Letter from consumer regarding public safety concern that needs to be immediately addressed (recall 17-v; positive crankcase ventilation (pcv) valve heater).
2006 BMW 330I engine complaints
Page 2 of 2: complaints 11 to 26 of 26, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 bmw 330i. When the engine was started and the defroster was activated, a popping noise was heard under the hood and an unusual odor emitted from the vents. The contact immediately turned the engine off and exited the vehicle. Within seconds, flames appeared under the hood. The fire department was called and extinguished the fire. A fire report and a police report were filed. The contact stated that the fire spread and damaged the plastic tail light cover and paint of another vehicle parked in the driveway. The fire department determined that there was an electrical failure near the motor. The vehicle was driven from the scene. There were no injuries. An unknown dealer stated that parts were unavailable to repair the vehicle per the federal safety agency campaign number: 17v676000 (electrical system:wiring). The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 100,000.
Very loud noise (fan noise) coming from the engine compartment when the car was started from a cold start. Car is drive-able but seemed to lose some power. The noise may or may not come back during the next start. A few simple searches on google and from various bmw forums indicated that it's a very common problem for the 2006 bmw 330i e90 sedans and problem seem to be the faulty water pump and faulty thermostat. As there are no warning light nor any tell signs, the car could go from full performance on the freeway to limp mode (forceful slow-down mode) in the matter of a few seconds due to overheating of the water pump, and it could be very dangerous. The hidden error codes may be discovered with a vehicle specific scanning tool but there is no warning light or error light whatsoever to warn the owner unless the car is brought in to the shop and being scanned with the proper scanning tool. But if there is no warning/error light, no one would have thought to bring the car in for scanning.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 bmw 330i. Two minutes after the vehicle was started, the contact noticed an abnormal odor and smoke under the hood. Also, the inside of the vehicle became extremely warm. The vehicle was not taken to be diagnosed by a dealer. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the water pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The vehicle was included in the federal safety agency campaign number: 17v676000 (engine and engine cooling). The manufacturer was not contacted. The approximate failure mileage was 90,000. * (recall related incident) ts
Bmw 3 series models 330i and 325i year 2006/2007 have a problem with valve cover and head bolts breaking off (bolts are made of aluminum), in my personal case, I was inspect my car when I was parked and I found a head bolt close to the oil filter housing broke off and also found the head of the bolt on the engine bay, close to the hole where the oil is being leaking. The leak is bad and I have to fill it up every week. Some other people have had valve cover bolts broken off and oil leaking on the exhaust wich could cause fire and accidents. Seems like this was a factory defect over torquing the bolts or low quality aluminum bolts. Bmw should fix this problem with all this models and years. I have read online of several people dealing with this problem an even paying bmw dealers lots of money when the problem begun at the manufacturing plant. Serious engine damaged can occur too if other bolts inside the valve cover break and mess others components up inside the engine. Other newer models don't have this problem after the bolts being upgrade to a better quality aluminum or change the torque value on them. Thanks so much for researching and your time.
While doing a valve cover replacement for broken aluminium bolts, which caused a leak, discovered that the three aluminium head bolts are also broken. The fourth of these was found to be broken and replaced. This known problem on this motor, the n52 six cylinder 3.0 liter motor, caused by inadequate bolts installed at the factory. Bmw updated the bolts and torque specs for the motor, but has never formally (at least publicly) recognized the issue. Looking on message boards this is a common problem occurring with these cars that is caused by a manufacturing defect rather than simply time and age. There are many reports of these bolts being found broken at 35 - 50k miles.
Broken cylinder head bolt near oil filter hosing found this to be a very very common problem with (n52) engines.
One of my valve cover bolts broke causing the oil to leak everywhere.
Engine valve cover head bolts snapped. Qty. 3.
A bolt broke on the valve cover. It's not from cold weather or lack of maintenance, it's clearly a manufacturer default. When advised by valley bmw in modesto I learned this happens in most of these models that year. It's from over torquing the bolt or a faulty bolt or something else but it's clearly not the fault of the consumer. Mine broke on the passenger side and it causes the oil to leak on the exhaust. This is a safety issue and must be addressed immediately. This also happens on the oil pan! Http://msauceda1.blogspot.com/2013/07/bmw-330i-2006-broken-bolts-valve-cover.html it costs over $1000 to fix and after researching further, I found this is happening a lot and many consumers as well as repair services are frustrated and understandably angry. Please address this and make bmw recall these vehicles for repair before someone gets killed! Https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5co92u-wa94.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 bmw 330i. The contact stated that fuel was leaking from the oil filter housing. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic. The technician diagnosed that the ball cover gasket needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 87,243.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 bmw 330i. The contact stated the passenger air bag sensor illuminated on the instrument panel. The contact mentioned that the failure persisted even when the seat was not occupied. The dealer stated the front passenger seat occupant sensor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The failure mileage was 70,000. Updated 10/29/14*lj updated 4/23/15
Bmw na has issued a recall to address broken head bolts in a number of 2010 models, which can result in engine failure. I have spoken with several bmw owners and found that this issue extends beyond their initial recall into earlier models, but bmw na is ignoring the issue outright in the hopes that it will disappear. I have spoken with bmw na several times and they have given me the runaround for several months and put major smokescreens up in my attempt further the conversation/investigation of the issue. I'm reaching out to the federal safety agency because I have no other recourse and I know this issue is not a localized issue with one year model, but symptomatic of several years and models. Please help the driving public by assisting me in addressing this issue with bmw.
My 2006 bmw 330i began leaking oil. After inspection it was determined to be broken bolts. This vehicle has been properly cared for. It has not been in an accident and has been serviced and maintained. After online review, this problem has happened to several bmws. The oil leaks onto brakes, belts, exhaust, etc.... Causing a severe safety hazard. This needs to be elevated to a recall.
The cylinder bolt broke and bmw is refusing to repair the broken bolt under an active warranty. Bmw is aware that the cylinder bold on these models has been known to fail and is now being made out of a different material in newer models. I requested that bmw pay for the cost of this repair because we are aware of it being and issue and they refused to do so under an active extended coverage warranty. It is a part that should be on recall for models using this particular aluminum cylinder bolt. I am very frustrated to have paid $4,000+ for an extended warranty that does not cover a $4,260.50 repair. Peter pan bmw has been very helpful but bmw of north america and assurant who authorizes repairs has been unresponsive and denied repair.
Bmw is aware that the cylinder bolt on these models has been known to fail and are now being made out of a different material in newer models. We requested that bmw pay for the cost of this repair, because we know they are aware of it being an issue and they refused to do so. It is definitely a part that should be on recall for all models using this material in the cylinder head bold. Updated 04/21/11
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