Major Problems with BMW i3 Derived from Complaints & Recalls

Learn about the common problems with a used BMW i3 to avoid purchasing a bad year of the model.

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Best and Worst Years for BMW i3

Explore the chart showing how many complaints have been filed for each year of BMW i3.

Model Year	Complaints
2018 i3	1
2017 i3	15
2016 i3	9
2015 i3	23
2014 i3	23

Worst 3 BMW i3 complaints

2014 BMW i3 AIR BAGS Victims: 2

2014 BMW i3 AIR BAGS Victims: 1 Mileage: 9000 miles

2015 BMW i3 ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

Browse BMW i3 complaints by category

Problems with STEERING, POWER TRAIN and ELECTRICAL SYSTEM are the most frequent issues recorded by the NHTSA from BMW i3 owners.

Problem Category	Number of Problems
STEERING i was driving the car and the steering suddenly became heavy - no longer self-centering. the car would still go...	26 ~ 23556 miles
POWER TRAIN the bmw i3 electric vehicle that comes with a range extender has a critical hazardous design flaw. it cannot consistently...	12 ~ 19458 miles
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM tl* the contact owns a 2014 bmw i3. the contact stated that while driving at approximately 55 mph the cruise...	10 ~ 12835 miles
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL i turned right into a parking spot in front of a commercial buidling. i remember slowing down as i approached...	7 ~ 7562 miles
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM after a recent software update the computer is unable to indicate the accurate state of charge causing unexpected power loss....	6 ~ 29668 miles
ENGINE charged my car overnight in my climate controlled garage and went out the next morning to run errands. turned it...	6 ~ 12113 miles
AIR BAGS tl* the contact owns a 2014 bmw i3. while driving at approximately 35 mph the accelerator pedal was depressed and...	5 ~ 11800 miles
UNKNOWN OR OTHER december 6th 0650 i drove down the ready ave nw in fort walton beach fl. i was driving normal -...	4 ~ 10159 miles
WHEELS getting out of a parking lot at very low speed of 2-3 miles per hour touched a curb and the...	3 ~ 4654 miles
SUSPENSION i went to leave work. upon turning the car on i noticed 3 warnings appear which required me to read...	2 ~ 13663 miles
SEAT BELTS seat belt twist into the re-tractor back of the seat and cannot be untwisted because the twist remains behind the...	2 ~ 37511 miles
BODY > STRUCTURE the driver's door does not close or does not latch. there are times when it unlatches/opens while i am driving...	2 ~ 4372 miles
TIRES bmw are manufacturing newer model tires for their i3 . these tires are very narrow compared to other cars that...	2 ~ 6000 miles
SERVICE BRAKES i turned on the car opened the gate and put the car in reverse. i pressed the gas peddle lightly...	2 ~ 8790 miles
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL 2015 bmw i3 with range extender (rex) just hit 1000 miles. had for 6 weeks. i was traveling down...	2 ~ 493 miles
CRUISE CONTROL > VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL tl* the contact owns a 2014 bmw i3. the contact stated that while driving at approximately 55 mph the cruise...	2 ~ 800 miles
SEATS seat belt twist into the re-tractor back of the seat and cannot be untwisted because the twist remains behind the...	1 ~ 37000 miles
OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION > SENSOR > AIR BAGS seat belt twist into the re-tractor back of the seat and cannot be untwisted because the twist remains behind the...	1 ~ 37000 miles
FRONT PASSENGER > OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION > SENSOR seat belt twist into the re-tractor back of the seat and cannot be untwisted because the twist remains behind the...	1 ~ 37000 miles
VISIBILITY/WIPER the front windshield is irregular which causes extreme distortion of the view. driving is dangerous as the distortion causes dizziness....	1
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE 2015 bmw i3. consumer writes in regards to range extender safety recall. ld consumer sent additional correspondence. ld the consumer...	1
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING two issues: 1. driving at highway speed of 65 mph with battery power drained the rex (reserve engine) turns on....	1 ~ 4960 miles
EQUIPMENT ADAPTIVE/MOBILITY near crash (crash avoided by manual emergency braking intervention) the adaptive cruise control was following a black suv at 8:30am...	1 ~ 600 miles

FAQ

What year BMW i3 is the most reliable?

Speaking of the models produced in the last 5 years, BMW i3 models of 2018, 2016, 2017 year of manufacture have had the least number of complaints.

What year was a bad year for BMW i3?

BMW i3 models of 2014 and 2015 are probably the years to be avoided like the plague due to a higher than an average number of issues reported.

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