2007 BMW 3 Series

Typical pattern

3.1% of complaints about the 2007 BMW 3 Series came in the first year, which is unremarkable for a 2007 vehicle — around the middle of the 268 model-years on record. The median complaint arrives at 8.2 yr in service. The most-reported system is electrical system (288 complaints), typically at 9.3 yr or about 82,000 miles.

Covers 6 variants: 328I (575), 335I (388), 328XI (287), 335XI (26), 335 (14), 328 (14)

Complaints: 1,498
Median age at failure: 8.2 yr
Median mileage: 70,000 n=1105
Crash / fire / tow: 10.7% of reports
Safety recalls: 2

When each system is reported — middle 50% of complaints

System

0y2y4y6y8y10y12y14y

Electrical system

288 reports · 82,000 mi

9.3 yr

16%

Air bags

249 reports · 88,322 mi

9.5 yr

5.6%

Engine

163 reports · 88,300 mi

10.0 yr

21.5%

Fuel system

125 reports · 19,832 mi

1.9 yr

4.8%

Steering

117 reports · 77,000 mi

8.4 yr

3.4%

Latches / locks

93 reports · 48,000 mi

4.8 yr

1.1%

Engine cooling

68 reports · 50,000 mi

10.3 yr

17.6%

Other

45 reports · 100,000 mi

10.6 yr

17.8%

Fuel / propulsion

41 reports · 80,500 mi

9.4 yr

7.3%

Seat belts

40 reports · 81,000 mi

8.3 yr

2.5%

Structure

36 reports · 67,000 mi

7.4 yr

19.4%

Power train

35 reports · 61,000 mi

7.6 yr

8.6%

Safety recalls — NHTSA campaigns

22V119000 2022-03-02

Engine and engine cooling:exhaust system:emission control:crankcase (pcv)

BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2008-2013 1 Series Coupe (128i); 2007-2013 3 Series Coupe (328i, 328xi, 328i xDrive); 2007-2010 X3 SAV (X3 3.0si, X3 xDrive30i); 2008-2013 1 Series Convertible (128i); 2006-2011 3 Series Sedan (325i, 325xi, 328i, 328xi, 328i xDrive, 330i, 330xi); 2006-2012 3 Series Wagon (328i, 328i xDrive); 2007-2013 3 Series Convertible (328i); 2006-2010 5 Series Sedan (525i, 525xi, 528i, 528xi, 530i, 530xi); 2006-2007 5 Series Wagon (530xi); 2007-2010 X5 SAV (X5 3.0si, X5 xDrive30i); 2006-2008 Z4 Coupe (Z4 3.0si); and 2006-2011 Z4 Roadster (Z4 3.0i, Z4 3.

An electrical short can cause the PCV valve heater to overheat, increasing the risk of a fire while driving or, soon after driving when parked.

12E029000 2012-08-10

Engine and engine cooling:cooling system:fan

This recall involves aftermarket parts sold by Valeo. Valeo is recalling certain engine cooling fans, part numbers 696121, 696273, and 696275, used as service replacement parts for model year 2008-2011 BMW 1-Series, 2006-2011 BMW 3-Series, 2000-2009 BMW 5-Series, 2004-2005 BMW 6-Series, and 2006-2007 BMW 7-Series vehicles. A metal-oxide semiconductor may overheat due to insufficient screwing of the semiconductor on the aluminum heat sink. This primary failure could cause adjacent components on the fan assembly motor circuit board to overheat and short.

This condition could cause the fan motor to become inoperative, or cause the motor circuit board in the assembly to overheat, potentially leading to a fire in the engine compartment.

In owners’ own words

Fuel system 6,800 mi 1.7 yr in service

1. HIGH PRESSURE FUEL PUMP ISSUE ON MAY 21ST LED TO THE CAR STALLING WHILE DRIVING AND TURNING. ALSO PUT THE CAR IN "LIMP MODE" (REDUCED POWER). ALSO, RUN-FLAT TIRES ON THE CAR HAVE ALL BUBBLED/POPPED- HAVE HAD CAR ONLY FOR 5 MONTHS WITH 6800 MILES. 2. CAR STALLED NUMEROUS TIMES WHILE DRIVING AND WOULD STALL ALMOST EVERY TIME WHEN CAR WAS STOPPED AT A STOP SIGN OR RED LIGHT. BEFORE BRINGING THE CAR IN FOR SERVICE THREE DAYS LATER THE CAR STALLED AT LEAST 5 TIMES- BMW REPLACED THE FUEL PUMP YESTERDAY. *TR

Fuel system 25,400 mi 6.8 yr in service

I HAVE A 2007 BMW 335I WITH 25K MILES. AS I WAS DRIVING GETTING ON THE HIGHWAY MY CAR HAS LOST POWER ENGINE WAS CUT OFF. I WAS ON A LIMB MODE ALMOST GOT REAR ENDED BY AN 18 WHEEL TRACTOR. THIS HAPPEN SEVERAL TIMES A WEEK. BROUGHT CAR TO DEALER. DEALER REFUSE TO FIX OR REPLACE UNDER RECALL. THEY CHECK THE CAR OUT AND SAID IT WAS THE FUEL INJECTOR. *TR

Fuel system mileage not reported 10.3 yr in service

FUEL REGULATOR FILTER PLASTIC HOUSING CRACKING CAUSING FUEL -GAS LEAKING IN SIDE THE CAR, AND GAS SMELL INSIDE THE CAR, SAFETY ISSUE, THERE IS RECALL FOR 333I 2007 FOR SAME FUEL LEAKING DEFECTIVE PLASTIC HOUSING BUT NO RECALL FOR 328I 2007.IT SI LIFE OR DEATH ISSUE. BEST REGARDS [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR

Air bags 19,000 mi 2.3 yr in service crash / fire / tow

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2007 BMW 328XI. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 25 MPH, THE CONTACT CRASHED INTO A TELEPHONE POLE DUE TO INCLEMENT WEATHER AND ICY CONDITIONS. THE AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. THERE WERE NO INJURIES AND A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. SHE ASKED THE MANUFACTURER AT WHAT SPEED THE AIR BAGS SHOULD HAVE DEPLOYED; HOWEVER, THEY STATED THAT IT WAS AN ISSUE FOR THE LEGAL DEPARTMENT. AT THAT TIME, THE VEHICLE WAS BEING INVESTIGATED BY A MECHANIC. THE CURRENT AND FAILURE MILEAGES WERE APPROXIMATELY 19,000.

Other 3 Series model years

How to read this

This is what owners reported, not a reliability rating. People file with NHTSA about alarming failures, not routine ones, and complaint volume tracks how many cars were sold.
Failure ages come from the incident date on each complaint, populated on about 83% of records. Mileage is shown where reported — NHTSA’s 2021 system change cut mileage capture to roughly 15%, so it thins out sharply after MY2020.
Every rank compares this vehicle only against others of the same model year. A 2025 car has not had time to accumulate five-year failures, so comparing early-failure share across years is meaningless.
Fourteen make-months distorted by media storms and mass recalls — Toyota in February 2010 ran 11× normal volume across 33 models — are excluded.
Recalls are manufacturer actions and authoritative; complaints are not. A recall listed here may already have been performed on any individual car. Check a specific VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.