Most car enthusiasts aren’t rich folk. Most car enthusiasts have rather small budgets, even fans of expensive brands like BMW. There’s really no issue with that, as there are many superb classic BMWs for sale in classifieds. However, the problem with buying older cars is that they can be unreliable. BMW’s are actually pretty solid, especially the parts that matter, such as engines and gearboxes. But, still, old cars have issues, there’s no two ways about it. Fixing them can be annoying, especially for young, inexperienced enthusiasts. So which BMW part or repair job has frustrated you the most during you time with the brand?
When I first bought my E36 328i, I was an idiot. I didn’t know anything about anything (some might argue that that’s still true) and messed up a lot. Fortunately, the kind gentleman I bought my car from took incredible care of it. It was in beautiful condition and in perfect running order. In fact, the only thing wrong with it at the time of me buying it was that its driver-side power door lock didn’t work. But it worked just fine manually, so all was good. But when a punk 17/18 year old owns it, things go south quick.

Over the years, I spent many days, nights and weekends trying to fix certain parts of my old car. Many nights were spent scouring forums for answers to my problems, things I just didn’t know. However, the one thing that annoyed me most, by far and away, was the entire coolant system. From the radiator to the water pump to the fan clutch to the heater core, everything that had to do with either coolant or cooling the engine made my blood boil. I had to replace the radiator twice, went through three fan clutches, two fans and two water pumps. Admittedly, I did 240,000 miles, so that’s actually not that bad. The worst part of it all though was bleeding the air out of the system.
Then there’s the heater core. While not too expensive and not actually that difficult to actually replace, getting to the heater core in an E36 is more maddening than anything I’ve ever done. It’s almost as if BMW designed the heater core first and the rest of the car around it, as it’s behind the dashboard with what feels like days worth of work just to get to it. Ugh, I’m have shell shock just thinking about it. Oh, and one time my coolant overflow bottle exploded, dumping its entire contents onto the ground. This left me completely stranded. On the Garden State Parkway. In a blizzard. At night. For about four hours.
Aside from that, though, my E36 was actually pretty reliable as it lasted me almost 10 years and the aforementioned 240,000 miles before finally dying on me. So what is the most annoying repair/part/job on a BMW that you’ve experienced?
[Source: Jalopnik]
Decisions, decisions.
Fuel pump?
Runflats?
P112F
1) Electrical problems.
2) Water pump failures.
Vanos problems…
Quality issues all cars made in US. We all know US can’t make good car quality for years so why BMW is keep doing same mistake with X cars. This quality issues made me sell few BMW cars and buy other witch aren’t made in US.
Really? You shoul travell to Ukraine to realize how bad quality gasoline is here. And that is very important for BMW engines.
Crap. Frequently it’s outsourced parts that are the problem. That BMW are expanding their largest plant, Spartanburg, & building a new $ billion one in Mexico, proves you wrong.
NOx and O2 sensors. Replaced 3 in 3 months on a 2013 x5 x35d.
I had transfer case problems with an X3. If tire wear varied even a little between all 4 tires it caused a small gear to strip in an actuator motor. Otherwise, loved the car. My wife’s 2008 1 series has been very reliable.
The transfer case problem in your X3. Did it cause a loud whistling noise when driving? My car just started doing this, and it started during the 1st warm week we’ve had since I bought it this winter. It’s used, an 07 model, with 98k on it. We were in the market for a 2ND car, and it’s the 1st BMW we’ve owned. Love the car, but the problems can be frustrating. Read my post above… thanks!
Laura, No, the problem presented itself with a weird noise from underneath the car every time I turned the car off. I loved the X3 and only sold it when I was presented with a deal on a BMW i3 electric (Which I’m enjoying tremendously).
E46 window regulators
The only real problem in 15 years with E46, X1, E92 M3 and X5
Plastic parts which deteriorate and fail due to heat, UV, stress, age, adhesive, design, etc. Examples? Cooling system parts, window regulator gears, interior trim, exterior trim, wind/air/dirt/moisture seals, electrical connector, adjustment gears/levers/handles, etc.
Do you think this applies to the panoramic sunroof in the X3 model? It seems to be am ongoing problem with that model, per my research. See my above comment for details.
I don’t have specific knowledge of the X3, but the E39 (5-series) sunroof has plastics parts on the sliding arms which raise the back edge for ventilation. They are known to break and the glass just flops up and down instead of sealing. Last time I fixed it was $47 per side for parts.
I’ve dealt with my share of expensive Vanos and subframe issues. However the most frustrating issues are the simple stuff that other manufactures have figured out that BMW hasn’t after decades like window regulators. I’ve have them go on several e36, e46 and e90s.
I mean if your going to own and drive an old car, you should know how to service them or pay to have a shop buy the parts then service to fix it. European Cars use a Bentley manual for part numbers and tools to use with photos. Tech stuff too. I know how with my tools and knowledge. I’d have no such problem ordering the parts and fixing myself.