2015 BMW X3
Complaints about this year name diesel far more often than the other years of this generation — 18% of them, about 45× the usual rate of 0.4%.
Generation 2 of the BMW X3, which began in 2011 and ran to 2017. Everything below compares this year against the others in that generation, not against a different car wearing the same name.
| Complaints filed | 420 |
|---|---|
| Median for this model | 96 |
| Involving a crash | 32 |
| Involving a fire | 28 |
| Recalls | 7 |
| EPA combined | 24 mpg |
What the complaints were about
- fuel — 21% of this year's complaints, against 4.5% across the other years of this generation (4.6×).
Words owners used for the same problem are counted together, so a fault written four different ways is measured once. Grouped by which complaints they appear in, not by a list anyone wrote in advance.
Also unusual this year
- fuel — 21% of complaints, 5× usual
- system diesel — 10% of complaints, 24× usual
- fuel system — 11% of complaints, 9× usual
What owners wrote
the "check engine" warning light was illuminated. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V907000 (Fuel System, Diesel) however, the part to do the repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amo…
notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V907000 (Fuel System, Diesel) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the re…
Verbatim from NHTSA complaint filings, with identifying details removed.
Recalls for this year
- 18V755000 ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING Fixed free of charge.
- 21V907000 FUEL SYSTEM, DIESEL Fixed free of charge.
- 21V586000 FUEL SYSTEM, DIESEL Fixed free of charge.
- 16V683000 AIR BAGS Fixed free of charge.
- 16V333000 CHILD SEAT
- 14V648000 VISIBILITY Fixed free of charge.
- 24V608000 ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING Fixed free of charge.
How this was worked out
Every year of the BMW X3 was compared against its own history rather than against other cars, which removes popularity and age from the answer — a common car draws more complaints at equal reliability, and an older one has had longer to accumulate them. A year is flagged when it drew at least 2.5× this model's median and at least 50 complaints.
This is a fault record, not a review. Nobody files a federal complaint to say the car was fine, so it shows what tends to go wrong — not whether owners liked it, and not whether it is a good car.
Source: NHTSA complaints, recalls and investigations, retrieved . Look this vehicle up directly on NHTSA's site to check anything here.
Own a 2015 BMW X3? What happened to yours?
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