Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| STEERING - ELECTRIC POWER ASSIST SYSTEM | |||||
| SIB-32-04-07 | 06/01/2010 | 10036979 | Ready | 04/25/2011 | |
| SIB-32-04-07 | 06/01/2010 | 10036979 | Bmw: a new technical process has been created for bmw to identify causes of steering complaints with a wide range of models. *rm | 04/25/2011 | |
| STEERING - HYDRAULIC POWER ASSIST SYSTEM | |||||
| SIB-32-04-07 | 06/01/2010 | 10036979 | Ready | 04/25/2011 | |
| SIB-32-04-07 | 06/01/2010 | 10036979 | Bmw: a new technical process has been created for bmw to identify causes of steering complaints with a wide range of models. *rm | 04/25/2011 | |
Investigations
| NHTSA ID | Manufacturer | Date open | Date close | Subject | Recall campaign | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| STEERING | ||||||
| PE10020 | BMW OF NORTH AMERICA, LLC | 06/28/2010 | 06/28/2011 | Sticky Steering | ||
| Odi has evaluated the sticky steering condition, which included reviews of complaints and warranty claims, interviews and surveys of owners of complaint vehicles, road tests of complaint vehicles, and a review of bmw's engineering and test data.odi found the sticky steering condition does not result in a significant steering effort, thus the impact on the driver's ability to control the vehicle does not appear to be significant.a safety-related defect trend has not been identified at this time and further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted.accordingly, this investigation is closed.the closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by nhtsa that no safety-related defect exists.the agency will monitor the issue and reserves the right to take future action if warranted by the circumstances.see the attached report for additional information.in addition, during this investigation, odi became aware of allegations of failure or loss of electric power-assisted steering on the subject vehicles.as a result, odi is separately reviewing this issue to determine whether additional agency action is needed. | ||||||
| STEERING - COLUMN | ||||||
| PE10020 | BMW OF NORTH AMERICA, LLC | 06/28/2010 | 06/28/2011 | Sticky Steering | ||
| Odi has evaluated the sticky steering condition, which included reviews of complaints and warranty claims, interviews and surveys of owners of complaint vehicles, road tests of complaint vehicles, and a review of bmw's engineering and test data.odi found the sticky steering condition does not result in a significant steering effort, thus the impact on the driver's ability to control the vehicle does not appear to be significant.a safety-related defect trend has not been identified at this time and further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted.accordingly, this investigation is closed.the closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by nhtsa that no safety-related defect exists.the agency will monitor the issue and reserves the right to take future action if warranted by the circumstances.see the attached report for additional information.in addition, during this investigation, odi became aware of allegations of failure or loss of electric power-assisted steering on the subject vehicles.as a result, odi is separately reviewing this issue to determine whether additional agency action is needed. | ||||||
| STEERING - ELECTRIC POWER ASSIST SYSTEM | ||||||
| PE10020 | BMW OF NORTH AMERICA, LLC | 06/28/2010 | 06/28/2011 | Sticky Steering | ||
| Odi has evaluated the sticky steering condition, which included reviews of complaints and warranty claims, interviews and surveys of owners of complaint vehicles, road tests of complaint vehicles, and a review of bmw's engineering and test data.odi found the sticky steering condition does not result in a significant steering effort, thus the impact on the driver's ability to control the vehicle does not appear to be significant.a safety-related defect trend has not been identified at this time and further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted.accordingly, this investigation is closed.the closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by nhtsa that no safety-related defect exists.the agency will monitor the issue and reserves the right to take future action if warranted by the circumstances.see the attached report for additional information.in addition, during this investigation, odi became aware of allegations of failure or loss of electric power-assisted steering on the subject vehicles.as a result, odi is separately reviewing this issue to determine whether additional agency action is needed. | ||||||
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| STEERING | |||
| 08/01/2012 | 27000 | ||
| At high ambient temperatures the steering sticks. it sometimes is just a distraction, when it is at it's worse i believe it is dangerous, not so much on wide open roads, but very much so on narrow roads. when it is at it's worse the car may dart as much as two feet. | |||
| 02/25/2013 | 66450 | ||
| Steering wheel / response feels sticky and notchy when steering column is hot. have to fight steering wheel when traveling at high speeds. does not happen in cooler temps. i have read that this is an internal bearing issue with the steering column. dangerous! | |||
| 01/25/2013 | 44000 | ||
| Bought used 2004 bmw z4 in aug 2012, steering seemed fine, it had 39k miles on it. now at 44k miles the steering has become notchy, wobbly feeling and the car darts around. had alignment done in jan 2013 but still a problem. looking at the number of complaints filed already, i am not alone. i would be happy to pay out a small amount to fix this but it seems to be a 3k-4k fix from what i've read. bmw needs to recall or else come up with a fix that doesn't involve replacing the whole steering column. what do you say bmw? | |||
| 02/25/2013 | 66450 | ||
| Steering wheel / response feels sticky and notchy when steering column is hot. have to fight steering wheel when traveling at high speeds. does not happen in cooler temps. i have read that this is an internal bearing issue with the steering column. dangerous! | |||
| 01/25/2013 | 44000 | ||
| Bought used 2004 bmw z4 in aug 2012, steering seemed fine, it had 39k miles on it. now at 44k miles the steering has become notchy, wobbly feeling and the car darts around. had alignment done in jan 2013 but still a problem. looking at the number of complaints filed already, i am not alone. i would be happy to pay out a small amount to fix this but it seems to be a 3k-4k fix from what i've read. bmw needs to recall or else come up with a fix that doesn't involve replacing the whole steering column. what do you say bmw? | |||
| 02/25/2013 | 66450 | ||
| Steering wheel / response feels sticky and notchy when steering column is hot. have to fight steering wheel when traveling at high speeds. does not happen in cooler temps. i have read that this is an internal bearing issue with the steering column. dangerous! | |||
| 01/25/2013 | 44000 | ||
| Bought used 2004 bmw z4 in aug 2012, steering seemed fine, it had 39k miles on it. now at 44k miles the steering has become notchy, wobbly feeling and the car darts around. had alignment done in jan 2013 but still a problem. looking at the number of complaints filed already, i am not alone. i would be happy to pay out a small amount to fix this but it seems to be a 3k-4k fix from what i've read. bmw needs to recall or else come up with a fix that doesn't involve replacing the whole steering column. what do you say bmw? | |||
| 02/06/2006 | 2000 | 1 | |
| Sticky steering problem, this was replaced in 2006 under warranty by bmw, at about 2000 miles. now feb,2013 i have the same problem. i have less than 12000 miles on vehicle. i feel this is unsafe because it will cause you to jerk the wheel think you need to steer hard. *tr | |||
| 02/06/2006 | 2000 | ||
| Sticky steering problem, this was replaced in 2006 under warranty by bmw, at about 2000 miles. now feb,2013 i have the same problem. i have less than 12000 miles on vehicle. i feel this is unsafe because it will cause you to jerk the wheel think you need to steer hard. | |||
| 06/14/2012 | 76000 | 1 | |
| The steering wheel gets stuck while driving and car doesn't stay in lane infact needs constant significant adjustments to keep it from accidentally getting into another lane. the issue has occurred multiple times and was an inconvenience so i didn't pay a lot of attention but it's more like a safety issue now with controlling the car becoming more and more difficult on freeways. nhtsa has identified this issue pe10020 as not significant and i sincerely hope they investigate it further and take some serious action before it causes irreparable loss. bmw needs to own up to a manufacturing defect as its not wear and tear and fix this. *tr | |||
| 06/14/2012 | 76000 | ||
| The steering wheel gets stuck while driving and car doesn't stay in lane infact needs constant significant adjustments to keep it from accidentally getting into another lane. the issue has occurred multiple times and was an inconvenience so i didn't pay a lot of attention but it's more like a safety issue now with controlling the car becoming more and more difficult on freeways. nhtsa has identified this issue pe10020 as not significant and i sincerely hope they investigate it further and take some serious action before it causes irreparable loss. bmw needs to own up to a manufacturing defect as its not wear and tear and fix this. | |||
| 11/22/2012 | 78000 | ||
| While driving the steering light comes on and the steering locks in place. when u try to force it the car stalls out and the steering stays locked .. extremely dangererous!!! | |||
| 11/14/2012 | 49125 | 1 | |
| For some time my bmw z4 2004 has been having a notchy feel to the steering. today it came to a head as the steering completely locked on me. i was 2 blocks from home after just exiting a main high way i drive every day to and from work. i am so lucky i was already off the main road or a major accident would have happend. no steering, completely locked. i have done many internet searches and aparently i'm one of many that have had this issue. fix the issue bmw!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *tr | |||
| 11/14/2012 | 49125 | ||
| For some time my bmw z4 2004 has been having a notchy feel to the steering. today it came to a head as the steering completely locked on me. i was 2 blocks from home after just exiting a main high way i drive every day to and from work. i am so lucky i was already off the main road or a major accident would have happend. no steering, completely locked. i have done many internet searches and aparently i'm one of many that have had this issue. fix the issue bmw!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! | |||
| 11/12/2012 | 79946 | 1 | |
| I recently bought this car and the dealer talked about a steering issue with the z4 models where they don't feel like the steering will center. i didn't have a chance to put miles on the car until today where i found out what he was talking about and had time to research it. this is a very well known issue and it looks like you have investigated it previously but it still is a very real problem and makes the car unsafe to drive. while driving after the car is warmed up the steering will feel as though it sticks as you try to drive a straight line. at around 40+mph the car will pull right or left with the steering nearly impossible to adjust to center. you can have the car pulling to one side, say traveling at 60mph, it will pull you to the right at a rate of 2 feet for every second. you have to nudge the steering wheel as it is not fluid (feels like it is stuck) back to the left and then it will pull left at the same rate. it is a battle of constant adjustment to fight in trying to center the car. if you have traffic around you it could be an accident waiting to happen. i request that this issue is re-opened as a safety recall. i have reviewed the information you received from bmw regarding steering warranty claims and with just over 12,000 bmw z4's produced and nearly 10% (1,1xx) of them having a filed claim regarding steering issues, one would see that this is a major flaw. warranty work is not always requested, thus why there are still more on the street that need high cost repairs and causing unsafe driving conditions for the driver/passenger as well as surrounding vehicles. *tr | |||
| 11/14/2012 | 49125 | ||
| For some time my bmw z4 2004 has been having a notchy feel to the steering. today it came to a head as the steering completely locked on me. i was 2 blocks from home after just exiting a main high way i drive every day to and from work. i am so lucky i was already off the main road or a major accident would have happend. no steering, completely locked. i have done many internet searches and aparently i'm one of many that have had this issue. fix the issue bmw!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! | |||
| 11/12/2012 | 79946 | 1 | |
| I recently bought this car and the dealer talked about a steering issue with the z4 models where they don't feel like the steering will center. i didn't have a chance to put miles on the car until today where i found out what he was talking about and had time to research it. this is a very well known issue and it looks like you have investigated it previously but it still is a very real problem and makes the car unsafe to drive. while driving after the car is warmed up the steering will feel as though it sticks as you try to drive a straight line. at around 40+mph the car will pull right or left with the steering nearly impossible to adjust to center. you can have the car pulling to one side, say traveling at 60mph, it will pull you to the right at a rate of 2 feet for every second. you have to nudge the steering wheel as it is not fluid (feels like it is stuck) back to the left and then it will pull left at the same rate. it is a battle of constant adjustment to fight in trying to center the car. if you have traffic around you it could be an accident waiting to happen. i request that this issue is re-opened as a safety recall. i have reviewed the information you received from bmw regarding steering warranty claims and with just over 12,000 bmw z4's produced and nearly 10% (1,1xx) of them having a filed claim regarding steering issues, one would see that this is a major flaw. warranty work is not always requested, thus why there are still more on the street that need high cost repairs and causing unsafe driving conditions for the driver/passenger as well as surrounding vehicles. *tr | |||
| 11/12/2012 | 79946 | ||
| I recently bought this car and the dealer talked about a steering issue with the z4 models where they don't feel like the steering will center. i didn't have a chance to put miles on the car until today where i found out what he was talking about and had time to research it. this is a very well known issue and it looks like you have investigated it previously but it still is a very real problem and makes the car unsafe to drive. while driving after the car is warmed up the steering will feel as though it sticks as you try to drive a straight line. at around 40+mph the car will pull right or left with the steering nearly impossible to adjust to center. you can have the car pulling to one side, say traveling at 60mph, it will pull you to the right at a rate of 2 feet for every second. you have to nudge the steering wheel as it is not fluid (feels like it is stuck) back to the left and then it will pull left at the same rate. it is a battle of constant adjustment to fight in trying to center the car. if you have traffic around you it could be an accident waiting to happen. i request that this issue is re-opened as a safety recall. i have reviewed the information you received from bmw regarding steering warranty claims and with just over 12,000 bmw z4's produced and nearly 10% (1,1xx) of them having a filed claim regarding steering issues, one would see that this is a major flaw. warranty work is not always requested, thus why there are still more on the street that need high cost repairs and causing unsafe driving conditions for the driver/passenger as well as surrounding vehicles. | |||
| 04/04/2011 | 20000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact stated that the steering wheel seized without warning. the contact had to wiggle the steering wheel back and forth in order to correct the failure. the contact took the vehicle to the dealer and was advised that the steering power assist for the steering needed to be replaced. the failure mileage was 20,000 and the current mileage was 31,000. kmj | |||
| 04/04/2011 | 20000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact stated that the steering locked up on the vehicle. the contact stated they had to wiggle the steering wheel back and forth to get the steering to return. the contact took the vheicle to the dealer and was told the power assist for the steering needed to be replaced. the failure mileage was 20,000 and the current mileage was 31,000.rl | |||
| 10/13/2012 | 59990 | 1 | |
| While driving at normal speed the steering became sticky and made it difficult to maintain control of the car. minor steering adjustments are near impossible without jerking the car from side to side. this car is extremely unsafe to drive with this condition. *tr | |||
| 10/13/2012 | 59990 | ||
| While driving at normal speed the steering became sticky and made it difficult to maintain control of the car. minor steering adjustments are near impossible without jerking the car from side to side. this car is extremely unsafe to drive with this condition. | |||
| 07/12/2010 | 39000 | 1 | |
| I have a 2004 z4 that i purchased last august used. i rarely drove the car and kept it mainly for leisure until this past july. this july, on the drive from warner robins, ga to hilton head, sc, i noticed the steering would stick and i had to use force to get it back aligned with the road. since that time each day when i leave work after the car has been parked all day in the heat it does the same thing. its almost as if the car is tracking. normally my speed does not exceed 40 mph. i have had the tires checked, they are new run flat tires, no problem, i have had it aligned and i am still having problems with steering when temperatures exceed 85 degrees. it does not do this in the morning when the temperature is below 80. it is sometimes so hard to steer that it creates a hazard as i have to fight to correct and than it pulls radically to the right to overcorrect. this has at times put me in a very hazardous and dangerous condition with traffic. *tr | |||
| 07/12/2010 | 39000 | ||
| I have a 2004 z4 that i purchased last august used. i rarely drove the car and kept it mainly for leisure until this past july. this july, on the drive from warner robins, ga to hilton head, sc, i noticed the steering would | |||
| 07/31/2006 | 3700 | ||
| I bought this car brand new. it currently has only 39k miles on it right now (2012) so one can easily see that i drive the car only for leisure/pleasure. i live in upstate ny so can only drive the car seasonally. i initially thought the sticking/notching was due to the poor run-flat tires (which always seemed to set off the dashboard sensor that there was not enough air in them and then perhaps an alignment issue. this is my first bmw, so i thought that it might be attributed to being more difficult to control (even at lower speeds like 35-40mph) because it was a performance car. i complained to the dealer but they claimed they had never heard of such a problem, and it wasn't happening for them. so yet another year would pass and the car would be stored for the winter. with such limited time to drive the car, i overlooked the notching of the steering.... until this year when there were no more possible excuses! i replaced all 4 run flat tires with all-season radials, had the car completely aligned, convinced that this would solve my problem. i was very wrong! i was and am shocked that bmw would allow 14+ pages of complaints dating back to 2005 without doing a recall on this matter!! does a life or lives have to be destroyed due to something catastrophic happening with the steering before bmw takes action? this is the supposed ultimate driving machine that i dreamed of having for decades. i'm outraged to learn that the prestigious bmw company does not seem to care much about its customers safety and well being. i would like to be contacted by nhtsa as well as bmw and will continue to pursue this matter until i and all of us that are experiencing these problems are given the recall and resolution to the mechanical problem that we deserve. | |||
| 10/26/2011 | 42000 | 1 | |
| Ever since i bought my 04 bmw z4 at 42,000 miles the steering i notchy, and sticky took back to dealer and they dont admit there is a problem. have looked up on internet and it seems to be a common well known problem with the car. *tr | |||
| 10/26/2011 | 42000 | ||
| Ever since i bought my 04 bmw z4 at 42,000 miles the steering i notchy, and sticky took back to dealer and they dont admit there is a problem. have looked up on internet and it seems to be a common well known problem with the car. | |||
| 09/01/2012 | 62375 | 1 | |
| As i backed out of parking space, power assisted steering failed. i managed to drive vehicle with much increased steering effort. it is doubtful that my wife could have managed to drive. vehicle was towed to dealer where the steering column is being replaced. *tr | |||
| 10/26/2011 | 42000 | ||
| Ever since i bought my 04 bmw z4 at 42,000 miles the steering i notchy, and sticky took back to dealer and they dont admit there is a problem. have looked up on internet and it seems to be a common well known problem with the car. | |||
| 09/01/2012 | 62375 | 1 | |
| As i backed out of parking space, power assisted steering failed. i managed to drive vehicle with much increased steering effort. it is doubtful that my wife could have managed to drive. vehicle was towed to dealer where the steering column is being replaced. *tr | |||
| 09/01/2012 | 62375 | ||
| As i backed out of parking space, power assisted steering failed. i managed to drive vehicle with much increased steering effort. it is doubtful that my wife could have managed to drive. vehicle was towed to dealer where the steering column is being replaced. | |||
| 06/15/2012 | 36000 | 1 | |
| Steering sticks in the afternoon, when outside is hot around 90f. i noticed this condition this summer when drove the car after work. the car had about 38000mi. on it. the steering wheel literately feels stuck in a position and takes abnormal amount of effort to turn/change direction then it's like it just suddenly releases and causes you to over-steer the car it feels unsafe driving especially in traffic or driving close to a hwy barrier/construction zone etc.. i had to force to change direction and the car would dart due to having to overcompensate for the stuck condition. i know there is problem with the steering, but not sure what particular causing the problem, my best guess is the eps system. i have been reading the forums and blogs and there are many people experiencing the same problems with 2003-2005 bmw z4's so i am adding mine to the list. since this is a safety (safety! safety!) issue, i believe/wish bmw should step up and recall or take care of this apparent design flaw within the steering system. these cars become unsafe to drive when this condition arises. [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *tr | |||
| 06/15/2012 | 36000 | ||
| Steering sticks in the afternoon, when outside is hot around 90f. i noticed this condition this summer when drove the car after work. the car had about 38000mi. on it. the steering wheel literately feels stuck in a position and takes abnormal amount of effort to turn/change direction then it's like it just suddenly releases and causes you to over-steer the car it feels unsafe driving especially in traffic or driving close to a hwy barrier/construction zone etc.. i had to force to change direction and the car would dart due to having to overcompensate for the stuck condition. i know there is problem with the steering, but not sure what particular causing the problem, my best guess is the eps system. i have been reading the forums and blogs and there are many people experiencing the same problems with 2003-2005 bmw z4's so i am adding mine to the list. since this is a safety (safety! safety!) issue, i believe/wish bmw should step up and recall or take care of this apparent design flaw within the steering system. these cars become unsafe to drive when this condition arises. *lkm | |||
| 07/18/2012 | 52185 | 1 | |
| Steering sticks when outside temperatures are hot 90deg+. i noticed this condition last year in the summer months every time i drove the car in the heat (n. texas summer) the car had about 39000mi. on it. the steering wheel literately feels stuck in a position and takes abnormal amount of effort to turn/change direction then it's like it just suddenly releases and causes you to over-steer the car it feels unsafe driving especially in traffic or driving close to a hwy barrier/construction zone etc.. my wife started driving the car today and said the steering felt like it was sticking, and that she had to use considerable force to change direction and the car would dart due to having to overcompensate for the stuck condition, she said it scared her. best description i can give is to compare the steering to an electrical switch e.g. (fan blower switch) that has a detente or click between the speeds and how it takes additional effort to change from one speed to another. i have been reading the forums and blogs and there are many people experiencing the same problems with 2003-2005 bmw z4's so i am adding mine to the list. since this is a safety issue i believe bmw should step up and recall or take care of this apparent design flaw within the steering system. these cars become unsafe to drive when this condition arises. *tr | |||
| 07/01/2011 | 10000 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact stated that the steering wheel did not automatically return to the straight position after completing turns. the contact had to manually turn the steering wheel straight after turning at all speeds. the failure only occurred when the weather conditions produced temperatures of at least seventy five degrees. the vehicle was not taken to have the failure diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer offered no assistance. the failure mileage was 10,000. | |||
| 07/18/2012 | 52185 | ||
| Steering sticks when outside temperatures are hot 90deg+. i noticed this condition last year in the summer months every time i drove the car in the heat (n. texas summer) the car had about 39000mi. on it. the steering wheel literately feels stuck in a position and takes abnormal amount of effort to turn/change direction then it's like it just suddenly releases and causes you to over-steer the car it feels unsafe driving especially in traffic or driving close to a hwy barrier/construction zone etc.. my wife started driving the car today and said the steering felt like it was sticking, and that she had to use considerable force to change direction and the car would dart due to having to overcompensate for the stuck condition, she said it scared her. best description i can give is to compare the steering to an electrical switch e.g. (fan blower switch) that has a detente or click between the speeds and how it takes additional effort to change from one speed to another. i have been reading the forums and blogs and there are many people experiencing the same problems with 2003-2005 bmw z4's so i am adding mine to the list. since this is a safety issue i believe bmw should step up and recall or take care of this apparent design flaw within the steering system. these cars become unsafe to drive when this condition arises. | |||
| 07/01/2011 | 10000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact stated that the steering wheel did not automatically return to the straight position after completing turns. the contact had to manually turn the steering wheel straight after turning at all speeds. the failure only occurred when the weather conditions produced temperatures of at least seventy five degrees. the vehicle was not taken to have the failure diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer offered no assistance. the failure mileage was 10,000. sm. | |||
| 07/18/2012 | 52185 | ||
| Steering sticks when outside temperatures are hot 90deg+. i noticed this condition last year in the summer months every time i drove the car in the heat (n. texas summer) the car had about 39000mi. on it. the steering wheel literately feels stuck in a position and takes abnormal amount of effort to turn/change direction then it's like it just suddenly releases and causes you to over-steer the car it feels unsafe driving especially in traffic or driving close to a hwy barrier/construction zone etc.. my wife started driving the car today and said the steering felt like it was sticking, and that she had to use considerable force to change direction and the car would dart due to having to overcompensate for the stuck condition, she said it scared her. best description i can give is to compare the steering to an electrical switch e.g. (fan blower switch) that has a detente or click between the speeds and how it takes additional effort to change from one speed to another. i have been reading the forums and blogs and there are many people experiencing the same problems with 2003-2005 bmw z4's so i am adding mine to the list. since this is a safety issue i believe bmw should step up and recall or take care of this apparent design flaw within the steering system. these cars become unsafe to drive when this condition arises. | |||
| 07/01/2011 | 10000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact stated that the steering wheel did not automatically return to the straight position after completing turns. the contact had to manually turn the steering wheel straight after turning at all speeds. the failure only occurred when the weather conditions produced temperatures of at least seventy five degrees. the vehicle was not taken to have the failure diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer offered no assistance. the failure mileage was 10,000. sm. | |||
| 10/22/2010 | 20000 | ||
| The steering wheel stuck in one position and needed unusual effort to continue to steer the car in the proper direction. this steering problem occurs when the weather is warm and sunny and the car is parked outside. this is an ongoing problem. i understand that this condition is peculier to bwm z4's manufactured and sold between 2003 and 2005. obviously bmw rectified the problem on the 2006 models. the steering is electric steering. my problem is serious,i will not allow my wife to drive this car. summer is upon us and problem will again manifest itself because of summer temps. bmw knows of this malfunction but stone walls efforts to get this dangerous condition corrected. thank you | |||
| 04/05/2010 | 24000 | ||
| Steering seems to lock in a position. takes effort to move wheel to a neutral position. happens when the vehicle has been warmed. does not occure when first driven. | |||
| 10/22/2010 | 20000 | ||
| The steering wheel stuck in one position and needed unusual effort to continue to steer the car in the proper direction. this steering problem occurs when the weather is warm and sunny and the car is parked outside. this is an ongoing problem. i understand that this condition is peculier to bwm z4's manufactured and sold between 2003 and 2005. obviously bmw rectified the problem on the 2006 models. the steering is electric steering. my problem is serious,i will not allow my wife to drive this car. summer is upon us and problem will again manifest itself because of summer temps. bmw knows of this malfunction but stone walls efforts to get this dangerous condition corrected. thank you | |||
| 04/05/2010 | 24000 | ||
| Steering seems to lock in a position. takes effort to move wheel to a neutral position. happens when the vehicle has been warmed. does not occure when first driven. | |||
| 04/02/2012 | 87000 | ||
| The sreeing wheel does not self center properly. you have to apply turning pressure to the wheel and when the pressure overcomes the stickyness the wheel turns but not smoothly. then you have to do the same thing the other direction. so if you are atempting to drive in a straight line you are forced to constantly correct because the prevuious stickness cause you to over correct. the intenet is full of complaints, some are even afraid to drive the car. mine is not yet that severe but i fear that at any time it may stick harder and.or cause an accident. please advise me what is being done about this problem and the time frame. i do not want to get killed first. | |||
| 04/05/2010 | 24000 | ||
| Steering seems to lock in a position. takes effort to move wheel to a neutral position. happens when the vehicle has been warmed. does not occure when first driven. | |||
| 04/02/2012 | 87000 | ||
| The sreeing wheel does not self center properly. you have to apply turning pressure to the wheel and when the pressure overcomes the stickyness the wheel turns but not smoothly. then you have to do the same thing the other direction. so if you are atempting to drive in a straight line you are forced to constantly correct because the prevuious stickness cause you to over correct. the intenet is full of complaints, some are even afraid to drive the car. mine is not yet that severe but i fear that at any time it may stick harder and.or cause an accident. please advise me what is being done about this problem and the time frame. i do not want to get killed first. | |||
| 05/01/2012 | 115000 | ||
| The car steering sticks at highway speeds. it becomes a pain for keeping the car in the lane. it is as if the power steering for fine adjustment turning quit working. the car may be tracking straight, all is fine until a slight drift right or left. to adjust the car takes considerable effort making fine steering nearly impossible. when alert and no other cars on the road, not a problem. with moderately heavy beltway traffic moving at high speed and must stay in lane, it can get frightening. the problem is worse when it is warm out, but appears intermitent. when severe, it is highly dangerous. it requires a lot of concentration, any lapse in concentration could be disasterous. there is no indication of a problem from the power steering warning indication light. i had a 4 wheel alignment, balancing and tire rotation performed at 105,000 miles. the car seemed to run true then, but it may have first happened as early as 112,000 miles, but barely noticeable. it has become pronounced enough at 115,000 miles to make a complaint. i checked the websites and found many other owners experiencing the same issue and nothing anyone can find anything wrong to fix it. realignments don't fix the problem. ultimately, extremely expensive repair suggestions like replace the entire steering column for $3000 are made. this is totally unacceptable. to be honest, it feels more like an issue with the power steering fine steering ability to me and shouldn't require replacement of all steering linkage components. it is a safety issue and bmw should issue a recall to fix all cars with this problem. | |||
| 04/02/2012 | 87000 | ||
| The sreeing wheel does not self center properly. you have to apply turning pressure to the wheel and when the pressure overcomes the stickyness the wheel turns but not smoothly. then you have to do the same thing the other direction. so if you are atempting to drive in a straight line you are forced to constantly correct because the prevuious stickness cause you to over correct. the intenet is full of complaints, some are even afraid to drive the car. mine is not yet that severe but i fear that at any time it may stick harder and.or cause an accident. please advise me what is being done about this problem and the time frame. i do not want to get killed first. | |||
| 05/01/2012 | 115000 | ||
| The car steering sticks at highway speeds. it becomes a pain for keeping the car in the lane. it is as if the power steering for fine adjustment turning quit working. the car may be tracking straight, all is fine until a slight drift right or left. to adjust the car takes considerable effort making fine steering nearly impossible. when alert and no other cars on the road, not a problem. with moderately heavy beltway traffic moving at high speed and must stay in lane, it can get frightening. the problem is worse when it is warm out, but appears intermitent. when severe, it is highly dangerous. it requires a lot of concentration, any lapse in concentration could be disasterous. there is no indication of a problem from the power steering warning indication light. i had a 4 wheel alignment, balancing and tire rotation performed at 105,000 miles. the car seemed to run true then, but it may have first happened as early as 112,000 miles, but barely noticeable. it has become pronounced enough at 115,000 miles to make a complaint. i checked the websites and found many other owners experiencing the same issue and nothing anyone can find anything wrong to fix it. realignments don't fix the problem. ultimately, extremely expensive repair suggestions like replace the entire steering column for $3000 are made. this is totally unacceptable. to be honest, it feels more like an issue with the power steering fine steering ability to me and shouldn't require replacement of all steering linkage components. it is a safety issue and bmw should issue a recall to fix all cars with this problem. | |||
| 04/02/2012 | 87000 | ||
| The sreeing wheel does not self center properly. you have to apply turning pressure to the wheel and when the pressure overcomes the stickyness the wheel turns but not smoothly. then you have to do the same thing the other direction. so if you are atempting to drive in a straight line you are forced to constantly correct because the prevuious stickness cause you to over correct. the intenet is full of complaints, some are even afraid to drive the car. mine is not yet that severe but i fear that at any time it may stick harder and.or cause an accident. please advise me what is being done about this problem and the time frame. i do not want to get killed first. | |||
| 05/01/2012 | 115000 | ||
| The car steering sticks at highway speeds. it becomes a pain for keeping the car in the lane. it is as if the power steering for fine adjustment turning quit working. the car may be tracking straight, all is fine until a slight drift right or left. to adjust the car takes considerable effort making fine steering nearly impossible. when alert and no other cars on the road, not a problem. with moderately heavy beltway traffic moving at high speed and must stay in lane, it can get frightening. the problem is worse when it is warm out, but appears intermitent. when severe, it is highly dangerous. it requires a lot of concentration, any lapse in concentration could be disasterous. there is no indication of a problem from the power steering warning indication light. i had a 4 wheel alignment, balancing and tire rotation performed at 105,000 miles. the car seemed to run true then, but it may have first happened as early as 112,000 miles, but barely noticeable. it has become pronounced enough at 115,000 miles to make a complaint. i checked the websites and found many other owners experiencing the same issue and nothing anyone can find anything wrong to fix it. realignments don't fix the problem. ultimately, extremely expensive repair suggestions like replace the entire steering column for $3000 are made. this is totally unacceptable. to be honest, it feels more like an issue with the power steering fine steering ability to me and shouldn't require replacement of all steering linkage components. it is a safety issue and bmw should issue a recall to fix all cars with this problem. | |||
| 04/02/2012 | 87000 | ||
| The sreeing wheel does not self center properly. you have to apply turning pressure to the wheel and when the pressure overcomes the stickyness the wheel turns but not smoothly. then you have to do the same thing the other direction. so if you are atempting to drive in a straight line you are forced to constantly correct because the prevuious stickness cause you to over correct. the intenet is full of complaints, some are even afraid to drive the car. mine is not yet that severe but i fear that at any time it may stick harder and.or cause an accident. please advise me what is being done about this problem and the time frame. i do not want to get killed first. | |||
| 05/01/2012 | 115000 | ||
| The car steering sticks at highway speeds. it becomes a pain for keeping the car in the lane. it is as if the power steering for fine adjustment turning quit working. the car may be tracking straight, all is fine until a slight drift right or left. to adjust the car takes considerable effort making fine steering nearly impossible. when alert and no other cars on the road, not a problem. with moderately heavy beltway traffic moving at high speed and must stay in lane, it can get frightening. the problem is worse when it is warm out, but appears intermitent. when severe, it is highly dangerous. it requires a lot of concentration, any lapse in concentration could be disasterous. there is no indication of a problem from the power steering warning indication light. i had a 4 wheel alignment, balancing and tire rotation performed at 105,000 miles. the car seemed to run true then, but it may have first happened as early as 112,000 miles, but barely noticeable. it has become pronounced enough at 115,000 miles to make a complaint. i checked the websites and found many other owners experiencing the same issue and nothing anyone can find anything wrong to fix it. realignments don't fix the problem. ultimately, extremely expensive repair suggestions like replace the entire steering column for $3000 are made. this is totally unacceptable. to be honest, it feels more like an issue with the power steering fine steering ability to me and shouldn't require replacement of all steering linkage components. it is a safety issue and bmw should issue a recall to fix all cars with this problem. | |||
| 04/01/2011 | 35000 | ||
| The steering wheel sometimes sticks while driving. i need to use more force than normal to turn the wheel, and when it does turn it often overshoots causing the car to swerve from my intended direction. many others are experiencing this same problem with the bmw z4's from 2003-2005. this sticky stearing could lead to a major accident. | |||
| 05/17/2012 | 16000 | ||
| After the car had set out in the sun on a hot day, steering was very stiff. i could not steer fluidly. if i tried to slightly adjust the wheel to the right, the wheel would not move. i would apply more and more pressure until it would finally move. but since i was applying so much force it would jump passed the desired point. this would cause me to have to correct to the left where the cycle begins again. keeping the car in the lane is now very difficult. | |||
| 05/01/2012 | 9017 | ||
| Steering binding when moving steering to left or right from the center position | |||
| 05/17/2012 | 16000 | ||
| After the car had set out in the sun on a hot day, steering was very stiff. i could not steer fluidly. if i tried to slightly adjust the wheel to the right, the wheel would not move. i would apply more and more pressure until it would finally move. but since i was applying so much force it would jump passed the desired point. this would cause me to have to correct to the left where the cycle begins again. keeping the car in the lane is now very difficult. | |||
| 05/01/2012 | 9017 | ||
| Steering binding when moving steering to left or right from the center position | |||
| 05/17/2012 | 16000 | ||
| After the car had set out in the sun on a hot day, steering was very stiff. i could not steer fluidly. if i tried to slightly adjust the wheel to the right, the wheel would not move. i would apply more and more pressure until it would finally move. but since i was applying so much force it would jump passed the desired point. this would cause me to have to correct to the left where the cycle begins again. keeping the car in the lane is now very difficult. | |||
| 05/01/2012 | 9017 | ||
| Steering binding when moving steering to left or right from the center position | |||
| 07/01/2008 | 10700 | ||
| Steering has a notched or sticky feel to it when traveling on highways at sppeds around 50mph and higher. when the need to turn arises and the steering wheel sticks in the 'notch, it requires extra effort to get the wheel out of the notch, causing over steer with difficult recovery. i won't let my wife drive the z-4 as i feel this is a dangerous chartaristic that could result in an acident. my dealler was notified of the situation but was unable to duplicate the fault; (prior to my warrenty running out). on the following service, with my renewed complaint, the dealer was able to duplicate and identify the problem. my bmw warranty was expired, but i had purchased an extented warranty, however the steering problem was not covered under the new warranty. the cost for repair was in excess of $3000.00! i have parked the car except for local slow speed, cool day rides. i understand that the nhtsa has looked into the problem. i have not heard anything from my bmw dealer yet. ??? a computerized brake sensor light has been on for many years and has been unable to be remedied. the dealer checked the brakes and they are fine, just can't get the sensor light to stay out. | |||
| 04/23/2009 | 46000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. while traveling 65 mph, the contact noticed that the steering wheel would continually over steer and would become stuck in position. the vehicle was taken to the dealer where the contact was informed that the failure could not be duplicated. the vehicle was not repaired. the current mileage was 94,000, and the failure mileage was 46,000. kmj | |||
| 04/23/2009 | 46000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. while traveling 65 mph the contact noticed that the steering wheel would continually oversteer and would become stuck in position. the vehicle was taken to the dealer where the contact was informed that the failure could not be reproduced. the current mileage was 94,000, and the failure mileage was 46,000. bml | |||
| 05/02/2005 | |||
| The z4 has an power steering problem that seems to have issues at higher speeds and temperatures where there seems to be a loss of power steering where there is a significantly increased effort to turn the steering wheel. i feel extremely unsafe driving the car and don't feel like i have control of the steering and have a lot of trouble keeping the car in the lane. sometimes the steering feels like it is stuck. i think that the car is very dangerous to drive and i am now afraid to drive the car since i am a woman and may not have the proper upper body strength to control the car! | |||
| 03/21/2012 | 66000 | ||
| Brought my car out of storage for the year. while driving it would pull both to the right and to the left depending on lane choice. steering wheel feels like it is clicking from one position to another. constant steering input required to keep it in a straight line. alignment is fine, tires are properly inflated and balanced. it's like the steering wheel is slipping from one position to another without moving it. | |||
| 05/02/2005 | |||
| The z4 has an power steering problem that seems to have issues at higher speeds and temperatures where there seems to be a loss of power steering where there is a significantly increased effort to turn the steering wheel. i feel extremely unsafe driving the car and don't feel like i have control of the steering and have a lot of trouble keeping the car in the lane. sometimes the steering feels like it is stuck. i think that the car is very dangerous to drive and i am now afraid to drive the car since i am a woman and may not have the proper upper body strength to control the car! | |||
| 03/21/2012 | 66000 | ||
| Brought my car out of storage for the year. while driving it would pull both to the right and to the left depending on lane choice. steering wheel feels like it is clicking from one position to another. constant steering input required to keep it in a straight line. alignment is fine, tires are properly inflated and balanced. it's like the steering wheel is slipping from one position to another without moving it. | |||
| 05/02/2005 | |||
| The z4 has an power steering problem that seems to have issues at higher speeds and temperatures where there seems to be a loss of power steering where there is a significantly increased effort to turn the steering wheel. i feel extremely unsafe driving the car and don't feel like i have control of the steering and have a lot of trouble keeping the car in the lane. sometimes the steering feels like it is stuck. i think that the car is very dangerous to drive and i am now afraid to drive the car since i am a woman and may not have the proper upper body strength to control the car! | |||
| 03/21/2012 | 66000 | ||
| Brought my car out of storage for the year. while driving it would pull both to the right and to the left depending on lane choice. steering wheel feels like it is clicking from one position to another. constant steering input required to keep it in a straight line. alignment is fine, tires are properly inflated and balanced. it's like the steering wheel is slipping from one position to another without moving it. | |||
| 05/02/2005 | |||
| The z4 has an power steering problem that seems to have issues at higher speeds and temperatures where there seems to be a loss of power steering where there is a significantly increased effort to turn the steering wheel. i feel extremely unsafe driving the car and don't feel like i have control of the steering and have a lot of trouble keeping the car in the lane. sometimes the steering feels like it is stuck. i think that the car is very dangerous to drive and i am now afraid to drive the car since i am a woman and may not have the proper upper body strength to control the car! | |||
| 03/21/2012 | 66000 | ||
| Brought my car out of storage for the year. while driving it would pull both to the right and to the left depending on lane choice. steering wheel feels like it is clicking from one position to another. constant steering input required to keep it in a straight line. alignment is fine, tires are properly inflated and balanced. it's like the steering wheel is slipping from one position to another without moving it. | |||
| 03/20/2012 | 32000 | ||
| On first hot day of the year (85 degrees f), the car was very difficult to steer at highway speeds. it felt like the steering wheel was sticking. it took extra effort to move the steering wheel, causing the car to turn more than desired. i feel this is very dangerous. | |||
| 02/02/2012 | 34500 | ||
| After purchasing the vehcile (a 2004 bmw z4 with only 34500 miles) on the way home i noticed a sticking in the steering wheel at highway speeds (aproxamitely 1st week of febuary 2012). which of course was very dissapointing being that i had only owned the car for about 30 minutes. but considering the mileage and age of the car i hoped it was because the car had been sitting for sometime. i was wrong it is becoming more and more of a problem. after very little research ive found that this is apparently a very common problem with theese cars. apparently it is due to expansion of a gear in the steering column due to heat. i am very dissapointed. i felt i had found a good car considering the very low mileage. ive found that many people have had to have their steering columns replaced at a cost of over 3000 dollars! this is unbelieveable on a car with only 35,000 miles on it! this is definetly dangerous! for the steering wheel to stick and require signifigantly increased effort to turn is a serious danger! the danger of over correction is undeniable. after a recent short trip down the highway my forearms were very fatigued after trying to keep this car on course for just a few miles.i just wonder how many wrecks have been caused by this defect. i find it very hard to believe that a company of bmw's stature would not be doing everything within its power to correct this dangerous defect immediately. i guess someone will have to get hurt first. instead of being proactive and preventing such a disaster. or maybe theyre just making too much money selling new steering columns to people who are unaware of the defect. something has to be done! | |||
| 03/14/2012 | 21700 | ||
| I have the z4 sticky steering problem which is widely documented on the internet. steering is ok when cold or at low speeds and occurs only when temperature is over 75 degrees f and at speeds over 45 mph. the steering wheel firmly resists turning (sticks) and, when enough force is applied, finally releases and turns until another sticky zone creates resistance. this makes slight steering corrections impossible and results in a zig zag rather that straight line path down the road. this is a serious safety issue since the effort level is much too high for driving at highway speed and compromises the ability to predictably control the vehicle. the effort level to overcome the stickiness in the steering wheel rotation is comparable to that required for parallel parking of an old non power steering vehicle. my wife is afraid to drive the car on the highway. i have had other cars recalled for much less significant issues than this. | |||
| 02/02/2012 | 34500 | ||
| After purchasing the vehcile (a 2004 bmw z4 with only 34500 miles) on the way home i noticed a sticking in the steering wheel at highway speeds (aproxamitely 1st week of febuary 2012). which of course was very dissapointing being that i had only owned the car for about 30 minutes. but considering the mileage and age of the car i hoped it was because the car had been sitting for sometime. i was wrong it is becoming more and more of a problem. after very little research ive found that this is apparently a very common problem with theese cars. apparently it is due to expansion of a gear in the steering column due to heat. i am very dissapointed. i felt i had found a good car considering the very low mileage. ive found that many people have had to have their steering columns replaced at a cost of over 3000 dollars! this is unbelieveable on a car with only 35,000 miles on it! this is definetly dangerous! for the steering wheel to stick and require signifigantly increased effort to turn is a serious danger! the danger of over correction is undeniable. after a recent short trip down the highway my forearms were very fatigued after trying to keep this car on course for just a few miles.i just wonder how many wrecks have been caused by this defect. i find it very hard to believe that a company of bmw's stature would not be doing everything within its power to correct this dangerous defect immediately. i guess someone will have to get hurt first. instead of being proactive and preventing such a disaster. or maybe theyre just making too much money selling new steering columns to people who are unaware of the defect. something has to be done! | |||
| 03/14/2012 | 21700 | ||
| I have the z4 sticky steering problem which is widely documented on the internet. steering is ok when cold or at low speeds and occurs only when temperature is over 75 degrees f and at speeds over 45 mph. the steering wheel firmly resists turning (sticks) and, when enough force is applied, finally releases and turns until another sticky zone creates resistance. this makes slight steering corrections impossible and results in a zig zag rather that straight line path down the road. this is a serious safety issue since the effort level is much too high for driving at highway speed and compromises the ability to predictably control the vehicle. the effort level to overcome the stickiness in the steering wheel rotation is comparable to that required for parallel parking of an old non power steering vehicle. my wife is afraid to drive the car on the highway. i have had other cars recalled for much less significant issues than this. | |||
| 02/02/2012 | 34500 | ||
| After purchasing the vehcile (a 2004 bmw z4 with only 34500 miles) on the way home i noticed a sticking in the steering wheel at highway speeds (aproxamitely 1st week of febuary 2012). which of course was very dissapointing being that i had only owned the car for about 30 minutes. but considering the mileage and age of the car i hoped it was because the car had been sitting for sometime. i was wrong it is becoming more and more of a problem. after very little research ive found that this is apparently a very common problem with theese cars. apparently it is due to expansion of a gear in the steering column due to heat. i am very dissapointed. i felt i had found a good car considering the very low mileage. ive found that many people have had to have their steering columns replaced at a cost of over 3000 dollars! this is unbelieveable on a car with only 35,000 miles on it! this is definetly dangerous! for the steering wheel to stick and require signifigantly increased effort to turn is a serious danger! the danger of over correction is undeniable. after a recent short trip down the highway my forearms were very fatigued after trying to keep this car on course for just a few miles.i just wonder how many wrecks have been caused by this defect. i find it very hard to believe that a company of bmw's stature would not be doing everything within its power to correct this dangerous defect immediately. i guess someone will have to get hurt first. instead of being proactive and preventing such a disaster. or maybe theyre just making too much money selling new steering columns to people who are unaware of the defect. something has to be done! | |||
| 03/14/2012 | 21700 | ||
| I have the z4 sticky steering problem which is widely documented on the internet. steering is ok when cold or at low speeds and occurs only when temperature is over 75 degrees f and at speeds over 45 mph. the steering wheel firmly resists turning (sticks) and, when enough force is applied, finally releases and turns until another sticky zone creates resistance. this makes slight steering corrections impossible and results in a zig zag rather that straight line path down the road. this is a serious safety issue since the effort level is much too high for driving at highway speed and compromises the ability to predictably control the vehicle. the effort level to overcome the stickiness in the steering wheel rotation is comparable to that required for parallel parking of an old non power steering vehicle. my wife is afraid to drive the car on the highway. i have had other cars recalled for much less significant issues than this. | |||
| 03/07/2012 | 84000 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. while traveling 65 mph, the contact noticed that the vehicle would sway from right to left which made it difficult to remain driving in the same lane or in a straight line. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the current and failure mileages were 84,000. | |||
| 03/07/2012 | 84000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. while traveling 65 mph, the contact noticed that the vehicle would sway from right to left which made it difficult to remain driving in the same lane or in a straight line. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the current and failure mileages were 84,000. kmj | |||
| 09/01/2006 | 15000 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact was driving 55 mph when the steering wheel became difficult to steer. the vehicle was taken to the dealer but the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 15,000 and the current mileage was 62,000. | |||
| 03/07/2012 | 84000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. while traveling 65 mph the contact noticed that the vehicle would sway from right to left which made it difficult to remain driving in the same lane or in a straight line. the vehicle has not been diagnosed and has not been repaired. the current and failure mileages are 84000. bml | |||
| 09/01/2006 | 15000 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact was driving 55 mph when the steering wheel became difficult to steer. the vehicle was taken to the dealer but the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 15,000 and the current mileage was 62,000. | |||
| 09/01/2006 | 15000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact was driving 55 mph when the steering wheel became difficult to steer. the vehicle was taken to the dealer but the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 15,000 and the current mileage was 62,000. kmj | |||
| 09/01/2006 | 15000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact was driving 55 mph when the steering wheel hesitated becoming difficult to steer the vehicle. the vehicle was taken to the dealer. the manufacturer was not contacted. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 15,000 and the current mileage was 62,000. rds | |||
| 02/26/2012 | 38700 | ||
| Excessive force is needed to turn wheel safely at high rate of speed. with poor road conditions, this effect is severely exaggerated!!! steering binds up when attempting to make small corrections resulting in overcorrections in either direction causing a safety hazard to both me and other vehicles if i were to cross lanes due to overcorrection situation. | |||
| 01/05/2012 | 32750 | ||
| The steering becomes stuck. under highway driving conditions may cause erratic control and ultimately an accident. the steering seems to bind and needs greater pressure to free the steering itself. | |||
| 11/18/2010 | 55300 | ||
| I just recently purchased a 2004 bmw z4. i noticed that while driving on the highway that the steering is malfunctioning. while traveling in a straight path, the steering gets stuck and you need to jerk the steering wheel to make a turn to the right or left, or even to change lanes. this is a very dangerous action and could cause a serious accident. i have notified bmw north america and indy wholesale direct, the dealer that i purchased this car from. neither one seems to want to help in this situation and both have ignored my complaints. this is the second complaint i have filed with the nhtsa. i did not get a response from my original complaint a couple of weeks ago. | |||
| 11/18/2011 | 55300 | ||
| Driving on a 70 degree fall day on interstate 70, near st. louis, the steering became locked in a center position. i was traveling around 65 to 70 mph when this occurred. i had to jerk the steering wheel to get it off center to make a turn. this happened a few times before i got to my destination. jerking a steering wheel at a high rate of speed on a crowded highway is a harrowing experience and, to say the least, very unsafe and dangerous. i just purchased this car and i am truly nervous about driving this vehicle or letting my wife drive this vehicle. i have contacted the dealer and am waiting to hear back. | |||
| 07/04/2010 | 19400 | ||
| Power steering sticks on hot days typically above 80 degrees. problem usually occurs on the highway at speeds above 50 mph but has hapened at lower speeds as well. it takes excessive force to release the sticking which results in overcorrection. this has created a dangerous situation on several occasions. after much research it appears that this is a significant issue in 2004 z4's. i don't understand why bmw hasn't voluntarily had a recall or why nhtsa hasn't demanded one. this is a dangerous situation identified by many z4 owners. | |||
| 08/27/2010 | |||
| On hot days the steering will catch and require unusually higher force to steer right or left. later at night when the car is cooler the steering will be normal. | |||
| 08/23/2011 | 46000 | ||
| Upon starting up the bmw z4 there was noticeable play in the steering. the play in the steering is enough to so that when turning the steering wheel it is at least 4 inches from engagement right to engagement left. in addition, once there is engagement it engages with what may be described as a sticky spot after which it is necessary to keep turning the steering wheel or the steering again disengages and there is the 4 inches of play before it re-ingages. while traveling down the highway it is very dangerous because when steering straight ahead the steering has the 4 inches of play making the car weave to the right or to the left and when correcting this weave the steering jerks through the sticky spot at the beginning of steering engagement and by the time the wheel is turned just enough to stay on the road in the right direction the play makes the car veer in the oppisite direction. in order to drive this car on a nice highway it is necessary to constantly rapidly mover the steering wheel back and forth through the four inches of play or the car would go into on coming traffic or off the road. i would feel safer if i knew it would go off the road but the problem is play in the middle and it could go either into on coming traffic or off the road. it is quite dangerous to drive. we asked the dealership about it and were told this was a $3000 plus repair. i do not think that this manufactures defect should be a chargable repair. i guess we will just need to wait for a crash or a recall. | |||
| 06/01/2010 | 29000 | ||
| The steering sticks while driving. very scary so i don't drive the car for more than 4 or 5 mile trips. won't take it on a highway anymore, since i have no confidence in the steering. i was told that the tires had broken bands and that might have been what i was feeling, so i replaced all four tires but the problem continued. i wouldn't be able to afford to replace the steering column and whatever else might be necessary. the tires were a huge expense. i can't very well sell the car, since i don't feel it is safe. please help. too many people have the same complaint, for this to be expected and acceptable. | |||
| 08/23/2011 | 6000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 3.0. steering gets very loose and one can not steer the car accurately at times. very scary when this happens and one loses all confidence n the car. | |||
| 06/01/2010 | 29000 | ||
| The steering sticks while driving. very scary so i don't drive the car for more than 4 or 5 mile trips. won't take it on a highway anymore, since i have no confidence in the steering. i was told that the tires had broken bands and that might have been what i was feeling, so i replaced all four tires but the problem continued. i wouldn't be able to afford to replace the steering column and whatever else might be necessary. the tires were a huge expense. i can't very well sell the car, since i don't feel it is safe. please help. too many people have the same complaint, for this to be expected and acceptable. | |||
| 08/23/2011 | 6000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 3.0. steering gets very loose and one can not steer the car accurately at times. very scary when this happens and one loses all confidence n the car. | |||
| 06/01/2010 | 29000 | ||
| The steering sticks while driving. very scary so i don't drive the car for more than 4 or 5 mile trips. won't take it on a highway anymore, since i have no confidence in the steering. i was told that the tires had broken bands and that might have been what i was feeling, so i replaced all four tires but the problem continued. i wouldn't be able to afford to replace the steering column and whatever else might be necessary. the tires were a huge expense. i can't very well sell the car, since i don't feel it is safe. please help. too many people have the same complaint, for this to be expected and acceptable. | |||
| 08/23/2011 | 6000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 3.0. steering gets very loose and one can not steer the car accurately at times. very scary when this happens and one loses all confidence n the car. | |||
| 06/01/2010 | 29000 | ||
| The steering sticks while driving. very scary so i don't drive the car for more than 4 or 5 mile trips. won't take it on a highway anymore, since i have no confidence in the steering. i was told that the tires had broken bands and that might have been what i was feeling, so i replaced all four tires but the problem continued. i wouldn't be able to afford to replace the steering column and whatever else might be necessary. the tires were a huge expense. i can't very well sell the car, since i don't feel it is safe. please help. too many people have the same complaint, for this to be expected and acceptable. | |||
| 08/23/2011 | 6000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 3.0. steering gets very loose and one can not steer the car accurately at times. very scary when this happens and one loses all confidence n the car. | |||
| 06/01/2010 | 29000 | ||
| The steering sticks while driving. very scary so i don't drive the car for more than 4 or 5 mile trips. won't take it on a highway anymore, since i have no confidence in the steering. i was told that the tires had broken bands and that might have been what i was feeling, so i replaced all four tires but the problem continued. i wouldn't be able to afford to replace the steering column and whatever else might be necessary. the tires were a huge expense. i can't very well sell the car, since i don't feel it is safe. please help. too many people have the same complaint, for this to be expected and acceptable. | |||
| 08/23/2011 | 6000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 3.0. steering gets very loose and one can not steer the car accurately at times. very scary when this happens and one loses all confidence n the car. | |||
| 08/14/2011 | 27000 | ||
| My 2004 bmw z4 3.0i has difficulty with steering when the temperatures exceed 95 degrees. the car steering is sticky for lack of a better description. it is scary to drive home from work after it has been sitting in the sun. from what i have read, this is a failure of the steering column. | |||
| 08/06/2011 | 33900 | ||
| Steering is sticky not allowing steering wheel to return to center. takes constant pressure to steer and keep centered. very difficult to keep in center of lane at highway speeds. | |||
| 08/04/2011 | 23500 | ||
| Richard dunn writes: i have the same problem. 2004 bmw z4 with 23,500 miles! dealer iwill replace the steering column for a cost of $3,700! where can i find help in fixing this problem being a senior citizen on limited income the $3,700 repair bill is a problem is there a number to call bmw to issue a complaint thanks 2004 bmw z4 roadster vin the problem occurs when the outside temp get into the 90's | |||
| 08/06/2011 | 33900 | ||
| Steering is sticky not allowing steering wheel to return to center. takes constant pressure to steer and keep centered. very difficult to keep in center of lane at highway speeds. | |||
| 08/04/2011 | 23500 | ||
| Richard dunn writes: i have the same problem. 2004 bmw z4 with 23,500 miles! dealer iwill replace the steering column for a cost of $3,700! where can i find help in fixing this problem being a senior citizen on limited income the $3,700 repair bill is a problem is there a number to call bmw to issue a complaint thanks 2004 bmw z4 roadster vin the problem occurs when the outside temp get into the 90's | |||
| 06/09/2011 | 56000 | ||
| After the car sits outside on a hot day when driving home on the highway between 55-60, the steering pulls to either the right or left and feels like it isn't going to unstick. it takes a lot of effort to correct the pull. it is very scary and definitely feels like something is terribly wrong with the steering. three different days after sitting in the parking lot it did this when i was driving home. never does it while driving to work in the morning from the garage and has never done it while driving in the evening or at night. we just bought the car from a different owner and of course she did not mention any problems. i am afraid to drive it to work now because it feels like it will get permanently locked up and i'll end up in the ditch. | |||
| 06/18/2011 | 12500 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact stated while driving 25mph or varies speed the steering column sticks. the vehicle was taken to the dealer who stated they have to replace the steering column. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was not contacted. the failure mileage was 12,500. mw | |||
| 06/09/2011 | 56000 | ||
| After the car sits outside on a hot day when driving home on the highway between 55-60, the steering pulls to either the right or left and feels like it isn't going to unstick. it takes a lot of effort to correct the pull. it is very scary and definitely feels like something is terribly wrong with the steering. three different days after sitting in the parking lot it did this when i was driving home. never does it while driving to work in the morning from the garage and has never done it while driving in the evening or at night. we just bought the car from a different owner and of course she did not mention any problems. i am afraid to drive it to work now because it feels like it will get permanently locked up and i'll end up in the ditch. | |||
| 06/18/2011 | 12500 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact stated while driving 25mph or varies speed the steering column sticks. the vehicle was taken to the dealer who stated they have to replace the steering column. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was not contacted. the failure mileage was 12,500. mw | |||
| 06/09/2011 | 56000 | ||
| After the car sits outside on a hot day when driving home on the highway between 55-60, the steering pulls to either the right or left and feels like it isn't going to unstick. it takes a lot of effort to correct the pull. it is very scary and definitely feels like something is terribly wrong with the steering. three different days after sitting in the parking lot it did this when i was driving home. never does it while driving to work in the morning from the garage and has never done it while driving in the evening or at night. we just bought the car from a different owner and of course she did not mention any problems. i am afraid to drive it to work now because it feels like it will get permanently locked up and i'll end up in the ditch. | |||
| 06/18/2011 | 12500 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact stated while driving 25mph or varies speed the steering column sticks. the vehicle was taken to the dealer who stated they have to replace the steering column. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was not contacted. the failure mileage was 12,500. mw | |||
| 06/09/2011 | 56000 | ||
| After the car sits outside on a hot day when driving home on the highway between 55-60, the steering pulls to either the right or left and feels like it isn't going to unstick. it takes a lot of effort to correct the pull. it is very scary and definitely feels like something is terribly wrong with the steering. three different days after sitting in the parking lot it did this when i was driving home. never does it while driving to work in the morning from the garage and has never done it while driving in the evening or at night. we just bought the car from a different owner and of course she did not mention any problems. i am afraid to drive it to work now because it feels like it will get permanently locked up and i'll end up in the ditch. | |||
| 06/18/2011 | 12500 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact stated while driving 25mph or varies speed the steering column sticks. the vehicle was taken to the dealer who stated they have to replace the steering column. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was not contacted. the failure mileage was 12,500. mw | |||
| 07/19/2011 | 11000 | ||
| Normal drivng clunking sound in 2004 bmw z4 steering column 11500 miles. nothing done todate. | |||
| 07/10/2011 | |||
| Lack of steering control | |||
| 07/19/2011 | 11000 | ||
| Normal drivng clunking sound in 2004 bmw z4 steering column 11500 miles. nothing done todate. | |||
| 07/10/2011 | |||
| Lack of steering control | |||
| 07/19/2011 | 11000 | ||
| Normal drivng clunking sound in 2004 bmw z4 steering column 11500 miles. nothing done todate. | |||
| 07/10/2011 | |||
| Lack of steering control | |||
| 07/19/2011 | 11000 | ||
| Normal drivng clunking sound in 2004 bmw z4 steering column 11500 miles. nothing done todate. | |||
| 07/10/2011 | |||
| Lack of steering control | |||
| 07/10/2011 | 22000 | ||
| Bmw z4 roadster 23000 miles steering column sticks which has the possible of causing a crash with on comming traffic | |||
| 06/30/2011 | 2927 | ||
| The steering has a loud popping sound when turned to the left or right. steering has become stiff. a mechanic is doing a thorough inspection and we are awaiting his final analysis of this problem. this vehicle has less than 3,000 miles but because it is a 2004, bmw will not cover this defect. please notify me if further information is needed. i do not know if the vehicle is safe to drive at this time. | |||
| 07/10/2011 | 22000 | ||
| Bmw z4 roadster 23000 miles steering column sticks which has the possible of causing a crash with on comming traffic | |||
| 06/30/2011 | 2927 | ||
| The steering has a loud popping sound when turned to the left or right. steering has become stiff. a mechanic is doing a thorough inspection and we are awaiting his final analysis of this problem. this vehicle has less than 3,000 miles but because it is a 2004, bmw will not cover this defect. please notify me if further information is needed. i do not know if the vehicle is safe to drive at this time. | |||
| 07/10/2011 | 22000 | ||
| Bmw z4 roadster 23000 miles steering column sticks which has the possible of causing a crash with on comming traffic | |||
| 06/30/2011 | 2927 | ||
| The steering has a loud popping sound when turned to the left or right. steering has become stiff. a mechanic is doing a thorough inspection and we are awaiting his final analysis of this problem. this vehicle has less than 3,000 miles but because it is a 2004, bmw will not cover this defect. please notify me if further information is needed. i do not know if the vehicle is safe to drive at this time. | |||
| 07/08/2008 | 12000 | ||
| Steering sticks in stright position. brought to dealer a few years ago and told nothing is wrong. started driving again afer a few years due to surgury, problem persists brought to repair shop, bad steering system. acts up more in warm weather more so then in cool morning. almost hit another car on highway, problem staying in lane. told this is normal and has been approved by nhtsa. dealer wants almost $5,000 to fix, i will have to sell car. | |||
| 07/10/2011 | 22000 | ||
| Bmw z4 roadster 23000 miles steering column sticks which has the possible of causing a crash with on comming traffic | |||
| 06/30/2011 | 2927 | ||
| The steering has a loud popping sound when turned to the left or right. steering has become stiff. a mechanic is doing a thorough inspection and we are awaiting his final analysis of this problem. this vehicle has less than 3,000 miles but because it is a 2004, bmw will not cover this defect. please notify me if further information is needed. i do not know if the vehicle is safe to drive at this time. | |||
| 07/08/2008 | 12000 | ||
| Steering sticks in stright position. brought to dealer a few years ago and told nothing is wrong. started driving again afer a few years due to surgury, problem persists brought to repair shop, bad steering system. acts up more in warm weather more so then in cool morning. almost hit another car on highway, problem staying in lane. told this is normal and has been approved by nhtsa. dealer wants almost $5,000 to fix, i will have to sell car. | |||
| 07/01/2011 | 1 | ||
| Steering problems when the outside temp. is hot (85+) the steering sticks and requires considerable force to keep from running into on coming traffic or off the road i first noticed it after i bought it two weeks ago around 7-1 the car has about 50,500 miles on it | |||
| 07/08/2008 | 12000 | ||
| Steering sticks in stright position. brought to dealer a few years ago and told nothing is wrong. started driving again afer a few years due to surgury, problem persists brought to repair shop, bad steering system. acts up more in warm weather more so then in cool morning. almost hit another car on highway, problem staying in lane. told this is normal and has been approved by nhtsa. dealer wants almost $5,000 to fix, i will have to sell car. | |||
| 07/01/2011 | 1 | ||
| Steering problems when the outside temp. is hot (85+) the steering sticks and requires considerable force to keep from running into on coming traffic or off the road i first noticed it after i bought it two weeks ago around 7-1 the car has about 50,500 miles on it | |||
| 07/08/2008 | 12000 | ||
| Steering sticks in stright position. brought to dealer a few years ago and told nothing is wrong. started driving again afer a few years due to surgury, problem persists brought to repair shop, bad steering system. acts up more in warm weather more so then in cool morning. almost hit another car on highway, problem staying in lane. told this is normal and has been approved by nhtsa. dealer wants almost $5,000 to fix, i will have to sell car. | |||
| 07/01/2011 | 1 | ||
| Steering problems when the outside temp. is hot (85+) the steering sticks and requires considerable force to keep from running into on coming traffic or off the road i first noticed it after i bought it two weeks ago around 7-1 the car has about 50,500 miles on it | |||
| 06/13/2008 | 53000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact stated when the vehicle has been sitting for awhile the steering gets very tight and does not operate properly. the vehicle will tend to favor one side and then will favor the other when the wheel is finally is turn in the other direction. the contact stated the steering seems to work itself out once the vehicle warms up, but when it is first started, the steering is very stiff. the contact took the vehicle to their mechanic and was told the problem is within the steering column, but it cannot be fixed. the contact stated this seems to happen only when it is hot outside. the vin was unknown. the failure mileage was 25,000 and the current mileage was 53,000.rl | |||
| 06/01/2011 | 65000 | ||
| Vehicle has a steering issue where it becomes 'sticky'; it holds very tightly to the center position and is difficult to turn. once it 'breaks free', it turns suddenly and is very difficult to control. the behavior is intermittent and tends to exhibit itself on hot days. | |||
| 06/13/2008 | 53000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact stated when the vehicle has been sitting for awhile the steering gets very tight and does not operate properly. the vehicle will tend to favor one side and then will favor the other when the wheel is finally is turn in the other direction. the contact stated the steering seems to work itself out once the vehicle warms up, but when it is first started, the steering is very stiff. the contact took the vehicle to their mechanic and was told the problem is within the steering column, but it cannot be fixed. the contact stated this seems to happen only when it is hot outside. the vin was unknown. the failure mileage was 25,000 and the current mileage was 53,000.rl | |||
| 06/01/2011 | 65000 | ||
| Vehicle has a steering issue where it becomes 'sticky'; it holds very tightly to the center position and is difficult to turn. once it 'breaks free', it turns suddenly and is very difficult to control. the behavior is intermittent and tends to exhibit itself on hot days. | |||
| 06/15/2011 | 62500 | ||
| While operating vehicle on the highway, i encountered that the electrical power steering became stuck several times when turning the vehicle. this only seems to occur when the ambient temperature is high (<80 degrees fahrenheit), especially during the summer season. this reoccurring problem has caused several situations that could have lead to potential crashes. | |||
| 06/13/2008 | 53000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact stated when the vehicle has been sitting for awhile the steering gets very tight and does not operate properly. the vehicle will tend to favor one side and then will favor the other when the wheel is finally is turn in the other direction. the contact stated the steering seems to work itself out once the vehicle warms up, but when it is first started, the steering is very stiff. the contact took the vehicle to their mechanic and was told the problem is within the steering column, but it cannot be fixed. the contact stated this seems to happen only when it is hot outside. the vin was unknown. the failure mileage was 25,000 and the current mileage was 53,000.rl | |||
| 06/01/2011 | 65000 | ||
| Vehicle has a steering issue where it becomes 'sticky'; it holds very tightly to the center position and is difficult to turn. once it 'breaks free', it turns suddenly and is very difficult to control. the behavior is intermittent and tends to exhibit itself on hot days. | |||
| 06/15/2011 | 62500 | ||
| While operating vehicle on the highway, i encountered that the electrical power steering became stuck several times when turning the vehicle. this only seems to occur when the ambient temperature is high (<80 degrees fahrenheit), especially during the summer season. this reoccurring problem has caused several situations that could have lead to potential crashes. | |||
| 06/22/2011 | 22000 | ||
| What does it take to fix a 2004 bmw z4 that has notchy/sticky steering the car has 23000 miles on it it appears to happen when the car is driven for 15-20 miles (is temp a problem) and why isn't there a recall on this problem this problem is very common and costly in the $3500-4000 range the steering column has to be replaced the car was purchased at bmw of chattanooga tenn in april of 2010 now i beleive the car was sold to me with the steering problem it could easy cause a head on crash or you asked this bmw question on 6/24/2011 for $18. | |||
| 06/11/2011 | 72001 | ||
| The power steering becomes sticky in wam weather. there is no problem with the steering in cool weather. i keep the car in covered parking at most times making the steering only slightly sticky although enough to make freeway driving a contant state of over-correction to keep the car in a lane. on one occaision i left the car parked in full sunshine on a 100 degree day and the power steering did not work at all at highway speed making the car unsafe to drive. | |||
| 06/11/2011 | 65128 | ||
| My 2004 bmw z4 experiences steering problems when the weather is hot. the steering becomes sticky and difficult to manage. it returns to normal after it sits int he shade. it is extremely unsafe to drive when the weather is hot. althought i am reporting this today it has been aoocurring off and on for over a year. i purchased the car in 2009 and do not drive it very much-5,000 miles since purchasing it. would drive more if steering was not an issue. | |||
| 06/11/2011 | 72001 | ||
| The power steering becomes sticky in wam weather. there is no problem with the steering in cool weather. i keep the car in covered parking at most times making the steering only slightly sticky although enough to make freeway driving a contant state of over-correction to keep the car in a lane. on one occaision i left the car parked in full sunshine on a 100 degree day and the power steering did not work at all at highway speed making the car unsafe to drive. | |||
| 06/11/2011 | 65128 | ||
| My 2004 bmw z4 experiences steering problems when the weather is hot. the steering becomes sticky and difficult to manage. it returns to normal after it sits int he shade. it is extremely unsafe to drive when the weather is hot. althought i am reporting this today it has been aoocurring off and on for over a year. i purchased the car in 2009 and do not drive it very much-5,000 miles since purchasing it. would drive more if steering was not an issue. | |||
| 06/11/2011 | 72001 | ||
| The power steering becomes sticky in wam weather. there is no problem with the steering in cool weather. i keep the car in covered parking at most times making the steering only slightly sticky although enough to make freeway driving a contant state of over-correction to keep the car in a lane. on one occaision i left the car parked in full sunshine on a 100 degree day and the power steering did not work at all at highway speed making the car unsafe to drive. | |||
| 06/11/2011 | 65128 | ||
| My 2004 bmw z4 experiences steering problems when the weather is hot. the steering becomes sticky and difficult to manage. it returns to normal after it sits int he shade. it is extremely unsafe to drive when the weather is hot. althought i am reporting this today it has been aoocurring off and on for over a year. i purchased the car in 2009 and do not drive it very much-5,000 miles since purchasing it. would drive more if steering was not an issue. | |||
| 06/07/2011 | 91000 | ||
| 1. steering sticks when the temp. is around 80 degrees. 2. the steering becaomes very sticking or slightly locked and requires extra force to correct, which sends the car off course. it seems to happen in warmer temps and higher speeds. 3. nothing has yet to be done. i took it to the dealer but they told me they couldn't replicate it. this seems like it should be a no brainer to have a recall. it is very dangerous to have your wheel lock on you when you're traveling 55mph. | |||
| 06/11/2011 | 65128 | ||
| My 2004 bmw z4 experiences steering problems when the weather is hot. the steering becomes sticky and difficult to manage. it returns to normal after it sits int he shade. it is extremely unsafe to drive when the weather is hot. althought i am reporting this today it has been aoocurring off and on for over a year. i purchased the car in 2009 and do not drive it very much-5,000 miles since purchasing it. would drive more if steering was not an issue. | |||
| 06/07/2011 | 91000 | ||
| 1. steering sticks when the temp. is around 80 degrees. 2. the steering becaomes very sticking or slightly locked and requires extra force to correct, which sends the car off course. it seems to happen in warmer temps and higher speeds. 3. nothing has yet to be done. i took it to the dealer but they told me they couldn't replicate it. this seems like it should be a no brainer to have a recall. it is very dangerous to have your wheel lock on you when you're traveling 55mph. | |||
| 01/17/2006 | |||
| On my 2004 bmw z4 3.0i, on hot days my steering wants to stick and i have to use much more force than i usually have to to make the steering move. in the winter i tend to not have this problem as much, but in the summer (i live in texas) it gets very hot and the steering wants to stick more. this is a problem that needs to be fixed!! there are hundreds of other z4 drivers that have the same exact problem as me. | |||
| 06/07/2011 | 91000 | ||
| 1. steering sticks when the temp. is around 80 degrees. 2. the steering becaomes very sticking or slightly locked and requires extra force to correct, which sends the car off course. it seems to happen in warmer temps and higher speeds. 3. nothing has yet to be done. i took it to the dealer but they told me they couldn't replicate it. this seems like it should be a no brainer to have a recall. it is very dangerous to have your wheel lock on you when you're traveling 55mph. | |||
| 01/17/2006 | |||
| On my 2004 bmw z4 3.0i, on hot days my steering wants to stick and i have to use much more force than i usually have to to make the steering move. in the winter i tend to not have this problem as much, but in the summer (i live in texas) it gets very hot and the steering wants to stick more. this is a problem that needs to be fixed!! there are hundreds of other z4 drivers that have the same exact problem as me. | |||
| 06/07/2011 | 91000 | ||
| 1. steering sticks when the temp. is around 80 degrees. 2. the steering becaomes very sticking or slightly locked and requires extra force to correct, which sends the car off course. it seems to happen in warmer temps and higher speeds. 3. nothing has yet to be done. i took it to the dealer but they told me they couldn't replicate it. this seems like it should be a no brainer to have a recall. it is very dangerous to have your wheel lock on you when you're traveling 55mph. | |||
| 01/17/2006 | |||
| On my 2004 bmw z4 3.0i, on hot days my steering wants to stick and i have to use much more force than i usually have to to make the steering move. in the winter i tend to not have this problem as much, but in the summer (i live in texas) it gets very hot and the steering wants to stick more. this is a problem that needs to be fixed!! there are hundreds of other z4 drivers that have the same exact problem as me. | |||
| 05/01/2011 | 45000 | ||
| Steering becomes unsafe in hot weather, steering will not center, and car is very hard to control, when you turn right or left steering will stick and cause you to over steer, and causes a very dangerous situation. | |||
| 01/17/2006 | |||
| On my 2004 bmw z4 3.0i, on hot days my steering wants to stick and i have to use much more force than i usually have to to make the steering move. in the winter i tend to not have this problem as much, but in the summer (i live in texas) it gets very hot and the steering wants to stick more. this is a problem that needs to be fixed!! there are hundreds of other z4 drivers that have the same exact problem as me. | |||
| 05/01/2011 | 45000 | ||
| Steering becomes unsafe in hot weather, steering will not center, and car is very hard to control, when you turn right or left steering will stick and cause you to over steer, and causes a very dangerous situation. | |||
| 03/01/2010 | 51000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4. electric power steering on warm days will become chunky or notchy in feeling and requires excessive effort to steer the car. this can cause more steering input than is required and when the steering catches up the car can react more than intended. very dangerous and needs to be recalled even for multiple owner cars. | |||
| 05/01/2011 | 45000 | ||
| Steering becomes unsafe in hot weather, steering will not center, and car is very hard to control, when you turn right or left steering will stick and cause you to over steer, and causes a very dangerous situation. | |||
| 03/01/2010 | 51000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4. electric power steering on warm days will become chunky or notchy in feeling and requires excessive effort to steer the car. this can cause more steering input than is required and when the steering catches up the car can react more than intended. very dangerous and needs to be recalled even for multiple owner cars. | |||
| 05/30/2011 | 61000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4. electric power steering on warm days will become chunky or notchy in feeling and requires excessive effort to steer the car. this can cause more steering input than is required and when the steering catches up the car can react more than intended. very dangerous and needs to be recalled even for multiple owner cars. | |||
| 03/01/2010 | 51000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4. electric power steering on warm days will become chunky or notchy in feeling and requires excessive effort to steer the car. this can cause more steering input than is required and when the steering catches up the car can react more than intended. very dangerous and needs to be recalled even for multiple owner cars. | |||
| 05/30/2011 | 61000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4. electric power steering on warm days will become chunky or notchy in feeling and requires excessive effort to steer the car. this can cause more steering input than is required and when the steering catches up the car can react more than intended. very dangerous and needs to be recalled even for multiple owner cars. | |||
| 03/01/2010 | 51000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4. electric power steering on warm days will become chunky or notchy in feeling and requires excessive effort to steer the car. this can cause more steering input than is required and when the steering catches up the car can react more than intended. very dangerous and needs to be recalled even for multiple owner cars. | |||
| 05/30/2011 | 61000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4. electric power steering on warm days will become chunky or notchy in feeling and requires excessive effort to steer the car. this can cause more steering input than is required and when the steering catches up the car can react more than intended. very dangerous and needs to be recalled even for multiple owner cars. | |||
| 07/01/2008 | 35000 | ||
| Several years ago, i noticed that my 2004 bmw z4 lost its otherwise smooth steering after being parked in the sun on hot days. the steering would become sticky and required extra and inconsistent effort to make low-speed as well higher-speed turns. this occurred most frequently during the initial part of the turn rather than well into it. these events were infrequent as i rarely park out in the sun, but very disconcerting. when i had the car in for regular service to the dealer i complained about the phenomenon but always got the | |||
| 05/30/2011 | 61000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4. electric power steering on warm days will become chunky or notchy in feeling and requires excessive effort to steer the car. this can cause more steering input than is required and when the steering catches up the car can react more than intended. very dangerous and needs to be recalled even for multiple owner cars. | |||
| 07/01/2008 | 35000 | ||
| Several years ago, i noticed that my 2004 bmw z4 lost its otherwise smooth steering after being parked in the sun on hot days. the steering would become sticky and required extra and inconsistent effort to make low-speed as well higher-speed turns. this occurred most frequently during the initial part of the turn rather than well into it. these events were infrequent as i rarely park out in the sun, but very disconcerting. when i had the car in for regular service to the dealer i complained about the phenomenon but always got the | |||
| 04/28/2011 | 67000 | ||
| Sticky steering problem making it difficult to drive. | |||
| 05/17/2011 | 81896 | ||
| I have an '04 bmw z4 and am having problems with the steering. i've been reading online that many other z4 owners are experiencing the same problems that i am which include; difficulty keeping the wheel straight, having to use a lot of force to make steering adjustments, and constant pulling to the right/left while driving. these problems occur every time i drive my vehicle. i recentley took it to a local mechanic, who said the problem was pretty bad. i am waiting to hear his exact diagnosis and should hear from him on monday 5/23/11 as i dropped it off fri 5/20/11. i have not wrecked the vehicle due to these problems however i have had some close calls. fortunatelly i am a very attentive driver otherwise there may very well been an accident. | |||
| 04/28/2011 | 67000 | ||
| Sticky steering problem making it difficult to drive. | |||
| 05/17/2011 | 81896 | ||
| I have an '04 bmw z4 and am having problems with the steering. i've been reading online that many other z4 owners are experiencing the same problems that i am which include; difficulty keeping the wheel straight, having to use a lot of force to make steering adjustments, and constant pulling to the right/left while driving. these problems occur every time i drive my vehicle. i recentley took it to a local mechanic, who said the problem was pretty bad. i am waiting to hear his exact diagnosis and should hear from him on monday 5/23/11 as i dropped it off fri 5/20/11. i have not wrecked the vehicle due to these problems however i have had some close calls. fortunatelly i am a very attentive driver otherwise there may very well been an accident. | |||
| 04/28/2011 | 67000 | ||
| Sticky steering problem making it difficult to drive. | |||
| 05/17/2011 | 81896 | ||
| I have an '04 bmw z4 and am having problems with the steering. i've been reading online that many other z4 owners are experiencing the same problems that i am which include; difficulty keeping the wheel straight, having to use a lot of force to make steering adjustments, and constant pulling to the right/left while driving. these problems occur every time i drive my vehicle. i recentley took it to a local mechanic, who said the problem was pretty bad. i am waiting to hear his exact diagnosis and should hear from him on monday 5/23/11 as i dropped it off fri 5/20/11. i have not wrecked the vehicle due to these problems however i have had some close calls. fortunatelly i am a very attentive driver otherwise there may very well been an accident. | |||
| 04/28/2011 | 67000 | ||
| Sticky steering problem making it difficult to drive. | |||
| 05/17/2011 | 81896 | ||
| I have an '04 bmw z4 and am having problems with the steering. i've been reading online that many other z4 owners are experiencing the same problems that i am which include; difficulty keeping the wheel straight, having to use a lot of force to make steering adjustments, and constant pulling to the right/left while driving. these problems occur every time i drive my vehicle. i recentley took it to a local mechanic, who said the problem was pretty bad. i am waiting to hear his exact diagnosis and should hear from him on monday 5/23/11 as i dropped it off fri 5/20/11. i have not wrecked the vehicle due to these problems however i have had some close calls. fortunatelly i am a very attentive driver otherwise there may very well been an accident. | |||
| 05/04/2011 | 28200 | ||
| Pushed brakes hard for a near emergency stop and the vehicle careened to the right and almost ran off the road. this vehicle has had many instances of attempting to drive itself off the road, the terminology for groups with this type of car is tramlining. i thought it odd that so many people could have the same problem that a term would be applied to the problem. i feel that this defect has the potential to cause a serious and possibly fatal accident. | |||
| 05/05/2011 | 67000 | ||
| Bmw z4 2004 vehicle exhibits sticky and notchy steering at high (85 or 90deg f +) outside temperature. steering becomes extremely difficult and dangerous. the issue only effects owners in locations with high temperatures and during the summer months and therefore the occurrence of the issue is intermittent and difficult to diagnose. this issue needs to become a recall as it is a very dangerous situation even if it is only happening to a minority of z4 owners. | |||
| 05/17/2011 | 81896 | ||
| I have an '04 bmw z4 and am having problems with the steering. i've been reading online that many other z4 owners are experiencing the same problems that i am which include; difficulty keeping the wheel straight, having to use a lot of force to make steering adjustments, and constant pulling to the right/left while driving. these problems occur every time i drive my vehicle. i recentley took it to a local mechanic, who said the problem was pretty bad. i am waiting to hear his exact diagnosis and should hear from him on monday 5/23/11 as i dropped it off fri 5/20/11. i have not wrecked the vehicle due to these problems however i have had some close calls. fortunatelly i am a very attentive driver otherwise there may very well been an accident. | |||
| 05/04/2011 | 28200 | ||
| Pushed brakes hard for a near emergency stop and the vehicle careened to the right and almost ran off the road. this vehicle has had many instances of attempting to drive itself off the road, the terminology for groups with this type of car is tramlining. i thought it odd that so many people could have the same problem that a term would be applied to the problem. i feel that this defect has the potential to cause a serious and possibly fatal accident. | |||
| 05/05/2011 | 67000 | ||
| Bmw z4 2004 vehicle exhibits sticky and notchy steering at high (85 or 90deg f +) outside temperature. steering becomes extremely difficult and dangerous. the issue only effects owners in locations with high temperatures and during the summer months and therefore the occurrence of the issue is intermittent and difficult to diagnose. this issue needs to become a recall as it is a very dangerous situation even if it is only happening to a minority of z4 owners. | |||
| 05/04/2011 | 28200 | ||
| Pushed brakes hard for a near emergency stop and the vehicle careened to the right and almost ran off the road. this vehicle has had many instances of attempting to drive itself off the road, the terminology for groups with this type of car is tramlining. i thought it odd that so many people could have the same problem that a term would be applied to the problem. i feel that this defect has the potential to cause a serious and possibly fatal accident. | |||
| 05/05/2011 | 67000 | ||
| Bmw z4 2004 vehicle exhibits sticky and notchy steering at high (85 or 90deg f +) outside temperature. steering becomes extremely difficult and dangerous. the issue only effects owners in locations with high temperatures and during the summer months and therefore the occurrence of the issue is intermittent and difficult to diagnose. this issue needs to become a recall as it is a very dangerous situation even if it is only happening to a minority of z4 owners. | |||
| 05/04/2011 | 28200 | ||
| Pushed brakes hard for a near emergency stop and the vehicle careened to the right and almost ran off the road. this vehicle has had many instances of attempting to drive itself off the road, the terminology for groups with this type of car is tramlining. i thought it odd that so many people could have the same problem that a term would be applied to the problem. i feel that this defect has the potential to cause a serious and possibly fatal accident. | |||
| 05/05/2011 | 67000 | ||
| Bmw z4 2004 vehicle exhibits sticky and notchy steering at high (85 or 90deg f +) outside temperature. steering becomes extremely difficult and dangerous. the issue only effects owners in locations with high temperatures and during the summer months and therefore the occurrence of the issue is intermittent and difficult to diagnose. this issue needs to become a recall as it is a very dangerous situation even if it is only happening to a minority of z4 owners. | |||
| 05/15/2010 | 40000 | ||
| Beginning early in 2010, we began to notice that the steering, particularly at speed, was 'sticky'; eg, it would take more force to turn the wheel and then it would break free of the sticky and turn. it behaves as though it sticks when the wheel isn't being turned, but then moves freely once it turns. the result is erratic steering, particularly in a highway situation where small corrections are needed. in traffic, on a multilane highway, this behavior causes the car to be hard to keep smoothly in lane; there were several times that the rumble strip was encountered due to overcorrecting the steering. warmer temperatures tend to make the problem worse. i have read on numerous bmw forums of others having very similar problems with this with this vintage of z4; apparently the only solution is to replace a $2500 steering unit if the dealer can be convinced there actually is a problem. i have jacked the vehicle up and 'felt' the steering with the car 'off', but the switch on to release the wheel lock, and that stiction (my physics background is showing) was somewhat evident (to a much smaller level than experienced in normal driving on a warm day) even with no load on the steering and at a normal room temperature. this is a very serious safety issue and i hesitate to drive the vehicle in this condition. | |||
| 03/15/2011 | 39500 | ||
| Tl*the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact stated he would have difficulty steering the vehicle while driving at speeds of approximately 55 mph. the vehicle would respond slowly when the steering wheel was turned. the contact also stated the failure recurred more often when the air conditioning unit was being operated. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where they were unable to diagnose the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 39,500 and the current mileage was 39,878. | |||
| 05/15/2010 | 40000 | ||
| Beginning early in 2010, we began to notice that the steering, particularly at speed, was 'sticky'; eg, it would take more force to turn the wheel and then it would break free of the sticky and turn. it behaves as though it sticks when the wheel isn't being turned, but then moves freely once it turns. the result is erratic steering, particularly in a highway situation where small corrections are needed. in traffic, on a multilane highway, this behavior causes the car to be hard to keep smoothly in lane; there were several times that the rumble strip was encountered due to overcorrecting the steering. warmer temperatures tend to make the problem worse. i have read on numerous bmw forums of others having very similar problems with this with this vintage of z4; apparently the only solution is to replace a $2500 steering unit if the dealer can be convinced there actually is a problem. i have jacked the vehicle up and 'felt' the steering with the car 'off', but the switch on to release the wheel lock, and that stiction (my physics background is showing) was somewhat evident (to a much smaller level than experienced in normal driving on a warm day) even with no load on the steering and at a normal room temperature. this is a very serious safety issue and i hesitate to drive the vehicle in this condition. | |||
| 03/15/2011 | 39500 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact stated he would have difficulty steering the vehicle while driving at speeds of approximately 55 mph. the vehicle would respond slowly when the steering wheel was turned. the contact also stated the failure recurred more often when the air conditioning unit . the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where they were unable to diagnose the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 39,500 and the current mileage was 39,878. sm. | |||
| 05/15/2010 | 40000 | ||
| Beginning early in 2010, we began to notice that the steering, particularly at speed, was 'sticky'; eg, it would take more force to turn the wheel and then it would break free of the sticky and turn. it behaves as though it sticks when the wheel isn't being turned, but then moves freely once it turns. the result is erratic steering, particularly in a highway situation where small corrections are needed. in traffic, on a multilane highway, this behavior causes the car to be hard to keep smoothly in lane; there were several times that the rumble strip was encountered due to overcorrecting the steering. warmer temperatures tend to make the problem worse. i have read on numerous bmw forums of others having very similar problems with this with this vintage of z4; apparently the only solution is to replace a $2500 steering unit if the dealer can be convinced there actually is a problem. i have jacked the vehicle up and 'felt' the steering with the car 'off', but the switch on to release the wheel lock, and that stiction (my physics background is showing) was somewhat evident (to a much smaller level than experienced in normal driving on a warm day) even with no load on the steering and at a normal room temperature. this is a very serious safety issue and i hesitate to drive the vehicle in this condition. | |||
| 03/15/2011 | 39500 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact stated he would have difficulty steering the vehicle while driving at speeds of approximately 55 mph. the vehicle would respond slowly when the steering wheel was turned. the contact also stated the failure recurred more often when the air conditioning unit . the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where they were unable to diagnose the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 39,500 and the current mileage was 39,878. sm. | |||
| 05/15/2010 | 40000 | ||
| Beginning early in 2010, we began to notice that the steering, particularly at speed, was 'sticky'; eg, it would take more force to turn the wheel and then it would break free of the sticky and turn. it behaves as though it sticks when the wheel isn't being turned, but then moves freely once it turns. the result is erratic steering, particularly in a highway situation where small corrections are needed. in traffic, on a multilane highway, this behavior causes the car to be hard to keep smoothly in lane; there were several times that the rumble strip was encountered due to overcorrecting the steering. warmer temperatures tend to make the problem worse. i have read on numerous bmw forums of others having very similar problems with this with this vintage of z4; apparently the only solution is to replace a $2500 steering unit if the dealer can be convinced there actually is a problem. i have jacked the vehicle up and 'felt' the steering with the car 'off', but the switch on to release the wheel lock, and that stiction (my physics background is showing) was somewhat evident (to a much smaller level than experienced in normal driving on a warm day) even with no load on the steering and at a normal room temperature. this is a very serious safety issue and i hesitate to drive the vehicle in this condition. | |||
| 03/15/2011 | 39500 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact stated he would have difficulty steering the vehicle while driving at speeds of approximately 55 mph. the vehicle would respond slowly when the steering wheel was turned. the contact also stated the failure recurred more often when the air conditioning unit . the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where they were unable to diagnose the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 39,500 and the current mileage was 39,878. sm. | |||
| 05/15/2010 | 40000 | ||
| Beginning early in 2010, we began to notice that the steering, particularly at speed, was 'sticky'; eg, it would take more force to turn the wheel and then it would break free of the sticky and turn. it behaves as though it sticks when the wheel isn't being turned, but then moves freely once it turns. the result is erratic steering, particularly in a highway situation where small corrections are needed. in traffic, on a multilane highway, this behavior causes the car to be hard to keep smoothly in lane; there were several times that the rumble strip was encountered due to overcorrecting the steering. warmer temperatures tend to make the problem worse. i have read on numerous bmw forums of others having very similar problems with this with this vintage of z4; apparently the only solution is to replace a $2500 steering unit if the dealer can be convinced there actually is a problem. i have jacked the vehicle up and 'felt' the steering with the car 'off', but the switch on to release the wheel lock, and that stiction (my physics background is showing) was somewhat evident (to a much smaller level than experienced in normal driving on a warm day) even with no load on the steering and at a normal room temperature. this is a very serious safety issue and i hesitate to drive the vehicle in this condition. | |||
| 03/15/2011 | 39500 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact stated he would have difficulty steering the vehicle while driving at speeds of approximately 55 mph. the vehicle would respond slowly when the steering wheel was turned. the contact also stated the failure recurred more often when the air conditioning unit . the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where they were unable to diagnose the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 39,500 and the current mileage was 39,878. sm. | |||
| 04/27/2011 | 57300 | ||
| My 2004 bmw z4 steering sticks speciall y when driving at high speeds on the highway. i have to exert excessive pressure to correct it. it's no longer a pleasure drving my car that i love so much. | |||
| 05/01/2011 | |||
| My z4 is a 2004 3.0i with 22120 miles... out of nowhere my steering became less fluid and smooth. sometimes i think i don't have power steering. almost couldn't avoid being cut off by a taxi in manhattan i'm afraid i may die while driving or possibly harm others. this is my only car and i can't just wait for a recall. | |||
| 04/27/2011 | 57300 | ||
| My 2004 bmw z4 steering sticks speciall y when driving at high speeds on the highway. i have to exert excessive pressure to correct it. it's no longer a pleasure drving my car that i love so much. | |||
| 05/01/2011 | |||
| My z4 is a 2004 3.0i with 22120 miles... out of nowhere my steering became less fluid and smooth. sometimes i think i don't have power steering. almost couldn't avoid being cut off by a taxi in manhattan i'm afraid i may die while driving or possibly harm others. this is my only car and i can't just wait for a recall. | |||
| 04/27/2011 | 57300 | ||
| My 2004 bmw z4 steering sticks speciall y when driving at high speeds on the highway. i have to exert excessive pressure to correct it. it's no longer a pleasure drving my car that i love so much. | |||
| 05/01/2011 | |||
| My z4 is a 2004 3.0i with 22120 miles... out of nowhere my steering became less fluid and smooth. sometimes i think i don't have power steering. almost couldn't avoid being cut off by a taxi in manhattan i'm afraid i may die while driving or possibly harm others. this is my only car and i can't just wait for a recall. | |||
| 04/27/2011 | 57300 | ||
| My 2004 bmw z4 steering sticks speciall y when driving at high speeds on the highway. i have to exert excessive pressure to correct it. it's no longer a pleasure drving my car that i love so much. | |||
| 05/01/2011 | |||
| My z4 is a 2004 3.0i with 22120 miles... out of nowhere my steering became less fluid and smooth. sometimes i think i don't have power steering. almost couldn't avoid being cut off by a taxi in manhattan i'm afraid i may die while driving or possibly harm others. this is my only car and i can't just wait for a recall. | |||
| 04/27/2011 | 57300 | ||
| My 2004 bmw z4 steering sticks speciall y when driving at high speeds on the highway. i have to exert excessive pressure to correct it. it's no longer a pleasure drving my car that i love so much. | |||
| 05/01/2011 | |||
| My z4 is a 2004 3.0i with 22120 miles... out of nowhere my steering became less fluid and smooth. sometimes i think i don't have power steering. almost couldn't avoid being cut off by a taxi in manhattan i'm afraid i may die while driving or possibly harm others. this is my only car and i can't just wait for a recall. | |||
| 04/24/2011 | 57000 | ||
| My 2004 bmw z4 steering sticks when temperature is above 85 | |||
| 09/15/2010 | 65000 | ||
| I have experienced the same problems described in your investigation pe10020. on numersous occasions the steering wheel of my 2004 z4, sticks and i am required to exert excessive pressure to correct it or to turn the wheel. speed does not seem to be a factor, it happens at both slow and faster speeds, but it is more pronouced at higher speeds because the car travels much further before i can correct the problem. this only happens in the summer when it is very hot in tallahassee, florida. this has been occurring for the past two summers. i saw the investigation on your website and decided to wait until there was a recall before taking it to the dealer. however, summer is approaching again, so i thought i would add my complaint to the others in hopes of expediting a re-call. this can be a dangerous condition and if it reoccurs when the weather gets hotter, i will have to get it repaired, recall or not. | |||
| 02/27/2011 | 80000 | ||
| The steering mechanism in my car sticks when driving. it happens when the car gets warmed up. when i go to work, no problem. when i leave in the afternoon and i am driving home, i have a hard time keeping the car in the lane because the steering wheel seems to stick. i mean, i am literally having to fight with the car to keep it from going into another lane. tires are new so that is not the problem. plus, i see that this has been a problem with a lot of these cars. i bought the car december, 2010 with 79,442 miles on it. i now have a little over 81,000 miles. i do not drive the car much... mostly weekends, but what a major problem it is to drive and have the car not steer properly. | |||
| 04/24/2011 | 57000 | ||
| My 2004 bmw z4 steering sticks when temperature is above 85 | |||
| 09/15/2010 | 65000 | ||
| I have experienced the same problems described in your investigation pe10020. on numersous occasions the steering wheel of my 2004 z4, sticks and i am required to exert excessive pressure to correct it or to turn the wheel. speed does not seem to be a factor, it happens at both slow and faster speeds, but it is more pronouced at higher speeds because the car travels much further before i can correct the problem. this only happens in the summer when it is very hot in tallahassee, florida. this has been occurring for the past two summers. i saw the investigation on your website and decided to wait until there was a recall before taking it to the dealer. however, summer is approaching again, so i thought i would add my complaint to the others in hopes of expediting a re-call. this can be a dangerous condition and if it reoccurs when the weather gets hotter, i will have to get it repaired, recall or not. | |||
| 02/27/2011 | 80000 | ||
| The steering mechanism in my car sticks when driving. it happens when the car gets warmed up. when i go to work, no problem. when i leave in the afternoon and i am driving home, i have a hard time keeping the car in the lane because the steering wheel seems to stick. i mean, i am literally having to fight with the car to keep it from going into another lane. tires are new so that is not the problem. plus, i see that this has been a problem with a lot of these cars. i bought the car december, 2010 with 79,442 miles on it. i now have a little over 81,000 miles. i do not drive the car much... mostly weekends, but what a major problem it is to drive and have the car not steer properly. | |||
| 04/24/2011 | 57000 | ||
| My 2004 bmw z4 steering sticks when temperature is above 85 | |||
| 09/15/2010 | 65000 | ||
| I have experienced the same problems described in your investigation pe10020. on numersous occasions the steering wheel of my 2004 z4, sticks and i am required to exert excessive pressure to correct it or to turn the wheel. speed does not seem to be a factor, it happens at both slow and faster speeds, but it is more pronouced at higher speeds because the car travels much further before i can correct the problem. this only happens in the summer when it is very hot in tallahassee, florida. this has been occurring for the past two summers. i saw the investigation on your website and decided to wait until there was a recall before taking it to the dealer. however, summer is approaching again, so i thought i would add my complaint to the others in hopes of expediting a re-call. this can be a dangerous condition and if it reoccurs when the weather gets hotter, i will have to get it repaired, recall or not. | |||
| 02/27/2011 | 80000 | ||
| The steering mechanism in my car sticks when driving. it happens when the car gets warmed up. when i go to work, no problem. when i leave in the afternoon and i am driving home, i have a hard time keeping the car in the lane because the steering wheel seems to stick. i mean, i am literally having to fight with the car to keep it from going into another lane. tires are new so that is not the problem. plus, i see that this has been a problem with a lot of these cars. i bought the car december, 2010 with 79,442 miles on it. i now have a little over 81,000 miles. i do not drive the car much... mostly weekends, but what a major problem it is to drive and have the car not steer properly. | |||
| 04/24/2011 | 57000 | ||
| My 2004 bmw z4 steering sticks when temperature is above 85 | |||
| 09/15/2010 | 65000 | ||
| I have experienced the same problems described in your investigation pe10020. on numersous occasions the steering wheel of my 2004 z4, sticks and i am required to exert excessive pressure to correct it or to turn the wheel. speed does not seem to be a factor, it happens at both slow and faster speeds, but it is more pronouced at higher speeds because the car travels much further before i can correct the problem. this only happens in the summer when it is very hot in tallahassee, florida. this has been occurring for the past two summers. i saw the investigation on your website and decided to wait until there was a recall before taking it to the dealer. however, summer is approaching again, so i thought i would add my complaint to the others in hopes of expediting a re-call. this can be a dangerous condition and if it reoccurs when the weather gets hotter, i will have to get it repaired, recall or not. | |||
| 02/27/2011 | 80000 | ||
| The steering mechanism in my car sticks when driving. it happens when the car gets warmed up. when i go to work, no problem. when i leave in the afternoon and i am driving home, i have a hard time keeping the car in the lane because the steering wheel seems to stick. i mean, i am literally having to fight with the car to keep it from going into another lane. tires are new so that is not the problem. plus, i see that this has been a problem with a lot of these cars. i bought the car december, 2010 with 79,442 miles on it. i now have a little over 81,000 miles. i do not drive the car much... mostly weekends, but what a major problem it is to drive and have the car not steer properly. | |||
| 04/17/2011 | 70000 | ||
| After driving the car for 20 or so minutes, when it starts to warm up, the steering wheel starts to stick. it takes a little more pressure to turn the wheel causing me to over steer and swerve a little bit. it gets worse the longer distance i have to drive. | |||
| 09/15/2010 | 65000 | ||
| I have experienced the same problems described in your investigation pe10020. on numersous occasions the steering wheel of my 2004 z4, sticks and i am required to exert excessive pressure to correct it or to turn the wheel. speed does not seem to be a factor, it happens at both slow and faster speeds, but it is more pronouced at higher speeds because the car travels much further before i can correct the problem. this only happens in the summer when it is very hot in tallahassee, florida. this has been occurring for the past two summers. i saw the investigation on your website and decided to wait until there was a recall before taking it to the dealer. however, summer is approaching again, so i thought i would add my complaint to the others in hopes of expediting a re-call. this can be a dangerous condition and if it reoccurs when the weather gets hotter, i will have to get it repaired, recall or not. | |||
| 02/27/2011 | 80000 | ||
| The steering mechanism in my car sticks when driving. it happens when the car gets warmed up. when i go to work, no problem. when i leave in the afternoon and i am driving home, i have a hard time keeping the car in the lane because the steering wheel seems to stick. i mean, i am literally having to fight with the car to keep it from going into another lane. tires are new so that is not the problem. plus, i see that this has been a problem with a lot of these cars. i bought the car december, 2010 with 79,442 miles on it. i now have a little over 81,000 miles. i do not drive the car much... mostly weekends, but what a major problem it is to drive and have the car not steer properly. | |||
| 04/17/2011 | 70000 | ||
| After driving the car for 20 or so minutes, when it starts to warm up, the steering wheel starts to stick. it takes a little more pressure to turn the wheel causing me to over steer and swerve a little bit. it gets worse the longer distance i have to drive. | |||
| 02/27/2011 | 80000 | ||
| The steering mechanism in my car sticks when driving. it happens when the car gets warmed up. when i go to work, no problem. when i leave in the afternoon and i am driving home, i have a hard time keeping the car in the lane because the steering wheel seems to stick. i mean, i am literally having to fight with the car to keep it from going into another lane. tires are new so that is not the problem. plus, i see that this has been a problem with a lot of these cars. i bought the car december, 2010 with 79,442 miles on it. i now have a little over 81,000 miles. i do not drive the car much... mostly weekends, but what a major problem it is to drive and have the car not steer properly. | |||
| 04/17/2011 | 70000 | ||
| After driving the car for 20 or so minutes, when it starts to warm up, the steering wheel starts to stick. it takes a little more pressure to turn the wheel causing me to over steer and swerve a little bit. it gets worse the longer distance i have to drive. | |||
| 04/10/2011 | 43750 | ||
| Reading bmw forums i read that other owners are experiencing the same problem as me.. i have a bmw 2004 z4 with 43k miles and the steering notches or sticks a lot as i drive. there seems to be a steering problem that could cause a serious wreck. are there any recalls on the problem? | |||
| 04/12/2011 | 59072 | ||
| My 2004 bmw z4 experiences stickiness in steering. it has 59,000 miles and the problem has been gradually increasing. i have not noticed any differences in the steering response with increased ambient heat, but it does seem to be worse when at higher speeds. | |||
| 04/11/2011 | 45000 | ||
| When you turn the steering wheel right or left it sticks when you try to turn back to center and requires extra effort to move the wheel. the problem seems to get worse when temperatures get warmer (75 degrees or higher). i'm concerned that i may not be able to turn the wheel if this problem gets worse and i'm not sure if the car is safe enough to drive, especially at higher speeds. | |||
| 04/09/2011 | 37000 | ||
| Steering extremely sticky when car temperature is hot. steering will not self center. | |||
| 04/12/2011 | 59072 | ||
| My 2004 bmw z4 experiences stickiness in steering. it has 59,000 miles and the problem has been gradually increasing. i have not noticed any differences in the steering response with increased ambient heat, but it does seem to be worse when at higher speeds. | |||
| 04/11/2011 | 45000 | ||
| When you turn the steering wheel right or left it sticks when you try to turn back to center and requires extra effort to move the wheel. the problem seems to get worse when temperatures get warmer (75 degrees or higher). i'm concerned that i may not be able to turn the wheel if this problem gets worse and i'm not sure if the car is safe enough to drive, especially at higher speeds. | |||
| 04/09/2011 | 37000 | ||
| Steering extremely sticky when car temperature is hot. steering will not self center. | |||
| 04/12/2011 | 59072 | ||
| My 2004 bmw z4 experiences stickiness in steering. it has 59,000 miles and the problem has been gradually increasing. i have not noticed any differences in the steering response with increased ambient heat, but it does seem to be worse when at higher speeds. | |||
| 04/11/2011 | 45000 | ||
| When you turn the steering wheel right or left it sticks when you try to turn back to center and requires extra effort to move the wheel. the problem seems to get worse when temperatures get warmer (75 degrees or higher). i'm concerned that i may not be able to turn the wheel if this problem gets worse and i'm not sure if the car is safe enough to drive, especially at higher speeds. | |||
| 04/09/2011 | 37000 | ||
| Steering extremely sticky when car temperature is hot. steering will not self center. | |||
| 04/12/2011 | 59072 | ||
| My 2004 bmw z4 experiences stickiness in steering. it has 59,000 miles and the problem has been gradually increasing. i have not noticed any differences in the steering response with increased ambient heat, but it does seem to be worse when at higher speeds. | |||
| 04/11/2011 | 45000 | ||
| When you turn the steering wheel right or left it sticks when you try to turn back to center and requires extra effort to move the wheel. the problem seems to get worse when temperatures get warmer (75 degrees or higher). i'm concerned that i may not be able to turn the wheel if this problem gets worse and i'm not sure if the car is safe enough to drive, especially at higher speeds. | |||
| 04/09/2011 | 37000 | ||
| Steering extremely sticky when car temperature is hot. steering will not self center. | |||
| 03/28/2011 | 19000 | ||
| I have read reports that nhsta has received numerous reports of 2003-2004 bmw z4's with powersteering issues. my 2004 z4 has this issue as well. the steering seems to bind and the severity is increased as speed increases. while driving on the freeway on a recent trip i had to exert a good amount of force to stay out of the other lanes. i am 5'10 - 200 lbs. my concern is that slighter persons may not be able to handle the steering problems. i fear someone might be injured if the issue is not fixed immediately. hopefully a recall can be generated before casualties occour. | |||
| 03/19/2011 | 64000 | ||
| Driving the car on a relatively warm day (70 degrees) with top down, the power steering became very stiff and steering the car became difficult. a noise was also heard when trying to steer the car. 20 minutes after this the check tire pressure warning light came on. i stopped at a service station to check tire pressure but it was fine. stopped, started the car several times without any help. next morning, the problem disappeared completely. i manually reset the tire pressure warning light and since then the problem hasn't come back. | |||
| 01/30/2011 | 10000 | ||
| Sticky steering when temperature is elevated. when the car is parked in the sun and warms up, the steering wheel becomes sticky leading to an increased effort to move the wheel and makes it easy to overcorrect. | |||
| 02/18/2011 | 50000 | ||
| I own a 2004 bmw z4. while driving the car last evening i noticed the steering wheel felt like it was sticking as i tried to turn the wheel. i t was so bad at one point that i strugled to steer the car around a curve. when it stuck, it caused me to oversteer throwing my car into oncoming traffic. fortunately no cars were coming and a dissaster was avoided. this is not the first time this occured. it appears to be intermittent. the bmw dealer can not find any thing wrong. a source of this problem needs to be determined before people get killed. | |||
| 01/26/2011 | 67500 | ||
| I have a 2004 bmw z4 with 67,517 miles. ever since i have owned it, it has had a twitchy feel to the steering, which i have been told is due to electric steering in this vehicle. however, the problem has become more pronounced lately. any unevenness in the surface of the road will cause the tires to jerk to one side or the other, requiring constant steering adjustments to keep the car going where you want it to. the only way it will track in a straight line is on a perfectly smooth road. i have tried jacking up the car and flexing the tires back and forth manually to see if there is any looseness in the steering, but i haven't found any. i'm afraid that one day i will find myself on a really rough road and be unable to control the car. i have noted that lots of other z4 owners have reported steering problems, so bmw needs to issue a recall to address it. | |||
| 05/02/2010 | 28000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact stated that while driving approximately 45 mph and trying to make a turn the steering would cause some resistance and making it difficult to maneuver. the vehicle was inspected by a dealer and informed him that they are unable to diagnose the problem. the vehicle has not been repaired for the power steering. the failure mileage was approximately 28,000. the vin was unavailable. tb | |||
| 06/01/2008 | 5000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 - regardless of the conditions, the steering wheel is notchy or sticky while driving straight down the road. naturally, when driving down a road, you are required to make minor rotational movements with the steering wheel to remain in a driving lane. in order to keep the vehicle in the lane with this sticky steering wheel, extra force is required to rotate the steering wheel, causing the driver to swerve slightly. this problem is a major concern as sometimes it becomes problematic and dangerous when the wheel sticks around turns and narros lanes. dealership states this is normal and has not been resolved. | |||
| 06/15/2010 | 52500 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 'sticky steering'; follow up to earlier complaint, in response to bmw letter of 9/24. bmw describes the condition as a gradual increase in steering effort noticable when the car is first driven off, and not a signifcant increase in effort. this is incorrect. not a gradual increase in effort, but an unexpected 'catch' that occurs, for example, when changing lanes. | |||
| 11/07/2010 | 24000 | ||
| A year or so ago i noticed the steering on my bmz z4 would get notchy and feel sticky at the end of the day. eventually i was able to recognize the problem would occur when parked outside in direct sunlight. i found it odd this would be brought on by time in the sun, but after some research online discovered many people with similar complaints. unfortunately it appeared experiences with bmw service varied, and since my car was out of warranty a fix would be a replacement of the steering column at the tune of 3-4 thousand dollars. when i heard this issue was under investigation i decided to wait for a decision as it seemed likely such issues with steering would be addressed. i have followed the case closely and have been reading bmw's responses to nhtsa. several of their arguments against addressing this are especially disturbing. bmw appears to recognize the issue, but claims the effect is minor. i am not an expert and cannot say whether it presents risk, but as a driver i can tell you any steering effects are disturbing and distracting. bmw claims the effect only occurs during specific/limited conditions - high ambient temperatures and direct sunlight. what really upsets me about this statement is that it's a convertible sports car marketed for these conditions, so while they may be specific and limited, they are primary conditions for this car. finally, bmw claims this is not an issue of safety, but one of quality. from my perspective, there are some subsystems where quality should not be compromised, and steering should be considered one of these. i do believe this is a safety issue, and anxiously await nhtsa findings in hopes i can have this safety issue addressed by bmw. i sincerely hope this issue is not swept under the rug and the manufacturer takes responsibility for the quality and safety of their automobiles. | |||
| 06/01/2008 | 38000 | ||
| When driving in hot weather, the steering wheel get very sticky and need extensive force to be maneuver. i went to my dealer and they said they need to change the eps and that its not cover since it happened 1 month after the end of the warrantee. its seem that a lot of owner have the same problem but their is still no recall from bmw. i now live in canada but my car is from the state and i am filling a complaint so that bmw would be force to act on this dangerous problem. | |||
| 10/26/2010 | 62391 | ||
| When car sits out in the hot sun 100 degrees or better for an extended period of time, is difficult. steering wheel stays in a tuning position and does not return to center, it sticks in whatever turn you put it in. you must manually force the steering wheel back to center. just today 10/26/2010 all of the warning lights came on and power steering completely failed while driving and the car would not change gears. | |||
| 06/01/2008 | 38000 | ||
| When driving in hot weather, the steering wheel get very sticky and need extensive force to be maneuver. i went to my dealer and they said they need to change the eps and that its not cover since it happened 1 month after the end of the warrantee. its seem that a lot of owner have the same problem but their is still no recall from bmw. i now live in canada but my car is from the state and i am filling a complaint so that bmw would be force to act on this dangerous problem. | |||
| 10/26/2010 | 62391 | ||
| When car sits out in the hot sun 100 degrees or better for an extended period of time, is difficult. steering wheel stays in a tuning position and does not return to center, it sticks in whatever turn you put it in. you must manually force the steering wheel back to center. just today 10/26/2010 all of the warning lights came on and power steering completely failed while driving and the car would not change gears. | |||
| 06/01/2008 | 38000 | ||
| When driving in hot weather, the steering wheel get very sticky and need extensive force to be maneuver. i went to my dealer and they said they need to change the eps and that its not cover since it happened 1 month after the end of the warrantee. its seem that a lot of owner have the same problem but their is still no recall from bmw. i now live in canada but my car is from the state and i am filling a complaint so that bmw would be force to act on this dangerous problem. | |||
| 10/26/2010 | 62391 | ||
| When car sits out in the hot sun 100 degrees or better for an extended period of time, is difficult. steering wheel stays in a tuning position and does not return to center, it sticks in whatever turn you put it in. you must manually force the steering wheel back to center. just today 10/26/2010 all of the warning lights came on and power steering completely failed while driving and the car would not change gears. | |||
| 06/01/2008 | 38000 | ||
| When driving in hot weather, the steering wheel get very sticky and need extensive force to be maneuver. i went to my dealer and they said they need to change the eps and that its not cover since it happened 1 month after the end of the warrantee. its seem that a lot of owner have the same problem but their is still no recall from bmw. i now live in canada but my car is from the state and i am filling a complaint so that bmw would be force to act on this dangerous problem. | |||
| 10/26/2010 | 62391 | ||
| When car sits out in the hot sun 100 degrees or better for an extended period of time, is difficult. steering wheel stays in a tuning position and does not return to center, it sticks in whatever turn you put it in. you must manually force the steering wheel back to center. just today 10/26/2010 all of the warning lights came on and power steering completely failed while driving and the car would not change gears. | |||
| 07/04/2010 | 24000 | ||
| The steering wheel sticks, it feels like it is binding which required increased steering effort that made it difficult to control the vehicle because it seems to over-steer when making hard and abrupt steering wheel movements. the failure is more noticeable at higher vehicle speeds (highway speeds) and in warm/hot weather (85 | |||
| 07/25/2010 | 43000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 - steering problem: i just recently moved to south florida from denver and now have knotchy/stickey steering when driving at highway speeds (60 mph) when it is warm (70 degrees). making small corrections requires a large input causing the car to go outside of it's lane. have had several very close calls. took the car to dealer, bmw south in south miami and they want to replace the steering column for $3,200. this problem is a matter of public safety and soon a driver or the public will be hurt or killed. bmw needs to stand behind their product and make the steering safe or the nhtsa needs to direct them to recall the cars to fix this problem. | |||
| 08/30/2010 | 118565 | ||
| On warmer days (80+ f), my 2004 bmw z4 steering will stick in one position while driving, requiring excessive force to unstick. this is especially noticeable at higher speeds (45+ mph) where smaller movements are required, and the tendency is to over correct when the sticks occurr. | |||
| 09/22/2010 | 83000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 steering system fails to perform properly and is unsafe when the temperature is somewhere above 80 degrees (f). on all warm days, the steering becomes unsafe - heavy, and does not perform properly - it becomes hard for the driver to control and notchy to steer. | |||
| 08/30/2010 | 118565 | ||
| On warmer days (80+ f), my 2004 bmw z4 steering will stick in one position while driving, requiring excessive force to unstick. this is especially noticeable at higher speeds (45+ mph) where smaller movements are required, and the tendency is to over correct when the sticks occurr. | |||
| 09/22/2010 | 83000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 steering system fails to perform properly and is unsafe when the temperature is somewhere above 80 degrees (f). on all warm days, the steering becomes unsafe - heavy, and does not perform properly - it becomes hard for the driver to control and notchy to steer. | |||
| 06/01/2009 | 45000 | ||
| When air temperature is greater than approximately 80 degrees f, the steering on my 2004 bmw z4 becomes sticky requiring a much higher level of effort to make steering adjustments. initially this higher level of effort is applied with no change in vehicle direction and then with additional effort vehicle direction changes significantly requiring re-correction to keep vehicle in lane and/or on the road. | |||
| 08/30/2010 | 118565 | ||
| On warmer days (80+ f), my 2004 bmw z4 steering will stick in one position while driving, requiring excessive force to unstick. this is especially noticeable at higher speeds (45+ mph) where smaller movements are required, and the tendency is to over correct when the sticks occurr. | |||
| 09/22/2010 | 83000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 steering system fails to perform properly and is unsafe when the temperature is somewhere above 80 degrees (f). on all warm days, the steering becomes unsafe - heavy, and does not perform properly - it becomes hard for the driver to control and notchy to steer. | |||
| 06/01/2009 | 45000 | ||
| When air temperature is greater than approximately 80 degrees f, the steering on my 2004 bmw z4 becomes sticky requiring a much higher level of effort to make steering adjustments. initially this higher level of effort is applied with no change in vehicle direction and then with additional effort vehicle direction changes significantly requiring re-correction to keep vehicle in lane and/or on the road. | |||
| 09/22/2010 | 83000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 steering system fails to perform properly and is unsafe when the temperature is somewhere above 80 degrees (f). on all warm days, the steering becomes unsafe - heavy, and does not perform properly - it becomes hard for the driver to control and notchy to steer. | |||
| 06/01/2009 | 45000 | ||
| When air temperature is greater than approximately 80 degrees f, the steering on my 2004 bmw z4 becomes sticky requiring a much higher level of effort to make steering adjustments. initially this higher level of effort is applied with no change in vehicle direction and then with additional effort vehicle direction changes significantly requiring re-correction to keep vehicle in lane and/or on the road. | |||
| 09/22/2010 | 83000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 steering system fails to perform properly and is unsafe when the temperature is somewhere above 80 degrees (f). on all warm days, the steering becomes unsafe - heavy, and does not perform properly - it becomes hard for the driver to control and notchy to steer. | |||
| 06/01/2009 | 45000 | ||
| When air temperature is greater than approximately 80 degrees f, the steering on my 2004 bmw z4 becomes sticky requiring a much higher level of effort to make steering adjustments. initially this higher level of effort is applied with no change in vehicle direction and then with additional effort vehicle direction changes significantly requiring re-correction to keep vehicle in lane and/or on the road. | |||
| 09/22/2010 | 83000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 steering system fails to perform properly and is unsafe when the temperature is somewhere above 80 degrees (f). on all warm days, the steering becomes unsafe - heavy, and does not perform properly - it becomes hard for the driver to control and notchy to steer. | |||
| 06/01/2009 | 45000 | ||
| When air temperature is greater than approximately 80 degrees f, the steering on my 2004 bmw z4 becomes sticky requiring a much higher level of effort to make steering adjustments. initially this higher level of effort is applied with no change in vehicle direction and then with additional effort vehicle direction changes significantly requiring re-correction to keep vehicle in lane and/or on the road. | |||
| 01/01/2009 | 80000 | ||
| Steering wheel sticks. requires force to move to either side from current position. happens almost daily when temperature is above 85 degrees | |||
| 08/15/2010 | 68000 | ||
| While driving on the highway at about 60 mph eps light came on and the car lost it's power steering. i got off the highway parked the car, turned the engine off and back on and eps light went off. after a couple of days the eps light started to turn on everyday, specially in the afternoon. took the car to a bmw dealer and they said it was just a loose cable. the day after i got my car from the dealer and nothing had changed. took it back and they said they had to replace the whole upper section of the steering column quoting me a total of repair costs of $3000.00 after discounts. could not afford the repair costs at that moment and car hasn't been repaired till this day. | |||
| 01/01/2009 | 80000 | ||
| Steering wheel sticks. requires force to move to either side from current position. happens almost daily when temperature is above 85 degrees | |||
| 08/15/2010 | 68000 | ||
| While driving on the highway at about 60 mph eps light came on and the car lost it's power steering. i got off the highway parked the car, turned the engine off and back on and eps light went off. after a couple of days the eps light started to turn on everyday, specially in the afternoon. took the car to a bmw dealer and they said it was just a loose cable. the day after i got my car from the dealer and nothing had changed. took it back and they said they had to replace the whole upper section of the steering column quoting me a total of repair costs of $3000.00 after discounts. could not afford the repair costs at that moment and car hasn't been repaired till this day. | |||
| 01/01/2009 | 80000 | ||
| Steering wheel sticks. requires force to move to either side from current position. happens almost daily when temperature is above 85 degrees | |||
| 08/15/2010 | 68000 | ||
| While driving on the highway at about 60 mph eps light came on and the car lost it's power steering. i got off the highway parked the car, turned the engine off and back on and eps light went off. after a couple of days the eps light started to turn on everyday, specially in the afternoon. took the car to a bmw dealer and they said it was just a loose cable. the day after i got my car from the dealer and nothing had changed. took it back and they said they had to replace the whole upper section of the steering column quoting me a total of repair costs of $3000.00 after discounts. could not afford the repair costs at that moment and car hasn't been repaired till this day. | |||
| 09/16/2010 | 62000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 steering issue. while driving my z4 over the past month i have had incidents of my steering locking to the left or right. i never know when the time will come and it is very scary. my wife had happen to her yesterday and almost lost control. i brought it to the dealer today and they told me they could not recreate the issue but would replace the steering column for $3000,00. after some research i noticed many complaints and feel a recall should occur because this is safety issue. | |||
| 01/01/2009 | 80000 | ||
| Steering wheel sticks. requires force to move to either side from current position. happens almost daily when temperature is above 85 degrees | |||
| 08/15/2010 | 68000 | ||
| While driving on the highway at about 60 mph eps light came on and the car lost it's power steering. i got off the highway parked the car, turned the engine off and back on and eps light went off. after a couple of days the eps light started to turn on everyday, specially in the afternoon. took the car to a bmw dealer and they said it was just a loose cable. the day after i got my car from the dealer and nothing had changed. took it back and they said they had to replace the whole upper section of the steering column quoting me a total of repair costs of $3000.00 after discounts. could not afford the repair costs at that moment and car hasn't been repaired till this day. | |||
| 09/16/2010 | 62000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 steering issue. while driving my z4 over the past month i have had incidents of my steering locking to the left or right. i never know when the time will come and it is very scary. my wife had happen to her yesterday and almost lost control. i brought it to the dealer today and they told me they could not recreate the issue but would replace the steering column for $3000,00. after some research i noticed many complaints and feel a recall should occur because this is safety issue. | |||
| 01/01/2009 | 80000 | ||
| Steering wheel sticks. requires force to move to either side from current position. happens almost daily when temperature is above 85 degrees | |||
| 08/15/2010 | 68000 | ||
| While driving on the highway at about 60 mph eps light came on and the car lost it's power steering. i got off the highway parked the car, turned the engine off and back on and eps light went off. after a couple of days the eps light started to turn on everyday, specially in the afternoon. took the car to a bmw dealer and they said it was just a loose cable. the day after i got my car from the dealer and nothing had changed. took it back and they said they had to replace the whole upper section of the steering column quoting me a total of repair costs of $3000.00 after discounts. could not afford the repair costs at that moment and car hasn't been repaired till this day. | |||
| 09/16/2010 | 62000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 steering issue. while driving my z4 over the past month i have had incidents of my steering locking to the left or right. i never know when the time will come and it is very scary. my wife had happen to her yesterday and almost lost control. i brought it to the dealer today and they told me they could not recreate the issue but would replace the steering column for $3000,00. after some research i noticed many complaints and feel a recall should occur because this is safety issue. | |||
| 09/09/2010 | 62267 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4, vin:4usbt33544ls51661, 63000 miles the bmw is having a severe steering problem on hot summer days. traveling at 70mph on the highway the car can be unsafe to drive. this problem is related to an electric steering. the steering is supposed too tighten some depending on speed and driving conditions. in many cases that i have found in research it gets to tight and makes it difficult to make the minimum of steering corrections. in my case it can make the car move into another lane on the highway from a small correction. i have been told there are similar problems in the mini cooper, z4, and 3 series bmw's. i have taken the car to a bmw dealer (sunbelt motors, inc., meridian, ms) for diagnosis. their solution is to replace the steering column in the car at a cost of $2600.00 (parts only) plus labor. i contacted bmw and open a case study with them regarding this matter. the car is out of warranty and they do not feel any responsibility to repair or offer any assistance with the repair. all it takes is a quick google search for: bmw z4 steering problems to see how many people have been affected by this. | |||
| 09/16/2010 | 62000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 steering issue. while driving my z4 over the past month i have had incidents of my steering locking to the left or right. i never know when the time will come and it is very scary. my wife had happen to her yesterday and almost lost control. i brought it to the dealer today and they told me they could not recreate the issue but would replace the steering column for $3000,00. after some research i noticed many complaints and feel a recall should occur because this is safety issue. | |||
| 09/09/2010 | 62267 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4, vin:4usbt33544ls51661, 63000 miles the bmw is having a severe steering problem on hot summer days. traveling at 70mph on the highway the car can be unsafe to drive. this problem is related to an electric steering. the steering is supposed too tighten some depending on speed and driving conditions. in many cases that i have found in research it gets to tight and makes it difficult to make the minimum of steering corrections. in my case it can make the car move into another lane on the highway from a small correction. i have been told there are similar problems in the mini cooper, z4, and 3 series bmw's. i have taken the car to a bmw dealer (sunbelt motors, inc., meridian, ms) for diagnosis. their solution is to replace the steering column in the car at a cost of $2600.00 (parts only) plus labor. i contacted bmw and open a case study with them regarding this matter. the car is out of warranty and they do not feel any responsibility to repair or offer any assistance with the repair. all it takes is a quick google search for: bmw z4 steering problems to see how many people have been affected by this. | |||
| 08/21/2010 | 44000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 with loss of power assisted stearing. dealer made front end alignment and front tires were replaced. old parts to front end were not given back. | |||
| 09/09/2010 | 62267 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4, vin:4usbt33544ls51661, 63000 miles the bmw is having a severe steering problem on hot summer days. traveling at 70mph on the highway the car can be unsafe to drive. this problem is related to an electric steering. the steering is supposed too tighten some depending on speed and driving conditions. in many cases that i have found in research it gets to tight and makes it difficult to make the minimum of steering corrections. in my case it can make the car move into another lane on the highway from a small correction. i have been told there are similar problems in the mini cooper, z4, and 3 series bmw's. i have taken the car to a bmw dealer (sunbelt motors, inc., meridian, ms) for diagnosis. their solution is to replace the steering column in the car at a cost of $2600.00 (parts only) plus labor. i contacted bmw and open a case study with them regarding this matter. the car is out of warranty and they do not feel any responsibility to repair or offer any assistance with the repair. all it takes is a quick google search for: bmw z4 steering problems to see how many people have been affected by this. | |||
| 08/21/2010 | 44000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 with loss of power assisted stearing. dealer made front end alignment and front tires were replaced. old parts to front end were not given back. | |||
| 02/11/2004 | 60 | ||
| I own a 2004 bmw z-4 with 18,648 mi on the odometer. i have the same steering problems as most other owner's. the steering is over reactive, the problem is more pronounced in warm/hot weather. at times it feels like the power steering is sluggush or not working. when turning right or left i can feel a chaddering in the steering wheel. when i went to the, he told me his mechanic said there was no problems with the steering and there wasn.t any thing he could do any way. i have checked on line and there seems to be a lot of unhappy owner's out there. i feel that this is safty defect and should be addressed as soon as possible. my wife is the principle driver of the car and she has complained of steering control problems. i am concerend about her safty and other drivers of z-4. can you help me!! | |||
| 08/21/2010 | 44000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 with loss of power assisted stearing. dealer made front end alignment and front tires were replaced. old parts to front end were not given back. | |||
| 02/11/2004 | 60 | ||
| I own a 2004 bmw z-4 with 18,648 mi on the odometer. i have the same steering problems as most other owner's. the steering is over reactive, the problem is more pronounced in warm/hot weather. at times it feels like the power steering is sluggush or not working. when turning right or left i can feel a chaddering in the steering wheel. when i went to the, he told me his mechanic said there was no problems with the steering and there wasn.t any thing he could do any way. i have checked on line and there seems to be a lot of unhappy owner's out there. i feel that this is safty defect and should be addressed as soon as possible. my wife is the principle driver of the car and she has complained of steering control problems. i am concerend about her safty and other drivers of z-4. can you help me!! | |||
| 08/21/2010 | 44000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 with loss of power assisted stearing. dealer made front end alignment and front tires were replaced. old parts to front end were not given back. | |||
| 02/11/2004 | 60 | ||
| I own a 2004 bmw z-4 with 18,648 mi on the odometer. i have the same steering problems as most other owner's. the steering is over reactive, the problem is more pronounced in warm/hot weather. at times it feels like the power steering is sluggush or not working. when turning right or left i can feel a chaddering in the steering wheel. when i went to the, he told me his mechanic said there was no problems with the steering and there wasn.t any thing he could do any way. i have checked on line and there seems to be a lot of unhappy owner's out there. i feel that this is safty defect and should be addressed as soon as possible. my wife is the principle driver of the car and she has complained of steering control problems. i am concerend about her safty and other drivers of z-4. can you help me!! | |||
| 08/21/2010 | 44000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 with loss of power assisted stearing. dealer made front end alignment and front tires were replaced. old parts to front end were not given back. | |||
| 02/11/2004 | 60 | ||
| I own a 2004 bmw z-4 with 18,648 mi on the odometer. i have the same steering problems as most other owner's. the steering is over reactive, the problem is more pronounced in warm/hot weather. at times it feels like the power steering is sluggush or not working. when turning right or left i can feel a chaddering in the steering wheel. when i went to the, he told me his mechanic said there was no problems with the steering and there wasn.t any thing he could do any way. i have checked on line and there seems to be a lot of unhappy owner's out there. i feel that this is safty defect and should be addressed as soon as possible. my wife is the principle driver of the car and she has complained of steering control problems. i am concerend about her safty and other drivers of z-4. can you help me!! | |||
| 08/20/2010 | 68000 | ||
| I have 2004 z4 bmw the steering is sticky it feels like that is binding and have to use extra effort to control car. at times i have to jerk it back into into line. at times it feels like im fighting with it . | |||
| 08/09/2010 | 32000 | ||
| Power steering on car is very stiff in the center causing great difficulty in turning, and then safely turning / keeping the car in the proper lane. this is a known issue by bmw on these cars, and i believe an ivestigation leading to a recall is under way. i am afraid to allow my 22 year old daughter to drive this car. it seems to be much worse in high temperature conditions. | |||
| 08/20/2010 | 68000 | ||
| I have 2004 z4 bmw the steering is sticky it feels like that is binding and have to use extra effort to control car. at times i have to jerk it back into into line. at times it feels like im fighting with it . | |||
| 08/09/2010 | 32000 | ||
| Power steering on car is very stiff in the center causing great difficulty in turning, and then safely turning / keeping the car in the proper lane. this is a known issue by bmw on these cars, and i believe an ivestigation leading to a recall is under way. i am afraid to allow my 22 year old daughter to drive this car. it seems to be much worse in high temperature conditions. | |||
| 08/20/2010 | 68000 | ||
| I have 2004 z4 bmw the steering is sticky it feels like that is binding and have to use extra effort to control car. at times i have to jerk it back into into line. at times it feels like im fighting with it . | |||
| 08/09/2010 | 32000 | ||
| Power steering on car is very stiff in the center causing great difficulty in turning, and then safely turning / keeping the car in the proper lane. this is a known issue by bmw on these cars, and i believe an ivestigation leading to a recall is under way. i am afraid to allow my 22 year old daughter to drive this car. it seems to be much worse in high temperature conditions. | |||
| 08/20/2010 | 68000 | ||
| I have 2004 z4 bmw the steering is sticky it feels like that is binding and have to use extra effort to control car. at times i have to jerk it back into into line. at times it feels like im fighting with it . | |||
| 08/09/2010 | 32000 | ||
| Power steering on car is very stiff in the center causing great difficulty in turning, and then safely turning / keeping the car in the proper lane. this is a known issue by bmw on these cars, and i believe an ivestigation leading to a recall is under way. i am afraid to allow my 22 year old daughter to drive this car. it seems to be much worse in high temperature conditions. | |||
| 09/01/2010 | 50100 | ||
| Power steering failure at highway speeds and high temperatures | |||
| 08/31/2010 | 29500 | ||
| Steering sticks when it's hot or sitting intraffic. need to apply effort to move the wheel which is a concern at highway speeds due to possible oversteer. | |||
| 09/01/2010 | 50100 | ||
| Power steering failure at highway speeds and high temperatures | |||
| 08/31/2010 | 29500 | ||
| Steering sticks when it's hot or sitting intraffic. need to apply effort to move the wheel which is a concern at highway speeds due to possible oversteer. | |||
| 08/27/2010 | 24000 | ||
| I have a bmw z4 that has steering issues. the car is hardly ever driven and only has 24k miles. the dealer is telling me that i need a new power steering column at approx. $3500. how can that be that bad in what i thought was supposed to be a fine engineered car? | |||
| 06/28/2010 | 99000 | ||
| Only in hot weather the steering becomes very hard and sticky and requires increased force to turn the steering wheel. the bmw dealer claims they cannot find an internal bulletin #4515500-02, released on 05/05/06. it's almost impossible to stay in your lane, and two hands are needed to control the vehicle when this defect act's up after sitting in the sun or hot weather. this is not noticable until you have reached speeds of 30 mph or over at which time you are pretty much committed to fight the steering. this becomes very scarey and dangerous. bmw is aware of this problem and claims it's not a safety issue. i brought my car to the dealer because of this problem and they say i need a steering rack for over $4000.00. the bulletin says they need to replace the eps column with a modified one which was available since weeks 17 and 18 of 2006. unfortunately, i bought my car used and was never informed of the steering dangers. it took some time to research this problem and yet, bmw is not willing to fix this defect. | |||
| 07/07/2010 | 55000 | ||
| My steering becomes difficult to control at highway speeds. seems to happen only on the freeway. | |||
| 06/28/2010 | 99000 | ||
| Only in hot weather the steering becomes very hard and sticky and requires increased force to turn the steering wheel. the bmw dealer claims they cannot find an internal bulletin #4515500-02, released on 05/05/06. it's almost impossible to stay in your lane, and two hands are needed to control the vehicle when this defect act's up after sitting in the sun or hot weather. this is not noticable until you have reached speeds of 30 mph or over at which time you are pretty much committed to fight the steering. this becomes very scarey and dangerous. bmw is aware of this problem and claims it's not a safety issue. i brought my car to the dealer because of this problem and they say i need a steering rack for over $4000.00. the bulletin says they need to replace the eps column with a modified one which was available since weeks 17 and 18 of 2006. unfortunately, i bought my car used and was never informed of the steering dangers. it took some time to research this problem and yet, bmw is not willing to fix this defect. | |||
| 07/07/2010 | 55000 | ||
| My steering becomes difficult to control at highway speeds. seems to happen only on the freeway. | |||
| 06/28/2010 | 99000 | ||
| Only in hot weather the steering becomes very hard and sticky and requires increased force to turn the steering wheel. the bmw dealer claims they cannot find an internal bulletin #4515500-02, released on 05/05/06. it's almost impossible to stay in your lane, and two hands are needed to control the vehicle when this defect act's up after sitting in the sun or hot weather. this is not noticable until you have reached speeds of 30 mph or over at which time you are pretty much committed to fight the steering. this becomes very scarey and dangerous. bmw is aware of this problem and claims it's not a safety issue. i brought my car to the dealer because of this problem and they say i need a steering rack for over $4000.00. the bulletin says they need to replace the eps column with a modified one which was available since weeks 17 and 18 of 2006. unfortunately, i bought my car used and was never informed of the steering dangers. it took some time to research this problem and yet, bmw is not willing to fix this defect. | |||
| 07/07/2010 | 55000 | ||
| My steering becomes difficult to control at highway speeds. seems to happen only on the freeway. | |||
| 06/28/2010 | 99000 | ||
| Only in hot weather the steering becomes very hard and sticky and requires increased force to turn the steering wheel. the bmw dealer claims they cannot find an internal bulletin #4515500-02, released on 05/05/06. it's almost impossible to stay in your lane, and two hands are needed to control the vehicle when this defect act's up after sitting in the sun or hot weather. this is not noticable until you have reached speeds of 30 mph or over at which time you are pretty much committed to fight the steering. this becomes very scarey and dangerous. bmw is aware of this problem and claims it's not a safety issue. i brought my car to the dealer because of this problem and they say i need a steering rack for over $4000.00. the bulletin says they need to replace the eps column with a modified one which was available since weeks 17 and 18 of 2006. unfortunately, i bought my car used and was never informed of the steering dangers. it took some time to research this problem and yet, bmw is not willing to fix this defect. | |||
| 07/07/2010 | 55000 | ||
| My steering becomes difficult to control at highway speeds. seems to happen only on the freeway. | |||
| 08/09/2010 | 44200 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact stated that when the temperature outside was hot, the steering began stiff making it difficult to control the vehicle. he noticed the problem everytime it was out. the vehicle had not been inspected or repaired at the time of the complaint. the contact called the manufacturer who stated that he would be charged for a diagnostic test. the current mileage was approximately 44,300. the failure mileage was approximately 44,200-bk | |||
| 07/07/2010 | 55000 | ||
| My steering becomes difficult to control at highway speeds. seems to happen only on the freeway. | |||
| 08/09/2010 | 44200 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the contact stated that when the temperature outside was hot, the steering began stiff making it difficult to control the vehicle. he noticed the problem everytime it was out. the vehicle had not been inspected or repaired at the time of the complaint. the contact called the manufacturer who stated that he would be charged for a diagnostic test. the current mileage was approximately 44,300. the failure mileage was approximately 44,200-bk | |||
| 08/07/2010 | 17000 | ||
| Steering becomes sticky in hot weather. the steering wheel feels notchy and does not respond immediately when turned - feels like it is stuck in center position. aggressive movement restores response but condition remains present. situation noticed at highway speeds in 90 deg. weather. | |||
| 06/07/2010 | 40400 | ||
| Sticky steering in warm weather | |||
| 05/19/2010 | 32000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. while traveling 25 mph the contact noticed that the steering wheel had become harder to steer. the vehicle was taken to the dealership where the contact was informed that the rack and pinion needed to be replaced. there were no prior warnings. the current and failure mileages was 32000. bml | |||
| 05/24/2010 | 80600 | ||
| After the car sits on the hot sun (anywhere above 75 degrees) the steering starts binding/locking up at all speeds. although it seems to be worse when driving at hwy speeds. when driving around a slight curve the steering does not return to center as it should nor is it easy to get the car to straighten back out. i have to force it back to center which usually ends up causing me to over correct and move close to or in the other lane. i first noticed the problem last summer, but since i only drive the car on weekends i didn't pay much attention to it last summer. it was fine during the winter, but got significantly worse when it got warm this year. i took my car to bmw of nashville and was told that the problem was the steering column and that it needed to be replaced. (i'm currently waiting on the replacement column to come in and be replaced) after doing some research about the problem i've found that there are hundreds of other z4 owners that have experienced the same problem and bmwna has not acknowledged that there is a problem. i contacted bmwna myself and although they didn't acknowledge there was a problem, they did offer me a 10% discount on the $3900.00 repair. i believe this is a factory defect in the car and that they all should be recalled before someone gets killed if there haven't already been fatal accidents. | |||
| 05/26/2010 | 60000 | ||
| I recently purchased the z4 used with ~60k miles. as the weather has warmed up in nj recently i have noticed the steering become sticky. the warmer it is the more prevalent the problem. when the steering locks it is necessary to jerk the wheel to break the lock resulting in an over correction. it is difficult to keep the car centered in the lane and i'm worried this will result in a serious accident. | |||
| 05/25/2010 | 38800 | ||
| In warm weather (> 75 degs f)steering becomes stiff. difficult to keep car on straight track. steering will not self-center. safety concern at highway speeds | |||
| 04/28/2010 | 42560 | ||
| My vehicle is a bmw z4, 2004 approx. 43,000 miles. at highway speeds, only occasionally at lower speed, the steering binds when i attempt to turn into another lane. the degree of binding varies, i have not encountered a positive lock; i always have been able to force the steering free to execute the turn. the incident date is merely the most recent. | |||
| 07/15/2005 | 2000 | ||
| Steering sticks, usually during warmer weather, 70 and above | |||
| 07/18/2009 | 20000 | ||
| I have a 2004 bmw z4 and it experiences the same 'sticky' steering in hot temperatures that are described on this forum url http://bimmer.roadfly.com/bmw/forums/e85/5246978-1.html. the bottom line is that when it gets hot outside, the steering feels like it locks for a moment when you are driving down the road. this has happened on numerous occasions. while it has not caused an accident, i believe that it has the potential to cause an accident. | |||
| 08/01/2009 | 30000 | ||
| My 2004 bmw z4 is experiencing a problem with the steering becoming sticky when the car has been outside in the sun in summer weather. the steering locks in a position such that it takes extra pressure to turn the wheel. when sufficient pressure is applied to break out of the sticky position, it results in a sudden jerk in the steering, like an overcorrection. at highway speeds, this issue is eventually going to cause a high speed accident, possibly a fatality. this is not an isolated incident; it is a widely reported problem. if one googles sticky steering z4 there are thousands of hits returned. yet bmw has yet to acknowledge this problem. | |||
| 02/02/2010 | 46032 | ||
| Bmw z4 2004 sticking steering. the steering gets knotchy, sticky, or locking when trying to make micro-steering adjustments while driving at highway speeds(60-70). the problem exists when the ambient outside temp is greater than 60 degrees. the steering locks and has to be budged to change steering direciton. it gets worse with hotter weather. this is a big safety issue and with all the other reported claims of the same issue, this should be looked at for a recall. bmw diagnosed the problem to being the eps module being defective and said the whole steering column will need to be replaced. this is a $3400 fix. the car has ~46k miles. i would not expect steering to break within 46k miles and reading over other complaints this is a much wider issue than this one z4. please investigate this issue due to the safety implications. | |||
| 07/01/2009 | 45000 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4 (e85) 3.0i manual with sport package - steering becomes sluggish and hard to initiate a turn - only occurs after radiant heat is applied (ie.....left in the sun for an hour) - does not change if sport suspension is engaged - humidity is not relevent, only direct sunlight - guess is a bushing/bearing heating up in the rack assembly - happens during summer months if left in direct sunlight - directly related to ambient temperature (80 degrees less noticable than 100 degrees) - at 100 degrees outside temperature and in direct sunlight for an hour, some people may not be able to turn the steering wheel at all (safety hazard) - dealer reported summer 2009 and they said symptoms not reproducable - contacted bmw usa and they made a note, but advised of no recall | |||
| 03/05/2010 | 29200 | 1 | |
| While driving the car the steering starts to lock up and its hard to make the go in a straight line. the car steering sticks like tires are in a strong groove. takes a significant pull to bring back to center. this could cause a accident due to steering defect. *tr | |||
| 02/14/2010 | 52000 | 1 | |
| 2004 bmw z4 purchased brand new off the showroom floor. practically from the beginning, noticed unusual handling of the steering under high temperatures. living in tampa, fl this presents a continual problem. i've owned z 3's and z 4's since 2001. sitting in hot temps, driving with heater thermostat on high, causes the steering to notch....or steer erratically. presented this to reeves on several occasions with no results. since there have been no fires, no accidents, no deaths, bmw and reeves choose to do nothing. i concur with the other 44 complaints listed on this report. apparently one or two have been successful. in light of the toyota situation, bmw needs to be held accountable for their design flaws. to my knowledge there has been no class action. i intend to start one. *tr | |||
| 07/15/2009 | 69000 | 1 | |
| 2004 bmw z4 purchased used in july 2009 with approximately 69000 miles. noticed immediately that when driving the vehicle in temps above 75 ambient, or when vehicle has been sitting in sun for extended periods, steering becomes very sticky or notchy when making slight turns such as lane changes or slight curves. steering seems to want to stick wherever the driver puts it and needs to have pressure applied to break the position. appears to be a common complaint with a bmw known fix being a complete replace of the steering column. vehicle is out of warranty and the fix too expensive. this seems to me to be a serious safety concern and should be covered under recall regardless of mileage. email sent with bmwna was never responded to. *cn | |||
| 01/09/2010 | 15000 | 1 | |
| Sticky steering similar to other complaints listed in this database. more evident in hot weather, but has begun happening in cold weather. steering sticks in one location making it difficult to change the cars track. steering does not return to center by itself. a dangerous and tiring driving condition. *tr | |||
| 11/11/2009 | 82745 | 1 | |
| Steering feels sticky similar to other reports filed, previous odi case number 10288772 reported 06/30/09. on 11 november 09 mileage 82,745, electrical power steering (eps) failed completely, warning light on dash, car still drivable without power steering for limited distance to dealer. cause found to be code 611c3 failed eps unit. repair was steering column replacement & reprogramming iaw sib32-06-05. all previous problems are gone, car steers like brand new, didn't know what i'd been missing. repair cost was $50 deductible under extended bmw factory warranty, no idea of actual retail cost. *tr | |||
| 12/13/2009 | 16500 | 1 | |
| While driving at approx 65 mph on interstate 95 in south florida the steering bound, (tightened) making it difficult to maintain good control of the vehicle. this problem seems to be persistent in hotter temperatures while less evident when the car is cooler. *tr | |||
| 08/02/2009 | 52000 | 1 | |
| Steering is sticky and has momentary failures when turning steering wheel at high outside temperatures (over 80f). continuous failures as steering wheel is turned. dealership denies knowing of problem, or cannot duplicate failures. this an extreme hazard. luckily no accidents yet. *tr | |||
| 06/30/2009 | 71644 | 1 | |
| 2004 bmw z4 current mileage 81k bought used with 35k in 2008. beginning in summer 2008, steering feels sticky in slow turns to right/left such as on /off ramp. with different tires, symptoms eased, but still evident, especially at ambient temps 70 deg f or above. at 71k car in for service including this complaint. dealer noted binding/noisy lower column joint & replaced lower section of steering column joint per sib 32 03 06, but problem persists. problem not as severe as that noted in some other complaints on line but similar in persistence and annoyance. *tr | |||
| 07/23/2009 | 45000 | 1 | |
| While traveling on the highway at a normal rate of speed, the steering wheel sticks, making it difficult to maintain control in a corner. this has been an ongoing problem for the past two years. the last incident nearly resulted in a crash with another vehicle. i nearly struck the guardrail while the steering would not respond properly. i took it to a mechanic, they said they can't find anything wrong, saying the vehicle behaves this way, because it's electronic steering? i have researched this on the internet and many z4 owners are experiencing the same problems. this is a extreme safety issue. *tr | |||
| 08/30/2009 | 1 | ||
| Steering of the car seems to bind, that is, after turning the steering wheel to either to left or right, it does not return to center in a smooth or linear fashion, as if the power assist is inconsistent. although my car has not been examined,other owners of the same make and model report the same experience. replacing the eps unit does not seem to help, nor does replacement of the steering column. this inconsistent steering response could be a safety hazard. *tr | |||
| 07/01/2009 | 25000 | 1 | |
| 2004 bmw z4 with 26k miles. when outside temperature is inthe 90s or above, the steering, particularly on the highway, develops a notchy or stickiness that does not allow you to track straight. causes you to jerk the wheel back and forth to maintain a straight of way. there are many other similar complaints on this component for 2003-04 model years. independent bmw mechanic has inspected my vehicle and states that the control module/electric motor/steering column has failed and needs replacement. he stated that there appears to be a trend on this. *tr | |||
| 07/31/2009 | 35000 | 1 | |
| When ambient temperatures are above approximately 85 degrees, the electronic power steering will produce abnormal resistance requiring considerable force to return to center. this makes it difficult to steer the car at high speeds. this is a safety issue requiring further nhtsa investigation. *tr | |||
| 07/31/2009 | 16000 | 1 | |
| 2004 bmw z4 steering wheel binds while driving after the auto has sat in direct sunlight for several hours or the ambient temperature is above 85 degrees. once the car is allowed to cool in the shade or through extended driving, the steering will return to normal. this condition causes the car to be unsafe at highway speeds. i have reported this condition several times to my local bmw dealership. they told me it could be the tires | |||
| 01/01/2008 | 32000 | 1 | 12/18/2007 |
| Tl*the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. since 2008, the contact noticed that the steering was difficult to turn and would lock up. the failure has since worsened due to the hot weather. the manufacturer stated that there was no recall and advised him to take the vehicle to the dealer to be diagnosed. the failure mileage was 32,000 and current mileage was 39,000. updated 9/1/09 *cn updated 09/09/09*jb | |||
| 07/18/2009 | 27105 | 1 | |
| When driving the power steering gets hard like it will going lock up when driving. *tr | |||
| 07/12/2009 | 1 | ||
| 2004 bmw z4-steering sticks or catches at center when turning wheel while car is in motion. causes vehicle to swerve. problem is intermittent. *tr | |||
| 05/01/2009 | 105000 | 1 | |
| Steering issues. *tr | |||
| 06/07/2009 | 80600 | 1 | |
| While driving the car on a sunny, summer day, the steering wheel has tension and stickiness while trying to rotate it. this causes abrupt and imprecise steering corrections due to the stickiness causing jerky steering. *tr this defect makes it difficult to retain a straight driving path, and makes it difficult to stay within a lane on the local roads and highways. the steering alignment also becomes out of a straight line, thus coming out of center, and further making it more difficult to maintain a safe driving course. | |||
| 05/31/2009 | 53000 | 1 | |
| My car was parked in an an area that was not in the shade lot for several hours. the air temp. was about 80. when i drove off i could feel that the steering was not reacting to my input as it had in the cool morning. the steering was jerky and would not track as i turned the steering wheel, but lagged a few moments. i had an 80 mile drive where i had to turn the wheel in a zig-zag manner to keep the car tracking in the direction i wanted to go. when the car cooled off overnight the steering returned to normal. this is not the first time this has happened. it does not feel safe. *tr | |||
| 03/06/2009 | 28000 | 1 | |
| After winter storage i took my 2004 bmw z4 out of storage to find the steering sticks. after cornering, i must jerk the steering wheel back to center. this caused me to run off the road for a brief moment while i gathered control of the car. there were no injuries, but that is just by luck. the problem persists despite having the car and tires checked out. the problem is worse at higher ambient temps. *tr | |||
| 08/13/2008 | 60915 | 1 | |
| 2004 z4 - i have experienced on several occasions in warm weather 70 degrees or more were my car steering loses tension. in other words the steering will become loose. when turning steer left or right, the car hesitate to react for approx. 2 to 3 seconds. it continues straight until seconds later it will engage. *tr | |||
| 08/01/2008 | 21000 | 1 | |
| 2004 bmw z-4 , steering problem. feels like steering locks up or binds at highway speeds. force must be applied to overcome lock-up. impossible to drive car smoothly, change lanes, pass other cars. i purchased the car used with only 21,000 miles, but warranty was up in 6/2008, purchased in 8/2008. tom bush bmw of jacksonville says car needs a steering column assembly replacement at a cost of $2575.08 cost to me. i feel problem has been on the car since purchased new. car came from off lease in ohio and driven only limited amount. steering lockup more noticeable on warm to hot days, which is when we drive the car here in florida. please offer assistance. car seems unsafe to drive. *tr | |||
| 08/01/2008 | 53000 | 1 | |
| Steering system is somewhat non-responsive when weather is hot. *tr | |||
| 09/16/2008 | 42000 | 1 | |
| I have a heat-related steering problem with my car that has been noted on other bmw z4s. normally the car handles quite nicely and is very responsive. however, whenever the car has been sitting at a high ambient temperature (high 80s or above), when driven, the steering wheel is very non-responsive-sticky and doesn't track back to center. this is a serious safety concern since so much force is required on such a small car to make what should be minor corrections while driving that several times i've almost ended turning into an adjacent lane on the freeway while trying to drive a straight line. i am very hesitant to drive the vehicle on warm days (which means most days here in the south) due to my concerns about a possible accident due to the defect. unfortunately i do need to use my car. this problem has been known for several years and has been reported to bmw on several occasions. despite this, my dealer professes confusion about what could be happening and has told me that when the car has been taken for a test run (not on the freeway and not during a warm day), it's handled fine. meanwhile, i'm left driving what can only be considered a dangerously defective car that could quite easily cause a serious accident when driven under normal, even careful, conditions. *tr | |||
| 08/20/2008 | 43000 | 1 | |
| When ambient temperatures are high (e.g. >85-90f) (compounded by car being in direct sunlight), the steering becomes difficult to control. specifically, normal steering wheel input translates into erratic, jerky movements on the road. the steering wheel will not return to center and the car generally is difficult to control (i.e. maintain a straight course, requiring constant and exaggerated steering wheel input). this condition is transient (i.e. steering returns to normal when the ambient temperature drops); however, driving when the steering is compromised as described above is unnerving and without a doubt increases the risk of an accident occurring due to a potential loss of driver control (e.g. on wet roads, multi-lane highway traffic). when this occurred a second time, i immediately took the car to the bmw dealership to report it. the bmw dealership subsequently confirmed the problem as described above and diagnosed a failed steering column unit. bmw na has offered to pay for 50% of the repair with the other 50% being owner's responsibility (car was approx. 2.5 months out of warranty). judging from the proportion of similar complaints filed with nhtsa on the z4, this issue doesn't appear to be isolated and warrants further investigation. *tr | |||
| 08/09/2008 | 50000 | 1 | |
| In warm weather about 75 and up steering gets sticky and cannot correct smoothly.*tr | |||
| 07/16/2008 | 16000 | 1 | |
| I bought a bmw z4 used in august 2007 with no noticeable problems. this year (2008), there have been a few heat waves in june and july in ny and i noticed that if the car sits out in the sun for a few hours, the steering becomes sticky, jerky and hard to control. after being in the shade to cool down the steer becomes smooth, controlled and normal. i've started researching this issue and have found many online forums with owner comments complaining about the same problem. there appears to be a fix from bmw but my car is now off warranty and will entail me paying for these repairs out of pocket. this appears to me to be a major safety issue and manufacturers defect which should have been fixed under a recall (either mandatory or voluntary) long before i purchased the car in '07. i hope the nhtsa is aware of this serious problem and can take appropriate action to have it corrected by bmw. thank you. *tr | |||
| 09/10/2007 | 49000 | 1 | |
| I own a bmw z4, and it is my second one i own, and it has a sticky steering column that acts up in hot weather, and it creates for very unsafe steering. i have had my entire steering rack replaced in my last z4, and now my second car is doing the same thing, but bmw of fremont cant duplicate the problem. *tr | |||
| 04/12/2008 | 48800 | ||
| Under normal driving conditions at moderate speeds, the steering has a tendency to lock up either towards the right and left causing the car to veer out of the lane spontaneously. there is no return of the steering wheel to center and constant pressure in the opposite direction is required to avoid collision with adjacent vehicles. this occurs on slight curves on the road and occasionally on straight roads under all weather conditions. | |||
| 05/01/2008 | 40300 | 1 | |
| Steering problem at 45+mph with vehicle, steering is very sticky going straight, constant corrections cause over steering, steering wheel does not return to neutral position on curves leading to dangerous conditions, tested to 75 + mph, gets worse at higher speeds of freeway driving. just took possession of used vehicle under warranty. *tr | |||
| 12/16/2007 | 42954 | 1 | |
| Steering sticks in high temp. *tr | |||
| 05/23/2006 | 26000 | 1 | 03/06/2006 |
| When temperatures are above 80f the steering sticks and requires more input to overcome the resistance. once it overcomes the resistance it over corrects so that you have a zig zag driving pattern. i was told bmw is aware but there is no fix although online message boards state many have had their cars repaired. *nm | |||
| STEERING - COLUMN | |||
| 04/19/2010 | 42500 | ||
| Tl*the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. while driving at approximately 55 mph, the contact noticed that the steering wheel stuck when driving above 50 mph. the failure occurred daily if the temperature was above 65 degrees. it was difficult to keep the vehicle centered. the vehicle was at an authorized dealership at the time of the complaint and the dealer suggested that the entire steering column be replaced. the contact called the manufacturer who stated that they were unaware of that particular problem. the failure mileage was approximately 42,500. the current mileage was approximately 43,000. | |||
| 07/07/2009 | 42000 | ||
| Tl*the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. it becomes difficult for the contact to control the steering wheel when the weather is cold; therefore; he doesn't drive the vehicle during the winter months. the dealers diagnosis confirmed that the steering column needed to be replaced at an estimate cost of $3,000. the vehicle was not repaired. the vin was not available. the failure mileage was 42,000 and the current mileage was 52,000. | |||
| 07/31/2008 | 62938 | 1 | 07/12/2008 |
| Tl*the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. the steering wheel failed when the temperature was over 85 degrees. it was difficult to make right and left turns and drive normally without veering into another lane and loosing steering control. the dealer stated the failure was located in the steering column assembly. the estimated cost to repair the steering assembly was $3,400. the manufacturer is aware of the failure and stated that they will investigate and let her know if they will assist with the repair cost. the failure mileage was 62,938. updated 10/5/09 *cn updated 10/07/09 | |||
| STEERING - ELECTRIC POWER ASSIST SYSTEM | |||
| 06/14/2012 | 76000 | 1 | |
| The steering wheel gets stuck while driving and car doesn't stay in lane infact needs constant significant adjustments to keep it from accidentally getting into another lane. the issue has occurred multiple times and was an inconvenience so i didn't pay a lot of attention but it's more like a safety issue now with controlling the car becoming more and more difficult on freeways. nhtsa has identified this issue pe10020 as not significant and i sincerely hope they investigate it further and take some serious action before it causes irreparable loss. bmw needs to own up to a manufacturing defect as its not wear and tear and fix this. *tr | |||
| 08/12/2007 | 8000 | 1 | 05/31/2004 |
| Tl* the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. while driving approximately between 45-50 mph on normal road conditions. the steering wheel exhibited a notchy sensation. the driver was able to continue in operation. the failure occurred intermittently. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer on three separate occasions for the identical failures. the battery was replaced. the technician recommended replacement of the power steering column . the vehicle has not been repaired at this time. the failure mileage was 8,000. the current mileage was 18,000. updated 01/12/10. *lj updated 01/13/10 | |||
| 04/20/2008 | 40 | 2 | 07/17/2007 |
| The steering locks up in hot weather forcing me to over compensate when driving. once the car cools down steering feedback returns to normal. *tr | |||
| 07/08/2006 | 3600 | 2 | 08/12/2004 |
| When the car sits in direct sunlight for an extended period of time the steering becomes difficult to control with no center balance. the only way to correct this issue is to park the car in the shade and wait for the steering to return to normal. *jb | |||
| 08/01/2005 | 13000 | 20 | 04/15/2004 |
| In hot weather or after vehicle has been left in sun for a few hours steering becomes sticky and jerky. must apply excessive force and constantly overcorrect to keep car on course. extremely difficult to enter and exit slight turns, change lanes, etc. *jb | |||
| 11/18/2005 | 18000 | 1 | |
| While driving with top down in cold weather with heat on high, steering became sticky/notchy. i couldn't make smooth steering corrections, only course ones. after car was allowed to cool overnight, problem went away. *jb | |||
| 08/15/2005 | 5300 | 3 | 04/15/2004 |
| My bmw z4 yr. 2004 during hot weather seems to have a steering problem. yhe steering sticks and feel notchy, on the highway it almost caused a accident due to try ing to steer and over compinsating. thank you | |||
| 06/30/2005 | 1775 | 2 | 07/29/2004 |
| In very hot hot weather the steering becomes dangerously off-center. | |||
| 09/01/2004 | 1000 | 07/15/2004 | |
| Problem: eps steering gets very sticky after car has sat in direct sunlight for a few hours. minor steering corrections are nearly impossible. problem clears up after car has been garaged for a couple hours and allowed to cool. this problem makes the car feel very unsafe to drive. i am constantly worried it might fail entirely at some point -- hopefully not while i am driving it. problem was first noticed at the end of summer last year (2004). car was purchased in july. this year, it has begun already (since mid-april 2005). | |||
| STEERING - WHEEL AND HANDLE BAR | |||
| 09/08/2007 | 17400 | 2 | 05/15/2007 |
| Tl*the contact owns a 2004 bmw z4. while driving 40 mph, the steering wheel locked without warning. the steering became unlocked after the steering wheel was pulled, however, it caused the contact to over steer. the weather was 90 degrees at the time of failure. the dealer was unable to duplicate or repair the failure. the current and failure mileages were 17,400. | |||