2019 BMW X3 problems
The 2019 BMW X3 has 238 complaints on file with NHTSA. The largest share (20%) concerns electrical system. Next are engine (18%) and body & structure (13%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 238 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Electrical system 20% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 9 and 4
- Injuries and deaths
- 6 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 9,000 miles 74 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 | 47 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 8 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 3 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 8 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 6 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 2 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 0 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 0 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 0 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 0 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Of the 74 complaints that include odometer readings, half describe a problem before roughly 9,000 miles. For electrical system specifically, the median reported mileage is about 9,000 miles (15 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 9 complaints mention a crash; 4 complaints mention a fire; 6 injuries reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2019 ranks 2nd most-complained-about out of 22 model years of the BMW X3 with enough data (151 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 10 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 digital gauges were frequently going off center in my vehicle. I scheduled service with the dealer however they did not have a loaner available for weeks so they scheduled the appointment for a few weeks out, my car subsequently completely died on the road and after a minute or two I was rear ended by a truck and the car was completely totaled.
Automatic braking spontaneously activated without cause. Happened 2 times. Most recent incident caused injuries to the driver and almost caused a severe accident. This is a full stop from approximately 40 MPH
Without warning, the dashboard lights and indicators go dark. The vehicle can be stationary or in motion when it happens. I have contacted the dealer, fields BMW, twice. The first time the service department replaced the battery on my remote key control, the second time service told me it was a known problem at BMW and they were working on a software fix. My second contact was probably six weeks ago, but it happened again two days ago when my wife lost the dashboard lights in the evening.
The contact owns a 2019 BMW X3. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed while the front passenger’s side seat was being occupied, the message "Front Passenger’s Restraint System Malfunction" was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the front passenger’s side seat mat detection sensor had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure.