The 2000 BMW 3 Series has 1 NHTSA recall campaign affecting an estimated 4,511 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 111 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the power train. Last updated July 5, 2026.
Recall campaigns
AIR BAGS21V4010002021-05-274,511 affected
Defect
BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2000-2001 BMW 3 Series (323Ci, 325Ci, 328Ci and 330Ci), 1999-2001 323i, 328i, 330i, 330xi, and 2000 323i, 328i stationwagon vehicles equipped with Non-Azide Driver air bag Inflators (NADI) manufactured by Takata. These vehicles are equipped with driver-side air…
Consequence
The inflator could explode during air bag deployment, resulting in metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants. An underinflated air bag may not properly protect the occupant. These scenarios increase the risk of serious injury or death.
Remedy
Dealers will replace the driver-side air bag inflator with a newly designed inflator, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on July 12, 2021. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
Complaints by component
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
21
STRUCTURE:FRAME AND MEMBERS
20
POWER TRAIN
12
AIR BAGS
10
3crashes4injuries
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
7
1fires
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
4
1fires
STRUCTURE:BODY
4
STRUCTURE
3
SUSPENSION
3
EXTERIOR LIGHTING
2
Total complaints111
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal
information removed.
“Rear lights . Clip contacts melting ground wire . Purchased lights and clips 3 times and melted again. Lights inoperable after 2 weeks of life harness melted . Received multiple warnings and a ticket I now have to prove repair . Recall found for every other model except the 323i 2000 . Not safe to…”
“Rear lights . Clip contacts melting ground wire . Purchased lights and clips 3 times and melted again. Lights inoperable after 2 weeks of life harness melted . Received multiple warnings and a ticket I now have to prove repair . Recall found for every other model except the 323i 2000 . Not safe to…”
“Rear lights . Clip contacts melting ground wire . Purchased lights and clips 3 times and melted again. Lights inoperable after 2 weeks of life harness melted . Received multiple warnings and a ticket I now have to prove repair . Recall found for every other model except the 323i 2000 . Not safe to…”
“Takata recall!! I was driving 35 mph on a regular street I always drive on and mid drive both passanger and driver air bags deployed for no reason!!!! Causing very serious injuries!! Also causing more damage to my car!!!!”
“The brake lights and turn signals don't work... The transmission- reverse has gone out... And the radiator has a serious leak... Makes the car run hot!”
“The brake lights and turn signals don't work... The transmission- reverse has gone out... And the radiator has a serious leak... Makes the car run hot!”
“The brake lights and turn signals don't work... The transmission- reverse has gone out... And the radiator has a serious leak... Makes the car run hot!”
“Tl* takata recall. The contact owns a 2000 bmw 3 series. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 14v428000 (air bags) however, the part to do the repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The…”
Defect investigations
InvestigationEA02012 Opened 2002-07-15 · closed 2003-06-24
INADVERTENT SIDE-IMPACT AIR BAG DEPLOYME
THE SUBJECT VEHICLE'S AIR BAG ELECTRONIC CONTROL MODULE CONTAINS PROGRAMMABLE LOGIC FOR DEPLOYING THE SIDE-IMPACT AIR BAGS.BMW REVISED THE MODULE SEVERAL TIMES OVER THE SPAN OF THE MODEL YEARS 1999 THROUGH 2002 (IDENTIFIED AS MRS2.CA, MRS2.BB, MRS3, MRS3+ AND MRS4).ALTHOUGH MODEL YEAR 1999.5 VEHICLES WITH VERSION…
InvestigationPE02011 Opened 2002-01-31 · closed 2002-07-15
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL,
FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 2000 BMW 3 Series as of
July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page
contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.