2012 BMW 328I — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-22 129 complaints · 6 recalls
Most-reported system: ENGINE (49 complaints · 38.0%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 4
  • Fires 1
  • Injuries 1
  • Deaths 0
Compare with 2011 →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Component Problem Distribution

Share of owner complaints filed for each vehicle system (unaffected by sales volume)

Component Problem Distribution ENGINE appears in 49 of 129 owner complaints (38.0%) in this vehicle snapshot. ENGINE: 49 complaints, 38.0% of reports ENGINE 49 · 38.0% AIR BAGS: 17 complaints, 13.2% of reports AIR BAGS 17 · 13.2% · 1 crash reports POWER TRAIN: 14 complaints, 10.9% of reports POWER TRAIN 14 · 10.9% · 1 crash reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: 13 complaints, 10.1% of reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 13 · 10.1% FUEL SYSTEM: 9 complaints, 7.0% of reports FUEL SYSTEM 9 · 7.0% EXTERIOR LIGHTING: 3 complaints, 2.3% of reports EXTERIOR LIGHTING 3 · 2.3% VISIBILITY: 3 complaints, 2.3% of reports VISIBILITY 3 · 2.3% STEERING: 2 complaints, 1.6% of reports STEERING 2 · 1.6% VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL: 2 complaints, 1.6% of reports VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 2 · 1.6% UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 16 complaints, 12.4% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 16 · 12.4% · 1 crash reports 1 fire reports 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

UNKNOWN OR OTHER is an NHTSA classification artifact and is always listed last.

View component data as a table
System / Component Complaints Share of Reports Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires)
ENGINE 49 38.0% 0 crashes · 0 fires
AIR BAGS 17 13.2% 1 crashes · 0 fires
POWER TRAIN 14 10.9% 1 crashes · 0 fires
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 13 10.1% 0 crashes · 0 fires
FUEL SYSTEM 9 7.0% 0 crashes · 0 fires
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 3 2.3% 0 crashes · 0 fires
VISIBILITY 3 2.3% 0 crashes · 0 fires
STEERING 2 1.6% 0 crashes · 0 fires
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 2 1.6% 0 crashes · 0 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 16 12.4% 1 crashes · 1 fires
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Problem & Recall Timeline

Observed complaint volume and manufacturer recall actions over time

Problem & Recall Timeline Owner reports in this snapshot begin in Oct 2012; the first recall shown was reported in Sep 2013. 2012-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2013-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2013-Q2: 4 owner reports 4 2013-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2014-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2014-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2014-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2014-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2015-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2015-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2016-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2016-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2016-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2016-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2017-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 2017-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2017-Q3: 5 owner reports 5 2017-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2018-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2018-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2018-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2018-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2019-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2019-Q2: 6 owner reports 6 2019-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2019-Q4: 8 owner reports 8 2020-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 2020-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2020-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 2020-Q4: 6 owner reports 6 2021-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2021-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 2021-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2022-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2022-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2022-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2022-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2023-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2023-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2023-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2023-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2024-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2024-Q2: 4 owner reports 4 2024-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 2024-Q4: 6 owner reports 6 2025-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 2025-Q2: 5 owner reports 5 2025-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 2026-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2026-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 Owner reports Oct 2012 Jul 2026 Recall campaign 13V454000 ◆ Recall campaign 13V454000 Recall campaign 14V627000 ◆ Recall campaign 14V627000 Recall campaign 15V520000 ◆ Recall campaign 15V520000 Recall campaign 20V017000 ◆ Recall campaign 20V017000 Recall campaign 24V513000 ◆ Recall campaign 24V513000 Recall campaign 24V608000 ◆ Recall campaign 24V608000 Investigation PE13030 ● Investigation PE13030
  • Campaign 13V454000 was reported 225 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
  • Campaign 14V627000 was reported 601 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
  • Campaign 20V017000 was reported 2,464 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
  • Campaign 24V513000 was reported 4,095 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
  • Campaign 24V608000 was reported 2,961 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
2012-Q4 Owner reports 2
2013-Q1 Owner reports 1
2013-Q2 Owner reports 4
2013-Q4 Owner reports 1
2014-Q1 Owner reports 1
2014-Q2 Owner reports 2
2014-Q3 Owner reports 1
2014-Q4 Owner reports 2
2015-Q1 Owner reports 1
2015-Q2 Owner reports 1
2016-Q1 Owner reports 2
2016-Q2 Owner reports 1
2016-Q3 Owner reports 2
2016-Q4 Owner reports 2
2017-Q1 Owner reports 4
2017-Q2 Owner reports 2
2017-Q3 Owner reports 5
2017-Q4 Owner reports 1
2018-Q1 Owner reports 3
2018-Q2 Owner reports 1
2018-Q3 Owner reports 2
2018-Q4 Owner reports 1
2019-Q1 Owner reports 1
2019-Q2 Owner reports 6
2019-Q3 Owner reports 2
2019-Q4 Owner reports 8
2020-Q1 Owner reports 4
2020-Q2 Owner reports 2
2020-Q3 Owner reports 3
2020-Q4 Owner reports 6
2021-Q1 Owner reports 3
2021-Q3 Owner reports 3
2021-Q4 Owner reports 2
2022-Q1 Owner reports 2
2022-Q2 Owner reports 3
2022-Q3 Owner reports 2
2022-Q4 Owner reports 2
2023-Q1 Owner reports 1
2023-Q2 Owner reports 1
2023-Q3 Owner reports 2
2023-Q4 Owner reports 2
2024-Q1 Owner reports 2
2024-Q2 Owner reports 4
2024-Q3 Owner reports 4
2024-Q4 Owner reports 6
2025-Q1 Owner reports 4
2025-Q2 Owner reports 5
2025-Q3 Owner reports 4
2026-Q1 Owner reports 2
2026-Q3 Owner reports 1
Recall campaign 1 13V454000
Recall campaign 1 14V627000
Recall campaign 1 15V520000
Recall campaign 1 20V017000
Recall campaign 1 24V513000
Recall campaign 1 24V608000
Defect investigation 1 PE13030
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Safety Recalls (6)

Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA

  1. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 13V454000

    Report date
    Component:
    SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC
    Consequence:
    A failure of the brake vacuum pump results in a reduction in braking power that could increase the risk of a crash.
    Remedy:
    BMW will notify owners, and dealers will modify the vehicles to prevent insufficient vacuum pump lubrication, free of charge. The safety recall began on January 31, 2014. Owners may contact BMW customer relations at 1-800-525-7417 or email BMW at CustomerRelations@bmwusa.com.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  2. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 14V627000

    Report date
    Component:
    SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC
    Consequence:
    A failure of the brake vacuum pump results in a reduction in braking power that could increase the risk of a crash.
    Remedy:
    BMW will notify owners, and dealers will install a locking ring in the camshaft to retain the camshaft seal disk in the proper location, free of charge. The recall began on December 2, 2014. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  3. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 15V520000

    Report date
    Component:
    Not available in the source record
    Consequence:
    If the side marker lights do not illuminate, the vehicle may be less visible at night, increasing the risk of a crash.
    Remedy:
    BMW will notify owners, and dealers will upload revised software to correct the issue, free of charge. The recall began on October 7, 2015. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417 or by email at CustomerRelations@bmwusa.com.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  4. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 20V017000

    Report date
    Component:
    AIR BAGS
    Consequence:
    An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
    Remedy:
    BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver air bag. On X5 and X6 vehicles, only the inflator will be replaced. All repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began March 11, 2020. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  5. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 24V513000

    Report date
    Component:
    AIR BAGS
    Consequence:
    An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
    Remedy:
    Dealers will inspect and replace the driver's air bag module as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed August 30, 2024. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  6. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 24V608000

    Report date
    Component:
    ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
    Consequence:
    An electrical short increases the risk of a fire.
    Remedy:
    Dealers will inspect and replace the water pump and plug connector as necessary, and install a protective shield, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on March 28, 2025. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Complaint Narrative Explorer

Verbatim owner-reported defect narratives from NHTSA public records

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot 2026-08-21
Safety incident filters
Showing 0 of 129 complaints · page 1 of 6

No complaints match the current filters.
EPA Fuel Economy Database Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Estimated Ownership Cost

EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates

Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot 2026-08-21
Supported range: 1,000–60,000 miles per year
Supported range: $1.50–$10.00 per gallon
55% city45% highway
Estimate unavailable

EPA fuel-economy data is unavailable for this vehicle.

No estimate is shown when required EPA values are unavailable.

 Open Ownership Cost Calculator →

Adjacent Model Years

Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Methodology & Data Integrity

Data sourced from NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Snapshot date: 2026-08-21.

Read our complete data methodology → Sources