2003 BMW M3 problems
Owners have filed 69 complaints with NHTSA about the 2003 BMW M3. Air bags is the most reported problem area, at 22% of complaints. After that come transmission (12%) and drivetrain & axles (9%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 69 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Air bags 22% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 5 and 1
- Injuries and deaths
- 3 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 79,000 miles 51 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 13 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 4 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 2 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 7 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 18 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 1 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 3 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 1 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 0 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 2 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Among the 51 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 79,000 miles.
Safety-related details: 5 complaints mention a crash; 1 complaint mentions a fire; 3 injuries reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2003 ranks 3rd most-complained-about out of 7 model years of the BMW M3 with enough data (19 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 5 safety recall campaigns.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
My car was hit on the driver side resulting in the driver's door being indented 11" from it's normal position. The inside of the door was about 2 inches from the steering wheel. The side air bag did not deploy. BMW investigated the car and said that the angle on impact was from back to front which did not trigger the air bag. The body shop, the insurance adjuster and the accident investigator all said the air bag should have deployed.
I was in a serious automobile accident involving a 2003 BMW m3. I sustained serious facial trauma that resulted in the loss of vision in my left eye. I had facial stitches as well after the accident. I believe that debris was discharged from the passenger side airbag. 2 surgeries were required after the accident to repair damages with no vision restored in my left eye. It was a frontal impact with a solid object.
Tl*the contact owns a 2003 BMW m3. While driving 65 MPH, the driver's side air bag deployed without a crash or impact occurring. The vehicle shut off, but was able to be restarted and resume normal operation. The contact sustained injures to his left arm due to the deployment. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, but they could not determine the cause of the failure. As a result of the air bag deployment, the CD player stopped functioning and the front passenger side turn signal lens was damaged.
BMW m3 2003 with smg transmission surges badly in first gear occasionally with no apparent cause. This is quite disconcerting when trying to merge into traffic and the auto won't accellerate properly.
Takata recall. Nothing has happened yet to my 2003 BMW m3, but reading about the takata recall and what the airbags are capable is scaring me to death. My 5 year nephew loves riding around town in his uncle's "race car". Even though I rarely go faster than the speed limit, you would never know by the look on his face as the air washes across his face. It has been garage kept since I have owned it and have only put 5k miles on it in this 4 years I have owned it.