Your vehicle report
2004 BMW Z4
The problems owners report. The recalls to check. The evidence behind each.
Your vehicle at a glance
Complaint patterns and official recall records, kept distinct.
- Owner complaints
- 411
- Received Feb 2004 to Jun 2025
Owner reports
Most reported problems
- 1Steering wanders or pulls at highway speed116 complaints · 28% of this vehicle’s complaints
- 2Power steering cuts out while driving21 complaints · 5.1% of this vehicle’s complaints
- 3Steering wheel seizes or locks suddenly15 complaints · 3.6% of this vehicle’s complaints
Official NHTSA records
Recalls to check
- Recall #04V182000On certain passenger vehicles, under certain environmental conditions, a vapor lock in the fuel pump could occur causing the engine to stall. If this were to happen, the engine would not be able to be restarted for approximately 15 to 20 minutes.
BrakeNews signals
Flagged complaint patterns
Unusual complaint patterns with no matched recall yet. A flag does not mean a recall will happen.
No problems currently meet BrakeNews’s flagging criteria. This is not a safety rating.
How flags are identifiedComplaint counts reflect reports submitted to NHTSA, not failure rates or a reliability ranking. Reported in these complaints: 1 crash, 2 fires, 0 people injured, 0 deaths.
Explore by system
Where do owners report problems?
Choose an area on the car or a system below to explore the reported problems.
Illustrative only; not this vehicle’s exact design. Areas represent complaint categories, not confirmed defective parts.
Showing all 12 listed problems by system.
Engine & powertrain
Brakes
No problems in this category meet this page’s listing criteria. This does not establish that the system is free of problems.
Electrical & lights
Airbags, belts & seats
Steering, suspension & tires
- Steering wanders or pulls at highway speed
- Power steering cuts out while driving
- Steering wheel seizes or locks suddenly
1 more problem
Body, doors & glass
Driver assistance
No problems in this category meet this page’s listing criteria. This does not establish that the system is free of problems.
Other
No problems in this category meet this page’s listing criteria. This does not establish that the system is free of problems.
Complaint history
When NHTSA received these reports. Changes in reporting alone do not establish a change in failure rates.
Show as a table
| Year | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 2004 | 1 |
| 2005 | 5 |
| 2006 | 2 |
| 2007 | 1 |
| 2008 | 13 |
| 2009 | 18 |
| 2010 | 74 |
| 2011 | 57 |
| 2012 | 36 |
| 2013 | 42 |
| 2014 | 29 |
| 2015 | 31 |
| 2016 | 26 |
| 2017 | 11 |
| 2018 | 15 |
| 2019 | 16 |
| 2020 | 17 |
| 2021 | 4 |
| 2022 | 5 |
| 2023 | 3 |
| 2024 | 1 |
| 2025 | 4 |
| 2026 (to Oct 2026) | 0 |
| Total | 411 |
Problems owners report
Listed groups have at least 3 complaints. The page includes the 20 largest groups plus any additional flagged groups; some complaints are not assigned to a group.
| Problem | Complaints | Share | Share ratio | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steering wanders or pulls at highway speed | 116 | 28% | – | |
| Power steering cuts out while driving | 21 | 5.1% | – | |
| Steering wheel seizes or locks suddenly | 15 | 3.6% | – | |
| Unintended acceleration despite braking | 10 | 2.4% | – | |
| Airbag warning light stays on | 9 | 2.2% | – | |
| Frame rusts and corrodes through | 7 | 1.7% | – | |
| Automatic transmission shifts unexpectedly or slips | 6 | 1.5% | – | |
| Dashboard melts, becomes sticky and glares | 5 | 1.2% | – | |
| Steering wheel shakes violently at highway speed | 5 | 1.2% | – | |
| Rear door latch fails to open or close | 3 | 0.7% | – | |
| Airbags fail to deploy in crashes | 3 | 0.7% | – | |
| Ignition key sticks or will not turn | 3 | 0.7% | – |
AI groups complaints by meaning; the groups are approximate. Share ratio compares the problem’s share of this vehicle’s complaints with its share on other vehicles over the last 24 months (shown from 3 recent complaints). A 2× ratio means twice the complaint share, not twice the failure risk. Flags mark unusual shares or recent surges after an AI review of the complaint content. “First signal” does not mean the pattern has persisted continuously.How recall estimates are calculated.
Recalls
NHTSA recall #04V182000April 12, 200413,769 vehicles affected
fuel system, gasoline: delivery: fuel pump
On certain passenger vehicles, under certain environmental conditions, a vapor lock in the fuel pump could occur causing the engine to stall. If this were to happen, the engine would not be able to be restarted for approximately 15 to 20 minutes.
If stalling were to occur, the driver would be unable to maintain vehicle speed or accelerate, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy
Dealers will install a resistor in the electrical line powering the fuel pump in order to prevent an occurrence of vapor lock. The recall began may 11, 2004. Owners should contact Bmw at 1-800-831-1117.
Other model years
About this data
NHTSA complaints and recalls through October 2026. Complaints are counted once each, however many components they name. Original complaints are on NHTSA's page for the 2004 BMW Z4.
Problem groups are formed by AI and may be approximate. BrakeNews flags unusual complaint patterns; they are not official defect findings. Investigation reports are written and checked by AI, with no human review. Owner reports do not establish that a defect exists.
Read the methodology and track record · Check current recalls by VIN