1.vehicle unsafe to drive; unable to maintain steering or keep vehicle on the road safely. 2.vibrations while driving vehicle 3.manual gear box; shifting through gears not smooth, not engaging smoothly 4.water leaking inside of vehicle trunk and rear seat areas. Vehicle trunk area was saturated with water after raining; filling water over the battery box and carpets, shorting out electronics. 5.outside of vehicle; plastic components early deterioration; front windshield wiper area black plastic cowl and antenna. Inside of vehicle black plastic cover for convertible top 6.rain sensor inop 7.door locks inop/intermittent 8.windows regulators plastic broken.
2003 BMW Z4 steering complaints
Page 8 of 13: complaints 191 to 220 of 342, newest first, as owners wrote them.
My steering wheel light goes on then the car handling becomes very difficult to control. The problem started one day on the highway. The wheel was suddenly hard. This problem happens several times a day: when I start the car and at any random time while I'm driving. I have to restart the car in order to get the power steering back (before the next failure). This is very dangerous since nothing is telling me when the next issue is going to happen. I'm always scared to make a turn or to change lanes.
Bmw z4 developed a notchy or sticky feel as I was driving on the highway. It feels like the steering wheel locks in place and extra effort is required to turn the wheel. There is no warning before this occurs. Problem was very sporadic at first but seems to be getting worse as I my driving time increases.
I was driving my 2003 bmw z4 on the highway going roughly 65mph when I noticed the steering became very notchy and stiff, the car felt as if the steering wheel was sticking and not turning to center freely. Driving like this the car is difficult to keep in your lane, a very scary feeling when driving at highway speeds. The steering problem continued until I returned home and was still noticeable at city speeds, wheel still sticking around turns and not returning to center position after completing a turn. The problem occurred several times since then,not giving me a good sense of security when driving. This problem only starts to happen after or while driving at speeds above 60mph. I'm contacting you because I have read numerous complaints of bmw z4 owners having similar safely problems. Please let me know if anything develops regarding a recall of any faulty steering equipment on this vehicle.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 bmw z4. The contact was exiting a residential driveway when the steering wheel seized. The contact turned the vehicle off and on to get the power steering to reset. The power steering assist lasted for a few minutes before failed again. The contact stated the failure recurred sporadically and without warning. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer and was told that the entire steering column and electronic power assist system needed to be replaced. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 31,000.
The steering wheel of the vehicle is sticky and is difficult to turn after it is in place for more than a few seconds. This causes difficulty in maintaining the driving direction of the car and in many cases causes an overcompensation in steering.
2003 bmw z4 9500 miles, when hot the steering locks in position and excessive force is needed to correct the steering, causing a jerk making the car jerk to the side and then you have to recorrect. Happens at high and low speed. Has not been repaired.
2003 bmw z4 (21,000 miles) - steering becomes dangerously sticky when the outside temperature is warm (above 80 degrees or so and especially after the car has been parked in the sun). The steering wheel won't return to center and the car jerks side to side when the steering un-sticks as the driver tries to make small steering corrections. This results in a dangerous swerving of the car side-to-side when trying to drive straight down the road, particularly at freeway speeds.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 bmw z4. While driving approximately 35 MPH, the contact noticed that the steering wheel would not return to the center position. The contact had to jerk the steering wheel to the center. The failure recurred intermittently at temperatures under 45 degrees and over 75 degrees at different speeds. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer for diagnostics and the vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 70,000. Updated 09/21/11*lj updated 11/02/11
In temperatures below 45 f and above 75 my steering hangs up just off center so when I drive down the freeway it looks like I zigzag from side to side, and around turns it becomes especially dangerous because when it catches I have to use a bit more force to un jam it and at high speeds it almost throws me into a spin or crash into the guard rail. The previous owner had mentioned this problem but says he rarely drove the car it didn't seem to bother him. I cannot afford the 2600- 3600 price tag for the repair and since bmw has known about this problem since 2003 and has failed to recall this problem myself along with several thousands of other bmw z 4 owners deserve a free correction for this problem.. Instead bmw is fleecing the poor fools who happen to own a z4 model ,, do I have to die behind the wheel of this car before bmw does something about it.
The vehicle is usually kept in the garage. After sitting in the sun in temperatures exceeding 85 degrees, the car steering was hard to operate. It felt as though the steering was manual -- hard to turn on a curve and hard to turn left and right. This only seems to happen when the car sits outside in hot weather. I have not had the problem checked by my mechanic.
[xxx] 2003 bmw z4 3.0i. The pump failed on the highway , complete loss of the power steering, no previous sign of malfunction the car was running perfectly. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6)
Difficulty steering the car when the steering sticks. The warmer the temperature, the steering feels stuck and with the least movement of the steering wheel, the car feels like it loses control. It is fine in the morning and when it is cool but when the temperature is over 80, I feel like I have no control of the steering. No accidents yet!!!!! It has been happening for at least a year.
Vehicle steering sticks around center when weather is hot and is worse at higher speeds which increases the danger for loss of control.
During warmer weather the steering is jerky and the car does not track straight causing the car to wander back and forth on the road. If the road has a crown it causes the car to pull to one side or the other sending it toward the oncomming traffic occasionally. The steering also feels 'center locked' so that an amount of force greater than normal is required to change course of the vehicle, then once it starts turning (should be gradual as for course corrections), the car lunges in the direction that you are trying to gradually take. As mentioned earlier, this occurs in warmer weather and is not as noticible in cooler weather.
The steering on my 2003 bmw z4 2.5l is very sticky. It feels as if there is pine-tar in the linkage. I have to be very careful to not over correct or else risk running off a bridge or into the car in the next lane. This is very serious. I only drive this convertible on sunny days, so I couldn't say if weather has any affect.
Bmw z4 roadster, steering wheel play and sticking.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 bmw z4. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH the steering failed and the contact was unable to completely make a turn which caused her to swerve into the next lane. The failure occurred intermittently and the hot weather was a factor. The vehicle was taken to a bmw specialist who located the failure within the steering column. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 25,000 and the current mileage was 35,000.
Bmw x4 2003 60,1000 miles- electronic power stering is sticky- eratic - safety concen= had problem to control he car- environmental condictions are very hot.
The steering in the 2003 bmw z4 is extremely notchy, or sticky. The issue is considerably worse on warmer days, however, it is not limited to only happening in warm weather. Recently, the steering has become much worse, almost locking in place while turning. Even while attempting to make minor corrections in steering due to curves in the road, the wheel will lock up and then jerk the car violently when it does allow the correction to be made. It is only a matter of time before this issue causes a fatality. Bmw has denied any issue or recall and has refused to comment regarding others' complaints of the same problem.
Power steering seems to be sticking at higher speeds, 45 and above on my 2003 z4. Car only has 42000 miles, its new to me.
I am having a problem with the steering on my 2003 bmw z4. I constantly must keep the steering wheel centered as it sticks to one side then the other as I drive. It wants to go right or left and I need to try to keep it going straight.
Sometimes when I go over a depression or rough area in the road the car will veer into the other lane. (cross the center line) I also feel the steering wheel sticking. You can turn the wheel to left or right and the car will continue in that direction even when there is no pressure on the wheel?
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 bmw z4. The contact stated that when driving at speeds above 60 MPH or when driving in high temperatures above 80 degrees the power steering would fail, making it difficult to steer. The dealer did not offer any assistance. The manufacturer was aware of the failure. No repairs were performed. The approximate failure mileage was 10,000. The current mileage was 43,000. Updated 8/29/11 *cn the consumer also stated the traction control light would illuminate. Updated 09/26/11
Sticky steering wheel on 2003 bmw z4. Feels as if its hard to change directions when the car is warmed up or when it has been sitting in the sun. Its almost like a magnetic resistance. The force required to turn the wheel is 3-4x normal and is intermittent so it is a major safety problem imo. If you are in a corner and don't expect it, it can be quite hard to change directions on the wheel, and possibly can overcorrect.
My 2003 bmw z4 automobile has the same problem as numerous other owners of this vehicle have. The steering mechanism "sticks or partially locks when driving. On occasion it tends to pull to the left at most speeds causing concern regarding highway driving. There are numerous examples of the exact same problem from other 2003 z4 owners. In some case there were close calls in averting head on crashes when driving on two lane highways due to the steering pull to the left side. This seems to be a problem unique to the 2003 z4 series which has electronic steering. It apparently gets worse with time. My z4 has less than 21,000 miles.
My son and I purchased a used 2003 bmw z4 with only 57,000 miles on it . It had a slight pull to the right so we decided to have an alignment done . The bmw dealership that we took it to said that the alignment was ok and that the electric steering motor was probably going bad. They wanted $ 3,500.00 to repair it. Since the pulling to the right was very slight I asked if the car was safe to drive since it my son that will driving the car. They said that the car was safe to drive. After arriving home we did some research and found that this was a common problem with these cars. I called the dealership and spoke with our service adviser and he acted like he was totally unaware of it being a problem and again assured us that the car was safe. On the way home form work my son was driving at highway speeds and had a loss of power steering. The steering had a dead spot at the center position. I then did more research and found that there is an investigation on these cars for the same problem my son is having with his car. I talked to other independent repair shops and they won't even get involved in repairing this because the cars still have problems after being repaired. I then called the bmw dealership and asked him if the problem has been solved or are they just installing a new part that is the same as the old part and will fail again. He said he would get back to me. And surprise he has not. We would not mind so much as to spend $3500.00 to have a potentially deadly problem fixed, but to just have the same problem again it truly unfair. Something needs to be done about this. I have found out that they no longer use this type of steering system. I assume that they just want this problem to go away as the cars get older and sold to people like us with no warranty. Original owners probably know of the problem and won't mention the problem so not to hurt resale value.
2003 bmw 2.5l z4 steering locks and requires excessive force to move wheel while driving. Problem appears to be worse on hot days. No corrective action to date.
2003 bmw z4 sticky steering. When I drive my 2003 bmw z4 during warm weather, the steering wheel sticks. It is hard to turn the steering wheel. This leads to very dangerous driving conditions. It is sometimes hard to turn the steering wheel, as it feels like it is sticky/stuck.
The steering begins to feel sticky. It is hard to make steering corrections during normal driving without jerking the wheel either left of right. This appears to happen most often during warm weather. I noticed it last night during the cool of the evening, however. It was under 60 degrees at the time.
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