Most common 2002 BMW 330xi problems
Share of the 20 complaints; one complaint can involve more than one system. "~" is the median mileage when the problem started.
BMW 330xi complaints by model year
Best 330xi years: 2000, 2007, 2008. Years to avoid: 2006. Compare all years →
2002 BMW 330xi recalls (5)
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.
Air bags
BMW is recalling certain model year 2002-2003 325i, 325xi, 330i, 330xi sedans; 325Ci and 330Ci coupes and convertibles; 325iT and 325xiT Sports Wagons; and M3 coupes and convertibles to address a safety defect in the passenger side frontal air bag which may produce excessive internal pressure causing the inflator to rupture…
Remedy: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until they have been repaired. BMW intends to issue initial notifications to owners informing them of the safety defect in June 2013.
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 3 possible defects involving the 2002 BMW 330xi:
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…
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…
What 2002 BMW 330xi owners say
Air bags
Takato recall - I received recall notice in July 2015 and even with repeated calls to BMW dealer, no repair has been done. I refrain from driving the car and have less than 400 miles in the last year, but still have to pay for insurance, inspection, license. I have been postponing repairs, but I don't want to spend more money on a car that I shouldn't drive.
Date complaint filed: 03/22/2016date of incident: 05/04/2015component(s): air bagsnhtsa id number: 10850988consumer location: chappaqua, ny all products associated with this complaint expand details close help 0 available documents crash:no fire:no number of injuries:0 number of deaths:0 manufacturer: BMW of north America, llc vehicle identification no. (VIN): not available summary: Takata recall- I assume that you are enabling Takata to be off the hook from their responsibility to replace defective airbags because it costs them time and money to manufacture replacements around the clock. The federal government would rather watch deaths for taking money from Takata as per obama's orders.I was notified a long time ago that the airbag in my 2002 BMW 330xi was dangerously defective. I have called BMW and have yet to receive an appointment to replace the defective deadly airbag. …
Engine & cooling
My son parked his 2002 BMW 330xi in a parking lot early am to sleep. It caught on fire in approximately one and a half hours while idling, killing him. He was laying down in front seats. Event was caught on surveillance camera, no foul play was detected. Claimed to be "accidental fire" by police report. Noticed 2001 BMW 3-series had major recall for same type of event with failure of cooling fans.
Tl* the contact owns a 2002 BMW 330xi. The contact was driving 65 MPH when the vehicle independently decelerated to 30 MPH. The vehicle was merged slowly to the shoulder and the engine was turned off. Once the vehicle was restarted, there were several warning lights illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the dealer advised that the engine wiring harness would need to be replaced. The contact stated that the failure was recurring and previously when the failure occurred, the contact had the throttle body replaced, at the dealer's recommendation. The vehicle was not further repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure who offered no assistance. The failure mileage was 50,000 and the current mileage was 58,000.
Electrical system
After reading many forum questions and answers my vehicle problem is the gm5 module. This module controls a wide selection of electrical function on this car. The function that is at issue is the central locking/unlocking function initiated by the key, key fob or locking control button on the console. By researching online it is apparent that the BMW e46 model has had a long period that this module has been a problem and they have not done anything to remedy the issue. This faulty module (GM-5) will leave you locked out of your car and or once inside not allow any other doors to open by any means. This can be a very dangerous if you May be threatening situation. The manufacturer know this is a problem as it spans years of production. I am just reporting the most recent incident, this has been an ongoing problem. …
Failure of the general module 5 which results in failing to opening the door via the unlock button on the center console and key remote. This will also result in the double locking mechanism to activate to which passengers are unable to exit the vehicle properly either electronically or mechanically (manual locks do not work) forced to leave either through the window, trunk through rear seat if the car has this feature or possibly only through driver side door. This is a safety hazard, if the locks fail electronically the passengers inside should be able to trigger a mechanical way of exiting the vehicle.
2002 BMW 330xi engines & fuel economy
| Engine | Transmission | Drive | MPG city / hwy / combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3.0L 6-cyl | 5-speed manual | 4WD/AWD | 18 / 25 / 20 |
| 3.0L 6-cyl | 5-speed automatic | 4WD/AWD | 16 / 23 / 18 |
EPA ratings. Class: Compact car.
Frequently asked questions
Is the 2002 BMW 330xi a good car?
Based on 20 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, the 2002 330xi rates average: 4.5× as many complaints as a typical year of the 330xi at the same age. 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 2002 BMW 330xi?
The air bags — 8 complaints, 40% of all complaints for this model year. Next are the engine & cooling (3) and electrical system (3).
How many recalls does the 2002 BMW 330xi have?
There are 5 recalls for the 2002 BMW 330xi, 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 330xi?
The best years by complaints, compared at the same age, are 2000, 2007 and 2008. Years to avoid or approach with caution: 2006. See the full BMW 330xi years comparison.
At what mileage do 2002 BMW 330xi problems happen?
The median mileage reported in complaints is about 82,000 miles; 9% 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.