RoadVitals

2016 BMW Z4 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.
4
Latest Feb 19, 2025
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 Sep 22, 2016

What this page shows

Our database holds 4 NHTSA owner-reported complaints for the 2016 BMW Z4. 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 1–4 of 4

ElectricalEngine
Filed Feb 19, 2025

The contact owns a 2016 BMW Z4. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V608000 (Engine and Engine Cooling, Electrical System); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

NHTSA ID
11643614
Incident
Oct 1, 2024
Filed Aug 22, 2024

The air conditioning system has a very very foul musty smell when you first start the vehicle after sitting for a few hours. It will go away after a few minutes, but the dealer nor repair shops can fix the issue. System was cleaned, new micro air filter was installed, but still have the musty odor. Even the a/c drain was cleaned, all to no avail. This seems to be a class thing with all BMW vehicles according to the many BMW owners I have spoken with. But no one can fix the problem.

NHTSA ID
11610174
Incident
Aug 1, 2022
Driver assistance
Filed Mar 13, 2020
Crash reported1 injury reported

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 BMW Z4. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE HIS WIFE WAS STOPPED AND THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED AN UNKNOWN NOISE WAS HEARD AS, THE VEHICLE ACCELERATED OUT OF CONTROL AND CRASHED INTO THE REAR OF THE VEHICLE IN FRONT CAUSING THAT VEHICLE TO CRASHED INTO THE VEHICLE AHEAD OF IT. THERE WERE NO WARNING LIGHTS ILLUMINATED. THE DRIVER'S SIDE FRONTAL AND KNEE AIR BAGS DEPLOYED. THE DRIVER SUSTAINED MINOR INJURY THAT REQUIRED MEDICAL ATTENTION. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN AUTO BODY REPAIR FACILITY. THE CONTACT CALLED THE BMW OF TEMPLE DEALER (6006 S GENERAL BRUCE DR, TEMPLE, TX 76502) AND WAS TOLD TO CALL THE MANUFACTURER. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE AS THE CONTACT WAS AWAITING THE REPORT FROM THE EVENT DATA RECORDER (EDR) AND A CASE WAS OPENED. THE CONTACT WAS CONCERNED AS HE WANTED THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE TO BE DIAGNOSED BEFORE THE VEHICLE WAS RETURNED TO HM. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 8,000. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE.

NHTSA ID
11317890
Incident
Feb 28, 2020
Mileage
8,000 mi
Seat belts
Filed Sep 22, 2016

ABOUT 20% OF TIME, DRIVER SIDE SEAT BELT JAMS, WILL NOT RELEASE FROM RECESS/RETAINER BEHIND SEAT WITHOUT USING MY HAND FOR COUPLE MINUTES TO JIGGLE ENOUGH. NO PROBLEM ONCE I GET IT TO RELEASE. THEN FITS IN CONNECTOR AND ALSO RELEASES OK. TWO LOCAL DEALERS UNABLE TO FIX. ONE EVEN REPLACED ENTIRE MECHANISM, STILL JAMS. MANAGER SAID THIS MODEL SEEMS TO HAVE THIS PROBLEM. THIS OCCURS AT A STAND STILL, BEFORE PUTTING CAR IN GEAR, SOMETIMES WITH MOTOR ON, SOMETIME BEFORE I START THE ENGINE. SOMETIMES JUST OPENING THE DOOR CAUSES THE RELEASE. OTHER TIMES, I HAVE TO PUT MY HAND UNDER THE BELT AND MANEUVER THE BELT UNTIL IT RELATES FROM THE RETAINER INTO WHICH THE BELT RETRACTS. NO PICTURES INCLUDED. JUST A STANDARD SEAT BELT. HAD A BMW 3351 FOR 7 YEARS. NEVER HAD THIS PROBLEM ONCE.

NHTSA ID
10908777
Incident
Sep 20, 2016
Mileage
200 mi

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 .