The door actuator system on my 2007 bmw 3281 has failed twice, once locking me in and the other time immobilizing the car and stranding me for several hours.I noticed the first failure when I stopped for gas & could not open the fuel flap. I drove to the dealer but the driver side door would not open, either electronically or manually, and the windows would not lower and the other three doors would not open. Fortunately, the sun roof was not on the door circuit & I was able to toss out the fob key for someone to open the driver door and let me out. A mechanic replaced the 15 amp fuse in the door circuit with a 20 amp fuse and sent me on my way. Conclusion: this car is a death trap waiting to happen. The second incident occurred as I drove home after a state inspection. When I parked and hit the fob lock button, I heard a muffled noise. The fuse had blown again. I unlocked the car with the fob key and after much time and great effort, I installed a another 20 amp fuse. Because the passenger door won't open when the circuit blows, replacing the fuse is very difficult, next to impossible. It requires agility, know-how, and good conditions--not something you can count on in the general population. What can be done about this dangerous condition: go back to mechanical locking, electronic locking is a bad solution at least, you can get out of the car. Second: require bmw to recall the original actuators and replace them with new designs that, if they too fail, they fail in a door-open mode. At the very least, car manufacturers should be required to offer buyers a choice between mechanical and electronic door opening. Lives are at stake.
2007 BMW 328I electrical complaints
Page 5 of 5: complaints 101 to 129 of 129, newest first, as owners wrote them.
I was going about 50 to 55 mpa when my temp light came on, within a few seconds my car lost speed rapidly and completely quit locking everything up on a busy highway. I bought the car as a certified pre-owned with 100,000 mile warrenty.when I called century bmw dealer in huntsville, al where I purchased it I was told my warranty went out two months ago on 5/15 according to date of shipment, a few day's before I had received a notice that my factory warning may be expiring based on time and miles it stated that available coverage expires on 8/23/2013 which was 21 day's after date of failure. I was told that was time I had to buy another extended warranty, that is not what the statement said.when towed to shop it was the water pump and thermostat at a cost of $1,212.11 plus towing charge that I do not have a bill on yet which should have also been covered. I am just lucky that no one behind me slammed into the rearend of car of luckily not turning in oncoming traffic since there was no warning except seconds before it stopped cold. I had took the car in before because I smelled anti-freeze and was told there was no problem, and have at times since then smelled anti-freeze but since I had it checked out just thought maybe it was something about that model. I have since found out this was a common problem with this model, so why was their no recall stating the danger of this happening. And why are they not honoring their warranty.
Steering wheel locked wile driving - very similar to the federal safety agency case # 10194169. My daughter was turning right into a parking lot when she noticed that the steering wheel came to a hard stop. When she realized that she would not make the turn, she tried to turn it back to the left but it immediately locked hard in place. She pulled forward in the direction of travel and was able to stop in the grass on the side of the road. After she stopped she noticed that the "service engine soon" warning message was illuminated. She then turned the car off and back on and everything worked normally and she was able to drive the car about a mile to the house. We had it towed to the local bmw dealer - the dealer kept the car for 3 days where they reviewed fault codes (found none), tried to duplicate the problem (could not duplicate), and took the steering column apart (but found no problem). The dealer did implement the federal safety agency campaign number 13v044000, but said there was no indication of a problem with the electrical system. Needless to say I am very concerned about my daughter driving this vehicle, but have no other choice at the time. Can the federal safety agency provide any further assistance with this situation.
The passenger side occupancy sensor is a known problem and I believe that the warranty extension has not covered all affected vehicles. My bmw 2007 328 convertible has the identical problem as identified below. I have repaired it and it has continued to malfunction numerous times since, while driving and while stopped, creating a safety issue for anyone in the passenger side should there be an accident. I believe this faulty part must have been used in my 2007 328 convertible. August 2008 -- bmw is recalling 200,000 my 2006 3 series (sport seat), my 2004-2006 5 series (standard and sport seat), and my 2004-2006 x3 passenger vehicles. A fatigue failure of the front passenger seat occupant detection mat can occur. If this happens, the front passenger air bags, with the exception of the head protection system, will be deactivated and the air bag warning lamp as well as the passenger air bag "on-off" lamp will be illuminated. In this situation the front passenger air bags will not deploy even if a sufficiently severe accident would occur and occupant protection provided by the system would not be possible. Bmw will also extend the warranty on these vehicles to 10 years from first registration without any mileage limit. Owners may contact bmw at 1‑800‑525‑7417. Bmw is extending the warranty to 10 years from first registration without any mileage limit to the following vehicles: my 2006 6-series, 3-series (standard seat), my 2004-2005 z4, my 2004-2006 7-series, my 2006 x5, and my 2004-2006 5-series (comfort seat). Under the extended warranty program, the occupant detection mat in a vehicle that experiences this specific issue will be replaced at no charge to the customer. This recall was the subject of an engineering analysis, ea08-001, conducted by the office of defects investigation. 08v384.
Went to unlock doors with key fob. All unlocked but drivers door. Had to use manual key. Once inside, relocked doors and then could not open drivers door. Only way to open drivers door is with manual key from outside. Huge safety issue bmw! And apparently a well known one.
Battery seemed to have drained...when given a jump and power was restored, the car had a the steering locked light up red. The car turned on for a few times and now it doesn't turn on at all. There seems to be power in the car as everything lights up but when attempting to start nothing happens and the only light on the dashboard is the one of the steering locked in red!!!! This has to be a defect!!!
Electric steering lock light on my 2007 bmw 328i coupe comes up in red and car won't start... Initially thought it was the battery but after getting a jump start and the power flickered off and on different features in the car the car never started, the key fob kept being rejected from the ignition box and the car eventually went dead. I had to manually lock and unlock doors and left it sitting over night. The car was jump start again the next day and radio, lights, trunk, door locks, and seat belts, etc. Appear to be working fine electronically but the car still would not start... The brakes feel tight and the steering column is tight but clicks when turn left and right (feels semi-engaged if that's possible)... Was wondering if the battery is just low and doesn't trigger the steering wheel lock? Should we disconnect the battery and reconnect or replace to see if it triggers the electric steering wheel lock? The issue with the battery has happened on several other occasions and the steering wheel lock light came up yellow however the car started in the past after jump starting. This appears to be a known problem and I?m formally complaining if this is the case for I?m trying to avoid any unnecessary costly repairs such as replacing the steering column or reprogramming in any way possible if a known fix is available or faulty product is the cause. I also feel this is definitely a potential safety hazard :-/
A copy of an email to bmw: I have been reasonably happy with my 2007 328i until the electronic locks failed. I could not get in my car except with a key. I couldn't open any door except the driver's door even from the inside! If I had an emergency both my passengers and I would have been trapped. When I looked online, I found that my problem was not at all unique many others have experienced the same issue with failing actuators. What troubles me is not the failure of a part (though I do expect better of bmw), but the fact that my family's safety was potentially compromised. More importantly, bmw has not addressed this issue with corrective parts and procedures so, I am told that if this happens again, I could still find myself trapped in my car after an accident. I expected better with the purchase of a bmw. I am profoundly disappointed that bmw does not think enough of its customer's safety to appropriately address and correct this issue so that there are always mechanical overrides of the electrical system. Perhaps you have decided, like ford did 40 years ago with the pinto, that the costs of settling a few wrongful death claims is cheaper than correcting a safety design defect. In lieu of a proactive action on your part, I have filed a complaint with the federal safety agency.
A blown fuse caused the door unlocking mechanism to fail, trapping occupants in the car. The doors could not be opened by any means, as the failure also disabled the normal mechanism by which pulling on an interior door handle released the associated lock. The sole exception is that the driver's door could be opened by rolling down the window, and reaching out awkwardly through the window to the exterior door handle with the mechanical auxiliary key. However, the only exit available to backseat passengers was through the windows, assuming the passengers were small enough to fit through them. Neither of these modes of egress would be satisfactory if exit needed to be quick. Fortunately, this particular failure happened to my family while the car was safely parked. In the event of a collision or fire that required rapid evacuation of the vehicle, however, this would be a potentially life threatening situation. Ideally, the locks should be mechanically linked to the door handles so that an electrical failure would not render it impossible to open the doors. Absent that, at least having individual fuses for each lock actuator would leave three functioning doors if one failed.
I drove my car approximately 2 miles then got home and turned my car off. 10 minutes later I look out the window and my car is on fire. The fire dept. Stated that the fire started around the passenger side headlight and that it looked like an electrical fire.
Suddenly all 3 doors (except one passenger door) fail to unlock and even the inside door knob wouldn't unlock the door. It seems to be a very well known problem but bmw wouldn't fix the problem before it happens, and my warranty period is over.
2007 328i -- I was driving thru my neigborhood in nyc and the car suddenly shut down completely; no power, no brakes, absolutely nothing at all.. And the thing is no warnings ever showed up.. I hope everyone who's had problems like this reports them to bwm because this is unacceptable and extremely dangerous. I'm lucky I was driving locally and there weren't any cars around because it was the scariest thing I've ever experienced driving a car. Hope bmw steps up before something catastrophic happens, like toyota had them.
Model: 2007 bmw 328i. The electronic "door actuators" failed. As a result, it became impossible to open any door of the vehicle from the inside, except the driver's door. When these electronic door actuators fail, passengers are trapped in or out of the vehicle. The service advisor at the dealership (weatherford bmw, berkeley, california) explained that he new exactly what was wrong with my vehicle because they received a bulletin regarding this (meaning this is a "known issue" to bmw with this model car! My question was if bmw has received major complaints about this particular issue, why would"nt it be recalled...he advised me that are normally pertained to "safety", we"ll what would you consider this situation...safe? $900.00 was my quote to have this fixed! Ridiculous!!! We strongly suggest that this defect be investigated, and that the subject vehicles be recalled so that the defect can be corrected before deaths or injuries occur.
Door lock actuator failure: front door lock actuators failed disallowing exit from all doors except the driver's side front door. Passengers could only exit the vehicle by crawling out of the driver's side front door. The front passenger door and both rear doors could not be opened by using the interior or exterior doorhandles. Furthermore, the electrical system disallowed any unlocking of these three doors as well. Fortunately, the car was not involved in an accident during this door lock actuator failure. During the time of this incident. Car was taken to bmw dealer (passport) for repair and when asked about the safety implications said it is unfortunate but all cars with electronic locks respond this way when the central locking system fails.
Car was parked, and when key fab was used to unlock the doors to enter the car the locks did not work. Only when the emergency key was used did the driver door open manually. No other doors would open locking any passengers in the car. Dealership recommended change of fuses which was done and did not solve the door lock problem. The central locking system was still not working. Dealer recommended changing the door actuators for $3000 even though this is a known safety issue. Central locking also caused the gas cap to remain locked and possibly stranding the driver at the gas station.
Tl* the contact owns a 2007 bmw 328i. The contact stated that the actuator failed on all four doors of the vehicle and none of the doors would open from the exterior or interior. The failure also prevented the door to the fuel tank from being opened. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the actuators were replaced. The failure mileage was 68,000 and the current mileage was 74,000.
Door lock actuator failure: front door lock actuators failed disallowing exit from all doors except the driver's side front door. Passengers could only exit the vehicle by crawling out of the driver's side front door. The front passenger door and both rear doors could not be opened by using the interior or exterior doorhandles. Furthermore, the electrical system disallowed any unlocking of these three doors as well. Fortunately, the car was not involved in an accident during this door lock actuator failure. During the time of this incident, two people were in the car. The consequences of not having doors which can open from the inside of the car could prove deadly in an accident. A letter was written to bmw of north america, llc by the owner of this car in this report and their response on october 7th, 2011 was, "we have no response."
There is a defect with the electronic steering wheel lock. The warning light came on, but the car functioned normally despite the owner's manual saying the car would not start. I thought it was a defective light, until I tried to start my car one morning. The electronic steering wheel lock would not disengage, and I had to get the car towed. It appears to be a complex problem as bmw dealer mechanics can only tell me that the steering column needs to be replaced. They will not tell me why it needs to be replaced or what is causing the problem. Estimates for repair have been between $1300 and $1800 depending on the dealer. I understand that cars break down but, after visiting bmw forums on the internet, it is plain to see that this is a known defect that bmw refuses to fix. One posting did indicate that the steering wheel locked up while the car was being driven causing a dangerous situation, but, in my case, the car was parked. This defect does pose to car owners a great inconvenience with possible unsafe consequences depending on the circumstances surrounding the car owner getting stranded. Furthermore, once stranded, the owner has little choice but to get it towed most likely to a bmw dealership and pay the large repair bill. (I tried an indy bmw specialist first. He could not fix it or even determine why it was occurring.) I am filing this complaint in the hope that any subsequent investigation by the federal safety agency will reveal that bmw has let a known defect persist. Once that is discovered, bmw should be required to fix the defect and reimburse owners who have had to pay for a costly repair.
My door locks failed to unlock (with both the remote entry and the door lock switch located in the car) with the exception of the driver side door using the manual key turn. This was repaired by replacing the door lock actuators, under warranty.
The doors failed to unlock with the key fob. Only way to enter was with the key into the drivers door. The other doors failed to unlock from the inside, both by using the handle and the unlock button on the dash. Apparently, the door lock actuators are drawing more current flow and burning the 15a fuse installed. A bmw sb says to replace with a 20a fuse, however, the problem still exists. This creates an unsafe condition, in that no passenger(s) can exit the vehicle, and nobody, such as emergency personnel, can enter from the outside. The fuse isn't the answer, bmw knows about this problem and should deal with it in a manner that promotes safety of passengers, not profits for the dealers.
My doors have locked and will not unlock without a very expensive repair. I have to use the internal key from the key fob to unlock the driver door but there is no way to unlock any of the other doors. This is extremely dangerous as the other doors will not even unlock from inside the car. Also if you plan on having any passengers they all have to get in through the driver door, if in an accident they have to get out of the driver door, this is absolutely ridiculous and was expensive to fix!
2007 bmw 328i key fob no longer locks/unlocks all doors. This is a severe safety hazard. This has happened more than twice already. If there were an accident or if passengers were in the car, they would have to go out of the car through the car windows. Only the manual key opens the driver's side door.
My doors have locked and will not unlock without a very expensive repair. I have to use the internal key from the key fob to unlock the driver door but there is no way to unlock any of the other doors.
In june of 2011 my bmw328i had intermittent start. I sent the vehicle to a dealer for service in fremont. I was told that the vehicle did not start because of the battery. Battery was replaced at this time. Two days later, the vehicle did not start again, after testing it was determined by fremont dealer that the problem was a faulty negative battery cable. After cable replacement, today problem occurs again.
Red steering wheel and padlock warning indicator light is on - steering wheel will not lock. The most common issue with this fault can cause a "no start" condition. The "no start" condition can arise and the steering wheel could lock while driving. This is the second failure within 4 years and common in bmw's (see thread: http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/showthread.php?t=316722 *and thread: http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=147586)
In october of 2009 my leased vehicle did not start, I had the vehicle towed to a dealer for service in detroit. I was told that the vehicle did not start because of the battery. Battery was replaced at this time. In january of 2010 the vehicle did not start again, after testing it was determined that the steering column was defective. This was replaced at my expense. In april of 2010 the vehicle did not start for a third time. I contacted a dealer to have the vehicle towed in; after 5 days the dealer identified the problem as a faulty negative battery cable. I contacted bmw na as I felt that this may have been the original issue and reason for the vehicle not starting. After two weeks of "investigation" bmw na contacted me and stated that due to mileage on the vehicle no assistance would be granted the vehicle is still under lease and was sold to me as a demo vehicle with roughly 9000 miles already on it at time of lease inception.
My 2007 328i has been in the service department a total of 4 times (that I have paperwork on, it might be more). I have had major mechanical problems with the most recent being electrical. My key will not open any of the doors, I have to use the valet key to get inside. Once I get inside the button on the dash that opens and locks the doors was unresponsive as well. When this started the drivers side mirror also became unresponsive and would not adjust, I can't adjust it to see the road and have almost been in 2 accidents. The same day the air conditioning, which I had set on 60, turned itself to 84 blowing full blast. That is actually the second time this year that the air conditioning has automatically turned to the heater. Short list of other issues: recurrent break squeaking, oil sensor and engine harness wires breaking, and problems accelerating. The computer software malfunctioned as well (another electrical issue which was causing the car to malfunction). After the brake pads & sensors were replaced, the brakes sound the same to this day, horribly squeaky almost grinding. The front driver & passenger windows have a mysterious electrical malfunction. They will cease to go up or down. I hold the window button in the "up" position, the window will roll up an inch then stop. I will have to do this several more times before the window will go up or down. My car goes in again tomorrow am. This time I even mentioned that if I did have passengers in the vehicle and we had gotten in an accident, or worse yet the car catches on fire, my passengers would be trapped. The service advisor didn't seem to care. I can't drive my friends or family anywhere for fear they will be stuck in the vehicle if an accident occurred. As well, I'm not going to ask my parents, who are in their 50's, to crawl through a window to get in or out of my vehicle. My car has been out of commission for me at least 30 days since I've owned it.
Tl*the contact owns a 2007 bmw 328i. The contact stated that the vehicle has an electronic interior latch assembly that does not allow passengers to manually open the doors. While passengers were occupying the vehicle, there was an experienced an electrical shortage that caused the latch assembly to fail. As a result, the passengers could not exit the vehicle. He took the vehicle to the dealer and a technician repaired the open circuit in the fuse box. He notified the manufacturer and is waiting for a response. The failure and current mileages were 12,000. Updated 10/16/08. *lj updated 10/17/08.
Service engine soon light continues to go on after numerous resets.
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