or fire reportedComplaints whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. These are the reporter's own answers on the NHTSA form, not verified findings.
1
Filed in the last 12 monthsReports filed with NHTSA in the trailing 365 days. Recent volume reflects attention and vehicle age as much as anything else.
0
Reports on file since Aug 19, 1998

What this page shows

Our database holds 11 NHTSA owner-reported complaints for the 1998 BMW 318TI. Each one is a report filed by an owner or driver and published by NHTSA without most of them being verified. A complaint is not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. Narratives are shown exactly as filed.

Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.

Complaints, most recent first

Showing 1–11 of 11

Visibility
Filed Dec 28, 2007

1. WINDOW MOVEMENT STOPPED 2. WINDOW FELL INTO THE DOOR AND THE TINT GOT SCRATCHED 3. THE DEALER QUOTED 300 TO FIX IT, REPLACED REGULATOR AND BRUSHING. *TR

NHTSA ID
10213133
Incident
Nov 25, 2007
Mileage
67,000 mi
Visibility
Filed Mar 23, 2007

BMW318TI - BOTH DRIVER-SIDE AND PASSENGER-SIDE WINDOW REGULATORS HAVE HAD PROBLEMS . REPLACED THE PASSENGER-SIDE REGULATOR TWICE ALREADY IN THE LAST FEW YEARS. FORTUNATELY ONCE WAS WITHIN THE ONE-YEAR WARRANTY OF WHEN IT BROKE THE FIRST TIME SO THE EXPENSE WAS JUST THE LABOR, STILL EXPENSIVE. JUST THIS WEEK THE DRIVER'S SIDE REGULATOR FAILED. NOT A CHEAP FIX, AND QUITE A SCARE WHEN IT ACTUALLY HAPPENED. AN UNEXPECTED LOUD CRACK AND THE WINDOW CRASHED TO THE BOTTOM OF THE DOOR, JUST A FEW SECONDS AFTER THE WINDOW BUTTON WAS DEPRESSED. WOULD LOVE TO HEAR THAT THERE WAS A RECALL. THIS WAS GETTING TOO BE VERY EXPENSIVE.*AK

NHTSA ID
10186011
Incident
Mar 21, 2007
Mileage
84,000 mi
Visibility
Filed Jul 28, 2006

3 SERIES MODELS (E36) AND NOTABLY THE 318TI BMW AUTOMOBILES HAVE AN EXTREMELY HIGH FAILURE RATE FOR THE WINDOW REGULATORS. ITS NOT UNCOMMON TO HAVE TO REPAIR THEM ANNUALLY AT A COST OF APPROXIMATELY 300 DOLLARS PER DOOR. THE FAILURE OCCURS WITHOUT WARNING CAUSING THE WINDOW TO JAM, OR FALL INSIDE THE DOOR. THIS IS A WELL KNOWN DOCUMENTED PROBLEM AMONG THE OWNER COMMUNITY AND REACTIONS AT DEALERS IS "OH YEA HAPPENS ALL THE TIME." I PROPOSE THIS COULD PRESENT AN EGRESS ISSUE IN EVENT OF AN EMERGENCY. *JB

NHTSA ID
10163835
Incident
Jul 18, 2006
Mileage
144,000 mi
Tires & wheels
Filed Feb 8, 2006
Crash reported1 injury reported

PIRELLI P205 60R 15 TIRE BLOW OUT RESULTING IN SERIOUS INJURY TO CLIENT. *JB

NHTSA ID
10149701
Incident
Jan 24, 2005
Mileage
136,000 mi
Tires & wheels
Filed Jul 10, 2001

CAR HAS A SAFETY DESIGN FLAW. SPARE TIRE MOUNT DESIGN ALLOWS THE SIDEWALL OF THE SPARE TIRE (MOUNTED UNDER THE TRUNK) TO RUB AGAINST THE BOTTOM OF THE TRUNK DURING NORMAL DRIVING. UPON TAKING OUT THE SPARE, THE TIRE WAS FOUND TO HAVE PRONOUNCED MARKS AND GROOVES ON THE TIRE SIDEWALLS FROM THE RUBBING. THE MARKS WERE DEEP ENOUGH THAT THE BELTS IN THE TIRES COULD BE SEEN AND FELT ON THE SIDEWALLS. THE TIRE CAN NOT BE USED. MAJOR SAFETY PROBLEM IF THE SPARE (SMALL SPARE) IS USED WITH POTENTIAL SIDEWALL FAILURE DUE TO POOR SPARE TIRE MOUNT DESIGN.*AK

NHTSA ID
748180
Incident
Jul 5, 2001
Exterior lightingSuspensionTransmission
Filed Apr 13, 1999

VEHICLE LACKS TIRE ROAD GRIP ON SOME TURNS AND THE REAR OF THE CAR SLIDES OUT.

NHTSA ID
544965
Driver assistance
Filed Feb 3, 1999

UNINTENTIONAL ACCELERATION: I WAS STOPPED AT A RED LIGHT, WITH MY FOOT ON THE BRAKE PEDAL. I EASED THE PRESSURE ON THE BRAKE TO LET THE CAR ROLL FORWARD SLIGHTLY, THEN INCREASED THE BRAKE PPRESSURE AGAIN, THE ENGINE IMMEDIATELY BEGAN TO REV FAST, CAUSING THE REAR WHEELS TO SPIN AND PROPELLING THE CAR FORWARD APPROXIMATELY FOUR FEET, EVEN THOUGH I HAD FULL PRESSURE APPLIED TO THE BRAKES. I NARROWLY AVOIDED A COLLISION WITH TURNING TRAFFIC BY SHIFTING TO A LOWER GEAR, WHEREUPON THE RPM DROPPED. SHORTLY AFTER THIS, AS I WAS SLOWLY EASING INTO A PARKING SPACE, THE SAME THING OCCURRED. I HAD MY FOOT ON THE BRAKE, GENTLY APPROACHING THE PARKING STOP, EASED THE PRESSURE SLIGHTLY THEN INCREASED IT AGAIN, AND THE ENGINE IMMEDIATELY REVVED FROM BELOW 1000 RPM TO IN EXCESS OF 3500 RPM, AND THE CAR TRIED TO LUNGE FORWARD, EVEN THOUGH I STILL HAD FULL PRESSURE APPLIED TO THE BRAKE. I IMMEDIATELY SHIFTED INTO PARK, AND THE RPM DROPPED AT ONCE. I SUBSEQUENTLY CALLED THE DEALER, WHO ARRANGED FOR THE VEHICLE TO BE PICKED UP. AT PRESENT IT IS IN THE REPAIR SHOP. *AK

NHTSA ID
702896
Incident
Feb 2, 1999
Tires & wheels
Filed Feb 1, 1999

MICHELIN TIRE (P205/R15 MXV) BLEW OUT ON FREEWAY. YH

NHTSA ID
609295
Incident
Aug 1, 1998
Engine
Filed Feb 1, 1999

GASKET WEAR CAUSED GASOLINE LEAKING. YH

NHTSA ID
608673
Incident
Aug 21, 1998
Exterior lightingSuspensionTires & wheels+1 more
Filed Dec 10, 1998

TIRES AND SUSPENSION OF VEHICLE ARE INADEQUATE RESULTING IN REAR OF VEHICLE SLIDING DURING TURNS AND BUMPY RIDE.

NHTSA ID
542966
Visibility
Filed Aug 19, 1998

DRIVER'S WINDOW GLASS PLATE CAME OUT OF THE DOOR CHANNEL.

NHTSA ID
539120
Incident
Jul 24, 1998

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.

Data sources

Data on this page last refreshed .