BMW 328I brake failure problems

Filed Aug 2, 2026 · Brakes · CA

I was at the John Wayne Airport, going from the arrivals to departures. I had a lot of stop and go traffic, and when I was going down toward the bottom, my brakes failed. I kept pumping them to try and stop but they were not working. I saw an empty area where the car rental returns were and I was able to pull over and come to a stop. I was very lucky that there was a spot to pull over, I used the emergency brake as well when I finally came to a stop. I want the brake system to be looked into. After seeing the other complaints regarding the exact situation, I do not understand why this was not looked into before I got this car.

Filed Apr 3, 2025 · Transmission · CA

The parking brake cable bracket is a cheap piece of plastic that fails on every single BMW model like mine from this era, which means the parking brake cable comes in contact with the drive shaft. Mine has broken. Dealers charge $1,100 to replace with an equally cheap 30 dollar plastic bracket. Replacement is labor intensive which explains the high fee (I guess). BMW mechanics as well as BMW owner internet forums tell me that this fails on every single car. This is a real hazard, as it can cause parking brake failure and drive shaft damage. Owners are very upset with BMW for not taking care of this obvious design flaw. My car has all of 52,000 miles on the odometer. This needs to be a recall!! BMW refuses to take care of this, just as they have refused to take care of the existing water pump recall. Thanks in advance for taking care of this safety issue.

Filed Apr 7, 2022 · Brakes · MD · crash

I went to park my mom's car. Tapped the brakes, moved up a little, tapped the brakes again-the brakes gave out and the car lunged forward at a high speed. The only reason I stopped was because a metal fence stopped me. Earlier in the day the car switched modes by itself from Sport to Economy. This is the 2nd time this has happened in this car. The first time my mom was parking in her driveway and the brakes gave out and the car lunged into her garage. This car is not safe.

Filed Apr 20, 2020 · Brakes · 72,000 miles · CT

The symptoms are the same as those referenced in recall #13v454000& 14v627000 the braking power is lost unexpectedly resulting in increased vehicle stopping distance or no brakes as well when the pedal goes all the way to the floor. This has occurred on both local and highway driving especially when the pavement is wet.. This condition first happened in oct of 2019 & continues today. I am an rn on the front line treating patients in the icu who have contracted the coronavirus(covid-19)and I can't afford to be accident from work due to an accident. I have had several instances where the brakes have failed. Bmw stated my car is not on the recall list and refuses to repair it under the recall. Please advise what further action I can take as this is my only means of transportation.

Filed Jul 12, 2019 · Body, Brakes · 71,000 miles · AZ · 1 injury

My 2014 surged automatically in a parking lot and the brakes failed repeatedly: it took me over the 4" cement parking lot stopper and into a wall! This was the only way the vehicle would stop! Iwill say that just before I had backed out very slowly as I was in a parking lot. I hit somethig, put my foot on the brake, then put car in drive to pull a few feet back into the parking spot. I used very little gas, not necessary of course. Bmw engineers examined it and found no error according to their three standard tests. I was told that their tests "may not record something," "could not duplicate my concerns," and that it would take "a more severe impact to record something." nothing could be tested or recorded for speeds under 35 miles per hour. I got a concussion and the incident cost $ 17,000 (plus loss of car value). Bmw did nothing for me so I am out of a bmw for good. I had just put the car in drive to pull back into the parking space I was in. In all fairness I did hit something, stopped, foot on brake put it in drive. There is no way it outght to have surged out of control or failed to stop. I was going less than 5 MPH. Bmw will do nothing for me except give me a courtesy discount on a different bmw once I've purchased it. Their dealers have offered me less than competitors. I won't buy another one. ## VIN passed ## bmw 328i2014 ##

Filed Jul 6, 2017 · Brakes · 23,000 miles · NY · crash · 1 injury

We were driving down a 35 MPH rd..I slowly began to brake as we were approaching a stop light when the brakes did not hold, I hit the brake harder, the car began to buck forward, I hit the brake as hard as possible but the brakes failed to hold and only stopped when it hit the car in front of us. The police came and an accident report was made. I described the brake failure to the officer but they only seemed interested in writing up the accident report. We had the car towed to our body shop as we were afraid to drive in case the brakes failed again. Our insurance company was made aware of the accident and brake failure and a task force is looking into it. When we returned home we looked up the possible problem with brakes failing on the year and model of my car. We immediate found three articles listing my exact car having "restricted oil supply from the intake camshaft to the brake vacuum pump,which may cause the brake vacuum pump to fail, resulting in a loss of power brake assist." it also said in the article, bimmerfest, that bmw notified the federal safety agency of its intention to voluntarily recall more than 75,000 3 series cars due to a possible loss of power brake assist that could result in the vehicles failing to stop. A mandatory recall was never issued and so this problem still exists. This is exactly what occurred when trying to stop our car. We have reported the problem to our insurance co and bmw corporate. We are awaiting an answer and solution regarding our brake issue and hope bmw will finally realize there is a major problem and will address it properly. As of now I will not drive my 2014 328i xdrive sedan until I am comfortable that bmw corrects the issue to my satisfaction and safety.

Filed Sep 21, 2016 · Acceleration, Airbags · 10,000 miles · CA · crash · 1 injury

Tl* the contact owned a 2013 bmw 328i. While driving 25 MPH, the vehicle accelerated on its own to 40-50 MPH. All the warning indicator sensors blinked on and off. The contact depressed the brake pedal; however, the brakes failed and locked up. In addition, the steering failed. The vehicle drove over the sidewalk and the seat belt released automatically. The air bags failed to deploy. A police report was filed. The struck her head on the steering wheel and injured her neck and lower back. Medical attention was received. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was deemed destroyed. The failure mileage was approximately 10,000....updated 12/14/16 *bf updated 12/20/16*lj

Filed Dec 22, 2015 · Driver assistance, Electrical · 120,000 miles · LA

I was driving and my car completely shut off as I coasted down the road with absolutely no brakes at all. I was terrified. There was no electrical power to my car at all for all of 10 mins. I almost hit the car in front of me, swerving onto a side street to let my car coast until it stopped. My car has absolutely no cold crank. This is the 3rd time this has happened and no one can fix it.

Filed Jun 11, 2015 · Engine · CA

I was driving along the streets, while it was heavily raining. While I was stuck in traffic, my car suddenly stopped working (note: there were cars behind me, in front of me, and right next to me). While I was stuck in traffic and stepping on my brakes, the moment I let go of the brakes to move forward by stepping on the gas, it wouldn't move. Then I tried stepping on the brakes and the brakes stopped working too, so I had to put my car on park because I was afraid it would start rolling by itself without my control. When I attempted to put it back in drive, it wouldn't let me. The signal still said p for park, and it wouldn't work in reverse mode nor neutral mode either. Then I tried turning off my vehicle and tried re-starting it. When I tried to re-start my vehicle, the whole vehicle just shut down, and wouldn't start up anymore. All the other cars around me were able to drive just fine, and even had to drive past me because my car stopped working in the middle of the street during the rain. The firemen and policemen ended up coming to try to re-start my engine, but it didn't work, so they ended up having to tow my car away to avoid traffic (so all the other cars can drive through without going around me). Bmw said my car stopped due to water damage, specifically damaging the engine, costing roughly around $18,000. However, all the other cars around me drove in the same lane, same spot, and same time in this heavy rain just fine. I don't know why my vehicle was the only one that was severely damaged by "water" when all the other cars around me were just fine. I believe there's something wrong with the car itself, for the car should be able to handle heavy rain like all the other cars that were driving just fine around me.

Filed Sep 5, 2014 · Brakes · 2,000 miles · GA · crash

On aug, 7th I was involved in a minor accident on the expressway. The 1st vehicle applied their brakes to avoid another 2 car accident, I applied my brakes as well however I was unable to slow down in time to avoid the 1st vehicle and I rear ended the vehicle. Both vehicles had slight damaged to their bumpers. No injuries were reported. During the time of me applying my brakes I had enough time and distance to make a judgment call to a. Hit the call in front of me or b. Hit the concrete wall medium, while at the same time saying 'wow' I am really about to hit this car. I wrestled with the thought of my brakes malfunctioned that day. Taking everything into account on a brand new car the brakes failed. When I applied my brakes it seems like I glided into the other car also I had my lunch bag and purse in the front seat. None of the items in the front seat went flying to the floor. They were still in tack in the front seat when I pulled over. Finally this is my 2nd bmw (1st purchase in 2009) I know how they drive and handled if the car was operating correctly I would have stop with no problem. I have reached out to bmw north american to inquire about recalls and report the problem on 8/25/2014 however I have not heard nor been able to get in contact with my case manager to date.