Reliable Auto DB

2018 BMW X3 reliability

Is it reliable?

NHTSA's file on the 2018 BMW X3 holds 75 complaints after 9 years, a rate of 6 per year. That is fewer complaints per year than most X3 years here — under the median of the other years, which is 8. NHTSA has 11 recalls on file, including Structure, Frontal, and Instrument cluster.

2012 BMW X3
Photo by Alexander-93, resized from the original. Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0
Complaints

75

Per year

6

Recalls

11

Years on the road

9

What owners report

The complaints owners file most often name Electrical system (21 of 75), then Engine (16) and Structure (9). Those filings include 4 that report a crash, 2 that report a fire, and 1 that reports an injury.

Next to 2017 and 2019

The 2017 X3 has 92 complaints, 8 per year, and the 2019 has 170 complaints, 17 per year. The 2018 has fewer complaints per year than the 2017. The 2018 has fewer complaints per year than the 2019.

The complaint rate is complaints filed in this year’s first 3 years on the road, divided by however many of those years have passed. Recalls are a separate count. The numbers are for the US-market 2018 BMW X3. How we count. Data as of .

Recalls (11)

Recall Structure 2024-10-15 · NHTSA campaign 24V764000
Summary BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2018-2022 X3 sDrive30i, X3 xDrive30i, X3 M40i, and X3 M vehicles. The attachment for the rear cargo rail may become damaged in a rear crash and result in the cargo rail detaching.
Remedy Dealers will replace the rear cargo rail attachment bolts, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed December 12, 2024. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417. Vehicles in this recall were previously remedied for this issue under recall number 24V-534 and will need to have the new repair completed.
Recall Structure 2024-07-17 · NHTSA campaign 24V534000
Summary BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2018-2023 X3 sDrive30i, X3 xDrive30i, X3 M40i, and X3 M vehicles. The attachment for the interior cargo rail may become damaged in a rear crash and result in the cargo rail detaching.
Remedy Dealers will replace the rear cargo rail attachment bolts, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 2, 2024. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
Recall air bags, frontal 2021-07-08 · NHTSA campaign 21V521000
Summary BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2018-2019 X3 sDrive30i, X3 xDrive30i, X3 M40i and 2019 X4 xDrive30i, and X4 M40i vehicles. The front passenger seat occupant classification system may have been improperly assembled, which could result in the misclassification of the seat as unoccupied, and deactivate the front air bag.
Remedy Dealers will replace the seat foam, which includes the occupant classification system, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on September 3, 2021. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
Recall electrical system, instrument cluster 2020-03-18 · NHTSA campaign 20V152000
Summary BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2019-2020 X4 xDrive30i and X4 M40i, and 2018-2020 X3 sDrive30i, X3 xDrive30i, X3 M40i, and X3M vehicles. The instrument panel casing may not have been tightened properly to the passenger air bag.
Remedy BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the instrument panel casing, free of charge. The recall began May 15, 2020. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
Recall back-over prevention, sensing system, camera 2019-09-27 · NHTSA campaign 19V684000
Summary BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2018 540d, 2018-2020 530i, 530i xDrive, 540i, 540i xDrive, M550i xDrive, M5, 530e, 530e xDrive, X3 sDrive, X3 xDrive, X3 M40i, X3 M, and 2019-2020 X4 xDrive, X4 M40i, X4 M, X7 xDrive, X7 M50i, 740Li, 740Li xDrive, 750Li, 750Li xDrive, 8 Series Convertible and Coupe 840i, 840i xDrive, M850i xDrive, X5 sDrive, X5 xDrive, X5 M50i, X6 xDrive, X6 M50i, 330i, 330i xDrive, M340i, M340i xDrive, Z4 sDrive, Z4 M40i, 740Le xDrive and 745Le xDrive, 2018-2019 640i xDrive Gran Turismo and Rolls-Royce Phantom, 2019 M850i xDrive Gran Coupe and Rolls-Royce Cullinan and 2020 Toyota Supra vehicles. The back-up camera and display settings can be adjusted such that the rear view image is no longer visible and the system will retain that setting the next time the vehicle is placed in reverse. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 111, "Rearview Mirrors."
Remedy BMW will notify owners, and dealers will update the back-up camera software, free of charge. The recall began November 8, 2019. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417 or Rolls-Royce at 1-877-877-3735. Toyota owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371.
Recall Seats 2019-07-31 · NHTSA campaign 19V563000
Summary BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2018-2019 X3 sDrive30i, xDrive30i and M40i and 2019 X4 xDrive30i and M40i vehicles. The front seatback frames may have been improperly welded, allowing the seatback to unexpectedly fold forward or rearward.
Remedy BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front seats, free of charge. The recall began September 27, 2019. Owners may contact BMW customer service 1-800-525-7417.
Recall hydraulic brakes, foundation components, disc, caliper 2018-07-06 · NHTSA campaign 18V453000
Summary BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2018-2019 BMW X3 sDrive30i, X3 xDrive30i, X3 M40i and certain 2019 X4 xDrive30i and X4 M40i vehicles. The rear brake caliper pistons on these vehicles may have an insufficient coating, potentially reducing rear brake performance.
Remedy BMW will notify owners, and dealers will bleed the rear brake circuit, free of charge. The recall began August 31, 2018. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
Recall exterior lighting, turn signal 2018-06-21 · NHTSA campaign 18V431000
Summary BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2018 BMW X3 xDrive30i and X3 M40i vehicles. The rear turn signals on the outboard side panel will illuminate red, while the inboard turn signals simultaneously illuminate amber. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 108, "Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment."
Remedy BMW will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the rear turn signal lights, and replace if necessary, free of charge. The recall began August 20, 2018. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
Recall Lane-keep steering assist 2018-06-06 · NHTSA campaign 18V374000
Summary BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2018-2019 BMW X3 xDrive30i, X3 sDrive30i, and X3 M40i vehicles equipped with the "Active Lane Keeping Assistant" option. The steering wheel may be incompatible with the lane keeping assistant function and may not detect if the driver's hands are off the wheel.
Remedy BMW will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the steering wheel, replacing it if necessary, free of charge. The recall began on July 19, 2018. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
Recall structure, body 2018-03-07 · NHTSA campaign 18V154000
Summary BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2018 BMW X3 xDrive30i and X3 M40i vehicles. The rear spoiler may not have been properly attached during assembly, or may be missing screws, possibly causing the spoiler to detach while driving.
Remedy BMW will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the spoiler, correcting its attachment as necessary, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin May 1, 2018. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
Recall electrical system, instrument cluster 2017-11-15 · NHTSA campaign 17V719000
Summary BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2018 230i, 230i xDrive, M240i, M240i xDrive, M2, and X3 xDrive 30i SAV vehicles. These vehicles may have an error in the software for the instrument panel, causing the display to not properly illuminate. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 101, "Control and Displays."
Remedy BMW will notify owners, and dealers will update the instrument cluster display software, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin January 8, 2018. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.

Complaints by component (75 total)

Electrical system
21
Engine
16
Structure
9
Steering
7
Air bags
5
Exterior lighting
5
Suspension
5
Engine and engine cooling
4
Service brakes
4
Back-over prevention
3
Powertrain
2
Seat belts
2
Seats
2
Visibility and wipers
2
Forward collision avoidance
1
Hydraulic brakes
1
Lane departure
1
Latches, locks, and linkages
1
Speed control
1
Show 11 more Show less
Crash-flagged

4

Fire-flagged

2

Injury reports

1

Death reports

0

Complaints filed per year

72018620195202022021320225202314202424202592026
Excerpts from recent NHTSA complaint filings
  • "A rock hit the front of the moonroof glass and a minutes later the moonroof tempered glass exploded while driving."
    Structure · filed 2026-09-17
  • "My car suddenly lost all power when at a red light in a turn lane on an active roadway. Fortunately, it was daytime because I could not turn on hazards or lights. I couldn't open the trunk and more importantly I…"
    Electrical system · filed 2026-09-10
  • "There were several radiatior hose leaks that happened in the winter due to the outdated plastic housing and lines that seized and cracked with colder temperatures. It has become extremely common historically and not…"
    Engine · filed 2026-08-14
  • "The sunroof drains of the vehicle become easily clogged. When this happens, water drains into the battery compartment and interior of the vehicle. Although BMW is aware of this, and the attendant danger of having water…"
    Electrical system, Structure · filed 2026-04-14
  • "While driving on the interstate lost coolant through the oil cooler housing. I had to quickly get to the shoulder of the road having to cross several lanes of traffic. The car had to be towed. I had it towed to the…"
    Engine · filed 2026-04-09

Fuel economy

Trim Engine Transmission Drive City Hwy Combined Annual fuel cost
X3 M40i 3L, 6-cyl Automatic (8-speed) All-wheel drive 20 27 23 MPG $3450
X3 xDrive30i 2L, 4-cyl Automatic (8-speed) All-wheel drive 22 29 25 MPG $3200

Specs and fitment

G01 generation, 2018–present
Body styles SUV
Oil 0W-20 full synthetic , 5.3 qt capacity
Tire size 225/60R18 to 245/45R20 (trim-dependent) front / 225/60R18 to 275/40R20 (trim-dependent) rear

Known issues for this generation

Recall 20V598000 covers certain 2019-2021 BMW X3 sDrive30i and xDrive30i vehicles (with many other BMW models in the same campaign) where an improperly welded tow hook receiver may break when used, increasing crash risk if a trailer becomes detached. Recall 21V096000 covers certain 2019-2021 X3 models (with X4, X5, and other BMW models) for a similar tow hook receiver weld concern; dealers inspect and replace the receiver as needed.

Compare

Previous year 2017 BMW X3 Next year 2019 BMW X3 See every BMW X3 model year →

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2018 BMW X3 reliable?

NHTSA's file on the 2018 BMW X3 holds 75 complaints after 9 years, a rate of 6 per year. That is fewer complaints per year than most X3 years here — under the median of the other years, which is 8. NHTSA has 11 recalls on file, including Structure, Frontal, and Instrument cluster.

What are common problems with a 2018 BMW X3?

The complaints owners file most often name Electrical system (21 of 75), then Engine (16) and Structure (9). Those filings include 4 that report a crash, 2 that report a fire, and 1 that reports an injury.

Is the 2018 BMW X3 more reliable than the years next to it?

The 2017 X3 has 92 complaints, 8 per year, and the 2019 has 170 complaints, 17 per year. The 2018 has fewer complaints per year than the 2017. The 2018 has fewer complaints per year than the 2019.

Has the 2018 BMW X3 been recalled?

The 2018 BMW X3 has 11 recalls on file with NHTSA. See the recalls table on this page for dates, components, and remedies.

How many complaints have owners filed about the 2018 BMW X3?

Owners have filed 75 complaints about the 2018 BMW X3 with NHTSA.

What mpg does a 2018 BMW X3 get?

EPA-rated combined fuel economy for the 2018 BMW X3 is 24 MPG. See the fuel economy table on this page for city and highway figures by engine and transmission.

What generation is the 2019 BMW X3?

G01 generation (2018-on).

What oil does a recent BMW X3 take?

G01 US notes list 0W-20 full synthetic; F25 (2012-2017) notes often list 5W-30 full synthetic.

What tire sizes does a BMW X3 use?

F25 fits often run 245/50R18 to 245/45R19; G01 trims commonly use 225/60R18 to 245/45R20.