Recalls, owner-reported complaints, investigations and safety data
Data refreshed
Our database contains 12 NHTSA owner-reported complaints for the 1999 BMW M Coupe, most frequently naming the body & structure, interior & seats and powertrain (other) categories. 4 manufacturer communications are on file.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
When owners filed reports about this model year
| Month | Complaints filed | Cumulative |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 1999 | 1 | 1 |
| Feb 2003 | 2 | 3 |
| Feb 2004 | 1 | 4 |
| Mar 2004 | 1 | 5 |
| Jun 2004 | 1 | 6 |
| Sep 2004 | 1 | 7 |
| Sep 2005 | 1 | 8 |
| Aug 2006 | 1 | 9 |
| Dec 2006 | 1 | 10 |
| May 2008 | 1 | 11 |
| Jan 2013 | 1 | 12 |
Complaints grouped by the component NHTSA recorded
Percentages are of component mentions. A single complaint can name more than one component, so these do not sum to the total complaint count.
No recalls in our database for this model year
That does not guarantee a specific vehicle is unaffected — recalls are issued against VINs, and new campaigns are announced regularly. Check a VIN on NHTSA.gov.
Reports submitted to NHTSA, shown in the owner's own words
REAR SUBFRAME IS BEGINNING TO SEPARATE FROM THE BODY OF THE VEHICLE, POSSIBLY CONTRIBUTOR TO UNSAFE AND UNSTABLE HANDLING. FIRST NOTICED AFTER HAVING SERVICE 2 INTERVAL DONE IN 2009, BUT UPON MORE RESEARCH ONLINE MANY Z3 OWNERS ARE HAVING THIS SAME ISSUE REGARDLESS OF MODEL OR HOW IT'S DRIVEN. BROKEN SPOT WELD UNDERNEATH THE VEHICLE. TRYING TO CATCH IT EARLY ON BEFORE IT GETS WORSE. *TR
SUBFRAME TEAR, SEPARATING OF TRUNK FLOOR FROM RAILS. *TR
THE 1999 BMW M COUPE I OWN IS SUFFERING FROM A REAR SUBFRAME FAILURE. THE DIFFERENTIAL MOUNT AND REAR SUBFRAME ARE BECOMING DISCONNECTED FROM THE FRAME. VISUAL INSPECTIONS HAVE SHOWN THE SEPARATION. THIS WILL LEAD TO THE REAR DIFFERENTIAL BECOMING TOTALLY DISCONNECTED FROM THE CAR, LEADING TO A POSSIBLE ACCIDENT. THIS ISSUE IS CURRENTLY UNRESOLVED AS THE FIX WILL BE THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS. THERE ARE NUMEROUS DOCUMENTED CASES OF SUBFRAME FAILURES ON BMW Z3, M ROADSTER AND M COUPE MODELS. THIS IS OBVIOUSLY A MANUFACTURER DEFECT THAT HAS NO BEEN ADDRESSES BY THE MANUFACTURER. THIS PRESENTS A SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE. *NM
THERE IS A CRASH RISK AS THE CAR'S SUBFRAME IS RAPIDLY TEARING AND THIS DESIGN FLAW COULD EVENTUALLY LEAD TO A LOSS OF CONTROL LEADING TOWARDS A CRASH. THE CAR INVOLVED IS A BMW M COUPE 1999. *NM
REAR SUBFRAME WELDS ARE FAILING. AS A RESULT, THE FLOOR IS TEARING FROM THE SUBFRAME. THE FOLLOWING WEBSITE CONTAINS DESCRIPTIONS AND PHOTOS OF MANY EXAMPLES OF THIS VERY ISSUE. HTTP://WWW.THELARGEGLASS.COM/BMW/SUBFRAME/. *JB
DIFFERENTIAL BRACKET AND SUBFLOOR ARE CRACKING AND TEARING APART AT THE WELD SEAMS AND SPOT WELDS. COULD LEAD TO UNPREDICTABLE HANDLING, ESPECIALLY DURING REGULAR DRIVING TURNS/HIGHWAY SPEEDS (INSTABILITY, ROUGH SHAKING, LOOSE CHASSIS KNOCKING). *AK
SEPARATION OF FLOOR PAN WELDS APPEARS TO BE A COMMON PROBLEM IN AN UNCOMMON VEHICLE. I'M UNABLE TO PROVIDE A CAUSE, SINCE I AM THE THIRD OWNER, AND HAVE NEVER DRIVEN THE CAR AT IT'S INTENDED LIMITS. TO MY KNOWLEDGE, IT HAS NEVER BEEN RACED. SO FAR, I HAVE NOT REPAIRED THE PROBLEM.*AK
SERIOUS CRACKING ALONG MULTIPLE BODY SEAMS IN THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT IN STRUT TOWER AREA AND IN THE REAR IN THE LOWER SUBFRAME AREA. *AK
A bulletin sent by a manufacturer to its dealers. Not a recall, and repairs are not necessarily free.
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC
Functional noises (squealing/honking) when braking shortly before the vehicle comes to a stop. CAUSE Material-
SERVICE BRAKES
BMW: RUNNING NOISES HEARD WHEN BRAKES ARE APPLIED, WITH HIGH BRAKE LOADS; THROUGH WHEEL OPENING, VISIBLE CRACKS CAN BE SEEN IN BRAKE DISCS AND STEERING WHEEL TORSIONAL VIBRATES WHEN APPLYING BRAKES. *PE
EQUIPMENT
PROCEDURES ON REPLACING M-MOBILITY SYSTEM. *TT
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE
CUSTOMER MAY COMPLAIN OF ENGINE RUNNING ROUGH ON COLD START. *TT
Manufacturers file copies of the bulletins they send to dealers with NHTSA. These often describe diagnostic or repair procedures for a known condition. They are not recalls: repairs described in a bulletin are usually only free if the vehicle is still under warranty or the manufacturer has extended coverage.
Complaint and recall counts across every year of this model
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. Older model years have had longer for reports to accumulate.