2008 Bmw M3
The Verdict
The 2008 Bmw M3 has 81 owner complaints filed with NHTSA. The most reported issues are transmission (35 complaints) and engine (26 complaints). With a Klunk Score of 78/100, it earns a "Solid Pick" rating. If you're shopping for a Bmw M3, consider the 2022 model year which has 98% fewer complaints.
Safe Bet
The 2022 has 98% fewer complaints
View the 2022 Bmw M3 dashboard →
Klunk Score: Solid Pick
Fewer complaints than most vehicles. Generally dependable, but check the top problems below.
How is this calculated?
The Klunk Score ranks this vehicle year against all others in our database based on total owner complaints filed with NHTSA. 100 = fewest complaints (top tier), 0 = most complained-about. Scores above 60 are better than average; below 40 means more problems than most.
Recalls 2
Active safety recalls from NHTSA for this vehicle year.
BMW IS RECALLING 2,500 MY 2008-2009 M3 PASSENGER VEHICLES WITH AN OPTIONAL DOUBLE CLUTCH TRANSMISSION. THE PROBLEM INVOLVES THE DOUBLE CLUTCH GEARBOX. IN A SITUATION OF RAPID VEHICLE DECELERATION...
Risk
IN THAT SITUATION, AT LOW VEHICLE SPEEDS, IT IS POSSIBLE FOR THE ENGINE TO STALL INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.
Remedy
DEALERS WILL REPROGRAM THE ENGINE AND TRANSMISSION ELECTRONIC CONTROL UNIT WITH UPDATED SOFTWARE FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON DECEMBER 3, 2008. OWNERS MAY CONTACT BMW AT 1-800-831-1117.
Reported Apr 10, 2026
BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2009 328i and 328xi, 2009-2011 335d, 2008-2012 M3 Coupe and M3 Convertible, and 2008-2011 M3 Sedan vehicles. The connection of the positive bat...
Risk
A loss of electrical power can cause the vehicle to stall, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy
BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace and secure the positive battery cable connector, free of charge. The recall began August 14, 2019. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-80...
Reported Apr 10, 2026
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Under the Hood
Each number is a complaint. Darker = bigger problem.
By Category
By Severity
Worst Problems
Complaints
During a regular fuel stop at a gas station, I noticed the central lock button nor the physical door hinge fail to operate to open the door for me to exit. The fuse for the central power door lock/unlock button blew out, completely disabling the interior door hinge mechanism. I got trapped inside but thankfully the power was still on and the rear doors remained unlocked. So, I lowered the driverside window and crawl outside. Then open the unlocked reer door to enter the vehicle from the back seat. Then located the fuse box, searched on the internet to itenfy the effected fuse, replaced damaged one to another fuse (dedicated to another function), temporarily replaced with the same ampage fuse. For my vehicle, there is no visible solution to enter the physical key to open the door from the outside that are typically found under the exterior door handle. If it wasn't for a combination of luck that the other door remained unlocked, had power to lower the window, have some knowledge of vehicle electrical system (fuse), and tolerable weather condition, I would've been stuck inside my car for indifinite time, or break the window to get to exit. I would testify that this is a serious safety concern the manufacturer should investigate and provide permanent resolution.
Passenger Seat Occupancy Sensor error displayed in vehicle information center. Warning restraint/Air Bag not functioning properly. This was taken to the BMW dealership for diagnosis, and it was determined the Passenger Occupancy Sensor has failed and needs to be replaced. There was no recall listed for this issue. I found there was a Service Information Bulletin from BMW acknowledging the issue SB-10056703-9690 with many affected models of vehicles, that has been updated in 2018 to include additional. It currently does not list the E93 model, but does list E90 and E91 and stated the affected component if electric adjustable seats is seat option code 459. My vehicle has the same option code as listed as the affected components. BMW extended warranty coverage for owners of vehicles adding additional models with E91 in 2018. They should cover over models with the affected component as it presents a safety issue and is a common failing part.
VISIBLE GASOLINE LEAK FROM THE CHASSIS UNDER THE DRIVER SIDE REAR PASSENGER AREA. STATIONARY INSIDE GARAGE.
WHILE DRIVING AT APPROXIMATELY 70MPH ON THE HIGHWAY, CEL CAME ON, CAR WENT INTO LIMP MODE, BEFORE LOSING POWER ALTOGETHER WHILE DRIVING. VEHICLE WOULD NOT TURN BACK ON. REPORT OF ENGINE DAMAGE REQUIRING AN ENTIRE REPLACEMENT.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 BMW M3. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS PARKED IN REVERSE ON A HILL. THE EMERGENCY BRAKE WAS NOT APPLIED PROPERLY AND THE VEHICLE ROLLED DOWN THE HILL AND CRASHED INTO ANOTHER VEHICLE. THERE WERE NO INJURIES. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY. THE CONTACT'S VEHICLE SUSTAINED DAMAGES TO THE HOOD, BUMPER, AND FENDER. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED BY AAA TO AUTOMASTER BMW (3328 SHELBURNE RD, #3, SHELBURNE, VT 05482, (802) 985-1850) WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM WAS REPLACED; HOWEVER, THE BODY DAMAGE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE CONTACT REFERENCED NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 19V472000 (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM) AS A POTENTIAL CAUSE OF THE FAILURE, BUT HE HAD NOT RECEIVED A RECALL NOTICE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE AND ASSISTED WITH THE REPAIR COST. THE VEHICLE WAS CURRENTLY AT AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC TO HAVE THE BODY DAMAGE REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 90,000. *TR*JB
NHTSA RECALL NUMBER: 17V676 THIS RECALL WAS ISSUED OVER A YEAR AGO AND STILL HAVE YET TO BE CONTACTED BY BMW TO RESOLVE THE RECALL OR PROVIDE ANY RECOURSE. WHAT IS THE TYPICAL RESPONSE TIME?
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 BMW M3. THE CONTACT RECEIVED NOTIFICATION OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 17V676000 (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM); HOWEVER, THE PARTS TO DO THE REPAIR WERE UNAVAILABLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE MANUFACTURER EXCEEDED A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME FOR THE RECALL REPAIR. THE DEALER (BASNEY BMW MAZDA, 52203 IN-933, SOUTH BEND, IN 46637, (574) 272-8504) WAS CONTACTED AND CONFIRMED THAT THE PARTS WERE NOT AVAILABLE FOR THE RECALL REMEDY. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE ISSUE AND WAS NOT ABLE TO CONFIRM WHEN THE PARTS WERE TO BECOME AVAILABLE. THE CONTACT HAD NOT EXPERIENCED A FAILURE. VIN TOOL CONFIRMS PARTS NOT AVAILABLE.
TAKATA RECALL. DESPITE MY HAVING RECEIVED 2 RECALL NOTICES REGARDING MY AIRBAG, AND MY CAR'S VIN BEING LISTED ON NHTSA.DOT.GOV AS BEING SUBJECT TO AN AIRBAG RECALL, THE BMW DEALER LISTED ON MY RECALL NOTICE, BMW OF MOUNTAIN VIEW, IN MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, REFUSED TO DO THE RECALL REPAIR ON 5/16/2018 ON THE BASIS THAT THEIR COMPUTER SYSTEM SAID THERE WERE NO OPEN RECALLS ON THE VEHICLE. THEY FURTHER SAID THAT THE RECALL NOTICE I RECEIVED MEANT THAT THEIR MIGHT BE A RECALL BUT THAT IN FACT THERE WAS NO RECALL.
PASSENGER RESTRAINT ERROR KEEPS COMING UP DUE TO FAULT IN SEAT MATS. RECALLED FOR OTHER 3 SERIES VEHICLES, 2008 M3 SHOULD BE INCLUDED IN RECALL.
I'VE BEEN DRIVING BMW FOR OVER 12 YEARS. MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITE CAR TO DRIVE. I'VE HAD MY M3 FOR A YEAR. MY DREAM CAR. I TOOK THE UPMOST CARE OF HER. COMING HOME FROM WORK LATE MONDAY DRIVING AROUND 65-70 MILES PER HOUR. I HEARD A LOUD NOISE FROM MY CAR AND AN ENGINE MALFUNCTION NOTIFICATION ON MY CAR. ALMOST HIT AN 18 WHEELER AS MY CAR LOST CONTROL BEFORE I SWERVED INTO A DITCH. HAD IT TOWED TO MY MECHANIC WHERE HE CONFIRMED A PIECE OF A ROD POKING OUT THE LOWER PART OF MY BLOCK. I NEVER THOUGHT THE ROD BEARING FAILURE WOULD EVER HAPPEN TO ME! IT HAPPENED. I CURRENTLY HAVE NO CAR AND I STILL MAKE PAYMENTS. I HAVE TO GET A RIDE TO WORK WHICH I HATE. BMW SHOULD BE HELD RESPONSIBLE FOR ALL S65 MOTORS THAT HAVE THESE NO CLEARANCE ROD BEARINGS. THIS WAS MY BABY. NOW SHE'LL NEVER BE THE SAME AGAIN.
CONNECTING ROD BEARING FAILURE WHILE DRIVING. STARTING MAKING A LOUD TICKING SOUND FROM THE BOTTOM END OF THE MOTOR.
I HAVE A BMW E92 CHASSIS. I HAVE SPOKEN TO MANY, MANY OWNERS OF THE SAME BMW AND THEY HAVE SAID THE SAME THING. THE THROTTLE BODY ACTUATORS ARE DEFECTIVE ON THESE BMWS. WHEN THE MALFUNCTION TAKES PLACE THE BMW GOES INTO LIMP MODE. THE CAR IS NOT ABLE TO REV ABOVE 3K RPM NOR GO A SPEED OF OVER 55 MPH. THIS IS INCREDIBLY DANGEROUS ON THE INTERSTATE WHEN YOUR CAR DOES THIS. I DID NOT FEEL SAFE AS WELL AS MANY PEOPLE I'VE TALKED TO AND THIS HAS HAPPENED TO THEM. IT IS A KNOWN ISSUE ON THE E92 BMW AROUND 79,000 MILES. THE BMW M3 OF THIS YEAR IS VERY POPULAR AND THERE ARE MANY OWNERS. THE ROD BEARINGS ALSO GO OUT IN THIS CAR AND CREATE THE SAME SAFETY ISSUE. I BELIEVE THE THROTTLE ACTUATORS AND ROD BEARINGS GOING BAD AND PUTTING THE CAR INTO LIMP MODE IS AN INCREDIBLY DANGEROUS ISSUE. I HAVE CALLED BMW NA AND THEY WILL NOT LOOK INTO THEM AS THEY ARE NOT AN 'ACTIVE RECALL'.
RECEIVED A LOSS OF POWER WARNING FOR THE CAR. TOOK IT TO THE SHOP, SHOP WAS UNABLE TO DIAGNOSE THE PROBLEM BUT STATED THAT IT WAS PROBABLY A BENT RED. TOOK IT TO GET A SECOND OPINION. NO COMPRESSION IN THE 4TH CYLINDER BUT THERE IS OBVIOUS CYLINDER WALL DEFORMATION AND SMALL PISTON SHRINKAGE.
I WAS DRIVING FROM WORK AND HEARD A LOUD METAL KNOCKING NOISE COMING FROM THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT. I IMMEDIATELY STOPPED AND CALLED A TOW TRUCK. THE CAR WAS TOWED TO KUMMROW AUTOMOTIVE. THEY DIAGNOSED THAT THIS IS A CATASTROPHIC ROD BEARING FAILURE. HOW COULD THIS HAPPEN IN A CAR WITH A LITTLE OVER 60,000 MILES? I KNEW ABOUT THE POTENTIAL ROD BEARING ISSUE AND THE CLASS ACTION SUITS, BUT SINCE THIS ISSUE AFFECTS LESS THAN 1% OF THE VEHICLES AND SINCE I BOUGHT A VEHICLE THAT WAS NEVER TRACKED, BABIED ALL OF ITS LIFE, I FELT CONFIDENT I WASN'T GOING TO BE ONE OF THE UNLUCKY ONES. I AM EXTREMELY DISAPPOINTED IN THE WAY I WAS TREATED BY BMW NA AFTER SO MANY YEARS OF BEING A LOYAL CUSTOMER AND A BMW ENTHUSIAST. THE S65 (M3) AND S85 (M5) ENGINE ROD BEARING ISSUE HAS BEEN VERY WELL DOCUMENTED OVER THE YEARS. I REPORTED THE ISSUE TO BMW NA AND CORRESPONDED WITH YOU AND SCOTT KUCHTA VIA EMAIL AS WELL AS ON THE PHONE. IT'S BEEN GOING BACK AND FORTH FOR OVER A WEEK. I SPOKE WITH SCOTT ON MONDAY AND HE INFORMED ME THAT BMW NA IS NOT AWARE OF ANY ROD BEARING ISSUES WITH MY ENGINE AND THAT SINCE THE CAR WASN'T MAINTAINED AT THE DEALER, BMW NA WON'T BE ABLE TO OFFER ANY ASSISTANCE. THE CAR WAS SERVICED AT BMW OF STERLING IN VA ALL OF ITS LIFE EXCLUSIVELY FROM 2008 THROUGH 2013. THE SECOND OWNER HAD THE CAR FROM 2013 THROUGH 2017 AND PUT 3,000 MILES ON IT. THAT'S IT! SO, HE DID ONE OIL CHANGE. THE CAR WAS BABIED ALL OF ITS LIFE. AS FAR AS THE ROD BEARING ISSUE, A SIMPLE SEARCH FOR THE ENGINE (S65) OR THE MODEL NUMBER (E92 M3) GENERATES PAGES AND PAGES OF INFORMATION ON THE SUBJECT. ANY BMW LICENSED OR INDEPENDENT MECHANIC IS VERY WELL AWARE OF THIS ISSUE. THIS IS VERY DISAPPOINTING AND DISCOURAGING THAT BMW NA WOULDN'T STAND UP TO ITS REPUTATION AND DO THE RIGHT THING HERE. THIS IS A VERY WELL-DOCUMENTED PROBLEM WITH THE S65 ENGINE. I AM HOPING BMW WILL DO THE RIGHT THING HERE.
CONNECTING ROD BEARING FAILURE. WELL MAINTAINED AT DEALERSHIP AND CERTIFIED INDY SHOP. CRANKSHAFT WAS HEAVILY DAMAGED BECAUSE LACK OF OIL DUE TO INCORRECT BEARING AND CONNECTING ROD CLEARANCES FROM FACTORY. ENGINE IS UNREPAIRABLE. CHECK BY BMW AND REFUSE TO ASSIST IN REPLACEMENT. CAR WAS STATIONARY AND HAD BEEN IDLING FOR 1 MIN.
FAILED BEARINGS ENGINE HAD TO REPLACE ENGINE HAPPENED WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY
I HAVE BEEN TRYING TO REACH MY DEALER TO FIX THE STEERING WHEEL AIRBAG (TAKATA) AND THEY ARE STILL SAYING ' NO SOLUTION AVAILABLE YET' I NEED THIS FIXED TO FEEL SAFE DRIVING MY BMW AGAIN.
I WAS DRIVING MY CAR AT BOUT 1AM ON A CLEAR 45 DEGREE MORNING. I WAS DRIVING AT ABOUT 54 MPH ON A FREEWAY. I HEARD A NOISE COME FROM MY ENGINE, IT SOUND LIKE METAL BEING GRIND. MY VEHICLE THEN SHUT OFF I LOST POWER STEERING CAUSING ME TO RUN INTO A DITCH. WHEN I FINALLY CAME TO A STOP I NOTICED THE VEHICLE WILL NOT RE START. I CALLED A TOW TRUCK. WHEN THE TRUCK MOVED MY CAR I NOTICED A LOT OF ENGINE OIL UNDER THE CAR. I HAD THE TRUCK TOWED TO A BMW MECHANIC. THE MECHANIC TOLD ME " ONE OF YOUR ROD BEARINGS BROKE SENDING A ROD THROUGH YOUR OIL PAN". AND I HAVE TINY PIECES OF METAL ALL INSIDE OF MY ENGINE. HE ALSO TOLD ME THAT I WILL NEED A NEW ENGINE.
TL* TAKATA RECALL. THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 BMW M3. THE CONTACT RECEIVED NOTIFICATION OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 16V071000 (AIR BAGS); HOWEVER, THE PART TO DO THE REPAIR WAS UNAVAILABLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE MANUFACTURER AND DEALER EXCEEDED A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME FOR THE RECALL REPAIR. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE ISSUE. THE CONTACT HAD NOT EXPERIENCED A FAILURE. PARTS DISTRIBUTION DISCONNECT.
THROTTLE ACTUATOR PROBLEM: IS CAUSED BY AN ENGINEERING DEFECT IN THE ACTUATOR GEARS WHICH DETERIORATE UNDER 60,000 MILES AND CAUSE THE ENGINE TO GO TO "LIMP" MODE. ONCE IN LIMP MODE THE ENGINE MAY STALL AND WON'T ACCELERATE AS NORMAL; WHICH WAS MY CASE WHEN IT OCCURRED ON THE HIGHWAY CAUSING A GREAT DANGER TO MYSELF AND SOCIETY.
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