1996 BMW Z3 problems
NHTSA has received 34 complaints about the 1996 BMW Z3, and 26% of them involve air bags. After that come seat belts (15%) and seats (15%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 34 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Air bags 27% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 4 and 1
- Injuries and deaths
- 2 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 75,000 miles 14 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 | 0 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 3 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 1 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 4 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 2 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 4 |
| 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
Among the 14 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 75,000 miles.
Safety-related details: 4 complaints mention a crash; 1 complaint mentions a fire; 2 injuries reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 1996 ranks 6th most-complained-about out of 6 model years of the BMW Z3 with enough data (10 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 1 safety recall campaign.
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.
The BMW z3 hit another car directly in the side ; this was a frontal collision by the BMW. The driver was wearing her safety belt, but he airbag did not deploy
Tl* the contact owns a 1996 BMW z3. While the vehicle was stationary, the driver's seat heater malfunctioned. The contact stated that the seat heater burned a hole in the leather seat and also burned a hole in her jeans. The contact was not injured. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 100,000.
While in 1st gear and merging into traffic vehicle made a loud noise and popped out of gear causing the vehicle to lose acceleration causing a rear end collision. Please provide any additional information. Ts
Tl* the contact owns a 1996 BMW z3. The contact stated that the air bag warning light illuminated. The contact also stated that the seat belt could not be unlatched when the driver would depress or add any pressure to the brake pedal. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for inspection and they stated that the air bag sensor and the seat belt assembly needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 75,000.
Driver and passenger seats move forward/backwards during acceleration and breaking at any speed, gas gauge reads empty on full tank or fluxes on dash and air bag light stays on for 3-5 min. At a time when starting up ignition.