Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| VISIBILITY | |||
| 06/01/2008 | 40000 | ||
| Side view mirrors begin to rust from the bottom up. this problem appears to be related to the heated mirrors but happens to most 3 series bmw's, despite the climate. | |||
| VISIBILITY/WIPER | |||
| 06/01/2011 | 57000 | ||
| I own a 2004 bmw 3 series sedan with optional bi-xenon headlights. about 10,000 miles into my purchase (or 57,000) i began to notice my headlight output deteriorating significantly. my girlfriend owns a 2004 bmw 3 series coupe/convertible also with the optional bi-zenon and 60,000 miles. i compared our vehicles headlights side by side. my bi-xenon headlights in both low and high beam form were significantly dimmer and had a yellow tint when compared to her bi-xenon headlights. this is a common issue on bmw 3 series sedans with the optional bi-xenon headlamps. the problem is that the bi-xenon reflector housing bowl in bmw e46 3 series sedans is made from a different manufacturer than the coupes and convertibles. the headlights in my vehicle are made and classified under the title (zkw). the coupes and convertibles are made and classified under the name (al). the difference is that oem zkw headlights reflector housing bowls are made from a type of plastic. while the oem al headlights are made out of metal. the metal housing in al style headlights in coupes and convertibles are able to stand up to the heat of the xenon bulb, the plastic housings in my sedan are not. due to this it literally gets too hot and burns the plastic reflective housing to a brown crisp, which is not a reflective surface and deteriorated my headlight output to an extremely unsafe level. the output level has dimmed so that when there is any oncoming traffic my lights get drowned out and i must put on my fog lamps to maintain any type of visibility. the output level is below any halogen lamp i have seen. this is extremely unsafe at any speed and is a known issue on all bi-xenon equipped bmw e46 3 series sedans. bmw is aware of this issue and has done nothing to address this design flaw, which compromises the safety of myself and others. pictures of the issue are available upon request. thank you. | |||
| 02/18/2013 | |||
| My bi-xenon headlights have been slowly fading resulting in extremely poor visibility during normal nightime driving. this degradation has been occurring without my knowledge until it became obvious after driving another vehicle. as it turns out, my mechanic has advised there is a common issue with certain bmw assemblies that the projector lenses literally burn due to heat resulting in the need to replace the entire assembly. this loss of headlight intensity resulting in poor visibility is a significant safety situation and request someone look into why no recall has occurred as this is obviously a safety concern. i have entered today's date as incident date as i am not sure when degradation of the projectors began. | |||
| 08/09/2012 | 94000 | 1 | |
| Module that controls central locking, wipers, and several other parts (the gm5) started to develop a fault. we had problems unlocking doors, locking doors, using windows, and worst of all - the wipers were hit or miss. bmw wanted $750 for the part replacement. *tr | |||
| 08/09/2012 | 94000 | ||
| Module that controls central locking, wipers, and several other parts (the gm5) started to develop a fault. we had problems unlocking doors, locking doors, using windows, and worst of all - the wipers were hit or miss. bmw wanted $750 for the part replacement. | |||
| 06/01/2011 | 50000 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2004 bmw 3 series. the contact stated that the monochromatic coating on the rear view mirror was defective. as a result, the self dimming function had become inoperable and the reflection of the lights from other vehicles was extremely bright. the vehicle was taken to the dealer who stated that it was a common failure and the mirror assembly needed to be replaced. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure who did not offer any assistance. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 50,000 and the current mileage was 58,000. | |||
| 06/01/2011 | 50000 | ||
| Tl - the contact owns a 2004 bmw 3 series. the contact stated that the monochromatic coating on the rear view mirror was defective. as a result, the self dimming function had become inoperable and the reflection of the lights from other vehicles was extremely bright. the vehicle was taken to the dealer who stated that it was a common failure and the mirror assembly needed to be replaced. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure who did not offer any assistance. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 50,000 and the current mileage was 58,000. kmj | |||