2004 BMW 330Ci complaints

AIRBAGS DID NOT DEPLOY IN A SEVERE ACCIDENT. *TR

ON 14 SEPTEMBER 2008 I WAS INVOLVED IN A MOTOR VEHICLE ACCIDENT INVOLVING MY 2004 BMW 330CI CONVERTIBLE. WE HAD A VEHICLE RUN A LEFT TURN RED LIGHT INTO US AS WE WERE PASSING THROUGH THE INTERSECTION IN KENT WA. I ESTIMATE THE IMPACT WAS PROBABLY EQUIVALENT TO A 50 TO 60 MPH COLLISION. IT WAS OBSERVED THAT THE AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY BUT THE ROLL OVER ROLL BAR DID. WITH THE RECALL OF AIR BAGS FOR THE BMW I THINK IT MAY ALSO APPLY TO THE 2004 3 SERIES ALSO. IF THE AIRBAGS WOULD HAVE DEPLOYED IT MAY HAVE ELIMINATED SOME ACHES AND PAINS THAT WE ARE SUFFERING FROM. THERE WERE NO SERIOUS INJURIES. DAMAGE TO THE BMW INVOLVED THE FRONT BUMPER, HOOD, AND OTHER DAMAGE TO RADIATOR FOR A TOTAL OF ABOUT 4300. I WILL BE CHECKING WITH BMW AS TO WHAT SPEED SHOULD THE AIR BAGS DEPLOY. *TR

THIS PROBLEM IS OCCURRING ON ALL E46 330 M54 ENGINES WITH THE ZHP(PERFORMANCE PACKAGE) THERE HAVE BEEN NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS TO BMW NA ABOUT THIS ISSUE. AT 2000 - 3000 RPMS THE ENGINE RATTLES LIKE A COFFEE CAN FULL OF MARBLES. I TOOK MY VEHICLE TO BMW BUT THEY STATED THAT THIS IS PERFECTLY NORMAL. BMW IS NOT WILLING TO DO ANYTHING ABOUT THIS ISSUE. THE ISSUE IS THE DUAL VANOS UNIT THEY PUT INTO THE M54 ENGINE IS USING BELRIN BUSHINGS AND THEY ARE FAILING. THERE IS A COMPANY CALLED DR. VANOS THAT FIXES THIS ISSUE BY REBUILDING THE OEM VANOS WITH UPGRADED BUSHINGS. THIS UNIT COST $500, WHICH I AM NOT WILLING TO SPEND AS I HAVE A 100,000 MILE WARRANTY FROM BMW. *TR

AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION FAILURE - I STARTED MY CAR, LET IT WARM UP AND MOVED THE SHIFTER TO REVERSE. THE VEHICLE JERKED (MY GLASSES FLEW OFF MY FACE) AND MADE A ROUGH GRINDING SOUND. I MOVED THE SHIFTER BACK TO PARK AND EXPERIENCED THE SAME GRINDING SENSATION AND NOISE. IT WAS TOWED AND DEALER SAID THAT THE 330CI WAS ONLY USING TWO GEARS DUE TO THE MALFUNCTION. *TR

BMW 2004 330CI. THE OIL LIGHT COMES UP EVERY 400-500 OR 700-800 MILES DEPENDING IF IT IS DRIVEN IN THE CITY OR HIGHWAYS. 2 DIFFERENT DEALERS CHECKED THE CAR AND REPLACED THE OIL LEVEL SENSOR, CRANKCASE VENT VALVE, VENT PIPE, VENT HOSE, RETURN PIPE, WASH PUMP SO FAR BUT THE CAR STILL HAVING THE PROBLEM. CAR GOES TO THE DEALER ONCE A MONTH APPROX. *NM

2004 BMW 330CI UPON START UP THE ENGINE OVER REVS AND SOMETIMES STALLS.***NO ANSWER REQUIRED***.*MR THIS MALFUNCTION HAS ALSO OCCURED WHILE DRIVING IN TRAFFIC. *NM

WHILE DRIVING AT LOW SPEEDS, THE VEHICLE LOST POWER. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE SOFTWARE MALFUNCTIONED. *AK POWER LOSS ISSUE. *SC

WHILE STOPPED, ENGINE SPEED WOULD DROP NEAR OR BELOW IDLE. HAPPENED AFTER COLD ENGINE START OR WHILE WARM AFTER DRIVING (BOTH NO-TRAFFIC AND HIGH-TRAFFIC). TWICE THE CAR ACTUALLY STALLED (IN GARAGE AND AT TRAFFIC LIGHT). ROUGH IDLE CAN BE FELT IN PEDALS AND (6-SPEED MANUAL) SHIFTER. SEE ALSO ODI IDS 10064475,10062056,10064439.*AK

2004 BMW 330CI 6 SPEED MANUAL - 3.0L INLINE 6 CYL. INTERMITTENT PROBLEM - IDLE BECOMES ERRATIC AND CAR STALLS. THIS HAS HAPPENED APPROX 6-8 TIMES OVER 8 MONTHS/5000 MILES. NORMALLY HAPPENS ON WARM DAYS AND AT A STOP LIGHT/STOP SIGN. IT ONCE HAPPENED IN THE MIDDLE OF A TURN WHICH CAUSED ME TO LOSE POWER STEERING. DEALER HAS SEEN THE CAR 3+ TIMES AND UPDATED IDLE CONTROL VALVE, AND ENGINE SOFTWARE BUT PROBLEM PERSISTS. IT IS VERY INTERMITTENT AND DOESN'T THROW ANY COMPUTER FAULT CODES.*AK

CAR STALLED SEVERAL TIMES AT RED LIGHTS. RPM DROPPED WITH NO WARNING. ALSO EXPERIENCE ROUGH IDLING WHEN AT COMPLETE STOP. *AK

BMW 330I EXHIBITS FREQUENT ERRATIC IDLE WHEN STOPPED, AS WELL AS ENGINE STALLING. ERRATIC IDLE IS IN THE FORM OF ENGINE SPEED DROPS BELOW 400-500 RPM. STALLING SOMETIMES OCCURS AS A RESULT OF THESE IDLE SPEED DROPS. THIS IS A COMMON ISSUE AMONG RECENT 330 MODEL BMW'S, AND APPARENTLY THERE IS NO KNOWN SOLUTION AT THIS TIME. *JB

ENGINE POWER FAILURE AND HEAVILY DISTORTED WINDSHIELD ON A 2004 BMW 330CI. REPEATED FAILURE OF ENGINE POWER WITHOUT WARNING (TWICE IN AN ITERSECTION). BMW REPLACED ENG. COMPUTER, THEN INSTALLED NEW SOFTWARE AFTER SECOND INCIDENT. ROUGH IDLE AND SURGING CONTINUES AND GAS MILEAGE IN CITY DROPPED TO 12.6-13 MPG. ADDITIONALLY THE WINDSHIELD IS HEAVILY DISTORTED. BMW REPLACED IT WITH AN EQUALLY DISTORTED ONE AND THE FSE SAID"ALL 3 SERIES WINDSHIELDS ARE DISTORTED,WORSE ON THE X3". IT IS LIKE DRIVING IN THE RAIN WITHOUT WIPERS. IN BOTH CASES THE BMW FSE HAS STATED THE " THERE IS NOTHING MORE TO BE DONE". THIS IS THE REAL BMW WARRANTY SERVICE. THIS LEMON IS UNSAFE TO DRIVE. *NM

I PURCHASED A 330I BMW IN DECEMBER OF 2003. THE CAR HAS LESS THEN 1500 MILES ON IT AND HAS DEVELOPED A HUGE PROBLEM. IN THE MORNINGS WHEN THE ENGINE IS COLD, THE ENGINE WILL REV WHEN ITS IN DRIVE AND NOT GO INTO GEAR. IT TAKES QUITE A FEW SECONDS FOR IT TO ENGAGE INTO 'D'. THE CAR WILL ALSO JERK INTO 1ST GEAR AFTER IT FINALLY STARTS TO DRIVE. I HAVE JUST TAKEN MY BRAND NEW BMW INTO THE DEALERSHIP FOR TEST ON IT AND UNBELIEVABLE TO MY EARS.....I GOT A PHONE CALL FROM THEM SAYING THE WHOLE ENGINE TRANSMISSION HAS TO BE REPLACED...."THERE IS SOME KIND OF FLAW".....AFTER RESEARCHING ON THE INTERNET AND FINDING OUT THAT THE BMW 3 SERIES HAS MANY COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS SAME PROBLEM..I FEEL LIKE I HAVE BEEN RIPPED OFF AND VERY UPSET. THIS SHOULD BE A RECALL BY BMW. THIS WAS MY FIRST BMW...AND AFTER THIS EXPERIENCE...MAY BE MY LAST...IF NOTHING IS DONE IN THE FUTURE TO CORRECT THIS OBVIOUS TRANSMISSION FLAW! *NM

THE CAR (2004 330I ZHP) OFTEN SHUDDERS AT START UP WITH AN ERRATIC IDLE AND CONTINUES TO DO SO EVEN WHEN WARM. THERE ARE NO COMPUTER FAULT CODES AND NO CHECK ENGINE LIGHT. IT FEELS AS IF IT IS READY TO STALL AT ANY GIVEN TIME WITH SEVERE IDLE FLUCTUATIONS OF 100-200 RPM'S DURING STOPS. PROBLEM IS WIDESPREAD ACROSS DOZENS OF ZHP (PERFORMANCE PACKAGE) OWNERS AS WELL AS MANY 2003 AND 2004 3 SERIES CAR OWNERS, PARTICULARLY THOSE WITH MANUAL TRANSMISSIONS. *NM

CAR STALLED SEVERAL TIMES AT RED LIGHTS. RPM DROPPED WITH NO WARNING. ALSO EXPERIENCE ROUGH IDLING WHEN AT COMPLETE STOP. *JB

CONTINUOUS BUZZING NOISE COMING FROM FRONT TWEETERS. WENT TO DEALERS SEVERAL TIMES WITH NO FIX. NOISE CAN BE HEARD EVEN WHEN THE VEHICLE IS MOVING. *JB

I HAVE A 6-SPEED MANUAL TRANSMISSION 330CIC AND WHEN I PUT THE GEAR INTO NEUTRAL AT A STOP THE ENGINE RPM WOULD DIP DRASTICALLY AND STALLS SEVERAL TIMES IN TRAFFIC. PERIODICALLY THE ENGINE RPM WOULD DIP SO RAPIDLY THAT THE ENGINE STALLS FROM IDLE POSITION. THIS CAN HAPPEN IN THE DRIVEWAY OR ON A ROAD AT AN 4-WAY LIGHT. BASICALLY ANYTIME THE ENGINE IS AT IDLE THERE IS A POTENTIAL FOR STALLING. I EXPERIENCED STALLS IN HEAVY TRAFFIC AS WELL AS SITTING AT A STOP LIGHT.*AK

WHEN VEHICLE IS COLD (TYPICALLY IN THE MORNING) WHILE REVERSING OUT OF THE DRIVEWAY, ONCE THE CAR IS THEN SHIFTED FROM REVERSE INTO DRIVE THERE IS A VERY NOTICEABLE DELAY IN THE TIME IT TAKES FOR THE CAR TO ACTUALLY ENGAGE INTO DRIVE (5 TO 7 SECONDS OR SO). DEALER FOUND AN INTERNAL FAILURE AND REPLACED THE TRANSMISSION. DEALER STATED THAT AT LEAST 12 OTHER 3-SERIES BMW'S HAD A FAILED TRANSMISSION AND REQUIRED REPLACEMENT. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT THEIR DEALER. I FEEL THIS SHOULD BE A RECALL.

IN ATTEMPTING TO OPEN THE TRUNK WITH THE REMOTE OR FROM INSIDE THE VEHILCE, THE TRUNK WILL SOMETIMES NOT RELEASE. OTHER TIMES THE TRUNK WILL NOT CATCH WHEN ATTEMPTING TO CLOSE. IN ORDER TO GET THE LID TO CATCH, IT WOULD REQUIRE PRESSING THE TRUNK RELEASE BUTTON ON THE KEY MULTIPLE TIMES. AFTER THE VEHICLE WAS BACK TO DEALER 5 TIMES FOR THIS PROBLEM AND THE GENERAL MODULE WAS REPLACED, IT WAS DETERMINED THAT THE UNLOCK SIGNAL FROM THE GENERAL MODULE WAS TOO SHORT. THE REPAIR WILL REQUIRE REPROGRAMMING THE GENERAL MODULE WITH UPDATED SOFTWARE. HOWEVER, NO FIX IS AVAILABLE RIGHT NOW AND NO SCHEDULE IS AVAILABLE FROM BMW. IN ADDITION, BOTH THE DEALER AND BMW CUSTOMER SERVICE ADMITTED THERE ARE REPORTS OF THIS PROBLEM FROM OTHER 3-SERIES OWNERS.

ON SEVERAL OCCASSIONS, AFTER DRIVING THE VEHICLE TO THE DESTINATION, AND AFTER PRESSING THE UNLOCK BUTTON ON THE CENTRAL CONSOLE, YOU COULD AUDIBLY HEAR THE LOCKS "UNLOCK", VISIBLY SEE THE BUTTONS ON THE DOOR POP UP, HOWEVER, THE DRIVER'S SIDE DOOR WOULD NOT RELEASE. I WOULD BE STUCK INSIDE THE VEHICLE. THIS PROBLEM ALWAYS SEEMED TO FOLLOW WASHING THE VEHICLE. IT WAS DETERMINED THAT THE LATCH AND CABLE ASSEMBLY FAILED AND REQUIRED TO BE REPLACED.*AK

AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION PROBLEM OF BMW 2004 330CI. AFTER COLD START TRANSMISSION ENGAGED WITH SIGNIFICANT DELAY (~5 SEC.) . *AK

CAR SUDDENLY LOST POWER AT LOW, INTERMIDIATE AND HIGH SPEED. CAR WILL SHAKE VIOLENTLY, SPUTTERED, THEN BECOME UNDRIVABLE. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. BROUGHT IN TO DEALER AND WAS TOLD CAR HAS MISFIRED. DEALER PROCEEDED TO REPAIR PROBLEM BY REPROGRAMMING COMPUTER CHIP PER MANUFACTURER'S SERVICE BULLETIN. WAS TOLD THE CAR IS FIXED AND SAFE TO DRIVE. 200 MILES AND ON THE FREEWAY AT HIGH SPEED, THE PROBLEM RESURFACED. WAS TOWWED BACK TO THE DEALER NAD WAS TOLD THAT THE AIR FLOW SENSOR AND SOEMTHING ELSE WAS THE ISSUE. REPLACES BOTH PARTS. REPAIR ENGINEER THINKS THAT THERE IS A 99% LIKELYHOOD THAT THE PROBLEM IS FIXED. I AM NOT SO SURE SINCE THAT SAID THE SAME THING LAST TIME. SINCE THE CAR IS NOT ON THE LIST, IT IS A BMW 530I SEDAN.*AK

TRANSMISSION DOES NOT INGAGE IN FORWARD DIRECTION FOR 30 SECONDS WHEN CAR IS COLD.*AK

CAR HAS DELAY WHEN SHIFTING FROM REVERSE TO FORWARD ON COLD STARTS. CAR DOWNSHIFT HARD UNDER BRAKING. CAR REVS HIGH ON QUICK ACCELERATION.*AK

I OWN A 2004 BMW 330CI. DRIVING IN REVERSE OUT OF MY GARAGE AND DRIVEWAY FIRST THING IN THE MORNING, THEN SHIFTING TO DRIVE WHEN I REACH THE STREET, THE TRANSMISSION DOES NOT ENGAGE UNTIL ABOUT 3-10 SECONDS. THE CAR WILL ROLL FREELY DURING THIS TIME AS IF IT WERE IN NEUTRAL. I HAVE NOT HAD AN INCIDENT OR CRASH, BUT FEAR IT IS A POSSIBILITY IF THIS WERE TO OCCUR ON A HILL OR IF A CAR WERE TO APPROACH AND I COULDN'T GET OUT OF THE WAY. I CONTACTED MY DEALERSHIP CONCERNING THIS AND THEY HAVE NEVER HEARD OF IT, DESPITE NUMEROUS REPORTS I HAVE READ ONLINE FROM OTHER OWNERS WITH THE SAME PROBLEM.

BRAND NEW 2004 CAR. AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION - USUALLY HAPPENS ONCE A DAY IN THE EARLY MORNING. COLD START, WHEN SHIFTING THE CAR INTO "DRIVE", IT TAKES A FEW SECONDS FOR "D" TO ENGAGE AND MUST REV UP TO 2000-4000 RPM TO GO FORWARD. VERY DANGEROUS WHEN STARTING ON STEEP ROADS BECAUSE THE CAR WILL SLIP BACKWARDS FOR A FEW SECONDS. IT FIRST OCCUR ON MY NEW CAR AROUND 400 MILES AND HAS OCCUR MANY TIMES, ON AND OFF, FOR THE PAST FEW MONTHS. IT HAS HAPPENED TO MANY OTHER OWNERS WITH 2003 AND 2004 BMW AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSIONS. NO REAL SOLUTIONS FROM DEALERSHIPS OR BMW COMPANY.*AK

WHILE DRIVING, THE CAR SHOOK VIOLENTLY, THE ENGINE RATTLED AND THE CAR LOST ENGINE POWER; THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WENT ON. THE CAR BECAME IMMEDIATELY UN DRIVABLE. IT WAS LATER DETERMINED THAT ONE OF THE CYLINDERS IN THE CAR MISFIRED AND COMPLETELY SHUT DOWN, SENDING THE ENGINE INTO A COMPLETE UNBALANCE. *CB