RoadVitals

2003 BMW 330I Engine Problems

Owner-reported complaints naming the engine system, filed with NHTSA

Data refreshed

Engine reportsComplaints 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.
8
Latest Apr 29, 2004
Share of all reportsThis category as a share of every owner report on file for this model year. One report can name more than one component, so the categories overlap.
10%
of 77 total
Crash or fire reportedReports in this category whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. The reporter's own answer on the NHTSA form, not a verified finding.
0
Injuries or deaths reportedTotals the submitters entered on their own reports in this category. Not verified by NHTSA and not a casualty statistic.
0

What this page shows

Reports naming the engine itself — including stalling, misfires, oil consumption, cooling and internal engine components. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 2003 BMW 330I submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 8 reports on file name it.

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

Owner reports naming engine

Shown in the owner’s own words, exactly as filed

Engine
Filed Apr 29, 2004

NO EVENTS LEADING TO FAILURE CAR WILL RANDOMLY STALL WHEN STOPPED. PROBLEM CONTINUES TO PERSIST NOTHING HAS BEEN DONE. BMW CLAIMS THERE IS NO PROBLEM

NHTSA ID
10068079
Incident
Apr 27, 2004
Mileage
10,430 mi
Engine
Filed Apr 29, 2004

THERE IS A PROBLEM WITH THE BMW 3.0L ENGINE WHERE IDLING ONCE THE ENGINE IS WARMED-UP IS USUALLY VERY ROUGH IN THE RANGE OF 500-700 RPM. THERE IS ALSO A TENDENCY TO DIP BELOW 500 RPM AND STALL OUT. THIS STARTED HAPPENING WHEN THE CAR ONLY HAD 700 MILES ON IT. I CONSIDER THE STALL A FAILURE.

NHTSA ID
10068034
Incident
Sep 18, 2003
Mileage
700 mi
Engine
Filed Apr 29, 2004

CAR HAS STALLED TWICE FOR NO APPARENT REASON. CAR HAS CONSISTENT ROUGH IDLE AND VERGES ON STALLING AT TIMES.

NHTSA ID
10068030
Incident
Apr 26, 2004
Mileage
9,000 mi
Engine
Filed Apr 22, 2004

MY 2003 BMW 330I ZHP HAS A ROUGH IDLE AND OCCASIONALLY STALLS. I'VE HAD IT SERVICED 3 TIMES, BUT ISSUE STILL NOT RESOLVED.*AK

NHTSA ID
10067649
Incident
Apr 15, 2004
Engine
Filed Apr 7, 2004

I AM EXPERIENCING A STALLING PROBLEM WITH MY 2003 BMW 330I. AT A STOP LIGHT THE CAR HAS A VERY ROUGH IDLE AND HAS STALLED NUMEROUS TIMES. I HAVE BROUGHT THE CAR TO THE DEALER NUMEROUS TIMES TO HAVE THIS PROBLEM RESOLVED, AND NOTHING HAS BEEN DONE ABOUT IT. THIS PROBLEM IS HAPPENING ON ALMOST EVERY 330I, AS EVIDENCED ON NUMEROUS INTERNET BULLETIN BOARDS (INCLUDING BIMMERFEST.COM AND BIMMERFORUMS.COM) BUT BMW REFUSES TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE PROBLEM. THIS PROBLEM CAUSES A SAFETY HAZARD, AS THE STALLING AS LEFT ME STRANDED AT AN INTERSECTION IN THE PAST WITH TRAFFIC FLOWING AROUND ME AS I ATTEMPT TO RESTART. *AK

NHTSA ID
10065721
Incident
Nov 11, 2003
Mileage
5,000 mi
Engine
Filed Apr 3, 2004

2003 330I ZHP (PERFORMANCE PACKAGE) : 6K MILES... CAR IDLE'S ROUGH AND STALLS OCCASIONALLY. DEALER / SERVICE HAD NO ERROR REPORTS IN THE COMPUTER, SAID THEY COULD DO NOTHING ABOUT IT. PROBLEM CONTINUES... *NM

NHTSA ID
10064470
Incident
Mar 28, 2004
Mileage
6,500 mi
Engine
Filed Mar 23, 2004

2003 BMW 330I, I HAVE AN ISSUE WHERE THE ENGINE STALLS WHEN THE COASTING TO A STOP, OR SITTING STATIONARY, AND WITH THE CLUTCH FULLY DEPRESSED. ENGINE ALSO EXHIBITS UNEVEN/ODD ACCELERATION BEHAVIOR, OFTEN LAGGING NOTICEABLY AT SPEED. I'VE HAD THE CAR AT THE DEALER TO DIAGNOSE THE PROBLEM ON 4 OCCASIONS IN THE PAST YEAR (19K MILES) WITH ZERO RESOLUTION. BECAUSE THE CAR ISN'T THROWING AN ERROR CODES, I GUESS THAT I HAVE TO JUST "LIVE WITH IT". NOT ACCEPTABLE. THIS CAN BE A DANGEROUS ISSUE, ESPECIALLY WHEN COASTING TO A STOP. I WOULD LIKE TO SEE BMW FINALLY STEP UP TO THE PLATE AND ADDRESS THIS ISSUE. I JUST SHOULDN'T HAVE TO LIVE WITH SOMETHING LIKE THIS, IN THIS DAY IN AGE, AND WITH A MASS-PRODUCED CAR. *AK

NHTSA ID
10063714
Incident
Mar 23, 2004
Mileage
500 mi
ElectricalEngine
Filed Mar 11, 2004

ERRATIC ENGINE IDLE AND STALL.AT IDLE ENGINE RPMS WILL DROP CAUSING A STALL/STUTTER. THIS HAPPENS FREQUENTLY AND IN ALL TYPES OF WEATHER CONDITIONS. THIS EFFECTS ALL 330I ZHP (PERFORMANCE PKG) MODEL.*AK

NHTSA ID
10061949
Incident
Mar 9, 2004

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.

Other components reported on this vehicle

Categories with enough reports to have a page of their own

Exterior lighting27Airbags24Electrical10

Elsewhere on this vehicle

Data sources

Data on this page last refreshed .