2013 BMW X3 Complaints

WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY IN HEAVY TRAFFIC, A LIGHT CAME ON AND SAID SOMETHING ABOUT OIL PRESSURE ETC. I COULDN'T READ EVERY WORD, I HAD TO KEEP MY EYE ON THE ROAD. I PULLED TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD BUT THE CAR STOPPED RUNNING AND I BARELY MADE IT TO THE BERM. IT WAS TOWED BY AAA TO A SERVICE STATION WHO DIAGNOSED THAT IT "JUMPED TIME" AND THAT WAS A KNOWN PROBLEM WITH THIS CAR. THE ENGINE WILL HAVE TO BE REPLACED.

MY 2013 X3 JUST DEAD ON ME IN MIDDLE OF HIGHWAY, ON MY WAY TO WORK, WITHOUT AND AHEAD NOTICE, IT WAS JUST NOT EVEN 30 SECONDS SIGN OF "OIL PRESSURE LOW" THEN CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ON, CAR WAS SHAKING, IT TOTALLY LOST THE POWER, I CALLED ROAD SERVICE TO TOW IT TO DEALERSHIP. WHEN I CALLED THE BMW SERVICE CENTER, THE GIRL JUST TOLD ME TO CLAM DOWN, DOESN'T NEED BE UPSET. I WAS SUPER UPSET, NEVER EXPECT TO DRIVE A CAR SUDDENLY DEAD IN MIDDLE OF HIGHWAY, IT COULD EASILY GET ME KILLED, OR CAUSE SERIOUSLY CAR ACCIDENT. IT WAS HAPPENED LAST MAY (2019), AT MILEAGE 88K, TWO OPTIONS: TRADE IT IN FOR $2K OR FIX IT $11,500 WITH REPLACE NEW ENGINE. I END PAID IT ALL FROM MY OWN POCKET. IT IS JUST ONE YEAR LATER, THE WARNING SIGN ON FOR " DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION, DRIVE MODERATELY, MAXIMUM DRIVETRAIN OUTPUT NOT AVAILABLE" SENT IT TO DEALERSHIP, I WAS TOLD THE TURBO NEED REPLACE, QUOTE FOR $5500... HOW COULD BMW SOLD THOSE POOR DESIGNED CRAP TO THEIR CUSTOMER, THE ISSUES JUST ONE AFTER ANOTHER, VERY DISAPPOINTED, SUCH SHAME ON BMW, I WOULD NOT BUY ANY BMW ANYMORE

I HAVE A 2013 BMW X3 WITH 100,110KM ON IT. ON OCTOBER 15, I WAS DRIVING NORMALLY, AND I GOT A MESSAGE ON MY DASH SAYING THERE WAS A 'DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION'. AFTER A FEW MINUTES, THE MESSAGE WENT AWAY AND LOW ENGINE OIL PRESSURE WARNING AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. THE VEHICLE SLOW DOWN AND CAME TO A STOP AND AT THE END LOCKED TO PARKING POSITION BY ITSELF. I HAD TO GET MY VEHICLE TOWED TO A MECHANIC WHO DIAGNOSE AND CONFIRM IT IS TIMING CHAIN FAILING AND SAID THAT THIS ISSUE IS A KNOWN PROBLEM WITH THIS MODEL OF BMW VEHICLE. I CALLED BMW CANADA THE FOLLOWING MORNING AND WAS TOLD TO GET IT CHECKED OUT BY PERFORMANCE BMW WHICH IS NEARBY DEALERSHIP. THE DEALERSHIP TOLD ME THE DIAGNOSE RESULT OF OIL PUMP CHAIN GUIDES BROKE AND TIMING CHAIN FAILURE AND ALSO TOLD ME THAT MY VEHICLE'S WARRANTY EXPIRED A FEW MONTHS AGO. BECAUSE OF THE PANDEMIC, I ALMOST NEVER DROVE THIS CAR SO IF I DROVE NORMALLY, THIS ISSUE WOULD HAVE COME UP MUCH SOONER, PROBABLY BEFORE THE WARRANTY EXPIRED. I WOULD LIKE TO REQUEST AN EXTENSION OF MY WARRANTY TO COVER THIS ISSUE AS I READ ONLINE THAT IT IS A VERY COMMON ISSUE WITH THIS VEHICLE MODEL (BECAUSE OF THE PLASTIC FRAME FOR THE TIMING CHAIN AND OIL PUMP CHAIN). WHEN IT'S A COMMON ISSUE, BMW SHOULD MAKE A RECALL! SOMEBODY MIGHT GET KILLED SOONER OR LATER IF THE ENGINE FAIL HAPPEN ON BUSY TRAFIC HIGHWAY!!!!

SMELLED GASOLINE WHEN THE CAR WAS RUNNING. TOOK IT TO THE SERVICE FACILITY. THEY DISCOVERED THAT THE NUT ON THE PIPE CONNECTING THE HIGH PRESSURE FUEL LINE FOR CYLINDER 3 HAD CRACKED, LEAKING FUEL ALL OVER THE TOP OF THE ENGINE INCLUDING INTO THE WELLS CONTAINING THE IGNITION COILS AND SPARK PLUGS. THE CRACK ON THE NUT IS VISIBLE ON THE ATTACHED PHOTO. WHEN THE WENT TO REPAIR IT, ANOTHER NUT CRACKED IN A SIMILAR FASHION. THIS IS A SERIOUS FIRE HAZARD SPRAYING FUEL ALL OVER A HOT ENGINE.

ROUTINE OIL CHANGE AND MECHANIC ADVISED IMMINENT TIMING CHAIN FAILURE BECAUSE OF ENGINE WHINING (87280 MILES). SERVICE MANAGER RECOMMENDED NOT DRIVING THE CAR BECAUSE OF LIKELY ENGINE FAILURE. AFTER TIMING CHAIN REPLACEMENT, DRIVETRAIN MALFUNCTION LIGHT CAME ON REPEATEDLY WHILE DRIVING AT VARIOUS ELEVATIONS AND SPEEDS. TOOK TO DEALER WHO ADVISED NOISY TURBO WASTEGATE LIKELY PROBLEM (88,919 MILES). TIMING CHAIN DEFECT WELL KNOWN TO BMW BUT ONLY WARRANTEED FOR 70,000 MILES IS DISINGENUOUS. ENGINE FAILURE ON A CAR AVERAGING 12.5K MILES A YEAR WITH LESS THAN 100K WITH KNOWN ENGINE DEFECTS IS FRUADULENT AT A MINIMUM.

CAR HAS 89000 MILES. AT LOW SPEEDS, IT DRIVES FINE. ON HIGHWAY, "DRIVE TRAIN MALFUNCTION" LIGHT APPEARS DURING MODERATE-HEAVY ACCELERATION. TODAY, ON A CROWDED 4 LANE HIGHWAY AT ABOUT 70MPH, CAR LOST ALL POWER, GAS PEDAL WAS USELESS. I WAS BARELY ABLE TO LIMP TO BREAKDOWN LANE AND SPEED DROPPED TO ABOUT 15-20 MPH BY THE TIME I COULD GET THERE, THROUGH LOTS OF HONKING AND SEVERAL NEAR ACCIDENTS. EXTREMELY DANGEROUS. I SHUT THE CAR OFF FOR ABOUT 2 MINUTES, RESTARTED IT AND IT WORKED AGAIN. I TRAVELLED AT ABOUT 55MPH IN RIGHT LANE THE NEXT 15 MILES HOME WITHOUT ISSUE. I WAS WITH MY WIFE AND 7 YEAR OLD DAUGHTER. THIS IS A VERY SERIOUS AND DANGEROUS ISSUE TO HAVE WITH A CAR.

CAR HAS AUTOMATICALLY DOWNSHIFTED AND ALMOST STALLED WHILE EITHER IN MOTION OR SLOWING DOWN SEVERAL TIMES. MECHANIC IS UNCERTAIN OF EXACT CAUSE.

VEHICLE STALLED IN THE MIDDLE OF AN INTERSECTION AND GAVE A FUEL SYSTEM ERROR ON THE DISPLAY. SEEMS TO BE A FAULTY FUEL PUMP AT ONLY 7 YEARS OLD. VERY DANGEROUS AND SHOULD BE RECALLED FOR THIS ISSUE. IT'S A GOOD THING I WASN'T ON THE FREEWAY.

CAR DISPLAYED SIGN DRIVE-TRAIN MALFUNCTION/OIL PRESSURE LOW AND WITHIN 30 SECONDS STOPPED. IT WENT FROM 50 MPH TO ZERO IN 30 SECONDS. I BARELY SURVIVED A MAJOR ACCIDENT OVER A BUSY HIGHWAY (RT 78 EAST BOUND IN NJ). LATER ON BMW SERVICE CENTER REPORTED ENGINE FAILED FOR UNKNOWN REASON. I CAME TO KNOW THERE ARE MULTIPLE COMPLAINT AGAINST BMX X3 2013 SIMILAR MODEL AND MANY DRIVERS LIKE ME BARELY SURVIVED A MAJOR ACCIDENT. BMW IS PLAYING WITH OUR LIVES BY NOT RECALLING THIS MODEL. IT IS CLEARLY A MAJOR MANUFACTURING FAULT IN THIS ENGINE. THERE ARE MULTIPLE LAWSUITS ON BMW BUT I DO NOT HEAR ANY POSITIVE OUTCOME. I CAN NOT BELIEVE NO AUTHORITY IS TAKING ANY ACTION ON BMW FOR MAKING FAULTY CAR LIKE THIS AND NOT HOLDING THEM ACCOUNTABLE.

BOUGHT THIS VEHICLE IN OCTOBER, 2018 (72,685 MILES). IN OCTOBER, 2019, VEHICLE STOPPED WHILE DRIVING, WOULDN'T RESTART OR EVEN GO IN NEUTRAL, MILEAGE WAS ONLY AT 87,482. AUTOBAHN DEALERSHIP IN FT WORTH, TX DIAGNOSED TIMING CHAIN DEFECT WHICH CAUSED ENGINE FAILURE & WE WERE CHARGED $193.67 FOR THE DIAGNOSIS AND QUOTED $14,000 TO REPLACE THE ENGINE. BMW N.AMERICA WOULD NOT HELP US AT ALL ON THIS. I HAVE READ THAT THIS N20 ENGINE HAS FAILED (&TIMING CHAIN) IN HUNDREDS OF THESE CARS. SO THIS CAR IS SITTING IN MY DRIVEWAY, I'M STILL MAKING PAYMENTS & INSURANCE ON THIS BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE THE FINANCES TO REPLACE THIS ENGINE. ALSO MY DAUGHTER WAS DRIVING THE CAR AT THE TIME & IT COULD HAVE CAUSED A SERIOUS ACCIDENT.