The message 'steering wheel lock' came up and the car will not start. I had to pay to bring it home. Bmw says 'it happens to some customers' and they asked me to bring the car to a service center for repair. I see a lot of discussions in forums about this issue. Apparently it is due to a defective lock mechanism.
2006 BMW 330XI electrical complaints
Page 2 of 2: complaints 11 to 18 of 18, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Driving with bag on passenger seat, "red airbag & red seatbelt" indicators light up. Upon taking to dealership, their code reader suggested "low battery voltage" caused lights. Cleared code. Months later, with work bag on passenger seat happens again. Cleared code. Suggested to buy a new battery. Bought a new bmw battery, and same thing, happens again. I take to another shop (bmw charges 100-150 to clear code each time...) and they clear code, still "low battery voltage" but suggested I look into this occupancy seat sensor recall. Go back to dealership and they say unless code reader says airbag fault, they will not warranty. Through the course of 2 years now, the light has come back on 4 times prior, and now today a 5th time. I have yet to take back to dealership again, but making my complaints. I am not a genius but somehow I think the occupancy sensor mat must be defective yet throws error codes of "low battery voltage". When I check the code manually through the drivers stalk, ccid-97 (from memory) which online referenced to air bag fault. Although I have owned vehicle for almost 4 years, it was a "certified" preowned from dealer, and I"m being told that the recall covers only 10 years after the original sale date. Which means october/november this year of 2014, I am out of luck. Hundreds wasted each time, incorrect diagnosing. And bmw refusing to take responsibility for this recall until a machine tells them otherwise. And until that day comes, they'll keep selling me new batteries and other false hopes to fix.
My airbag warning light illuminated indicating that my passenger airbag system was offline. I brought it into my mechanic and they informed me that my passenger side airbag sensor mat and possibly my passenger seat belt sensor had failed. They informed me that the cost to repair would be approximately $700-$800 dollars. I recently received a notification that my vehicle may be subject to a recall for this issue the federal safety agency campaign number: 13v564000. When I contacted my dealership and bmwna they informed me that they would not repair my vehicle until required to do so even though my airbag system has already failed and it is showing as offline. I'm registering this complaint to document that they are not actively resolving this issue.
Stopped in a parking lot and locked the door after getting out of the car. The door locks didn't open when trying to open with the remote. The door fuse and actuator blew up. Opened the door with the key and sat inside the car. The doors locked and then couldn't unlock the doors to get out. I was trapped in the car.
I have a 2006 bmw 330xi sport and when a passenger sits in the car, I receive a passenger airbag malfunction light. I was told by park ave bmw in nj that my vehicle does not qualify under the recall. Recall id # 57362 - air bags:frontal recall date aug 05, 2008 recall date: aug 05, 2008 model affected: 2006 bmw 3-series summary: 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. Depending on the manner and frequency of the front passenger's entry and exit, small cracks have developed in the mat. If this occurs, 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. Consequences: 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. Remedy: dealers will rework the front passenger seat sensor mat so that external force application to the seat does not cause a crack to the mat. The recall began on november 6, 2008. 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. Potential units affected: 200000 notes: bmw of north america, llc.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 bmw 330xi. The contact stated that while driving 30 MPH, the vehicle stalled without warning. The failure was recurring and often times the contact was able to restart the vehicle. The vehicle would require a jump start for times when it would not automatically restart. The contact replaced the battery and charged the replacement battery nightly. The vehicle would continue to stall when the battery was not charged. The manufacturer was made aware of failure and recommended the contact have a diagnostic test performed but offered no further assistance. The failure mileage was 100. The current mileage was 24,000.
I had a bad experience this morning. When I got into my car, it wouldn't start when I pushed the start button. Instead it had an icon on the dash of the steering wheel with a lock sign on it. I pulled the fob out and put it back in a few times, trying to start the car every time, but no life. This is a very weird problem. The steering wheel lock wouldn't release. I tried to get it started for over 30 minutes, still unsuccessful. I did some research on the internet, apparently it is a common problem in the 06 and early 07 models of the 3 series. In mid-07, bmw stopped putting locks in the steering columns. Apparently, this problem has to do with the electronic lock power draw when starting the car, and a software update normally fixes the problem. If the software update does not work, bmw replaces the steering column if you are under the warranty. All my updates are done because I took it to my bmw dealer on 11/14/12 and they rechecked everything. Since it is a common problem and there are many customer complaints as stated in here; http://www.import-car.com/issue/article.aspx?contentid=89276, bmw should issue a recall and be held responsible for this issue.
The car began smoking near the port for the iphone charger on the dash (lighter.) the portal was cold to the touch. After about more 20 yards the cockpit filled with smoke. The car was still driving fine and was quickly pulled to an empty part of the parking lot and was turned off. After pulling the hood release I jumped from the car and shut the door -- I immediately tried re-opening it to let the smoke from the cockpit and the door would not open by touch or with the key fob. I lifted the hood and the engine looked clean. To the far right (my left) on passenger side, against the firewall smoke was coming out in a thin line and then I saw a small flash of fire so I ran 20 to thirty yards and the car burst into flames. I called 911 and within 3-5 minutes it was engulfed in flames. It had been serviced at the dealer in april 2011, four months earlier. It had no history of issues and was regularly serviced.
VIN decoder
See the problems and recalls for an exact car
Buying a used 2006 BMW 330XI?
Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.
Check its history