Most common 2004 BMW 330i problems
Share of the 113 complaints; one complaint can involve more than one system. "~" is the median mileage when the problem started.
BMW 330i complaints by model year
Best 330i years: 2010, 2011. Years to avoid: 2017, 2020, 2021, 2018, 2019. Compare all years →
2004 BMW 330i recalls (4)
Air bags › Frontal › Passenger side › Inflator module
BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2000-2005 323iT, 325iT, 325xiT, 320i, 323i, 325i, 325xi, 328i, 330i and 330xi and 2000-2006 323Ci, 325Ci, 328Ci, 330Ci, M3 Coupe, 323Cic, 325Cic, 330Cic, and M3 Convertible vehicles equipped with non-desiccated frontal Takata PSAN inflators and PSPI passenger frontal air bag…
Remedy: BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger's front air bag, free of charge. The recall began February 13, 2020. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
Air bags
BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2000 323i sedans, coupes, convertibles, and Sports Wagons; 2000 328i sedans and coupes; 2001-2005 325i sedans, coupes, convertibles, and Sport Wagons; 2001-2005 325xi sedans and Sports Wagons; 2006 325i coupes and convertibles; 2001-2006 330i sedans, coupes, and…
Remedy: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until they have been repaired. BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger side frontal air bag, free of charge.
Air bags › Frontal › Driver side › Inflator module
BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2002-2005 325i, 325xi, 330i, and 330xi Sedans, and 325xi and 325i Sportswagons, 2002-2006 330Ci, 325Ci, and M3 Convertibles and 325i, 330i, and M3 Coupes, 2002-2003 M5, 540i, 525i Sedan, and 530i Sedans, and 540i and 525i Sportswagons, and 2003 X5 3.0i and 4.4i…
Remedy: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the vehicle has been remedied. BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front driver air bag module, free of charge. The recall began Aug 2016.
Exterior lighting › Turn signal
BMW is recalling certain model year 2002-2005 325i, 325xi, 330i, and 330xi vehicles manufactured from September 1, 2001, through March 1, 2005. Over time, resistance in the electrical contacts May cause one or more rear lamp functions (tail light, brake light, and/or turn-signal), within the vehicle's body panel, to stop…
Remedy: BMW will notify owners, and dealers will repair the vehicles free of charge. The safety recall began on February 15, 2012. Owners May contact BMW customer relations and services at 1-800-525-7417.
NHTSA defect investigations
Federal safety investigators have looked into 6 possible defects involving the 2004 BMW 330i:
Air Bag Inflator Rupture
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE14-016 in June 2014 based on six inflator rupture incidents involving consumer owned vehicles produced by five vehicle manufacturers.All six vehicles were operated in Florida or Puerto Rico at the time of the rupture and for the majority of their service life, and were equipped with inflators produced by Takata, a tier-one supplier of automotive air bag…
Rear lamp illumination
Odi has received complaints from consumers stating that their tail light assembly is not properly illuminating.the tail light assembly consists of a turn signal lamp, a tail lamp and a brake lamp.the complainants have indicated that the issue is with an 8 pin connector and associated ground wiring.these components are allegedly overheating and melting due to excessive electrical current that runs through the…
Air Bag Inflator Rupture
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE14-016 in June 2014 based on six inflator rupture incidents involving consumer owned vehicles produced by five vehicle manufacturers.All six vehicles were operated in Florida or Puerto Rico at the time of the rupture and for the majority of their service life, and were equipped with inflators produced by Takata, a tier-one supplier of automotive air bag…
Rear Lamp Illumination
In a letter submitted to the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) dated August25, 2011, BMWindicated that it will conduct a voluntary recall campaign to remedy the subject vehicles.The issue involves the rear lamps in the vehicles body panel.Through normal vehicle use over time, the rear lamps ground wiring and associated 8-pin connector can experience an increase of the resistance at the electrical contact…
Rear lamp illumination
In March 2009, the office of defects investigation (odi) received a petition from mr. Mark peters requesting an investigation of rear lamp failure in model year 2002-2005 BMW 3-series vehicles.an information request letter was sent to BMW in April 2009, and odi received BMW's response in June 2009.the tail lamp assembly contains lighting for the brake lamps, tail lamps, and turn signals.a technical service bulletin…
Delayed transmission engagement
Ms. Claire m. Tieder of reston, va, submitted a defect petition to the national highway traffic safety administration (NHTSA) by letter dated January 11, 2004, requesting a defect investigation be conducted into delayed transmission engagement on model year 2004 BMW xi vehicles.BMW's response to NHTSA's information request indicated that certain BMW 3-series vehicles equipped with the gm5 transmission May exhibited…
What 2004 BMW 330i owners say
Lights all 83 →
This car has factory HID Xenon projector headlights. Over time the reflector bowls burned and melted from the heat of the light bulbs, causing some wire insulation to melt, and a brown film to cover all surfaces inside the headlight assembly. The brown coating makes the headlights dangerously dim. From various online searches, it appears this is a common failing of these headlights. BMW has not recalled these headlights, and replacements nearly exceed the value of the car.
Zkw brand xenon headlamps have defective reflector bowls. The lights burn off all of the reflective surface causing the low/high beams to be so dim that driving at night is impossible. The part (reflector bowl) is not available as a replacement part, it can only be purchased as a whole headlight assembly for $1300 each light. This is a major safety issue, that I have just found out about. As we have been getting into winter and the daylight saving change cause earlier sunset times, I noticed my headlights were not very bright on the road. It hasn't been an issue that I noticed in past years due to my <1 mile commute, but this year I purchased a house 25mi from work and the amount of night driving has increased dramatically. I first adjusted the alignment of the lights to try to correct what I thought the issue was, and also have replaced one of the head light bulbs with no change. …
Air bags all 20 →
The contact owns a 2004 BMW 330. The contact stated while driving at approximately 20 MPH, the front center of the vehicle crashed into the front center of another vehicle and the air bags did not deploy. No warning lights were illuminated. A police report was filed. The contact stated that her and her husband both sustained injuries and sought medical attention; the contact stated that a piece of her nose detached, there was a gash on her knee and that she broke her hips, ribs, and one of her arms. The contact also stated that her husband bruised his face, heart, broke his hips, sustained laceration to his lungs and liver and fractured his right foot; The other party also sustained several unknown injuries. The vehicle was towed to an unknown location. A dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. …
I side swiped a curb at a weird angle and it caused my drive side and passenger side side air bags to go off. The driver airbag exploded with such force that it broken my collar bone severely enough that I had to have surgery and metal plates put it to hold it back to together.
Windows, wipers & sunroof
The headlight reflectors on this car (and other of this year model) are manufactured by zkw and they have failed causing very low, unsafe levels of light output. The reflectors are burnt and cracked. The only way to get any reasonable or safe light output for night driving is to use the fog lights and this is an unsafe condition and I am surprised there hasn't been a recall. This is a well known problem. Unsafe lighting and proceed while unknowingly endangering themselves and others. Do not pass state inspection light out put in some states, this problem should be address, if you look on the inter net people are modifying them to give more light witch makes it more unsafe.
Headlights of 2004 BMW 330i with xenons are made by manufacturing company "zkw" and bound to fail. Visibility and light output becomes extremely poor, that you must drive around with extra lights, or high beams on. When you open up the reflective case, you will see that both front headlights driver and passenger side have burnt bowls, which do not allow any light output at all. This is extremely dangerous, I have gotten into an accident due to not being able to see far distance at night. Please address and investigate this matter immediately.
2004 BMW 330i engines & fuel economy
| Engine | Transmission | Drive | MPG city / hwy / combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3.0L 6-cyl | 6-speed manual | RWD | 18 / 27 / 21 |
| 3.0L 6-cyl | 6-speed automatic | RWD | 18 / 27 / 21 |
| 3.0L 6-cyl | 5-speed automatic | RWD | 17 / 25 / 20 |
EPA ratings. Class: Compact car.
Frequently asked questions
Is the 2004 BMW 330i a good car?
Based on 113 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, the 2004 330i rates avoid: 30.5× as many complaints as a typical year of the 330i at the same age. It is one of the 330i years we suggest avoiding. Complaint counts don't account for sales volume or individual maintenance, so have any used car inspected before buying.
What is the most common problem with the 2004 BMW 330i?
The lights — 83 complaints, 73% of all complaints for this model year, most often about headlights. Next are the air bags (20) and windows, wipers & sunroof (11).
How many recalls does the 2004 BMW 330i have?
There are 4 recalls for the 2004 BMW 330i, the most recent from January 15, 2020 (inflator module). Recall repairs are free at any authorized dealer — check whether yours has been done with the VIN recall check.
What are the best and worst years of the BMW 330i?
The best years by complaints, compared at the same age, are 2010 and 2011. Years to avoid or approach with caution: 2017, 2020, 2021, 2018 and 2019. See the full BMW 330i years comparison.
At what mileage do 2004 BMW 330i problems happen?
The median mileage reported in complaints is about 100,000 miles; 10% of problems with a recorded mileage started before 50,000 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.