2004 BMW Z4 Complaints

THE VEHICLE HAS A SERIOUS STEERING PROBLEM. THE STEERING STICKS AND REQUIRES CONSTANT ADJUSTMENT FROM THE DRIVER TO CORRECT WHILE DRIVING. THE PROBLEM IS INTERMITTENT AND MAY APPEAR AT ANY TIME. THE TIME IT APPEARED, I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY. THE CONDITION DID NOT EXIST AT FIRST BUT SUDDENLY AND WITHOUT WARNING THE STEERING WAS STUCK AS IF THE STEERING HAD A "DETENT". THE VEHICLE BEGAN TO DRIFT OUT OF LANE AND INTO THE LANE NEXT TO ME. THIS REQUIRED ME TO ABRUPTLY APPLY MORE FORCE TO THE STEERING WHEEL. EVENTUALLY THE STEERING BROKE FREE AND THE VEHICLE OVER COMPENSATED AND DRIFTED TO THE OTHER SIDE LANE. I IMMEDIATELY REDUCED SPEED TO THE MINIMUM ALLOWED ON THE HIGHWAY AND WAS ABLE TO SAFELY GET THE VEHICLE BACK HOME. I WAS FORTUNATE THAT NO OTHER VEHICLES WERE ON EITHER SIDE OF ME WHEN THIS OCCURRED, ELSE I WOULD HAVE SURELY COLLIDED WITH THEM BOTH. *TR

AFTER DRIVING MY Z4 ON A HOT AFTERNOON I NOTICE THE STEERING FEELING VERY NOTCHY. YOU HAD TO PUT IN A LOT OF FORCE TO GET THE WHEEL BACK TO WHERE YOU WANTED IT. THE NEXT MORNING IT WAS FINE. BUT I HAVE NOTICE ANY TIME THE CABIN TEMP GETS ABOVE 88 THE PROBLEM COMES BACK. IT PRODUCES A REAL JERKY FEELING IN THE WHEEL AND ITS VERY UNNERVING TO DRIVE. *TR

DRIVING ON CURVY MOUNTAIN ROADS STEERING STICKS REQUIRING EXTRA FORCE TO STEER RESULTING IN OVER CORRECTION AND RUNNING OFF ONTO SHOULDER. WITHOUT A SHOULDER IN THE MOUNTAINS THIS IS A POTENTIAL SERIOUS ACCIDENT. *TR

WHEN I AM DRIVING AT ANY SPEED, MY STEERING WHEEL DOES NOT FEEL AS THOUGH IT IS MOVING SMOOTHLY, AS I WOULD EXPECT FROM A PRECISION-ENGINEERED BMW. IN FACT, IT STICKS TO THE POINT THAT IT WILL NOT MOVE UNLESS IT IS JERKED FORCEFULLY TO THE LEFT OR RIGHT. THIS JERKING IS NOT A BIG PROBLEM WHEN I AM DRIVING AT 20 TO 30 MILES PER HOUR. HOWEVER, WHEN I AM DRIVING ON A HIGHWAY AT 40 OR MORE MILES PER HOUR, THE STICKING OF THE STEERING WHEEL BECOMES A SERIOUS PROBLEM BECAUSE WHEN I JERK THE WHEEL AS HARD AS I HAVE TO IN ORDER TO UNSTICK THE STEERING, THE CAR SWERVES SO DRAMATICALLY THAT I COULD EASILY LOSE CONTROL OF THE CAR AND HIT ANOTHER CAR, ESPECIALLY IN RAIN OR OTHER PRECIPITATION, AND CAUSE PROPERTY, OR WORSE BODILY, DAMAGE TO OTHERS OR MYSELF. WHAT I FIND RIDICULOUS ABOUT THIS IS THAT I AM EXPECTED TO PAY $5K TO REPLACE THE STEERING COLUMN WITHOUT ANY GUARANTEE THAT THE REPLACEMENT PART WILL LAST ANY LONGER THAN THE ORIGINAL PART, AT WHICH TIME I WILL HAVE TO PAY $5K YET AGAIN. *TR

HAVE HAD THE CAR ABOUT 8 MONTHS. HAVE DRIVEN IT 268 MILES. TOOK THE CAR TO WORK 5/30/14. IT WAS FINE DRIVING IN THE MORNING. AFTER SITTING IN THE SUN ALL DAY, THE STEERING STUCK BADLY ON THE WAY HOME.IT FEELS LIKE YOU ARE RIDING ON A RAIL.HAVE TO KEEP MOVING STEERING WHEEL TO KEEP CAR GOING STRAIGHT. FEEL RESISTANCE IN STEERING. I LOOKED ONLINE AND FOUND THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM FOR 2003-2005 Z4'S. I WISH I KNEW THAT BEFORE I BOUGHT THE CAR. IT IS DANGEROUS. *TR

I OWN A SUSPECTED Z4 WITH A NHTSA REPORTED "STICKY STEERING" ISSUE I CAN TELL YOU A LITTLE MORE ABOUT IT. THE PROBLEM HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE BOOST. WHEN THE CAR GETS HOT (SUMMER HOT) THE STEERING GETS NOTCHY IN THAT WHEN YOU PUT THE CAR IN A SLIGHT TURN, LIKE CHANGING LANES OR GOING AROUND A SLIGHT CORNER, THE STEERING LITERALLY STICKS IN THAT POSITION CAUSING THE DRIVER TO APPLY OPPOSITE PRESSURE TO "BREAK" THE WHEEL LOOSE FROM THE TURN FOLLOWED BY ANOTHER STICK WHEREVER THE WHEEL IS BROUGHT BACK TO. PROBLEM IS THAT IT CAUSES MASSIVE OVER STEERING ISSUES AT HIGH SPEED UNLESS YOU ARE LOOKING FOR IT. EXTREMELY DANGEROUS AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS! BMW KNEW ABOUT IT AND RELEASED MULTIPLE PUMAS (THEIR EQUIVALENT OF A TSB) AND EVEN REDESIGNED THE SUSPECT COLUMN, BUT REFUSED TO REPLACE THE OLDER ONES OUT OF WARRANTY. THESE ARE $3000 BEFORE LABOR AND BMW HAS FLAT OUT TOLD ME THAT THEY WON'T COVER A SINGLE DOLLAR OF IT. I GUESS WE WILL SEE NHTSA FORCES THEIR HAND! I AM SCARED TO DEATH TO DRIVE THE VEHICLE I HAD TO JERK TO OUT OF ANOTHER LANE SEVERAL TIMES AND YOU MUST WORK EXTREMELY HARD TO KEEP IT STRAIGHT. PLEASE DO SOMETHING BEFORE SOMEONE GETS HURT. *TR

THE STEERING BECOMES "STICKY" WHEN THE WEATHER IS WARM. WHEN DRIVING STRAIGHT IT RESISTS TURNING AND ONCE TURNED TRIES TO STAY TURNED AND THE CAR TENDS TO VEER UNINTENTIONALLY. THE STEERING WILL NOT RETURN TO CENTER WHEN THE WHEEL IS RELEASED AND IT IS DIFFICULT TO STEER SMOOTHLY ON THE FREEWAY AND REQUIRES CONSTANT CORRECTION. WHEN IT IS COLD IT STEERS FINE AND TRAVELS DOWN THE FREEWAY PERFECTLY WITH NO HANDS ON THE STEERING WHEEL AND CORRECTIONS CAN BE MADE WITH ONLY TINY EFFORT. WHEN IT IS HOT AND STICKY IT TAKES BOTH HANDS AND A FAIR AMOUNT OF EFFORT TO STEER. THIS IS A DESIGN FLAW RESULTING IN A SAFETY ISSUE THAT BMW SHOULD FIX UNDER WARRANTY REGARDLESS OF AGE. *TR

THIS PROBLEM APPEARS WHEN THE OUTDOOR TEMPERATURE GETS ABOVE 70, OR MY VEHICLE SITS IN THE SUN ALL DAY. THERE IS A PROBLEM WITH THE STEERING AT ALL SPEEDS - THE STEERING WHEEL FEELS LIKE IT "STICKS" IN ONE POSITION AND I HAVE TO FORCE IT BACK IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION TO CORRECT THE COURSE I'M ON. THEN IT "STICKS" IN THAT POSITION AND I HAVE TO BE VERY VIGILANT WITH EVERY CURVE IN THE ROAD. IT SCARED ME LAST WEEK BECAUSE IT WAS THE WORST IT HAD BEEN SINCE IT FIRST BEGAN DOING THIS LAST YEAR. I LIVE IN THE FOOTHILLS OF CALIFORNIA AND CURVY ROADS ARE THE REASON I LOVE DRIVING MY Z4. LAST WEEK, THE STEERING PROBLEM SEEMED TO TAKE MORE ENERGY AND MORE CORRECTIONS TO FORCE THE WHEEL BACK IN THE DIRECTION I NEEDED THE CAR TO BE MOVING. WHEN THE WEATHER IS COOLER, THE STEERING IS PRECISE AND EFFORTLESS. I WAS SHOCKED TO HAVE TO DEAL WITH CORRECTING THE PATH OF THE VEHICLE NUMEROUS TIMES FOR EACH CURVE! IT WAS AN EXHAUSTING RIDE HOME; I DON'T FEEL SAFE WHEN THE CAR PERFORMS LIKE THIS. *TR

PASSENGER'S AIRBAG INDICATION LIGHT IS MALFUNCTIONED. THE INDICATION LIGHT OF PASSENGER'S AIRBAG SHOWS ALWAYS OFF. THEREFORE IT CAN'T TELL THE AIRBAG IS ON OR OFF. *TR

AS I BEGAN TO PULL OUT FROM PARKING LOT ONTO ROADWAY, THE STEERING WHEEL SUDDENLY LOCKED UP. I MANAGED TO BACK STRAIGHT DOWN THE HILL AND READ ABOUT THE ISSUE (IT WAS VERY EARLY IN THE MORNING). I TURNED THE CAR OFF AND RESTARTED. IT WORKED FINE. I'VE SINCE READ ABOUT THIS ISSUE ON SEVERAL BLOGS AND HAVE DISCOVERED THAT IS A REPEATING ISSUE. THANKFULLY I WASN'T IN THE MIDDLE OF RUSH-HOUR TRAFFIC. *TR