Check a vehicle VIN check Latest recalls Latest complaints Common problems Rankings Compare vehicles Recall roundups All makes Guides Share your experience
Theme

Engine & cooling

2001 BMW 325I Engine problems

Owners have filed 23 complaints about the 2001 BMW 325I's engine & cooling with NHTSA - 15% of all its complaints, most recently on August 20, 2024. They describe 1 crash, 3 fires and 1 injury. Stalling, loss of power, oil consumption, overheating, head gaskets, timing chains and engine failure.

Complaints
23
Recalls
2
Crashes
1
Fires
3
Injuries
1
Deaths
0

Engine recalls for the 2001 BMW 325I

Engine and engine cooling: fan

02V1380001,550 vehicles affected

The problem
On certain passenger vehicles, the engine auxiliary/cooling fan operation, including variable speed, is electronically controlled. Failure of the fan motor can cause the electrical circuitry of the fan control unit to overload and fail, causing the fan to stop operating.
The risk
If this were to occur, engine overheating and subsequent engine damage could result. In addition, it is possible for the failure of the electrical circuitry to cause a fire in the fan control unit located in the front of the engine compartment.
The fix
Dealers will replace the fan. Owner notification began september 28, 2001. This is a supplement to a recall that began during september 2001 (see recall campaign 01v206). Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact bmw at 1-800-831-1117.

Engine and engine cooling: fan

01V20600076,469 vehicles affected

The problem
Vehicle description: passenger vehicles. The engine auxiliary/cooling fan operation, including variable speed, is electronically controlled. Failure of the fan motor can cause the electrical circuitry of the fan control unit to overload and fail, causing the fan to stop operating.
The risk
If this were to occur, engine overheating and subsequent engine damage could result. In addition, it is possible for the failure of the electrical circuitry to cause a fire in the fan control unit located in the front of the engine compartment.
The fix
Dealers will replace the fan. Owner notification began september 28, 2001. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact bmw at 1-800-831-1117.

Engine complaints

AirbagsEngine & cooling

The contact owns a 2001 BMW 325I. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the air bag warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle was scanned using a hand-held diagnostic machine. The DTC code 02: Ignition Decay 1/Belt Tensioner Driver was retrieved. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 195,000.

Filed Incident Air bags · EngineNHTSA 11609803
Engine & coolingFire

The contact owns a 2001 BMW 325i. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked overnight and off, the vehicle caught on fire. The contact was alerted by her father that the vehicle was on fire. There were no occupants at the time of the fire. The entire front end of the vehicle was engulfed in flames. The fire department was called to the scene. It was unknown if there was a fire report was filed. There were no injuries sustained. The father of the contact had a truck parked in front and due to the flames...

Read the full complaint

of the vehicle fire, it melted the front of the parked vehicle causing damage. The dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The vehicle was not driveable after the fire. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 188,000.

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 11482276
BrakesEngine & cooling

Ever since I've had the car I have had overheating problems after replacing the water pump all the hoses hvac hoses under the manifold the car still wants to overheat I've been in traffic I've had this problem having a I'm cars behind me and my temperature gauge going to age and I can't crank the car because I don't want to ruin the motor I've had to let the car cool be late for jobs work and other things appointments are the car cool down and I've had to add coolant in it at $20 a piece by the coolant runs right back out

Filed Incident Unknown or other · Service brakes · EngineNHTSA 11243053
Engine & coolingFire

Tl* the contact owns a 2001 bmw 325i. While driving 45 mph, the contact noticed smoke coming from the engine compartment. The contact pulled over to a safe area and inspected the vehicle. The contact noticed that the cooling fan failed and the vehicle overheated. The vehicle was able to restart after numerous attempts, but the failure recurred. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence and then to brian harris bmw (12336 airline hwy, baton rouge, la 70817, (225) 754-1200). The dealer stated that there were no recalls for the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 11084894
Engine & cooling

Oil leak at the valve cover potentially caused by bolts being over-torqued as assembly.

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 10716747
Transmission & drivetrainEngine & cooling

I am horrified. I have 135k miles on my 2001 bmw 325i and it will no longer reverse. I took it into the transmission guy and he told me it would cost $4k to repair. The car has been in very good shape, with barely any problem. He also sent me to a website where apparently many others have had the same transmission problem. Apparently there is a well known failure esp with the 2001 model 3-series. I believe a class action lawsuit or recall should be brought against bmw. *Tr

Filed Incident Power train · EngineNHTSA 10663670
Engine & coolingElectrical systemSeats & seat belts

Purchased the car used, in january 2011, with approximately 110,000 miles. Vehicle had several stored engine codes, po0300,171,174,1345,1351,1353; mostly relating to oxygen sensors and the maf. All engine hoses, the maf, all 4 oxygen sensors and the ignition coil packs were replaced by a certified mechanic. Within 2 months of normal driving, all codes had returned. Mechanic is unable to determine the points of failure for these issues and bmw denies any existing problem the passenger side airbag light, turns on...

Read the full complaint

and off, randomly, whether someone is sitting there, or not. Failure of the sensor could cause the ab not to deploy during an accident, causing serious, if not fatal, injury. Bmw is aware of the issue, does not replace/repair. Door lock/window/windshield wiper control module, known as gm5, fails randomly and often. It has failed several times, while I was in the car. Since it disables the door locks and windows, I was trapped in my car for several minutes. Thankfully, I had the window rolled down far enough to pass my keys to someone on the outside, so they could unlock the door. In an accident, passengers could be stuck, keeping emergency workers from giving them medical attention, in a timely fashion. Bmw is fully aware of the problem, but denies it's existence. I also receive random exterior light out warnings, on the dash. Usually, it's both taillights, but more frequently, it is the driver side light sensor, that fails, though the light is actually working, just fine. *Tr

Filed Incident Engine and engine cooling · Electrical system · SeatsNHTSA 10455224
Engine & cooling

2001 Bmw 325i. Attorney writes on behalf of clients regarding vehicle recall repairs *tgw when the vehicle reached 140,000 miles it began running unusually loud while driving 45 mph. In addition, the vehicle began making an intermittent beeping sound. According to an invoice, the previous owner had the vehicle inspected, but the repairs were declined. The consumer would like to exercise his right to have the recall remedied due to the vehicle potentially catching on fire. Recall numbers 01v206000 and 02v138000 were mentioned in the letter. *Jb updated 05/12/11. *Jb

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10387688
Engine & cooling

Tl* the contact owns a 2001 bmw 325i. While driving at 45 mph, the fans began running unusually loud. The contact stated that the engine was also extremely loud. The vehicle would also make a beeping sound intermittently. No repairs were made to the vehicle. The failure mileage was 140,000 and the current mileage was 160,000.

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10323733
Engine & coolingElectrical systemVisibility & wipers

I have a 2001 bmw 2.5 Automatic with about 55k miles. The service engine soon light came on around 12k and the dealer replace the coil. It came on again several time later over the course of 2 years for few days. Every time by the time I took the car to the dealer, the ses disappeared and dealer can't find any thing wrong. However, I notice that when the light is on, the engine run rough and acceleration is slow. My car is out of warranty now at 55k and the light is on for the last few days. Also, bmw is famous...

Read the full complaint

for problem with the windows regulator. Dealer replaces three of the four windows regulators on three doors during warranty but now the fourth one has failed. What this means is that now all the windows regulator on all the four doors has failed. Please have bmw recalled the issue with ignition coil and fix the windows regulator. Thank you very much

Filed Incident Engine and engine cooling · Electrical system · VisibilityNHTSA 10098811
Engine & cooling

Consumer states that while driving car would overheat.Engine fan fell off vehicle. Dealer notified.*Ak

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10031499
Engine & cooling

Frozen crankcase ventilation valve caused engine to stall out completely in traffic. No engine restart was possible. *Tt

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10021263
Engine & coolingElectrical systemCrash1 injury

While my foot was firmly on the break, my 2001 bmw 325i seemed to speed up and caused me to crash into the building I was parking in front of. Severe damage across the bottom of my right foot( a bruise the shape of the brake pedal } along with other foot and ankle injuries indicate my foot was indeed on the brake and not on the accelerator as one might think. The damage to the car $ 5,000.00. No answer for what happened from dealer. Approx seven months later, while on an open road approaching stop light again with...

Read the full complaint

my foot on brake, car revved up to 4,000 rmp then back down and stalled. Car would not start after this. Towed to different bmw dealer who claimed faulty gas sensors were to blame. Sensors told engine car needed gas when indeed it did not. *Nlm

Filed Incident Engine and engine cooling · Electrical systemNHTSA 10010507
Engine & cooling

The service engine soon light had come on intermittent. *Tt the asc + t light and the park brake light had come on also. The mechanic stated that the problem was due to the damaged sensor. *Scc

Filed Incident Engine and engine cooling · Unknown or otherNHTSA 566959
Engine & coolingVisibility & wipersEquipment & accessories

When turning off air conditioner, a very bad smell comes through the vents. Consumer contacted dealer, who advised that it is was an air quality issue with consumer's environment.*Ak vehicle experiencing problems with the windows. *Tt

Filed Incident Engine and engine cooling · Visibility · EquipmentNHTSA 8013103
Engine & cooling

Recall 01 v 206 002/engine auxilary cooling fan: vehicle overheated on four occasions. Vehicle had been to dealer, but problem still occurring. Feel free to provide any further information.*Ak

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 8004563
Engine & cooling

When traveling at 45 mph and 70mph engine stalled out. Once pulling over and waiting a bit vehicle will start up again. Contacted dealer, and the dealer was not willing to do anything. *Ak

Filed Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 899413
Engine & cooling

Recall 01 v 206 002/auxiliary cooling fan : cooling fan had to be replaced on two occasions due to failure. Problem reoccurred ,and vehicle back in shop for third time, all of this within six months. Feel free to povide any further information. *Ak

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 897673
Engine & cooling

While in the process of turning, the vehicle suddenly slowed down on its own and all the readings on the instrument panel went out, which lasted for about four seconds, then it resumed normal, possibly engine related.*Jb

Filed Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 562384
Engine & cooling

Recall 01v206000; vehicle was stopped in traffic at a light, and it overheated, heavy steam was coming off engine and temperature gauge was at the red. Tow truck driver stated he towed vehicle for weeks because of fan overheating. Bmw dealer currenty has vehicle waitng for parts. *Ak *yh

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 892553
Engine & cooling

The car overheated and had to be towed. I was told on june 4th that bmw was aware of the problem and had isolated it to a specific batch of bad fans and that the replacement fan was from a good car. The replacemnet fan failed on july 4th at 711 miles. There is still no recall notice from bmw. If they and you are aware of the issue why is nothing being done? Cars that can break down are a safety issue as well as an inconvenience. There is also a report in your database of a car fire on the same model car from the...

Read the full complaint

same problem. Do people have to die before action is taken? If this were an aircraft incidence they would be ground and corrected. I am interested in what the procedure is when there is a known defect in a car. *Ak

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 747976
Engine & cooling

Dealer replaced first car and is now having the same problem with the coolant system. Car continues to overheat. *Ak

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 747962
Engine & coolingFire

Consumer parked vehicle in garage at work. 5 Minutes later, consumer was called downstairs, and told engine vehicle on fire. Front part was totaled. Cooling fan and other electrical wires were possible cause of fire.*Ak

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 890460

BMW 325I engine complaints by year

325I engine problems, every year

Had a engine problem with your 2001 325I? Tell other owners.

Your experience goes live straight away and helps every owner and buyer who checks this vehicle. Anonymous, free, no account.

Overall, how would you rate it? *

0/4000 · Please leave out names, phone numbers and your full VIN.

By posting you confirm it's your own, honest experience and agree to the rules. Safety defect? Also report it to NHTSA - that's how recalls start.

Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) complaints and recalls, checked . Complaints are owners' own reports and are not verified. How we use the data

Owners helping owners

Know before you drive.

Every experience you share - good or bad - shows on that vehicle's page and helps the next owner and buyer. Two minutes, anonymous.

Share your experience