Owners have filed 1,085 complaints on the BMW Z4, covering 2003–2022. The system named most often is Steering (871 reports). Worst years by volume: 2003, 2004, 2005; cleanest: 2022, 2016, 2020. 13 reports describe a crash, 7 a fire, 2 a death. On average the car was 8.4 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on BMW Z4
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 1,085 Z4 complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Steering 871 Read
Case number [xxx] from fars 2012 database. Car ran off right side of roadway while negotiating curve in road and hit a tree. Sole-occupant driver perished in subsequent fire. Six months before accident, victim reported that car "occasionally pops and/or squeaks when cornering" in request for service appointment with…
A tractor trailer hit my car, a bmw z4 convertible, ct license plate, in the rear left, as I was moving slowly with traffic just before the overpass, right before I hit the tappanzee bridge as I was heading to nj on friday, august 1st, 2014, sometime between 11:50-1230pm. I believe it was close or about 12:20pm.my…
The contact owns a 2006 bmw z4. The contact stated while driving 35 mph, the steering pulled to the right or the left. While making a right turn, the steering pull to the right and the vehicle crashed into the curb causing extensive damages to the front fender and sides. There were no injuries. The vehicle was towed…
Air Bags 67 Read
The automatic emergency did not engage the brakes as described to by the dealer, BMW genius and the BMW website. The car was in a collision at low speed (under 35mph) with the car in front of me which put me at risk. BMW sent an engineer from N.J. To inspect the car. The is under warranty and it was in perfect working…
The contact owned a 2005 bmw z4. While the contact's husband was driving 65 mph, the vehicle hydroplaned and crashed into the rear of the preceding vehicle. The air bag deployed with metal shards and a metal rod going through the hand of the driver. The contact also sustained minor burns on the hand and feet from the…
Takata recall. 2003 bmw z4 air bags did not deploy nor did seat belts lock when car hit a tracter trailer who suddenly stopped short on the highway. Bmw was moving at approx 80 mph when driver hit breaks upon seeing trailer stop short
Electrical System 36 Read
The wiring harness under the dash spontaneously ignited while I was driving. The fire was put out with a fire extinguisher, but re-ignited two more times. It didn't stop re-igniting until the battery wires were disconnected from the battery terminals. Police and the fire dept were called
All service and repairs of this cpo performed by dealership. Fire caused total loss of vehicle in excellent condition melting interior and nearly burning driver-damage most severe on driver's side of vehicle and extends to the car exterior. Fire started while vehicle moving on heavily used public road shortly after…
The contact owns a 2006 bmw z4. The contact stated that while parked, the contact used the keyless entry to unlock the door and the vehicle caught on fire. The contact called the fire department who stated that the fire was caused by an electrical component. The manufacturer was contacted about the failure. The…
Engine And Engine Cooling 22 Read
The contact owns a 2016 BMW Z4. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V608000 (Engine and Engine Cooling, Electrical System); 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.…
Whenever slowing down to a near stop, the engine will randomly stall. This can occur at anytime, but is more likely to occur when the outside air temperature is in the 90's or above (it will stall in cold temperature as well, but not as often). The engine temperature at the time of the stall is always completely…
2011 bmw z4, purchased new with approximately 7k miles. Started to feel vibration when I put on brakes around 5k mile mark. Vibration lasts 1-2 seconds. Happened 20 times so far. I was driving today, 7000k mile mark, and the engine failed and died. Like somebody just turned it off. Luckily I was on local street so I…
Engine 12 Read
My new car check engine light goes on and I have bought it into service appox 5 times. The light goes off and when I get it home it goes on again when I start the car. I thought it was fixed. However it came on again and I am afraid to drive it
My grill shutters are faulty and the problem has been persistent and the vehicle is only at 30,000 miles. This is the same part that was issued an extended service contract by BMW for various other models. I believe my model is rare enough to not be included but it should. The existing recall/warranty is “SIB 01 12 19…
The contact owns a 2010 bmw z4. The contact received a recall notification for NHTSA campaign number: 14V176000 (engine). The dealer could not repair the vehicle for eight months because the parts were not available. The manufacturer was notified. The contact had not experienced a failure
Power Train 11 Read
My 2009 bmw z4 was parked in my driveway at about a 65 angle to the rear of my toyota pickup truck. I got into the bmw intending move it into the garage. The car has a standard transmission and was in first gear with the parking brake on. I depressed the clutch pedal and started the engine. An instant after the…
The contact owns a 2010 BMW Z4. The contact stated while driving at 45 MPH when attempting to depress the accelerator pedal the vehicle decrease speed independently. No warning lights illuminated. A dealer was contacted. The vehicle was taken to an dealer where it was diagnosed the transmission needed to be replaced.…
Hydraulic clutch restricter valve causes clutch to slip all the time. Bought the car with 43,000 miles on it and at 54,000 miles the clutch is gone and there is no warranty or recall available. The car was in motion when the clutch went out and the car would not move even when a different gear was used. You could…
Wheels 11 Read
Rear rims cracking on 2010 bmw z4 with only 7,200 miles. Dealer states issue caused by pot holes, but could not explain why front rimswere not cracked
This problem affects wheel style "296" a 19" optional alloy wheel package for e89 bmw z4. Bmw part number 36116785257(rear wheel 19x9) and 36116785256(front wheel 19x8. Under normal driving conditions, multiple cracks developed on inner edge of rim lip leading to large drop in tire pressure and potentially unsafe…
This problem affects wheel style "296" a 19" optional alloy wheel package for e89 bmw z4. Bmw part number 36116785257(rear wheel 19x9) and 36116785256(front wheel 19x8. Under normal driving conditions, cracks developed on inner edge of rim lip leading to drop in tire pressure and potentially unsafe driving condition.…
Structure 8 Read
Was in a drive thru on 9/6/2020 waiting our turn. Approx. 7 cars in front of us. As we are slowly moving up to order, car in idle, foot on brake. As we are moving forward, when we were up to 3 cars, still idling and foot on brake, the car had fully accelerated, brake not holding the car, inching forward due to the…
The convertible top on the 2006 z4 bmw has a mechanism that raises and lowers that fails. It's location is such that it is exposed to the elements. When I bought my car (used)I went to a bmw mechanic that told me that if I did have him fix it it would happen again. Talking to other bmw mechanics I got the same info
The contact owns a 2005 BMW Z4. The contact stated that after entering the vehicle, the heavy plastic interior liner panel fell on his head. The contact stated that the plastic cover was used to hide the windshield clasps that hold the convertible top in place when the convertible top was closed. The contact attempted…
Z4 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Electrical System,visibility | — | — | |
| 2020 | Electrical System | 1 | — | |
| 2019 | Air Bags,structure,forward Collision Avoidance | 1 | — | |
| 2016 | Engine And Engine Cooling,electrical System | — | — | |
| 2010 | Electrical System | — | — | |
| 2009 | Air Bags | 1 | — | |
| 2008 | Air Bags | — | — | |
| 2007 | Air Bags | 2 | 2 | |
| 2006 | Air Bags | 1 | 3 | |
| 2005 | Air Bags | 2 | — | |
| 2004 | Air Bags | 1 | 2 | |
| 2003 | Air Bags | 4 | — |
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 | 186 |
| Average complaints per series | 5.8 |
| Worst single series | 29 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 8.4 years |
A model average of 5.8 hides a worst series at 29. 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
- The original window sticker and factory options
- Full research report as a PDF for the pre-purchase inspection
- No ads, on every page
- No ads, no tracking — and much more
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 Z4?
By complaint volume, 2003, 2004, 2005 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 Z4 years are the cleanest?
2022, 2016, 2020 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the BMW Z4 have?
1,085 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 2003–2022. Of those, 13 describe a crash and 7 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.