Home · 2016 BMW I3 · Complaints
These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.
10 of 33 complaints match · Body & structure · clear filters
The roof has bubbled and peeled away leaving an exposed permeable roof, meaning if it rains, water will get into the car because of the roof material being not safe, not strong, peeling away. Just terrible! Looking online, so many people with i3s ha e all had the same issue!
NHTSA ODI 11646070
Translucent protection coat on roof delaminated; pieces blown into air. Bare roof and some coat pieces available for inspection upon request (no inspection yet). Other BMW i3 owners have reported same issue. No prior indication of problem on vehicle itself.
NHTSA ODI 11640459
Roof panel is deteriorating and loosing integrity. Outer laminate coat broke down in general sun conditions, and now underlying roof structure is breaking down as well. The dealer has not inspected the roof yet, but this is an issue widely discussed on community forums, and it’s breaking down on my vehicle now.
NHTSA ODI 11609080
The roof is bubbling and peeling up. Water gets in it when it rains, then it bubbles greatly. BMW won’t fix it, repair shops don’t want to fix it because it’s an obscure roof. They recommend I take it to BMW which won’t fix it (roof replacement suggested). I just bought this car and drive it as normal, and the special carbon fiber roof is degrading too fast.
NHTSA ODI 11548761
The carbon fiber roof of my 2016 BMW i3 REx is really starting to bubble and wrinkle. After taking it to two shops any mitigation would cost hundreds of dollars to address. The roof is starting to peel and am worried about water getting to the car. BMW should have engineered these roofs differently. They should be responsible to cost associated with fixing them.
NHTSA ODI 11539515
Roof peeling
NHTSA ODI 11539525
The roof on outside is starting to flake off in chunks and expose bottom layers.
NHTSA ODI 11539528
The contact owns a 2016 BMW I3. The contact stated while driving 75 MPH, the contact heard a whistling sound, and the roof detached from the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, but no assistance was provided. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was 19,000.
NHTSA ODI 11539150
My carbon fiber composite roof is delaminating and separating. There is a risk that the degradation of the roof will become so bad that it will separate off my car while driving and may hit another car. This is a common problem with bmw i3 roofs. It is crazy that the entire roof panel can structurally fail but because it isn’t steel/rust bmw isn’t worried about it.
NHTSA ODI 11539176
REAR HATCH GLASS SHATTERED AT TAIL LIGHTS. 2ND TIME IN LESS THAN A YEAR. GLASS IS NOT REPLACEABLE, SO WHOLE HATCH ASSEMBLY NEEDS TO BE INSTALLED. VERY POOR DESIGN AND WASTEFUL. AROUND 2000.00 TO FIX
NHTSA ODI 11138912
Working with the data? Download all 33 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 25, 2026