2018 BMW I3 problems

Filed Jun 18, 2026 · Fuel system · CA

After reviewing BMW’s warranty documentation, I believe that the part replaced — specifically the evaporative emissions (EVAP) valve or purge valve AND vapor canister (active charcoal canister) — should be covered under the California Extended Emissions Warranty (TZEV) for my 2018 BMW i3 with Range Extender. According to BMW’s California Emissions Warranty documentation (pages 14), the Evaporative Canister / Active Charcoal Filter is explicitly listed as a covered component under the Extended Emissions Warranty applicable to BMW i3 Range Extender vehicles in California. Furthermore, page 18 of the same document outlines the California Emission Control System Limited Warranty (TZEV), which provides coverage for emissions-related components for up to 15 years or 150,000 miles, whichever occurs first. Additionally, since we purchased this vehicle in 2021, we have meticulously maintained it and kept detailed fuel and service records. The vehicle has only been refueled NINE times total of 17 GALLONS of fuel with each refueling carefully logged by date and milage. The most recent refueling occurred on March 28, 2025, prior to our service visit at your dealership. These records demonstrate that the fuel and emissions systems have been minimally used, making premature failure of the vapor canister highly unusual. WE have never over filled the tank and dealer is claiming / assuming that is the cause. We believe this is a design flaw on BMW and we do pay the price. Many frustrated BMW i3 owners with similar issue and no help from BMW. THERE ARE MANY REPORTS OF THIS SAME ISSUE ALSO A BMW RECALL BULLETIN ( SIB 01 05 24 ) I3 REX EVAP SYSTEM PURGE VENT VALVE EXT LTD WTY PLEASE MAKE BMW TO RECALL / REPAY ALL I3 OWNERS WITH THIS ISSUE. WHAT IS THE POINT OF AN EXTENDED WARRANTY IF NO ONE IS ENFORCING IT !

Filed Aug 12, 2024 · Body · FL

Roof delaminating and is danger of flying off

Filed Jul 24, 2024 · Fuel system · NV

This isn't a safety issue, rather it's a known problem with the factory AC compressor inside of BMW i3s and i8s that seem to constantly fail. I had a replacement under the car's factory warranty and the part already failed again right outside the part's warranty period. The replacement itself was quoted as a little over $9,000 but the dealership has since gone down to just under $4,000 to replace something that's just 2 months outside of warranty (but is probably something that would have failed an inspection had I just "taken it in" earlier). NUMEROUS people in online forums have confirmed this to be a known issue, but the company is holding their ground. Car companies should be held to a higher standard, and I'd like to ask the federal safety agency to intervene and assist in this matter.

Filed Apr 16, 2024 · Body · CA

My car has a problem with the carbon fiber roof panel. In the sun, the clear epoxy of the roof is de laminating from the carbon fiber beneath it. This is a safety issue because as it delaminates the clear epoxy is no longer properly attached to the roof and may fly off and into other vehicles when traveling at highway speeds. This is a well documented issue with these cars on the Reddit forum r/BMWi3.

Filed Aug 18, 2023 · Body · CA

The roof is cracking, yellowing and bubbling. I have heard that this is the beginning of roof failure and de-lamination. There have been reports and incidents of others roofs delaminating and having large pieces flying off and hitting other cars.

Filed Jul 1, 2023 · Steering · GA

On two occasions the power steering failed while i was driving, once several months ago and again last Wednesday. Fortunately i was driving on surface streets close to home. i parked the car for twenty minutes and upon starting it the problem seemed to be gone. After the first occurance i went to the dealer and they said they knew nothing about the problem. I also called BMW USA.... again they knew nothing. The second time, last week, i took the car to the dealer again and they located a software update. Without actually acknowledging the problem, BMW had a software update and after initially asking me to pay for it, they agreed to pay.

Filed Feb 2, 2023 · Airbags · CA

"Driver restraint system malfunction" light came on today. BMW i3's have had recalls in their past models due to design flaws in their airbag systems and assembly. While my car's year hasn't had a recall, searching the web shows that this issue is extremely common on BMW cars. And when the car is out of warranty (after 3 years), the cost for fixing this issue is exhorbitant. BMW should be pushed to fix this issue at no cost versus charging customers thousands for their faulty safety system design.

Filed Jun 12, 2022 · Steering · TX

Hello , I am owning a BMW i3REX (2018). Recently like many other users experienced multiple times the loss of power steering after starting the vehicle. While previous events like this were short lived and resolved with stopping, turning off and on the vehicle, this time it was on entering a highway, where the car suddenly lost its power steering and could not be driven properly. I had to exit , switched the car off and restart after a couple of minutes, which resolved this problem completely. I am reporting this to you, as I see this as a major safety risk for the BMW i3, which as it seems also other driver experiences and so far no solution has been found by BMW (please see https://www.mybmwi3.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5065) ?

Filed May 11, 2022 · Acceleration, Electrical · GA

On May 2, 2022, the car began to power down involuntarily every time I applied the brakes. This happened 2-3 times, and I was able to restart. The final time was in the middle of an intersection, the car would not restart, could not be placed in neutral to be moved out of the intersection, and I had to have a police tow. The tow service took it to Sport Motoring, where they performed a diagnosis on May 3, 2022. The diagnosis shows 8 faults in the EME module, among other things. I located a recall (Recall #19V310000) for the 2018 i3 which details the exact issue of the car powering down on its own due to a faulty EME module. Sport Motoring called BMW Customer Service on May 3, 2022, and asked if the car might need to have this recall applied. They agreed that the symptoms did seem similar and said they would need to have a diagnosis from a dealer. Based on the call with BMW customer service, I had the car towed to Nalley BMW of Decatur. They charged me for an initial diagnosis which did not include any information from the EME module and stated that the 12v battery needed to be replaced, and then if needed they would perform further diagnosis for an additional charge. I paid for the diagnosis and the battery in advance. After replacing the 12v battery, the dealer test drove my vehicle and said it was performing normally, so I picked it up on May 6, 2022. On my way home, the car began involuntarily powering down again. I documented the error messages on the two screens with photos. I drove back to the dealership with one more loss of power on the way. At this point, the dealer states that the faults clear every time they power the vehicle on and that the vehicle is not repeating the problem when they test drive it, so there is nothing more they can do. I cannot drive this car as it is a serious safety hazard. I also learned that this dealer had possession of the car in 2021 and sold it at auction in July that year because it had issues they could not cure.

Filed Feb 8, 2022 · Acceleration · 42,600 miles · MD

The contact owns a 2018 BMW i3. The contact stated that while driving in the rain at approximately 45 - 50 MPH, the vehicle had unintended acceleration and the contact lost control of the vehicle. The vehicle came to a full stop after getting stuck in the mud on the side of the road. The failure nearly caused a collision. The dealer was made aware of the failure; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The dealer referred the contact to the manufacturer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was opened. The failure mileage was approximately 42,600.