Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (automatic and manual transmissions, CVT, axles, driveshaft, 4WD/AWD).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2000 BMW 328i owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
I parked the car and when I got back in to drive away, I couldn't back up after putting it in reverse. Engined revved but would not move. I had to push car out of parking space. Dealer wants $ 5000.00 to fix, what they say is a common problem with 2000 BMW 328i's.
No reverse in my BMW!!!! I am the 2nd owner of a 2000 BMW 328i. When I purchased my vehicle, the previous owner supplied me with all BMW dealer maintenance/service records. As the 2nd owner, I never had any major repairs. Only scheduled maintenance. My car looks and ran immaculately until, out of the blue, my car refused to go into reverse. This happened while pulled into a parking space at a department store. After shopping, I was not able to get out of the parking space...my car would move into drive just fine but no reverse. There weren't any noises or any warnings that I had a transmission failure. Peake BMW of kenner, la will replace the transmission for $5,854.90. Before putting my car in the repair shop, I did some research on the internet. I discovered that this is a common problem for the BMW 3 series years 1999-2001. …
I am an owner of a 2000 328i BMW with 112,000 miles. I am very meticulous about the care of my car. My car looks and runs excellent. Like many other owners of a BMW, I also suddenly loss the reverse gear after arriving to work one evening recently. My vehicle never showed any signs of transmission trouble. The vehicle got good gas mileage and never slipped. Later the next day, the reverse gear in the car worked fine. I took my vehicle to aamco transmission to have it serviced. The mechanic on duty said the transmission was fine. After talking with the mechanic, he agreed to keep the car for the day and drive the vehicle. The next day I got a telephone call from the mechanic telling me I needed transmission work. He said the reverse gear went out along with 5th gear. …
None, no accidents. A few days ago my car did not go into reverse in the morning and I thought maybe it was to cold or maybe I put it in reverse too soon. So I tried switching the gear into park or in drive and back to reverse and nothing. I even restarted the car and still no reverse. So I just sat there for a few minutes and tried again and it reversed very very slow even when I tapped the gas. Anyway, so car had been going into reverse fine until this evening. I had made a morning trip and an afternoon trip and reverse was working but this evening I got in my car as usual and put my 00' BMW 328i into reverse and nothing. I can't even feel the gear switching like usual but all other gears are working. I have read a lot of complaints so BMW has had to have been aware of this issue for some time now considering that most complaints come from BMW cars that were made in 99' and up. …
I have own my 2000 328i since 2000 when I purchased it new from BMW of little rock, arkansas. On last week when picking up my son from daycare I went to put the car in reverse to back out pf a parking space and it ignored the gear shift to reverse. I though it was me ant put it back in park and tried reverse again only to get nothing. I put it in drive and it worked, I put t through all the other gears and they appear to work, but nothing in reverse. I turned the car off and then began again from start up put it in drive and drove a bit and then back to reverse and it reversed. No problems again until a week later and attempting to back out of the garage and had the same problem. No reverse except this time I can't put it in drive and drive for a bit because it is stuck in the garage with no distance to go other than backing out. …
Rear driver's side subframe mount point failure. The car has gone through class action suit in 2009, and was inspected by BMW in 2010--was told everything is OK and it will not fail since only ones with visible defect will fail. But mine failed anyway 5 years later. This shows even if the damage/defect is not visible it can manifest itself at any time. I was driving about 20mph on city streets going straight, accelerating from a stop, shifting gears from 2nd to 3rd when a loud explosive bang was heard from the rear with an alarming jolt that triggered an interial lock on seatbelts, made all occupants scream in shock and children crying. …
Plain and simple, someone needs to look into this transmission problem that everyone seems to be having! Thousands of people like myself are losing the reverse gear and facing $5000 plus in repairs. You can find website after website and page after page of people that are facing hard economic hardship as it is, then getting slapped in the face by ridiculous repair cost from BMW. This is an injustice to all those who trusted in BMW to deliver the quality product they boast about! Think of it this way, your wife or daughter is stuck in a dark parking lot and can't move her car because the transmission won't go into reverse. Now she has to sit and wait for a tow truck to come to her rescue. Now here's the kicker, its in a bad location and her safety is threatened! Hmm, wouldn't it have been nice if someone would have gotten off their butts and done something to solve this problem? …
Plain and simple, someone needs to look into this transmission problem that everyone seems to be having! Thousands of people like myself are losing the reverse gear and facing $5000 plus in repairs. You can find website after website and page after page of people that are facing hard economic hardship as it is, then getting slapped in the face by ridiculous repair cost from BMW. This is an injustice to all those who trusted in BMW to deliver the quality product they boast about! Think of it this way, your wife or daughter is stuck in a dark parking lot and can't move her car because the transmission won't go into reverse. Now she has to sit and wait for a tow truck to come to her rescue. Now here's the kicker, its in a bad location and her safety is threatened! Hmm, wouldn't it have been nice if someone would have gotten off their butts and done something to solve this problem? …
The reverse on my 328i series BMW went out without any warning. It came back on a day later after having to be pushed out of the parking space. It has since gone out again with no warning. After researching reasons why on the internet, I have discovered that this has also happened to thousands of other BMW owners with a 2000 328i series. BMW does not claim any responsibility for a defective part which has since been updated. The only recourse for the BMW owners is to have transmission rebuilt or a new one put in at a very huge cost, often times more than the car is even worth. But you cannot sell a car without reverse. I would like to see a recall issued for this defective engineering designed part. There are thousands of other owners experiencing this same frustration and expense. I was told that BMW north America will do nothing and doesn't even acknowledge a problem on their part. …
My 2000 BMW 328i with 85000 miles will not go into reverse anymore. A search of this problem at consumeraffairs.com showed that this seems to be a very common problem with this year and model of car. Here is the link. Http://www.consumeraffairs.com/automotive/bmw_trans.html please note this car is in excellent condition and has always been maintained according to BMW guidelines at either a BMW dealer or a BMW specialist. Also this car is driven by adults only and in a gentle fashion. This problem is not a random problem based upon the internet searches I have conducted. I'm quite sure there are many more folks who have experienced this problem and have not regestered a complaint on the internet.
Transmission complaints in other 328i years
Frequently asked questions
How common are transmission problems on the 2000 BMW 328i?
NHTSA has 27 complaints about the transmission & drivetrain of the 2000 BMW 328i, 24% of the model year's 112 complaints. The component named most often is automatic transmission (18 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2000 BMW 328i transmission problems?
No. NHTSA lists no transmission & drivetrain recall for the 2000 BMW 328i, though it has 7 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2000 BMW 328i transmission problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 129,000 miles.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.