IllustrationI WENT TO BACK MY 2000 BMW 323CI INTO A PARKING SPOT AND IT ACTED AS IF IT WAS IN NEUTRAL. *TR
2000 BMW 3 Series
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 2000 BMW 3 Series do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 23.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all 3 Series years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
10–25K
425–50K
1150–75K
2575–100K
24100–150K
9150K+
74 reports with mileage · 14 unknown
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Power Train. Review the 35 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Structure. Review the 30 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Air Bags. Review the 11 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
3 crash reports2 fire reports3 injury reports
Power Train complaints
35 reports2000 BMW 323 CI WILL NOT GO INTO REVERSE. *TR
NO WRECK, NO PREVIOUS PROBLEM. JUST NO REVERSE!!!! *TR
2000 BMW 323I NO REVERSE GEAR...WENT TO BMW DEALER AND THEY DIDN'T WANT TO CHECK WHAT'S WRONG, ALL THEY WANTED IS TO CHANGE THE WHOLE TRANSMISSION FOR $5500...I LOOKED ON INTERNET AND IT SEEMS THAT THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE HAVING SAME ISSUE WITH THIS CAR...HOPE SOMETHING CAN BE DONE AND BMW WILL CALL OUR CARS FOR RECALL...I THING THE…
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2000 BMW 323I NO REVERSE GEAR...WENT TO BMW DEALER AND THEY DIDN'T WANT TO CHECK WHAT'S WRONG, ALL THEY WANTED IS TO CHANGE THE WHOLE TRANSMISSION FOR $5500...I LOOKED ON INTERNET AND IT SEEMS THAT THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE HAVING SAME ISSUE WITH THIS CAR...HOPE SOMETHING CAN BE DONE AND BMW WILL CALL OUR CARS FOR RECALL...I THING THEY SHOULD REPAIR IT AT NO COST SINCE IT IS THERE PURE REVERSE CLUTCH ENGINEERING. THANK YOU *TR
DIFFERENTIAL SUB-FRAME FAILURE. CAR HAS INDEPENDANT REAR SUSPENSION AND DIFFERENTIAL IS CARRIED IN AN ALUMINUM SUB-FRAME THAT IS ATTACHED TO CHASSIS WITH FOUR LARGE BUSHINGS. DRIVER'S SIDE REAR BUSHING HAS PULLED OUT OF FRAME OF CAR WITH VISIBLE CRACKING OF METAL SURROUNDING THE AREA. *TR
MY TRANSMISSION STOPPED WORKING IN REVERSE ON MY BMW 323CI WHICH ONLY HAS LESS THAN 68,000 MILES. THERE WERE NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS FOR THE SAME PROBLEM. THIS SHOULD BE RECALLED. I HAVE NEVER HEARD OF A TRANSMISSION FAILING SO EARLY. *TR
CAR WAS IN PERFECT CONDITION, TAKEN CARE OF AS NEEDED. ALWAYS OIL CHANGES ETC. GOT OFF OF WORK ONE DAY, CAR DOES NOT GO INTO REVERSE. WILL GO FORWARDS, NOT IN REVERSE. THE ONLY WAY TO FIX IT IS TO GET A NEW TRANSMISSION, A $6000 FIX. FOUND A WEBSITE WITH OVER 100 SIMILAR INCIDENTS. *TR
2000, BMW WITHOUT WARNING SHOWED SIGN OF THE DREADED NO REVERSE TRANSMISSION PROBLEM DOCUMENTED ON SEVERAL WEBSITE. FOR EXAMPLE NOREVERSE.ORG. *TR
2000 BMW 323CI WILL NOT MOVE WHEN IN REVERSE GEAR; THE CAR BEHAVES AS IF IT IS NEUTRAL. THIS HAPPENED SUDDENLY, WITH NO WARNING. THE CAR HAD NO ISSUES LEADING UP TO THIS, NO WARNING LIGHTS, ETC. THE CAR HAS BEEN IMMACULATELY MAINTAINED AND SERVICED. THERE ARE LITERALLY HUNDREDS OF COMPLAINTS ON THE WEB, INCLUDING AT YOUR FORUM, …
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2000 BMW 323CI WILL NOT MOVE WHEN IN REVERSE GEAR; THE CAR BEHAVES AS IF IT IS NEUTRAL. THIS HAPPENED SUDDENLY, WITH NO WARNING. THE CAR HAD NO ISSUES LEADING UP TO THIS, NO WARNING LIGHTS, ETC. THE CAR HAS BEEN IMMACULATELY MAINTAINED AND SERVICED. THERE ARE LITERALLY HUNDREDS OF COMPLAINTS ON THE WEB, INCLUDING AT YOUR FORUM, ABOUT THIS IDENTICAL PROBLEM. *TR
I OWN A 2000 BMW 323CI CONVERTIBLE WITH AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION, WITH 77,000 MILES ON IT. THE VEHICLE HAS HAD ONE PREVIOUS OWNER AND HAS BEEN METICULOUSLY CARED FOR AND SERVICED. LAST WEEK (9/4/07) THE CAR WOULD NOT GO INTO REVERSE. THE BMW DEALER HAS TOLD ME THAT THE VEHICLE NEEDS THE WHOLE TRANSMISSION REPLACED AT A COST OF $5,…
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I OWN A 2000 BMW 323CI CONVERTIBLE WITH AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION, WITH 77,000 MILES ON IT. THE VEHICLE HAS HAD ONE PREVIOUS OWNER AND HAS BEEN METICULOUSLY CARED FOR AND SERVICED. LAST WEEK (9/4/07) THE CAR WOULD NOT GO INTO REVERSE. THE BMW DEALER HAS TOLD ME THAT THE VEHICLE NEEDS THE WHOLE TRANSMISSION REPLACED AT A COST OF $5,000. I DID SOME RESEARCH ON THE INTERNET AND FOUND THAT THIS APPEARS TO BE A COMMON PROBLEM WITH THIS VEHICLE. I CANNOT AFFORD TO PAY FOR THIS REPAIR. *TR
Official recalls
121V401000 · Air Bags:frontal:driver Side:inflator Module
May 27, 2021
BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2000-2001 BMW 3 Series (323Ci, 325Ci, 328Ci and 330Ci), 1999-2001 323i, 328i, 330i, 330xi, and 2000 323i, 328i stationwagon vehicles equipped with Non-Azide Driver air bag Inflators (NADI) manufactured by Takata. These vehicles are equipped with driver-side air bag inflators that were previously inspected, but not replaced under recall numbers 19V-851, 19V852, or 19V-853. Due to a manufacturing issue, the NADI inflator may absorb moisture, causing the inflator to explode or the air bag cushion to underinflate.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: The inflator could explode during air bag deployment, resulting in metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants. An underinflated air bag may not properly protect the occupant. These scenarios increase the risk of serious injury or death.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the driver-side air bag inflator with a newly designed inflator, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on July 12, 2021. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
2EA02012 · Inadvertent SIDE-IMPACT Air Bag Deployme
Opened Jul 15, 2002 · Closed Jun 24, 2003
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Air Bags:side/window
THE SUBJECT VEHICLE'S AIR BAG ELECTRONIC CONTROL MODULE CONTAINS PROGRAMMABLE LOGIC FOR DEPLOYING THE SIDE-IMPACT AIR BAGS.BMW REVISED THE MODULE SEVERAL TIMES OVER THE SPAN OF THE MODEL YEARS 1999 THROUGH 2002 (IDENTIFIED AS MRS2.CA, MRS2.BB, MRS3, MRS3+ AND MRS4).ALTHOUGH MODEL YEAR 1999.5 VEHICLES WITH VERSION MRS2.BB HAD 6.5% OF THE SUBJECT POPULATION, IT ACCOUNTED FOR 29% OF THE TOTAL REPORTS RECEIVED.THE MRS2.BB EXPOSURE ADJUSTED REPORT RATE WAS ALMOST 4 TIMES HIGHER THAN OTHER 3 SERIES AIR BAG MODULE VERSIONS.IN AUGUST 2002, BMW INITIATED A RECALL CAMPAIGN FOR 20,500 MODEL 323I AND 328I VEHICLES WITH VERSION MRS2.BB (NHTSA RECALL # 02V223000).IN ADDITION TO EXPERIENCING A LOWER RATE OF NON-CRASH DEPLOYMENTS, MOST OF THE NON-RECALLED VEHICLES ALSO SHOWED EVIDENCE OF SIGNIFICANT POTHOLE/CURB IMPACT WITH SOME HAVING ADDITIONAL UNDERCARRIAGE CONTACT/SCRAPE OR SUSPENSION DAMAGE.SEE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
PE02011 · Inadvertent SIDE-IMPACT Air Bag
Opened Jan 31, 2002 · Closed Jul 15, 2002
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Air Bags:side/window
No summary supplied.