Owners have filed 173 complaints on the BMW 328d, covering 2014–2015. The system named most often is Engine (47 reports). Worst years by volume: 2014, 2015; cleanest: 2015, 2014. 4 reports describe a crash, 12 a fire. On average the car was 6.5 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on BMW 328d
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 173 328d complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Engine 47 Read
Egr valve locked open, as sediment accumulated in the vacuum line from the leaking of anti-freeze into the valve. Manifold developed holes, as the egr overheated due the valve locking open. The smell of anti-freeze and diesel filled the car as smoke started coming from the engine, while I was driving on the freeway.…
While driving home from work my car began to smoke and make a hissing noise about 1 block from my house. I made it home and noticed the smoke coming from the engine area. I imediately sprayed some water on it just incase there was a fire. There was also a smell of burnin plastic. I observed the car for a few hours and…
I received a letter from bmw stating an egr cooler recall was issued for my vehicle. I took the vehicle into bellevue bmw after smelling diesel inside the passenger cabin. They kept the vehicle over night and had me rent a vehicle while they kept the car overnight. Upon returning I was told that my egr cooler did in…
Fuel System 30 Read
The contact owns a 2014 BMW 328D. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V907000 (Fuel System, Diesel) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated while the vehicle was at a complete stop at the traffic light, she noticed smoke coming out from underneath…
The contact owned a 2014 BMW 328D. The contact stated while stopped at a stoplight there was smoke and flames coming from the driver's side of the hood. The contact was able to exit the vehicle safely. The fire department came to extinguish the fire. The fire and police departments were present and filed reports. The…
The contact owns a 2015 BMW 328D. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V907000 (Fuel System, Diesel) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The local dealer and…
Fuel/propulsion System 29 Read
March 6, 2018, my car started shaking as I merged from 101 to 405 s in los angeles. Message indicated a drive train problem and to "drive moderately". Car stopped and would not restart seconds later. While waiting for a tow, was rear ended at a dead stop. Bmw santa monica found metals shavings in fuel line and…
The fuel tank has some kind of leak, not specified where by the dealership, but I suspect it is on the top of the tank. When I first had this vehicle serviced in 2019, I mentioned a small of diesel. The service advisor told me it was a diesel "feature". Having recently acquired another diesel vehicle that does not…
The engine stopped running as I was driving. I was able to coast to a stop but once stopped I was unable to put the vehicle in neutral so it was blocking the roadway. The cause of the vehicle engine to stop was a failure on the high pressure fuel pump. I see there has been a recall issued for this defect but my…
Power Train 19 Read
Going about 60mph, my car completely loses power and shuts down. Power train malfunction loss of power flash on the screen. Ive had the car for 20 days, and at 52000 miles. 2000 over my warranty. Bmw is auotibg ne $5,000 to fix the high pressure fuel pump and system, fuel rail sensor, and fuel rail pressure valve…
11.3.17 car caught on fire while driving. Total loss. Car lost power. Message was displayed "drivetrain malfunction, drive cautiously" pulled to side of highway, car was engulphed in flames within 5 minutes
I then booked an appointment at bmw encinitas on monday, 6/3 to get it fixed. They diagnosed the check engine light and quoted me that it was all part of the recall and that there would be no charge. I signed the paperwork, and my service advisor joey said that due to the service department's backlog, the car wouldn't…
Electrical System 8 Read
On october 26, 2014 at approx. 5:00 pm est, my wife had pulled our car, listed above, into our neighbor's driveway after a small trip. As soon as she parked the car, she noticed smoke coming from under the hood of the bmw. Within a few minutes, the car was engulfed in flames. The fire started under the hood and…
While driving, message displayed "drivetrain malfunction, drive cautiously" car lost power, but I made it to shoulder. While calling for help, I noticed thick grey smoke filling the car. I exited vehicle then noticed flames coming from under the hood on the drivers side. Car completely burned
12/2023 - Sewell BMW replaced EGR, all H/P fuel lines at injectors due to corrosion, injector harness due to heat damage to the wire jackets, cracked coolant pipe. At 145,976 that's an additional 22,315 miles on the 60,000 mile 2015 replacement engine. Total repair costs $3,939.45. 08/23/2024 - Passed inspection,…
Engine And Engine Cooling 6 Read
2014 bmw 328. Consumer writes in regards to mechanical malfunction as a result of the egr cooler issue. *ld the consumer stated the vehicle set fire and the parts to repair the vehicle were unavailable. *js - (recall related incident) ts
The contact owns a 2015 BMW 328D. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V755000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The vehicle was taken to the dealer for the recall repair and the contact was informed by the dealer that the exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) valve needed to be replaced due to leakage…
The contact owns a 2014 bmw 328d. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 18V755000 (engine and engine cooling) however, the parts to do the repair were unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. An unknown dealer was contacted…
Structure 4 Read
I was driving on I-91 at normal highway speed and the car suddenly started decelerating on its own with no warning lights or other indication of a problem. I pulled over immediately and shut the engine off and got out to investigate and saw smoke under the hood. I called 911 and the car was visibly on fire by the time…
Date: august 24, 2015; time: 4:10 pm; location: northbound oregon interstate 5 approaching exit number 289; weather: clear/80 degrees f; speed: 65 mph; road condition: clear. No overpass structures. No overhanging trees. Loud explosion from sunroof area. Sunroof glass exploded outward shooting glass onto highway and…
Hood will not open due to faulty cables and latches. Unable to access the engine compartment to replace front headlight bulbs or replace vehicle fuses
Steering 3 Read
Read document below
Vehicle cruising at 70mph on the freeway when the car stalled out with no warning. It simply went into neutral and cut the engine, rendering the vehicle hard to control since power steering and braking were not working. The car broke down again without warning on a city surface street with a speed limit of 45mph.…
When turning left or right, the power to the wheels is not engaged. However, when the tire is straight, the power engages. This action prevents you from driving normally. To drive, you have to straighten out the wheel straight. Then as you increase velocity, you make your turn. Can be very unsafe as you are driving if…
328d years to avoid — and the clean ones
Complaints per model year. More reports usually means more cars on the road as well as more trouble, so read the crash and fire columns alongside the count.
| Model year | Complaints | Top system | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Electrical System,engine,fuel/propulsion System | — | 1 | |
| 2014 | Air Bags,seat Belts | 4 | 11 |
The same model year, different builds
Every complaint carries the first 11 characters of the VIN — plant, year, body and engine. That is a production series, and complaints are spread across them very unevenly.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Distinct production series | 69 |
| Average complaints per series | 2.5 |
| Worst single series | 10 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 6.5 years |
A model average of 2.5 hides a worst series at 10. Enter a VIN above to see the numbers for that exact build instead of the model as a whole.
Owners reported these. Find out if yours is one of them.
- Complaints matched to the exact production run, not just the model
- What the car is worth given what tends to fail on it
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How we count
Every figure here comes from complaints owners filed with NHTSA — 1,100,006 of them, covering 1,982 models built between 1981 and 2026.
A complaint is an unverified report: someone wrote down what happened to their car. It is not a confirmed defect and not a recall. What makes the volume useful is the pattern — when thousands of owners of the same build describe the same failure, that is a signal no marketing brochure will give you.
Two things we do that the source does not. First, we compute the age of the car at the moment of failure from the incident date and the model year. Second, we group complaints by the first 11 characters of the VIN — the production series — so a bad plant run does not disappear into a model-wide average.
Frequently asked questions
What are the worst years for the 328d?
By complaint volume, 2014, 2015 drew the most owner reports. Bear in mind that popular years put more cars on the road, so check the crash and fire columns too.
Which 328d years are the cleanest?
2015, 2014 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the BMW 328d have?
173 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 2014–2015. Of those, 4 describe a crash and 12 a fire.
Are these complaints verified?
No. They are unverified reports from owners. NHTSA publishes them as filed and investigates only a fraction. The value is in the pattern, not in any single report.
Can I check complaints for one specific car?
Yes — enter its VIN above. We match the first 11 characters, which identify the plant, year, body and engine, so you get complaints on that exact production series rather than the whole model.