1999 BMW 323I

WE WERE DRIVING DOWN SEPULVEDA BLVD. IN LOS ANGELES, CA AT 7:30 PM. WE BELIEVE WE HIT A POTHOLE AT 35 MPH. THERE WAS NO DAMAGE TO THE TIRES OR WHEELS, BUT THE SIDE IMPACT CURTAIN AIRBAG ON OUR 1999 BMW 323I SUDDENLY DEPLOYED. WE RESEARCHED RECALLS ON OUR VEHICLE. WE FOUND THE FOLLOWING: NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER: 02V223000 SUMMARY: ON CERTAIN 4-DOOR PASSENGER VEHICLES, THE SIDE AIR BAG SYSTEM COULD DEPLOY IN CERTAIN NON-CRASH IMPACTS, SUCH AS WHEN CONTACTING LARGE POTHOLES OR CURBS AT SUBSTANTIAL SPEEDS. CONSEQUENCE: THIS COULD CAUSE THE SIDE AIR BAG AND HEAD PROTECTION SYSTEM TO DEPLOY WITHOUT AN ACTUAL SIDE CRASH OR IMPACT SEVERE ENOUGH TO CAUSE SIGNIFICANT VISIBLE DAMAGE TO THE VEHICLE. UNEXPECTED DEPLOYMENT OF THE SIDE AIR BAG COULD CAUSE SERIOUS INJURY IF THE OCCUPANT'S HEAD IS RESTING NEAR THE SIDE AIR BAG. REMEDY: DEALERS WILL RECALIBRATE THE CENTRAL AIR BAG CONTROL MODULE TO REDUCE THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH A NON-CRASH DEPLOYMENT. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN OCTOBER 25, 2002. OWNERS WHO TAKE THEIR VEHICLES TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER ON AN AGREED UPON SERVICE DATE AND DO NOT RECEIVE THE FREE REMEDY WITHIN A REASONABLE TIME SHOULD CONTACT BMW AT 1-800-831-1117. WE CONTACTED BMW AT THE ABOVE 800 NUMBER. WE WERE TOLD THAT BASED ON OUR VIN # THAT WE WERE NOT A PART OF THE RECALL. BEING THAT OUR CAR IS THE SAME YEAR, MAKE AND MODEL OF THE CAR IN THE RECALL, AND THAT THE EXACT CONSEQUENCE DID OCCUR, IT SEEMS ODD THAT BMW IS SAYING THAT WE ARE NOT A PART OF THE RECALL. NOW, BMW WANTS THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS TO FIX THE PROBLEM, WHICH IN ALL APPEARANCES IS A MANUFACTURER FAULT. *TR

GREETING, I HAVE BEEN IN POSSESSION OF MY 1999 BMW 323I FOR 11 YEARS. I MADE THE PURCHASE OVERSEES THROUGH THE MILITARY BMW SALES PROGRAM. I HAD THE VEHICLE MAINTENANCE BY BMW HIGHLY TRAINED TECHNICIANS SINCE YEAR 2000. THE CAR WAS SERVICE AT BMW IN 2007 FOR THE HEATING & AIR CONDITION COMPRESSOR (HVAC) AND BMW WAS INFORMED ABOUT THE AIRBAG INDICATOR LIGHT. WE INFORMED BMW ON MANY SERVICE VISITS PRIOR TO THE 2007 SERVICE VISIT AND AFTER 2007 THAT THE AIRBAG INDICATOR LIGHT CONSTANTLY COMES ON WHEN EITHER CONDUCTING NORMAL DRIVING ON APPROVED ROADS OR ON ONE OCCASION WHEN THE DRIVERS DOOR WAS SHUT AFTER ARRIVING HOME FROM A SERVICE VISIT. ON ONE VISIT THEY RESET THE LIGHT WITHOUT CHARGE AND ON OTHER SERVICE VISIT THEY WANTED TO CHARGE A FEE FOR RESETTING THE AIRBAG INDICATOR LIGHT. HOWEVER, ON ONE SERVICE VISIT BMW SAID THERE WAS NOTHING THEY COULD DO TO FIX THE PROBLEM. I NEVER RECEIVE ANY NOTICES FROM BMW INFORMING ME THAT THERE WAS A PROBLEM WITH THE AIRBAG SYSTEM. I ASSUMED THAT TAKING THE VEHICLE FOR SERVICE THAT ALL PROBLEMS WAS IDENTIFIED BY BMW ALLOWING THE CUSTOMERS TO DETERMINE THE REPAIR DECISION. ON OR ABOUT 03 AUG 08, THE HEAD AIRBAG DEPLOYED WHILE CONDUCTING NORMAL DRIVING ON AN APPROVED HARD BALL ROAD. AFTER TAKING THE CAR IN FOR SERVICE AND INFORMING BMW ABOUT THE AIRBAG INDICATOR LIGHT, THEY REPLIED THAT THERE WAS NOTHING THEY COULD DO TO RESOLVE THE PROBLEM. AS A RESULT THE AIRBAG INDICATOR LIGHT WAS ON PRIOR TO THE DEPLOYMENT. THE CAR HAS BEEN DISABLED FOR 4 MONTHS PENDING A DECISION ON REPAIR COST OF $9000.

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 1999 BMW 323I. WHILE DRIVING OVER A SMALL BUMP AT 23 MPH, THE DRIVER'S SIDE AIR BAG DEPLOYED. THE DEALER IS REPAIRING THE VEHICLE; HOWEVER, THEY SUFFERED SOME FINANCIAL LOSS BECAUSE OF THE INCIDENT. THE CONTACT REFERENCED NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBERS 02V223000 AND 99V063000 (AIR BAGS:SIDE/WINDOW). THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 136,000 AND FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 135,500.

EVER SINCE I HAVE BOUGHT THE CAR, I HAVE ALWAYS HAD PROBLEMS WITH THE ENGINE CONTROL MODULE (ECM) ON THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER. THE ECM HAS BEEN REPLACED TWICE ALREADY AND ON MANY OCCASIONS THE DEALER WOULD JUST RESET THE COMPUTER SO THAT THE MALFUNCTION LIGHTS WOULD GO OFF. I AM POSITIVE THAT THIS IS A PROBLEM WITH MANY SUCH E46 BMW 323I 4 DOOR CARS. THE ECM IS EXTREMELY SENSITIVE TO HEAT OR COLD AND IT GOES OFF ONLY AFTER DRIVING FOR A FEW MILES. IT CAN SOMETIME TAKE DAYS FOR THE LIGHTS TO GO OFF. SECOND FAILURE IN THE E46 323I BMW'S IS THE AIR-BAG SENSOR UNDER THE PASSENGER SEAT (PASSENGER OCCUPANCY SENSOR). THIS HAS TO BE CHECKED BY THE NHTSA AS I AM FACING THE SAME PROBLEM AS MANY OTHER OWNERS OF THE CAR ARE. BMW OWNER FORUMS ON THE INTERNET HAVE MANY COMPLAINTS ABOUT DEALERS TRYING TO RIP THEM OFF ON SUCH PART REPLACEMENTS. *NM

I BELIEVE THAT CARMAX SOLD ME A LEMON. IT IS A 1999 BMW 323CI, WAS PURCHASED USED AT THE INDEPENDENCE BOULEVARD STORE ON NOV 28, 2003, WITH 57,097 MILES. THE PURCHASE PRICE WAS $21,420 INCLUDING A $1,699 EXTENDED WARRANTY FOR 3YRS/36000. AUTOMOBILE WARRANTY AGREEMENT NUMBER: 7106508410. *AK SINCE SHORTLY AFTER PURCHASE, THERE HAVE BEEN EXCESSIVE AND EXPENSIVE DEFECTS, INCLUDING SAFETY ITEMS. THE CAR HAS BROKEN DOWN, FAILED TO START, REQUIRED TOWING, AND THE CONTROL PANEL FLASHES SPURIOUS WARNINGS. DESPITE THE WARRANTY, AND DESPITE MY REQUESTS TO CARMAX, CRITICAL REPAIRS HAVE NOT BEEN PERFORMED. SAFETY DEFECTS STILL OCCUR AND ARE NOT BEING REPAIRED BY CARMAX (I.E. CURRENT CONTROL PANEL WARNING FOR LIGHTS). MAJOR MECHANICAL ITEMS ARE NOT BEING PERFORMED UNDER WARRANTY (E.G. TRANSMISSION). THIS HAS ALL OCCURRED IN LESS THAN A YEAR, AND WITH LESS THAN 5,000 MILES OF MY DRIVING. SUMMARY OF REPAIRS SINCE PURCHASE: 12/17/0357,561MI.AIR BAG LIGHT FAULT, SEAT BELT, ELECTRICAL & CONTROL PANEL 12/23/0457,694REAR DEFROSTER, ELECTRICAL, WINDOW REPLACED, WORN BRAKES 06/04/0459,565HORN REPLACED, FUSES & ELECTRICAL 9/10/0461,230CLUTCH REPLACED, WARNING LIGHTS, CONTROL PANEL FAILURE LIGHT INTERMITTENTLY COMES ON (HAS NOT BEEN FIXED) THE CAR IS CURRENTLY UNSAFE TO DRIVE...REFERENCE THE CONTROL PANEL WARNING INDICATOR THAT CARMAX CANNOT ANALYZE NOR REPAIR. THE HISTORY OF SAFETY PROBLEMS INCLUDE FUSES, AIR BAG, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, AND HORN. SUMMARY: I WAS SOLD A "LEMON" AND HAVE AN UNSAFE AUTOMOBILE. I REQUIRE A SAFE CAR TO DRIVE, AND I WANT TO STOP PAYING FOR REPEATED DEFECTS AND BREAKDOWNS. RECOMMEMDED SOLUTION: I SUGGEST THAT EITHER: (A) THE CAR BE RETURNED FOR A FULL REFUND, INCLUDING REIMBURSEMENT FOR THE COST OF ALL DEFECTS, OR; (B) I BE REIMBURSED FOR ALL DEFECTS AND THAT THE TERMS OF THE 30 DAY WARRANTY BE EXTENDED TO NOVEMBER 29, 2006.

CRACKED SUB-FRAME AT 104,000 MILES. DEALERSHIP STATED THAT IT WAS CAUSED BY POT HOLES, I DO NOT DRIVE OVER POTHOLES AND TAKE CARE OF MY VEHICLE VERY MUCH SO. I AM NOT WRECKLESS, AND I HAVE EVERY MAINTENANCE RECORD AVAILABLE AS WELL AS OTHER WARRANTIES. I HAVE HAD NUMEROUS ISSUES WITH THIS VEHICLE INCLUDING TRANSMISSION AND CLUTCH AT 75,000 MILES, ELECTRICAL ISSUES AND LIGHT INDICATORS TURNING ON FOR NO REASON, AIRBAG LIGHTS LIGHT UP AT LEAST TWICE A YEAR, ENGINE LIGHT COMING ON AT LEAST ONCE A YEAR, AND FINALLY A CRACKED SUB FRAME. THIS VEHICLE HAS BEEN NOTHING BUT COST AND IS DANGEROUS TO DRIVE AT THIS POINT. *AK