2017 BMW I3 Complaints

In extreme heat (119 temp outside) BMW charger was plugged into port and melted. Could have caused a fire.

While driving on the freeway, the vehicle's electric motor suddenly died. Because this is an electric vehicle, the car came to a sudden and abrupt stop, with all the wheels locking up. The car would not shift into drive or neutral or reverse. It effectively died, with the only power coming from the 12-volt battery to power the dashboard and interior lights. It was effectively inoperable. The vehicle displayed the following error message: "DRIVETRAIN: only electric drive possible, limited driving range, continued driving possible, consult nearest service center." We brought the car to our local BMW service center, and they ran a diagnostic (attached as PDF file). The issue is a faulty EME, which could be as much as an $11K repair. Several model years prior to 2017 i3 have been recalled by BMW for this exact issue. We cannot afford an $11K repair, so hoping BMW will recall 2017 and beyond, as this is a major safety hazard. Thankfully we were stuck in gridlock traffic and were not moving very fast (under 5 miles per hour) when the car stopped. But at a high rate of speed, this could have cause a catastrophic accident. We have two small children and will not be driving with them in this car until the issue is resolved.

The UTQG ratings on these tires are fraudulent. The ratings give an A grade for temperature over 115 but these tires wear out rapidly in Arizona. They also rate the tire wear at 400 which is also fraudulent. On my own vehicle I get less than 11,000 miles on each set and I’ve seen online complaints as low as 6,000 miles to failure. This is consumer fraud and tires that wear down this rapidly are a safety hazard.

In emergency situations when activating the horn, there is an unacceptable delay between when the horn is pressed and when there is actually sound produced. I have taken this up with the dealer and have been informed "that's just how it is." In looking across the internet, I see this is affecting all BMW i3 and some other BMW vehicles. The delay is approximately 1/2 second, which actually makes the horn virtually useless in emergency situations. The horn switch fully activates... It is like there is some kind of processor involved that cannot process the signal fast enough to engage the horn. This is really getting dangerous and I am frustrated that BMW is saying "by design."

The car turned off while driving and presented a "drivetrain" error message. The car lost power but I was able to safely steer to the side of the road. Car was taken to BMW dealer and a diagnostic test was performed. Was informed that the EME (Electric Motor Electronics) Module was bad and would need to be replaced. The car is 5 years old and has 31,700 miles and has never been in an accident. The estimate to replace the EME was $7,000

I had just turned on the car a few minutes prior to the incident and I was approaching an intersection to turn left onto a 2-lane highway. As I made the left turn, the steering felt wrong like the car was over then under steering. I was able to straighten out, and I felt like the power steering had failed. A quarter mile down the road, I turned left into a gas station, and I could feel the heaviness of the steering. It felt exactly like if the power steering was deactivated. I came to a stop, turn off fans, rolled the window down, and turned the steering wheel to see if there were any odd noises. There weren't. There were no error lamps or messages displayed. I turned off the car for a minute then back on again. The steering felt fine from then on. It felt unsafe because of the sudden loss of expected steering control. I have not yet taken the car to the dealer for this issue, but it was at the dealership two weeks ago for an oil change and inspection.

What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? Passenger restraint failure/seat sensor not registering occupant. Yes, it is a available for inspection upon request. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? Failure to deploy airbag or airbag may deploy on a child under weight limit to register occupancy. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? Yes Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? Yes. Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? Warning lamps appeared at the beginning of April. Took the vehicle to independent mechanic. Mechanic instructed us to visit BMW dealership for evaluation. Took the vehicle to Gebhardt BMW in Boulder, CO on May 5th for evaluation. Vehicle was returned to us on May 7th. Codes indicated failure of passenger seat sensor.

ROADS WERE CLEAR BUT EDGES SLUSHY. TEMP WAS 27 DEGREES.DROVE 2 MILES AT 40ISH MPH TO STARBUCKS, GOT COFFEE. NORMAL REAR WHEEL DRIVE TRACTION ISSUES WHEN CHANGING LANES, ETC. I WAS DRIVING CAREFULLY AND ABOUT 5 MPH UNDER WHAT EVERYONE ELSE WAS DOING. ABOUT A MILE AWAY FROM THE COFFEE DRIVE THROUGH, I CHANGED LANES (RIGHT TO LEFT) OVER A PILE OF SLUSH...NORMAL MILD TRACTION ISSUES. WAS IN THE LEFT LANE AND HAD "RECOVERED" WHEN SUDDENLY MORE YELLOW TRACTION WARNING LIGHTS CAME ON (ONE ON DRIVERS CONTROL PANEL, ONE ON THE INFO PANEL)...READING IT LATER, IT SAID TO DRIVE GENTLY, THE TRACTION CONTROL SYSTEM WAS RECALIBRATING. I AM A VERY GOOD DRIVER...I LOST COMPLETE CONTROL. I WAS STEERING INTO THE SKID, BUT IT DIDN'T FEEL LIKE A NORMAL SKID. IT DIDN'T SLOW (I KNOW NOT TO BRAKE - AND THERE WASN'T ANY TRAFFIC TO WORRY ABOUT). COMPLETELY INTO THE RIGHT BREAKDOWN LANE, RECOVERED SOMEWHAT, INTO THE LEFT LANE UNTIL I FINALLY GENTLY HIT THE CURB AT ABOUT 10 MPH. I WAS GOING ABOUT 35 MPH WHEN THE NIGHTMARE STARTED. EVEN AFTER GAINING SOME MODICUM OF CONTROL, I COULDN'T GO MORE THAN ABOUT 20 MPH WITHOUT COMPLETELY LOSING ANY KIND OF TRACTION CONTROL. PULLED OVER, TURNED THE CAR OFF/ON...NO CHANGE. PULLED OVER, RESET THE CAR BY WALKING 15 YDS AWAY WITH THE KEYS FOR 15 MINUTES, I COULD PULL OUT AND DRIVE NORMALLY FOR 100 YDS, THEN THE "RECALIBRATING" NOTIFICATION WOULD COME ON AND I WOULD LOSE CONTROL. I WAS ON 4 LANE HIGHWAY WITH MEDIAN. EVEN AFTER WAITING 2 HOURS FOR A TOW, THE PAVEMENT WAS DRY AND I HAD NO CONTROL.

WHEN THE VEHICLE IS IN ECO PRO PLUS MOOD. WHILE SPEED IS ABOVE 56MPH THE VEHICLE WILL SOMTIMES AUTOMATICALLY BREAK TO 56 MPH. WHEN IN CRUISE CONTROL THIS SEEMS TO HAPPENED WHEN CRUISE CONTROL IS DISENGAGED EVERY TIME. I FEEL THIS IS A SAFTY CONCERN ESPECIALLY WHEN I TRY TO ACCELERATE BUT THE CAR WILL IGNORE MY INPUT AND CONTINUE TO DEACCELERATE TO THE ECONOMY PRO PLUS 56 SPEED.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNED A 2017 BMW I3. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE AT A COMPLETE STOP, HIS VEHICLE ACCELERATED INDEPENDENTLY INTO ON COMING TRAFFIC WITHOUT WARNING. AS THE CONTACT STRUGGLED TO REGAIN CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE, HE STEERED THE VEHICLE INTO A WOODED AREA WHERE HE HIT A TRASH DUMPSTER. THE AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY UPON IMPACT. THE CONTACT SUFFERED A HEADACHE AND INJURIES TO HIS BACK AND NECK AREA. THE CONTACT DID NOT RECEIVE MEDICAL ATTENTION AT THE SCENE. THE POLICE WAS CALLED; HOWEVER, THE CONTACT NEVER RECEIVED A POLICE REPORT. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO BMW OF BUENA PARK (6750 AUTO CENTER DR, BUENA PARK, CA 90621) TO BE INVESTIGATED. THE CONTACT WAS UNABLE TO STATE WHAT THE INVESTIGATION FOUND; HOWEVER, THE INVESTIGATION DID DEEM THE VEHICLE A TOTAL LOSS. THE MANUFACTURER WAS INFORMED OF THE FAILURE AND AGREED TO PAY FOR A RENTAL VEHICLE. THE MANUFACTURER OFFERED NO FURTHER ASSISTANCE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 26,680. *JS