10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
1 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
48,571 miles

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« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #294

Oct 302016

Z4

  • 56,000 miles
Steering is unstable. Car keeps pulling to the left or to the right. It requires constant adjustments so that I could keep the car aligned, or centered on the road, especially on the highway.

- West Palm Beach, FL, USA

problem #293

Jun 192016

Z4

  • 30,000 miles
The steering gets jerky in warmer weather making the car extremely difficult to handle. The steering almost appears to have gotten stuck in a notch on the column and forces the driver to put extra force into turning the wheel to correct it. The problem seems to occur when driving at highway speeds and when the temps are above 80. When driving at slower speeds this doesn't appear to happen. In doing some research online this issue appears to happen with most 2003-2005 Z4S without any resolution. The cars should be recalled and fixed.

- North Mankato, MN, USA

problem #292

Aug 132016

Z4

  • miles
The steering sticks left then to the right. Car is very hard to drive safely. The car sits in the garage most of time because of this. Help!!

- Crossville, TN, USA

problem #291

Jul 062016

Z4

  • 47,000 miles
The steering wheel sticks while driving. Takes a lot of force to align the car with the road. This is very dangerous. The dealer quoted 4000 to fix

- North Ridgeville, OH, USA

problem #290

Jul 142016

Z4

  • 51,000 miles
While driving at highway speeds the steering becomes stiff and sticky causing decreased responsiveness on control of the vehicle. As a result it takes extra effort on traveling in a straight line. Once the sticking is released could cause the driver to overcompensate the steering in one direction or another. I feel this is a major safety concern that needs immediate attention.

- Westford, MA, USA

problem #289

Jun 012016

Z4

  • 112,200 miles
In hot weather, the car steering gets "sticky" or hard to make smooth little adjustments when travelling on highways going straight. It's mostly noticeable when travelling on 55mph or higher roads, but somewhat in town too. It makes travelling in the middle of your own lane harder, more likely to wander before you increase your effort on the steering wheel. When in cold weather, the electric power steering is excellent and very easy to keep the car exactly on track with ease. When I read the reports on the BMW club sites and forums, I find that this a very common problem with BMW Z4's of the 2003 to later versions. Please institute a recall before people get hurt of killed, thanks.

- Mariposa, CA, USA

problem #288

Jun 302016

Z4

  • 40,000 miles
In hot temperatures or after driving continuous for awhile, the steering becomes hard to steer like their is a hitch when turning the wheel or a force working against you. Car only has 40000 miles and was serviced every 5000 miles. Took to local BMW dealer and was told it was the rack with repair being $1500. Was not told this was under investigation for a recall. In motion when happens and appears to be dangerous. Has happened numerous times

- Georgetown, IN, USA

problem #287

Jun 232016

Z4

  • 111,000 miles
The contact owns a 2004 BMW Z4. While driving 25 mph, the steering wheel seized. The failure recurred numerous times. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed, but not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 111,000.

- South Saltville, VA, USA

problem #286

Jun 172016

Z4

  • 64,000 miles
The steering wheel seems to have a catch in it when driving and you turn the steering wheel either right or left. When you driving and are going from lane to lane or around a curve it will stick. This could cause the driver to jerk the steering wheel and cause the car to go off the road or into the path of another vehicle.looked the problem up on the BMW form and there were over 120 other steering complaints on this same year and model of car. There should be a recall to repair this problem before there is a bad accident.

- Paris, KY, USA

problem #285

Jun 172016

Z4 6-cyl

  • 64,800 miles
Steering sticks and requires force to alter steering path. This problem is most noticeable in warmer conditions. I purchased my Z4 with only 64,000 miles from a private seller. Issue with steering was not disclosed and was not noticed during test drive. However, I have since researched this problem on line and have learned that this problem is well known and an issued for many BMW Z4 owners prior to 2006. This a huge safety concern for me, and should be for BMW as well. I am fairly certain that I am not the first person to report this issue but to my knowledge, not much has been done to address the issue. Please advise as to what has been done to date to correct this issue, and what are my options to get this resolved for me personally. Sincerely, [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Baton Rouge, LA, USA

problem #284

Jun 012016

Z4

  • 102,500 miles
The steering is very sticky and binds up frequently, especially in warm weather. It can be difficult to control in low and high speeds and could put you in another lane and could cause an accident. This is a known manufacturing defect and the only resolution is to change the whole steering column in which BMW does not want to pay for. This is a highway safely issue and should be fixed by doing a recall. Most Z4S have this problem. I have contacted BMW about this issue. They want me to pay for the replacement when this should have been recalled.

- Royston, GA, USA

problem #283

May 172014

Z4

  • miles
The contact owns a 2004 BMW Z4. While attempting to reverse the vehicle, the steering wheel seized without warning. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the electrical steering column failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

- Puyallup, WA, USA

problem #282

May 012016

Z4

  • 160,000 miles
Sticky steering during warm weather. Can either stick where you have to force it to turn and follow highway road or becomes sloppy and weaves from side to side within lane. Neither should be happening with this expensive car. This is a known problem with many complaints, BMW needs to step up and take responsibility before deaths and damage occur. This problem started in 2011, intermittent problem, granted there are more miles on this car and five years, the problem has not gone anywhere, it's still here.recall these cars

- Calif City, CA, USA

problem #281

Apr 162016

Z4

  • miles
When driving in warm weather, the steering becomes stiff. When driving down the highway the wheel sticks in the center. You have to force the wheel to turn. Then after you turn the wheel you have to force the wheel back to center, having to be careful not to over correct and entering the lane next you. I am understanding that many other BMW consumers are having the same issue. It is very dangerous.

- Spanish Fort, AL, USA

problem #280

Aug 122015

Z4

  • 34,000 miles
When the weather gets warm around at least 80's, the steering becomes very sticky. It can be difficult to control in low and high speeds and can definitely cause an accident. This is a known manufacturing defect and the only fix is to change the whole steering column in which BMW does not want to pay for. This is a highway safely issue and should be fixed by doing a recall. A lot of Z4 has these problem it just in different severity. I have contacted BMW several times about this issue. They want me to pay for the replacement when this should have been recalled.

- Topeka, KS, USA

problem #279

Jul 242015

Z4

  • 45,000 miles
When the weather gets warm say around 80 degrees driving down the road say 45 mph the steering sticks very bad to the point you can kill yourself.

- Pittsfield, MA, USA

problem #278

Feb 292016

Z4

  • 78,000 miles
Steering wheel binds and is difficult to turn while driving at any speed. It happens mostly when the car is warm from the sun or after it warms up from driving. The steering wheel has to be forced to turn to overcome the notchy lockup condition. The car then veers off track. The steering never returns to center so the car continuously wanders back and forth. Internet searches produce many vehicles with this issue, but no recall has been performed. This is a gross safety issue and should be corrected by the manufacturer prior to deaths caused by this safety issue.

- Grants Pass, OR, USA

problem #277

Jun 092015

Z4

  • 75,000 miles
With less than 75000 miles the power steering is completely gone and the dealer says over 5000 dollars to repair.

- Iola, TX, USA

problem #276

Feb 102016

Z4 6-cyl

  • 80,000 miles
I have a 2004 BMW Z4 2.51 VIN number [xxx] - the electronic steering eps has completely failed, and is inoperable. This is a known issue, on many many cars, and after contacting BMW North America, they said the only solution is to have a BMW dealer replace the entire steering column (their engineering problem) at a cost of $4000. I told them this was unacceptable. I have been to many mechanics and they have no answers for this problem other then going to BMW it is failed 90% of the time, and impossible to steer at times my odb2 reader reads the system information as sw-V5.2 SS200381 part number 6763764 coding index 03 diagnosis index 04E1 variant index 474A hardware number 01 date dd.mm.yyyy 10.12.2003 error 610feeprom, no risk information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Maple Valley, WA, USA

problem #275

Feb 102016

Z4

  • 33,000 miles
Steering wheel binds and is difficult to turn while driving at any speed. It happens mostly when the car is warm from the sun or after it warms up from driving. The steering wheel has to be forced to turn to overcome the notchy lockup condition. The car then veers off track. The steering never returns to center so the car continuously wanders back and forth. Internet searches produce many vehicles with this issue, but no recall has been performed. This is a gross safety issue and should be corrected by the manufacturer prior to deaths caused by this safety issue.

- Factoryville, PA, USA

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