Problems · NHTSA complaints

2012 BMW M3 problems

Owners filed 6 complaints about the 2012 BMW M3 with NHTSA between Oct 2015 and Aug 2019. The most-cited component is air bags (4).

Complaints
6
Filed with NHTSA
Crashes
0
Reported by owners
Fires
0
Reported by owners
Injuries
0
People reported injured
Deaths
0
Reported to NHTSA
01 —By component

Complaints by component

One complaint can cite several components
  1. Air bags4
  2. Engine2

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.

Data from NHTSA Complaints API · synced Oct 30, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
02 —Trend

When complaints were filed

Does it get worse with age? Complaints per calendar year filed
View as table
Model yearComplaints filed per calendar year
20151
20161
20173
20180
20191

Mileage at failure isn’t a structured field in NHTSA complaint data, so we don’t chart it. Some owners mention it in their reports below.

03 —Owner reports

Top problems in owners’ words

Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first

Air bags

4 reports2 related recalls
“WHEN I CALLED BMW TO HAVE MY DEFECTIVE AIRBAG REPLACED THEY DO NOT HAVE THE PART AVAILABLE. THE DEFECT CAN APPARENTLY LEAD TO SERIOUS INJURY OR DEATH SO I THINK IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT THEY DO THIS IMMEDIATELY.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Oct 2, 2017Air bagsODI 11031418

Engine

2 reports
“APPROXIMATELY 5 MILES AFTER RECEIVING THE VEHICLE THE ROD BEARINGS AND CRANK SUFFERED COMPLETE FAILURE. I WAS IN MOTION AROUND 60MPH ON A RURAL HIGHWAY WHEN THE ENGINE SUDDENLY LOST POWER. AFTER AVOIDING AN ACCIDENT I SAFELY PULLED OVER AND SHUT THE CAR OFF. THE ENGINE WOULD NOT START. THE SEIZED ENGINE WAS DIAGNOSED BASED ON AN IMMOBILE CRANK AND OIL CONTAMINATION BY THE MANUFACTURER'S DEALERSHIP. I THEN HAD THE OIL PAN COMPLETELY REMOVED AT AN INDEPENDENT SHOP TO CONFIRM THE MANUFACTURER'S DIAGNOSIS, IT WAS CONFIRMED. ALL PREVIOUS OIL CHANGES WERE DONE AT THE MANUFACTURER'S DEALERSHIP BY THEIR TECHNICIANS MORE OFTEN THAN THE MANUFACTURER RECOMMENDS. THE MOST ALARMING PART IS THE VEHICLE HAS LESS THAN 23000 MILES. I'VE REACHED OUT TO THE MANUFACTURER, MENTIONING THIS VERY WELL-KNOWN ISSUE AND THE FACT THAT THERE ARE CLASS- ACTION LAWSUITS PENDING ABOUT THIS VERY ISSUE, ONLY FOR THEM TO TELL ME THEY ARE NOT LIABLE. THEIR PRODUCT FAILED BEFORE 23000 MILES, THEY KNOW ABOUT THE ISSUE HOWEVER THEY ARE DOING NOTHING FOR ME. THE PUBLIC SHOULD KNOW ABOUT THIS FAILURE BECAUSE IT CAN CAUSE A SUDDEN LOSS OF POWER AT ANY MOMENT.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Aug 8, 2019EngineODI 11242444
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Oct 30, 2026

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.