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What 92 owners told NHTSA about the 2017 BMW X3

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 (92)Crash / fire / injury (12)Electrical system (30)Engine & cooling (22)Engine (17)Fuel system (13)Brakes (12)Airbags (7)Body & structure (6)Fuel System, Diesel (4)Speed control (3)Visibility & wipers (3)

3 of 92 complaints match · Visibility & wipers · clear filters

Feb 1, 2022Visibility & wipers

My daughter was driving on the NJ Turnpike, on the Highway for a few minutes when she heard a loud explosion. Nothing hit the Vehicle prior the explosion. A vehicle behind her saw the pieces of Sunroof blew out and notified her. She took the X3 to BMW and got a nice bill instead.

NHTSA ODI 11449782

Jan 27, 2022Visibility & wipers

Heard a loud boom after just entering the highway and the front sunroof on my 2017 BMW x3 just exploded. Fortunately the cover was closed, most of the glass blew out upon the explosion. Driving around the speed limit at the time of the explosion. Took it the dealer and got a big bill instead.

NHTSA ODI 11449198

Jun 1, 2021Visibility & wipers

The contact owns a 2017 BMW X3. The contact stated while driving approximately 70 mph, there was a loud abnormal sound coming from the roof of the vehicle. Moments later, the driver discovered that the glass sunroof had shattered. The cause of the failure was not determined. The contact indicated that no object had struck the sunroof to cause the failure. The local dealer and the manufacturer were notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 24,143.

NHTSA ODI 11419219

Working with the data? Download all 92 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 10, 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 X3 verdict →