BMW i3 BMW i3

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BMW i3 repairs by problem area

Engine (38%)

Transmission and Drivetrain (2%)

Brakes and Traction Control (0%)

Suspension and Steering (6%)

Electrical and Air Conditioning (35%)

Paint, Rust, Leaks, Rattles, and Trim (9%)

Other (9%)

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Chart based on 211 repairs.
See TSBs and recalls for the BMW i3.

BMW i3 electrical repair cost distribution

$2500+ (2%)

$1000 - $2499 (0%)

$500 - $999 (7%)

$100 - $499 (7%)

< $100 (84%)

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Chart based on 45 repair trips. The repair cost chart excludes repairs made under warranty, do-it-yourself repairs, and repair trips that include maintenance.

2018 BMW i3 4dr Hatch

2600 mi Various electrical glitches, lights, warnings, back-up camera. Dealer loaded updated operating system 

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2017 BMW i3 4dr Hatch

168-horsepower Electric 1-speed automatic RWD

34000 mi

US $150
12V battery replaced and complete computer system updated,  replaced the park distance control modular 

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2017 BMW i3 4dr Hatch

168-horsepower Electric + Gas 1-speed automatic RWD

42000 mi Seat heater stopped working (think a spill) and module replaced. Covered under CPO warranty but would have been $700. 
37000 mi

US $220
Low voltage battery failed, producing a burning sulfur smell with steam coming out of the battery overflow valve behind the front right wheel. Electrical system stopped working, requiring use of physical key to access vehicle, which set off the car alarm until a tow could be arranged several hours later. Battery was covered under warranty as was the tow. 

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2016 BMW i3 4dr Hatch

168-horsepower Electric 1-speed automatic RWD

30642 mi

US $625
12v battery died 

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2016 BMW i3 4dr Hatch

168-horsepower Electric + Gas 1-speed automatic RWD

14000 mi Replaced A/C unit due to extreme rattling from unit. 

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2015 BMW i3 4dr Hatch

168-horsepower Electric 1-speed automatic RWD

6000 mi AC compressor suffered catastrophic failure. Metal shavings/debris sent throughout system, causing entire system to be replaced (all valves, hoses, etc.) to properly fix. Long delay waiting for parts. 
3100 mi Brought in for heating/cooling compressor noise. Motor mount bolts recall, but needed also mounts as the bolts had bent. 
7320 mi 12 volt battery defective. Replaced when car brought in for oil and filter change. 
34000 mi Recirculation Light (manual) not illuminating, Passenger side seat heater light flickers when turned on, eventually stops flickering. 

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2015 BMW i3 4dr Hatch

168-horsepower Electric + Gas 1-speed automatic RWD

20000 mi Fuel door opener. Still not fixed. 
1000 mi Backup camera stopped working; screen displayed black video, video with red lines. Backup camera determined faulty and replaced 
8000 mi Rear view camera was loose 
18000 mi The climate control panel would go blank during hot weather 
23000 mi Driver's SRS malfunction. Dealer determined the driver's airbag was faulty Replaced the airbag and issue was resolved. passenger airbag reprogramming recall. 
15000 mi 12V battery charging system was mis-diagnosed as larger EV battery problem. When actual problem was determined, repair was quick but car was in shop for 10 days plus lost for one day by recovery service! 
6600 mi Wiring in driver heated seats system short circuited, causing malfunction and internal damage to seat cushion. 
13135 mi Rear view camera was flaky and was replaced by the dealer 
38000 mi

US $2440
Airbag module high resistance fault per TSB: SI B65 18 16, warning light came on. Cleared code several times and it kept coming back. Brought to dealer and they found harness had broken behind Driver's steering wheel airbag. BMW says that harness can't be replaced individually, so they had to replace whole airbag (which BMW calls "airbag module"). Interestingly my extended warranty text explicitly covers "airbag module" even though it also says it doesn't cover Airbags or Safety Restraint Systems. After calling warranty company to point this out they agreed and paid. Driver's seat heater failed (at first seemed weaker, then started turning itself off after 5-10 minutes). Needed replacement. 
13000 mi A/c system failure. Dealer has attempted to repair 2 times with no success. Currently parts are on order to try again 
13000 mi A/C System failure. Parts on backorder from Germany caused long delay. BMW was very good and offered loaner car during this period of time. 
12080 mi The fuel flap failed to open once so I had to pull the manual release cable (common i3 problem). I reported this to the dealer so they could reset the fuel pressure sensor and check the cable. 
11700 mi Airbag failure warning light- replaced airbag wiring harness with new design. 
3500 mi Reverse camera stopped working - replaced by dealer with new camera as unsure what was the cause. No further problem 
4640 mi Drivers airbag fault, replaced under warranty 

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2014 BMW i3 4dr Hatch

168-horsepower Electric 1-speed automatic RWD

5259 mi Performed SIB 61 31 14 KLE Update. Replaced KLE P/N 61-44-8-647-315 and reprogrammed ECU. 
5906 mi Drivetrain malfunction light and car shut down. Cause: Faulty Safety Box. Replaced Safety Box P/N 61-21-8-645-849 and reprogram ECU. Also replaced several gaskets, seals, screws, bolts, and warning labels required for removal to complete repair. 
6316 mi Car failing to charge using L2 EVSE. Cause: Faulty Cell Supervision Circuit (CSC) module. Replaced CSC P/N 61-27-7-648-785 Cell Monitor and several seals, gaskets, screws, bolts, and warning labels required for removal to replace part. 
8526 mi Clicking noise while charging vehicle. Performed EME reprogram per SIB 61 02 15. 
11000 mi It was just a firmware update 
25000 mi AC compressor was noisy and was replaced. 
15500 mi AC was not working. Dealer recharged and checked for leaks, non detected. System Repaired. 
8000 mi

US $250
12V battery failed. Not covered under new vehicle warranty. 
26000 mi 12 V battery wouldn't hold a charge. Even though the high voltage battery had plenty of charge, car wouldn't start. Had to be trucked into dealership. 12 V battery is a dealer-only repair part (no after-market batteries available). Battery is not stocked, and BMW America didn't have it either. So waited two weeks for part to become available. 
9000 mi AC started blowing warm air. A software update was performed but was unsuccessful. Technician determined AC compressor is not building pressure internally. A new compressor has been ordered but will not be in until September 10! 
9000 mi New AC compressor was installed on Sept. 9. No metal was found in the lines. AC is now working again. 
4000 mi Radio head unit dead. No display, no radio, NAV, Bluetooth. Bad head unit control module. 

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2014 BMW i3 4dr Hatch

168-horsepower Electric + Gas 1-speed automatic RWD

35340 mi Back up camera was dirty inside the shell 
22000 mi 12V battery went out and damaged HV battery. Car became inoperable and had to be towed to dealership. My dealership had never changed a 12V battery on an i3 and multiple escalations to BMW Corporate were required, both on the technical side and also to have most of the work covered under the HV battery's warranty. The general warranty on this vehicle is expired. 
26000 mi

US $90
12V battery installed in May was found faulty and was again changed - this time under full warranty. 
31000 mi

US $1397
Heating system for driver's seat. 
19000 mi Check engine light would come on after charging sessions (this is an electric car) 
85000 mi

US $550
Rear hatch unlock mechanism failed (electric release mechanism). 
129000 mi

US $580
12 Volt battery died and need replacement and coded to the vehicle 
51000 mi Safety software for passenger seat 
15000 mi The LED lights on the radio and climate control panel would flicker or fail to work at all. The entire panel was replaced. 
1000 mi Airbag/restraint system error light appeared on dash one week after delivery. Dealer diagnosis fault in engine or motor (I can't recall which) wiring harness, part needed from Germany, ETA 10 days. Part arrived in 7 days. 
4200 mi Airbag sensor failure light came on in September for the second time since I got the car. Was previously repaired in May by replacing main wiring harness. This time it was repaired during repair of drive train also reported in October. 
8100 mi Warning message showed on iDrive and instrument displays saying Fault in Airbag or Seatbelt systems. 
10700 mi Electric fuel door release stopped working for a few days. Had to use emergency cord in frunk. Drivetrain error when running REX generator. Cleared itself after a couple days. Seems like a pressure problem of some kind when it uses a lot of gas quickly. 
14000 mi fuel door actuator replaced 
2500 mi Software issue caused failure of 12V battery and failure of all car systems. The 12V battery was charged and the software was updated. 
6000 mi CEL comes on periodically. Replaced Elec A/C compressor and programmed the vehicle (complete encoding) 
21000 mi Replaced reversing camera 
23000 mi Heated seat mat replaced 
4000 mi 12v battery completely died. 
8000 mi Dealership attempted to update the car firmware during the normally scheduled maintenance visit. After 2 failed attempts, the car "blue screened" and became unresponsive. 
10000 mi Software update attempted 2x, and failed both times. After second attempt, car "blue screened" and took nearly a week to fix 
4000 mi Charging cable lock failing intermittently, wouldn't release charging cable. Dealer replaced lock motor. 
18000 mi Petrol refuel flap would not open. Software update to correct. No parts. 
30000 mi Fuel filler flap will not open-software error. 
3842 mi Replace KLE (on-board charging) module. 
42000 mi Got a drivetrain malfunction warning. They narrowed it down to a faulty cable with bad resistance going to thte battery. 
15500 mi Rear (back up) camera had moisture inside of it (it's supposed to be sealed). It was replaced free of charge under warranty. 
21700 mi Replaced the instrument cluster under warranty. The old one had a display screen that was getting delaminated. 
68200 mi

C $4000
Blowing warm just needed recharge 
36600 mi Problem on 12V auxiliary battery, need to be replaced. 
40000 mi The gas tank cover would not open. same problem with gas cap not opening, they had parts this time. 

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2014 BMW i3 2-door

2-cylinder hybrid CVT 2WD

15500 mi Backup camera 

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BMW i3 Electrical Problems

See our lemon odds and nada odds page to see vehicles with no repairs or vehicles with more than three repairs. To see how frequently BMW i3 problems occur, check out our car reliability stats.