BMW Z3Years to avoid, problems & recalls
Based on 207 NHTSA owner complaints across 8 model years, no BMW Z3 year stands out as one to avoid, and the strongest years are 1996, 1998 and 1999. The Z3 has 3 safety recalls on record.
Source: NHTSA complaints, recalls, investigations and manufacturer recall reports. Updated daily. How we score years.
Best & worst years
BMW Z3 years to avoid
Complaints by model year, colored by the CarFlaw verdict: complaints weighted for crashes, fires and injuries, adjusted for years on the road and compared with the Z3 median. Tap a year for its full report.
'96'97'98'99'00'01'02'03
- Avoid
- Caution
- Solid
- Best
- Not rated
2003Not rated–/1002 complaints · 0 recalls2002Not rated–/1006 complaints · 0 recalls2001Not rated–/10019 complaints · 0 recalls2000Caution41/10034 complaints · 0 recalls1999Solid51/10039 complaints · 2 recalls1998Solid52/10030 complaints · 0 recalls1997Caution39/10047 complaints · 1 recall1996Solid50/10030 complaints · 1 recall
Complaints by system
Most common BMW Z3 problems
All model years combined: 207 complaints grouped by the system owners reported.
58Air bags19 crash/fire/injury
33Seats1 crash/fire/injury
33Seat belts1 crash/fire/injury
27Power train1 crash/fire/injury
22Structure1 crash/fire/injury
18Suspension2 crash/fire/injury
15Electrical system
12Engine and engine cooling
9Equipment
4615 other systems7 crash/fire/injury
| System | Complaints | Crash, fire or injury |
|---|---|---|
| Air bags | 58 | 19 |
| Seats | 33 | 1 |
| Seat belts | 33 | 1 |
| Power train | 27 | 1 |
| Structure | 22 | 1 |
| Suspension | 18 | 2 |
| Electrical system | 15 | 4 |
| Engine and engine cooling | 12 | 1 |
| Equipment | 9 | 0 |
| 15 other systems | 46 | 7 |
3 recalls
BMW Z3 recalls
Newest first. The ring shows the share of affected vehicles repaired, from the manufacturer's latest report to NHTSA.