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What 50 owners told NHTSA about the 2017 BMW I3 Phev

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.

All (50)Crash / fire / injury (4)Steering (11)Body & structure (10)Electrical system (7)Transmission & drivetrain (6)Airbags (3)Fuel system (3)Brakes (2)Electronic Stability Control (esc) (2)Speed control (2)Visibility & wipers (2)

1 of 50 complaints match · Steering · crash/fire/injury only · clear filters

Oct 22, 2019Steering1 injury

WHILEEXITING A PARKING PLACE ALONG A CURB - SLIGHT VEER OUT,ON DRY PAVEMENT, NIGHTIME, ON AN AVERAGECITY STREET. STEERING SUDDENLY BECAME BULLISH. WITHIN 100 FEET AND IN THE PROCESSOF THE 1ST UPCOMING90-DEGREE RIGHT-HANDTURN ALL MANNER OF WARNINGS WENT OFF, "PEDESTRIAN WARNING FAULTY,INCREASED STEER EFFORT (DUH!) CHASSIS STABILIZATION. I ALSO FELTIMMEDIATEPAININ MY RIGHT FOREARM AND SO THE ORDER OF WARNINGS MAY BE A BIT OFF. I HAVE BEEN WEARING A BRACE ON MY ARM SINCE THAT EVE FOR PAIN RELIEFFROM HAVING TO TORQUE ON THE WHEEL TO THE RIGHT SO HARD TO AVOID CROSSING OVER INTO THE ADJACENTLANE.STEERING IS LIKE DRIVING WITH BOTH FRONT WHEELS NEARLY FLAT. ONBOARD TIRE PRESSURE SHOWS ALL WERE AND ARE OF PROPER INFLATION. AFTER ONE ON-OFF CYCLE OF OVERNIGHT DURATION, ISSUES RESOLVED THEMSELVES THEN REPEATED IN ABOUT 24 HOURS. FOR A FEW DAYS NOW TRYING TO LET IT RESOLVE ITSELF WITH OFF/ON CYCLES THE STEERING HAS HAD THE SAME SLUGGISHNESS AND DOES NOT HAVE ANY POWER ASSIST. WARNINGS ARE STILL PREVALENT.

NHTSA ODI 11270342

Working with the data? Download all 50 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 25, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2017 BMW I3 Phev verdict →