BMW I3 power steering loss problems

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 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 Mar 23, 2021 · Steering · 50,600 miles · FL

Power steering failure while in motion - operating the vehicle on public roadway - making it difficult and dangerous to navigate a turn. No warning lights appeared.

Filed Jan 31, 2021 · Steering · 7,400 miles · IN

Lost power steering as I was leaving my house, making car very difficult to control. Thinking I had a flat tire, I turned around and returned home. Shut down the car, checked the tires (they were fine), restarted it, and power steering returned. This happened twice within a few days.

Filed Feb 20, 2020 · Steering · 21,000 miles · WA

After driving short distance on a city street, suddenly car started pulling to the left or to the right side, the steering became very heavy ( it feels like power steering stopped working).

Filed Feb 8, 2020 · Steering · 31,719 miles · NV

Steering became notchy and felt like loss of power steering at speeds above 25 MPH. It also felt like it was pulling to the left while on city streets driving straight. The car is currently at bmw of las vegas. I read online where many other i3 owners were experiencing similar issues. Many have reported that the issue may be software related and difficult to reproduce as it happens intermittently and shutting off the car can reset it giving a false sense of security until the next time it happens.

Filed Dec 18, 2019 · Steering · 28,000 miles · MI

The steering becomes heavy intermittently. Sometimes like there is no steering assist. Also wheel does not come back to center after turns. Typically on colder days and driving at slow speed.

Filed Sep 30, 2019 · Steering · 21,000 miles · AZ

While driving straight on a two-lane paved city street at about 30 MPH the steering became heavy and pulled strongly to the left. Clear weather, moderate temperatures. I stopped the car after a half mile or so, shut it off completely then restarted it. The problem was gone. It has not yet reappeared. Tire pressures were on the low side of normal. None were abnormally low and the tires were in good shape. Cause is unknown. Dealer had no idea what happened.

Filed Sep 8, 2019 · Steering · 38,600 miles · PA

In last 4 weeks, on two occasions steering became very stiff a & hard to turn. Both times the steering was very stiff immediately when car started to move forward. In first occurrence, after leaving parking lot under 10 miles/hour, I drove 25-30 miles/hour in city traffic (straight streets), then drove up to 65-70 miles/hour on interstate 95 (mostly straight ahead driving). In the second occurrence, after starting the vehicle, I reversed straight out of the drimveway at about 5-10 miles/hour. I didn't hit any manhole covers or significant uneveness in either case.

Filed Aug 22, 2019 · Steering · 20,000 miles · GA

Intermittently, the power steering does not come on when the car is turned on. Steering is heavy and slow. Turning the car off and back on generally corrects this fault. It has happened several times over the past year. I documented below approximately the date of the first event.