2003 bmw 330i. Consumer states that right rear lamp indicator was lit on dashboard. Consumer is requesting reimbursement of previous repair before recall was sent. *kb bmw informed the consumer that the previous repair was not consistent with bmw standards and therefore, they had no responsibility to reimburse her. Recall # 11v438000.
2003 BMW 330I lights complaints
Page 2 of 2: complaints 11 to 28 of 28, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Burned headlight reflector bowl on 2003 "zkw" headlight housings. Headlamp output severely diminished. Also equipped on 03-05 3-series.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 bmw 330i. The vehicle was included in the federal safety agency campaign id number: 11v438000 (exterior lighting:brake lights) and was taken to the dealer for repairs. The technicians stated that the bulb housing would have to be replaced but would not be covered under the recall. The technician advised the contact that the recall repair would only cover the wiring harness, which connected to the taillight. The repair could not be performed unless the bulb housing was replaced. The replacement of the bulb housing was performed as well as the recall repair. The approximate failure mileage was 158,000. Updated 05/09/12 *bf the consumer stated the repair was began without first informing him of the additional chargers for the additional parts not covered by the recall. The dealer informed the consumer after the original harness was destroyed during removal that it could not be re-installed . Updated 06/07/12
I have encountered a failure of the factory xenon headlamp assembly. I have had reduced visibility as a result of a burnt bulb housing that did not make itself readily apparent. Because there is no remedy outside of replacing the poorly designed housing, I have a concern of the safety of myself, my occupants, and others on the road. A failed bulb is understandable maintenance. A failed headlamp assembly due to burning and cracking the plastic lens from so much heat is not. This is a poor design, and should warrant a recall.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 bmw 330i. The vehicle was included in the recall under the federal safety agency campaign id number: 11v438000 (exterior lighting:tail lights). The manufacturer was contacted and stated that the wiring connector would have to be replaced prior to performing the recall repairs. The wiring connector would not be covered under the recall repairs. The contact stated that the consequences of the recall had damaged the wiring connector and he felt it should be covered under the recall. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 55,000.
Intermittent failure of driver and passenger side tail light assembly due to burnt connector pins and connector housing. Inadequate connector/wire rating. Should be subject of a recall from a responsible car manufacturer. Unsafe to drive in the dark. Blemish on the ultimate driving machine. Intermittent failure of the mostly passenger side head light. Occasional failure of the driver side head light. Normally the light bulb would require replacement, but often the whole lighting unit is considered failing by the dealer. Cost of replacement is extremely high.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 bmw 330i. While parked, the contact noticed that the tailgate light warning light was illuminated. The contact inspected the vehicle and noticed that the resistor cable and the outlet plug connected to the tail light wires were melted. The contact stated the turn signal and brake light failed intermittently and alternated functions. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer for diagnostics and was not repaired. The contact referenced the federal safety agency campaign id number: 11v438000 (exterior lighting:turn signal) but was not aware if the vehicle was included in the recall. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised that the VIN was not included in the recall. The approximate failure mileage was 42,000.
The zkw brand high intensity discharge (hid) / xenon headlights installed from the factory in to my 2003 bmw 330i degraded to a point where visibility at night was almost zero unless I drove with the high beams and/or fog lights on. Replacing the bulbs did not remedy the problem. The cause was burnt "reflector bowls" which are not replaceable. The whole headlight assembly must be replaced at $1000-1300 per side. I had the headlights repaired by a specialist (at a cost of nearly $700) as I was not ready to pay $2600 to replace the headlights with another set of zkw assemblies which would no doubt fail like every set of zkw headlamps installed in 2003-2004 330i sedans. I do not feel that headlights should be a 'wear and tear' item. They are obviously a critical safety component. The deterioration of light output is slow and takes time, so people may not realize anything is wrong with their headlights until they are driving with almost no output on the road.
In the headlight assembly manufactured by zkw, the reflective ballasts are made of plastic and melt, thereby decreasing light output. The darkness is barely illuminated, thereby making driving at night almost impossible. There is no known dealer part to replace or upgrade, save for purchasing expensive light assemblies. The car has not been repairedor examined by technicians.
Zkw manufactured xenon headlamps for bmw 330i e46 cars. The projectors become scorched over time, causing dangerously low light output and not being able to see at night.
Bmw e46 3-series sedans with the zkw-brand xenon headlamps have defective headlights. The projector reflector bowls burn out, reducing light output, making the car less safe to drive at night. As far as I know, all the e46 sedans with zkw-brand xenon headlamps suffer from this problem to one degree or another. Replacement with new oem parts typically runs more than $800 per side. My car has the burned zkw projector bowls, though in my case it has not caused any specific accident. I believe this should be a safety recall and bmw should replace all defective xenon projector headlamp assemblies.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 bmw 330i. The contact stated that the service tail light symbol illuminated on the dashboard intermittently. The contact disconnected the plastic where the light bulb was located and found that the plastic was melted and corroded due to faulty wiring. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who informed the contact that there were no recalls and offered the contact a discount for the repairs. The manufacturer advised the contact that since his vehicle was no longer under warranty that they would not be able to provide any assistance. The current and failure mileage was 44,800.
Recently I bought a 2003 bmw 330i with xenon projector headlights. The low- and high-beam output of these lights is very poor, with very little usable light when driving on lit or unlit roads at night. Compared to standard halogen lamps on my other cars (1990 bmw 525i, 2004 saturn ion) I would rate them at 40% and 30% output respectively, and both of the other cars use standard halogen lamps. Research on this issue found the headlamp reflector used by bmw for these lights (zkw branded) is made of plastic instead of metal and begins to overheat and melt over time, reducing light output and eventually failing completely. Bmw does not offer replacement reflectors, plastic or otherwise, and the only option using manufacturer parts is to replace the entire unit at a cost of approximately $2000 (for the pair). I find this completely unreasonable considering the headlights are critical components for driving at night, and a $2k 'wear part' is grossly excessive.
Around november 2009 I started to notice the unmodified factory xenon headlamps in our car seemed dim. Over the next year they seemed to dim considerably and after the recent end of daylight savings time resulted in a significant increase in my night-time driving, I have found the headlamps to provide nearly no projected light. Upon inspection of the light assembly I have discovered that bmw built these headlamps using a chrome-coated plastic reflector to direct the light forward to the road. It appears the design used placed the bulb too near the reflector or used plastic with inadequate temperature resistance and the bowl itself has gradually burnt to the point where it no longer reflects light. There has not been a fire at this point but the plastic appears to be failing structurally now (burn through) and I fear what would happen if I allowed it to progress further. The light projected with low beams on now is so inadequate the car cannot be safely used for night driving. Bmw does not sell replacement reflector bowls to allow repair of the head lamp assembly and the only option to remedy this issue is to purchase a pair of new head lamp assemblies at approximately $1,200 each. I have contacted both my local bmw dealer and bmw cars north america and neither has offered an engineering or customer service solution to this problem.
Intermittent function of left tail light assembly, despite functional light bulbs. Assembly removed and 7 pin connector noted to have overheated at pin 2, melting surrounding plastic.
I own a 2003 bmw 330i sedan that came from the factory with xenon headlights. These headlights were manufactured by zkw. Over time, the reflective material inside the headlight assembly burns and degrades. This is due to the fact that zkw used a plastic reflector housing which cannot withstand the heat of the xenon bulb. When burned, the headlights no longer provide adequate lighting to safely drive at night. The suggested resolution per bmw is to purchase new headlight assemblies at $1200 per side. Note: bmw used another manufacturer (automotive lighting, al) for later models and those vehicles with al lights don't suffer from this failure due to the fact that al used metal reflectors not plastic like zkw.
I recently purchase a 2003 bmw 330i with factory xenon lights that were manufactured by zkw. The light output of these headlamps is the worst by far I have ever seen from a modern vehicle. Xenon headlamps normally have superior brightness over halogen headlamps. My fog lights put off more light than the zkw headlamps. I know that this is not a bulb issue, because they bulbs have been replaced. The bowls that reflect the light turn brown because of the heat and light output goes way down over time, from what I have read on many forums. This is a major safety issue and bmw only sells the entire headlamp to fix the problem and not just the bowl that burns and discolors. The headlamps from bmw are over $1,000 each and I really can't justify spending that right now. Headlights are not a wearable item and I never expected to have to rep.
Model 2003 bmw 330i e46 (3 series) sedan situation one of the rear lights is inoperative. Cause minor corrosion at the 8-pin rear lamp connector creates high resistance causing damage to the connector housing (it actually burned through the plastic housing potential for fire) correction repair the damaged wire(s) and replace damaged connector housing. Install additional ground wires to both left and right rear lamps.
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