BMW X3 hesitation problems

Filed Sep 9, 2026 · Electrical · 46,000 miles · SC

The contact owns a 2022 BMW X3. The contact stated that while attempting to start the vehicle, the vehicle hesitated while starting. After several attempts, the vehicle started. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent, and the vehicle was eventually parked out of fear that the vehicle would no longer start. The contact retrieved a fault code associated with the starter. The local dealer and manufacturer were notified of the failure. The contact was informed that the VIN was not included in the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 26V438000 (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM). The contact stated that the vehicle had experienced the failure listed in the recall. The failure mileage was 46,000.

Filed Aug 20, 2026 · Electrical · 76,494 miles · IL

The contact owns a 2021 BMW X3. The contact stated that while attempting to start the vehicle, the engine hesitated while turning over. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 26V438000 (Electrical System); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. The failure mileage was 76,494.

Filed Oct 27, 2025 · Electrical · 90,500 miles · CA

The contact owns a 2020 BMW X3. The contact stated that the vehicle hesitated while starting. The contact then stated that while at a relative's home, the vehicle failed to start after multiple attempts, with white colored smoke coming from the vehicle. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact used a code reader and retrieved DTC: 216113, 21611A, 21A511, and 216115. Due to the failure, the vehicle remained at the relative's home. Upon investigation, the contact discovered the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 25V636000 (Electrical System); and linked it to the failure. The manufacturer and the dealer were notified of the failure and confirmed that the vehicle was not included in the recall. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 90,500.

Filed Sep 30, 2024 · Engine · 100,000 miles · CA

The contact owns a 2013 BMW X3. The contact stated that the vehicle was leaking engine oil. The contact stated that the vehicle was hesitating while attempting to accelerate. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who had diagnosed that the turbo charger had failed and needed to be repaired. The vehicle was repaired. After the repair was completed, the failure reoccurred, and the turbo charger failure warning light illuminated. The vehicle was diagnosed, and it was determined that the turbo charger had failed, and that there was an oil leak due to the head gasket failure. The turbo charger and head gasket were repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 100,000.

Filed Jun 7, 2024 · Engine · 100,000 miles · NY

The contact owns a 2010 BMW X3. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 23V707000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle hesitated to respond. The contact also stated that the vehicle made an abnormal rattling while the engine revved between 2000-3000 RPMs. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle stalled on cold idles. The contact was able to restart the vehicle. There was no warning light illuminated. The local dealer was contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

Filed May 31, 2024 · Engine · 120,000 miles · PA

The contact owns a 2010 BMW X3. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds and while the vehicle was idling, there was an abnormal rattling sound coming from the vehicle. The check engine light warning light was illuminated. Additionally, the vehicle hesitated while depressing the accelerator pedal. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 23V707000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was approximately 120,000. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

Filed Aug 30, 2023 · Engine · GA

Went to have hesitation when accelerating checked with my mechanic. This problem called for ignition coil and spark plugs to be replaced. During final test drive -- check engine light illuminated. Vehicle was scanned for stored fault codes. During this scan it was found faults for intake vanos not controllable. Inspected camshaft gears via bore-scope. Found vanos securing bolts to be broken. This was a recall issue on this particular model except for the engine that is in my vehicle. Feel as though this issue should be addressed for all vehicles that are this model. The recall was faults stored in DME, Vanos and camshaft position. I realize that BMW is not responsible for my particular vehicle but feel that someone should be looking at why ONLY this specific engine was not included?? I did have my mechanic fix the issue which incurred an expense of $2499. If this problem could be looked into further, I would appreciate your help. (I do have invoice from mechanic, but I don't know how to upload file.

Filed Jun 6, 2022 · Engine · 89,000 miles · SC

The contact owns a 2012 BMW X3. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle was shaking and hesitating during acceleration. An unknown warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who related the failure to the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 14V176000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact to file a complaint with the federal safety agency. The failure mileage was approximately 89,000.

Filed Nov 28, 2021 · Engine, Fuel system · 142,381 miles · WI

I am working with a journalist at CNBC to get info about this death trap out since the federal safety agency is ignoring the issue completely. People are telling you their family members are injured and/or dying because 2008 BMW X3’s simply loose power at 70mph and transmission issues that make this care not accelerate, jerk, stall, etc. I have been helping contact other owners in an effort to see if they have any unreported issues and many say their complaints were also ignored. when you try to accelerate, the transmission "thinks" about what gear it should be in. the vehicle hesitates, stalls slightly, and creeps along slowly before second gear catches. the rpms are erratic when accelerating. very unpredictable when trying to accelerate. the hesitation is the main issue, especially when trying to pull out of an intersection across traffic. it can become a very scary situation when you want to accelerate and nothing happens. this is an ongoing problem. nothing in particular causes it to happen besides regular acceleration. the problem is intermittent and may disappear while driving. however, it will appear again for no real reason. a software update was performed in mid-july. the problem was still noticeable. on august 3rd, the vehicle was once again brought in for service work. the service manager came along for the drive and noticed the transmission problem. another 2008 bmw x3 that was on the lot was driven under the same driving conditions. the same issues with the transmission were noted. he told me that they will contact bmw to see if there are any service bulletins on how to correct the problem, but was unaware of any fix currently available. after two service calls the problem still persists without any fix as of yet.

Filed Sep 27, 2018 · Transmission, Visibility · NC

Problem 1: when in slow and speed turning / turning to stop / stop to turning, a shudder and hesitation occurs. Feels the car is "jumping" more and more obviously. Problem 2: rearview mirrors on both doors had failed to operate. It folded itself automatically when driving on highway. The mirror fell off multiple times. The car was never under impact or in accident.