2013 BMW X3 Complaints

MY ENGINE WAS REPLACED IN 2019 AT A BMW CERTIFIED DEALERSHIP WHERE I PURCHASED. IN JULY 2020 THE CAR BROKE DOWN AND WAS TOWED IN TO BMW RADIATOR WAS REPLACED AND DID NOT FIX THE PROBLEM. I WAS THEN TOLD IT WAS ENGINE FAILURE, THAT WOULD NOT BE COVERED. I HAVE BEEN WITHOUT A VEHICLE FOR MONTHS.

DRIVE TRAIN MALFUNCTION HAPPENED MULTIPLE TIMES AND THE ENGINE JUST STOPPED WHILE DRIVING AT 55MPH - THE ENGINE STOPPED COMPLETELY IN MAY 2018 AND DIED. I TOOK IT INTO THE DEALERSHIP MANY TIMES BUT THEY COULD NOT FIND OUT WHAT WAS CAUSING THE PROBLEM. I NO LONGER OWN THE CAR BECAUSE OF THE ENGINE FAILURE.

BOUGHT 2013 BMW X3 WITH ABOUT 90,000 MILES ON IT. IN 2/2020 HAD ENGINE OIL PRESSURE LOW LIGHT COME ON AND TOOK TO BMW DEALERSHIP. THEY COULD NOT IDENTIFY A PROBLEM OTHER THAN A MINOR LEAK AND SUGGESTED REPLACING GASKET; IF OIL LIGHT CONTINUED TO COME ON TO BRING IT BACK AND NEXT OPTION WOULD DRAINING OIL/INSPECTING OIL PUMP WITH CAMERA; ALSO MADE COMMENT REGARDING NEEDING TO POSSIBLY REPLACE TIMING CHAIN BUT DUE TO COST WAS THE LAST OPTION. THE BMW STAFF DID NOT MAKE ME AWARE OF WHAT I LATER BECAME AWARE OF... BMW X3 HAVING ISSUES WITH THE CHAIN GUIDE, LATER LEADING TO TIMING ISSUES/ENGINE FAILURE. THE LIGHT CAME ON AGAIN SO I TOOK THE CAR TO AN INDEPENDENT SHOP THAT SPECIALIZES IN FOREIGN CARS. THEY COULD NOT SEE ANYTHING MAJOR AFTER NUMEROUS TEST DRIVES; ENGINE CLEANER WAS ADDED; OIL CHANGED. LIGHT WOULD COME ON OCCASIONALLY (ONCE EVERY MONTH); WOULD PULL OVER, WAIT FOR CAR TO COOL DOWN AND RESTART... NO LIGHT RETURNED. TOOK CAR FOR ANOTHER OIL CHANGE AND MECHANIC REPORTED NOT EVEN SEEING THE ERROR CODES WHEN DIAGNOSTIC COMPLETED? DROVE FOR ANOTHER SEVERAL MONTHS UNTIL LATE OCTOBER, EARLY NOVEMBER WHEN CODES STARTED BACK ON OCCASION. IN NOVEMBER, HAD LEFT THE CAR IDLING TO FOR QUICK STOP AND WHEN ATTEMPTING TO PULL OUT OF DRIVEWAY, THE CAR STALLED. IT SOUNDED LIKE IT WANTED TO START BUT WOULD NOT. WAS 1/2 IN DRIVEWAY AND 1/2 OUT INTO ROAD BLOCKING TRAFFIC. WAS ABLE TO GET PUSHED OUT OF ROAD; STILL WOULD NOT START. TOWED- MECHANIC REPORTED TIMING CHAIN HAD SLACK, CAUSING TIMING ISSUE AND ENGINE TO STOP. MECHANIC ALSO DID RESEARCH ON PROBLEM AND LOCATED CLASS ACTION SUIT. AFTER RESEARCHING REALIZED THERE WERE WARNING SIGNS AND IF BMW DEALER WOULD HAVE BEEN UP FRONT ABOUT WHAT WAS ALREADY KNOWN (TIMING CHAIN GUIDE ISSUES); THE PARTS COULD HAVE BEEN REPLACED 8.5 MONTHS AGO WITHOUT CAR SUDDENLY STOPPING. LUCKILY LOCAL AND NOT ON HIGHWAY WHILE DRIVING 65 MILES AN HOUR.

THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN TO SHOP 2 TIMES.1ST DRIVETRAIN LIGHT CAME ON AND CAR WOULD SLOW DOWN IN THE MIDDLE OF THE HIGHWAY.THEN IT WOULD TOTALLY STOP. 2ND TIME IT DID THE SAME THING EXCEPT OIL PRESSURE LIGHT CAME ON SAYING PRESSURE TOO LOW AND IT STOPPED RIGHT THERE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREET. NOW THE OIL PRESSURE LIGHT COMES ON EVERY TIME I DRIVE IT. I'M AFRAID IT WILL STOP IN THE MIDDLE OF THE HIGHWAY AGAIN.

I BOUGHT THIS PRE-OWNED VEHICLE (A) BECAUSE IT WAS A BMW THAT WAS KNOWN TO BE OF SUPERIOR WORKMANSHIP AND MECHANICAL EXPERTISE, AS HERALDED BY BMW MEDIA, AND (B) BECAUSE IT WAS IN EXCELLENT CONDITION WITH SUPERIOR SERVICE RECORDS ' CARFAX NOTED 'NO ISSUES REPORTED' DURING ITS ENTIRE LIFE ON NEW MEXICO ROADWAYS: 105,508 MILES. MY VEHICLE DROVE PERFECTLY, WITH NO ISSUES, UNTIL APPROXIMATELY 4:00 PM ON OCTOBER 14, 2020, WHEN, AT 110,839 MILES, WITH NO WARNING OF AN ISSUE OF ANY KIND, THE ENGINE EXPERIENCED A CATASTROPHIC FAILURE, CAUSING ME TO QUICKLY SEARCH FOR A PLACE TO PULL OVER IN A CONGESTED AREA. I HAD BEEN TAKING MY GRANDSON TO A LESSON AND WAS LUCKY WE WEREN'T INJURED OR WORSE. IRONICALLY, ALTHOUGH IT WAS OBVIOUS THE VEHICLE WAS EXPERIENCING MASSIVE FAILURE, THE MESSAGE ON THE COMMUNICATIONS MODULE SAID, 'CONTINUE TO DRIVE CAREFULLY.' I HAD THE CAR DELIVERED AN TO A LONG-TIME, AWARD-WINNING, HIGHLY RESPECTED BMW MECHANIC. HIS ANALYSIS INDICATED THAT THERE WAS NO REPAIR AVAILABLE FOR MY CAR, AS THE PLASTIC GUIDE ASSEMBLY FOR THE PRIMARY TIMING CHAIN WAS MADE OF A DEFECTIVE POLYCARBONATE MATERIAL THAT BECAME BRITTLE AND BROKE APART, CREATING DEBRIS THAT LODGED IN THE CRANKSHAFT DRIVE SPROCKETS. THIS DEBRIS CAUSED THE PRIMARY CHAIN TO SKIP, LETTING THE CAMSHAFTS AND CRANKSHAFT FALL OUT OF SYNC, WHICH DESTROYED THE ENGINE. BOTTOM LINE: I WOULD HAVE TO COMPLETELY REPLACE THE N20 ENGINE TO THE TUNE OF $11,163.81 (AT BMW $15K OR MORE). THERE IS A LESS EXPENSIVE OPTION: AN ENGINE WITH AT LEAST 70K MILES. PROBLEM IS, IT HAS A 70K MILE TIMING CHAIN. SO, IT WOULD HAVE TO BE REPLACED AND ONLY HAS A ONE YEAR OPTION, AS OPPOSED TO TWO YEARS. BMW AMERICA WILL DO NOTHING TO HELP, EVEN THOUGH THEY'VE KNOWN ABOUT THE ISSUE SINCE 2012, WHICH IS FRAUDULENT, BASED ON WHAT I'VE SEEN FROM CLAIMANTS WITH THE SAME ISSUE ONLINE!

2013 X3 28I-DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION I HAD AN ISSUE YESTERDAY. 2013 X3 28I; 67K MILES. NO WARNING. ON EXPRESSWAY CAR FEELS LIKE ITS LOSING POWER SO I SLOW DOWN TO PULL TO SIDE. DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION WARNING COMES ON AS CAR IS DYING. HAD IT TOWED TO CLOSEST SHOP, NOT BWM. THEY SAY TIMING CHAIN TENSIONER FAILED AND LIKELY DID EXTENSIVE DAMAGE TO ENGINE. SHOP IS QUOTING $2500 TO REPLACE THE TENSIONER TO SEE IF ENGINE IS SHOT? ONCE THEY CONFIRM ENGINE IS DEAD $10K FOR REPLACEMENT ?? CAR IS OUT OF WARRANTY. ANY HELP MUCH APPRECIATED. THANKS

TIMING CHAIN FAILURE AS I WAS DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY. COMPLETE ENGINE SHUT DOWN. ENGINE HAS TO BE REPLACED.

ION OCT 27, 2020 WHILE DRIVING MY VEHICLE ACCOMPANIED BY MY WIFE, ON A LOCAL STREET IN THE VICINITY OF LAKE ZURICH, IL, A 'DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION' MESSAGE FLASHED ON THE DASHBOARD AND THE VEHICLE WENT INTO PARK MODE. I COULD NOT GET THE ENGINE TO RESTART AND HAD IT TOWED TO THE NEARBY BMW SERVICE CENTER. THE NEXT DAY, THE SERVICE ASSOCIATE SENT ME AN ESTIMATE, INFORMING THAT THERE WAS A CATASTROPHIC ENGINE FAILURE. BOTH THE ENGINE AND THE TURBOCHARGER NEED TO BE REPLACED WITH THE COST FOR SUCH AMOUNTING TO SOME $18000 + TAXES! THE VEHICLE ONLY HAS 73000 MILES AND I WAS TOLD BY THE SERVICE ASSOCIATE THAT I HAPPENED TO BE JUST UNLUCKY THAT THIS HAPPENED AND IT WAS NOT DUE TO ANYTHING I HAD DONE (OR OMITTED TO DO BY WAY OF ROUTINE MAINTENANCE). LOOKING AT ALL SUCH SIMILAR COMPLAINTS FOR THE 2013 MODEL YEAR FOR BMW X3, THERE IS OBVIOUSLY A DESIGN ISSUE WITH THE ENGINE AND ASSOCIATED COMPONENTS. I AM ALSO PARTICULARLY THANKFUL IT HAPPENED ON A SIDE STREET BEFORE I GOT ON TO THE HIGHWAY. THIS IS A HUGE SAFETY ISSUE AND BMW MUST BE HELD TO ACCOUNT FOR NOT ISSUING A RECALL OR CHANGING THEIR SERVICE PROCEDURES TO MITIGATE THE EFFECTS OF THE PROBLEM.

TWICE NOW WHILE DRIVING THE CAR IT JUST COMPLETELY STOPPED. NO WARNING AT ALL. JUST CAME TO A COMPLETE STOP AS I WAS DRIVING. THERE WERE NO WARNING LIGHTS, JUST HAPPENED. THE FIRST TIME WAS ON A BUSY ROAD, THE SECOND WAS ON A MUCH LESS BUSY STREET CLOSE TO MY HOME. I HAD IT FIXED TO THE TUNE OF OVER $3000 THE FIRST TIME A YEAR AND A HALF AGO. NOW MY MECHANIC IS TELLING ME THAT IT IS THE TIMING CHAIN AND OIL PUMP DRIVE AND THAT WILL BE A VERY EXPENSIVE FIX. I AM BESIDE MYSELF. IF THIS HAD HAPPENED ON A BUSY HIGHWAY, LORD KNOWS WHAT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED BUT IT COULD'VE BEEN SOMETHING VERY CATASTROPHIC AND HORRIFIC. I AM A SINGLE MOTHER AND A WIDOW AND WITH THE PANDEMIC, I WAS OUT OF WORK FOR MANY MONTHS. I DO NOT KNOW WHAT I AM GOING TO DO BUT I CANNOT AFFORD TO FIX THIS CAR FOR SEVERAL THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS.

AT 85000 MILES DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION LIGHT CAME ON. COULDN'T GET CAR TO CONTINUE DRIVING. MECHANIC EXPLAINED THE DIAGNOSIS SHOWED A TIMING CODE. THIS IS THE 5TH TIME CAR WAS IN THE SHOP SINCE THE PURCHASE FROM CARVANA ON JULY 2ND 2020. TOLD A NEW ENGINE IS NEEDED..