1998 BMW 318ti Recalls

No recalls on record Updated July 2026

No NHTSA recalls on record for the 1998 BMW 318ti. That means NHTSA has no open safety campaign for this vehicle — it does not guarantee the absence of problems. Owners have filed 18 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the tires. Last updated July 5, 2026.

Complaints by component

TIRES
4
1crashes1injuries
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
2
SUSPENSION
2
VISIBILITY:GLASS, SIDE/REAR
2
VISIBILITY:POWER WINDOW DEVICES AND CONTROLS
2
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE
1
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:EXHAUST SYSTEM
1
EXTERIOR LIGHTING:HEADLIGHTS
1
EXTERIOR LIGHTING:HEADLIGHTS:HIGH/LOW BEAM DIMMER SWITCH
1
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:CONTROL MODULE (TCM/PCM/TECM)
1
Total complaints18

What owners report

Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal information removed.

“1. Window movement stopped 2. Window fell into the door and the tint got scratched 3. The dealer quoted 300 to fix it, replaced regulator and brushing. *tr”

VISIBILITY:GLASS, SIDE/REAR · reported 2007-11-25

“Bmw318ti - both driver-side and passenger-side window regulators have had problems . Replaced the passenger-side regulator twice already in the last few years. Fortunately once was within the one-year warranty of when it broke the first time so the expense was just the labor, still expensive. Just…”

VISIBILITY:POWER WINDOW DEVICES AND CONTROLS · reported 2007-03-21

“3 series models (e36) and notably the 318ti bmw automobiles have an extremely high failure rate for the window regulators. Its not uncommon to have to repair them annually at a cost of approximately 300 dollars per door. The failure occurs without warning causing the window to jam, or fall inside…”

VISIBILITY:POWER WINDOW DEVICES AND CONTROLS · reported 2006-07-18

“Pirelli p205 60r 15 tire blow out resulting in serious injury to client. *jb”

TIRES · reported 2005-01-24

“Car has a safety design flaw. Spare tire mount design allows the sidewall of the spare tire (mounted under the trunk) to rub against the bottom of the trunk during normal driving. Upon taking out the spare, the tire was found to have pronounced marks and grooves on the tire sidewalls from the…”

TIRES · reported 2001-07-05

“Unintentional acceleration: I was stopped at a red light, with my foot on the brake pedal. I eased the pressure on the brake to let the car roll forward slightly, then increased the brake ppressure again, the engine immediately began to rev fast, causing the rear wheels to spin and propelling the…”

VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL · reported 1999-02-02

“Gasket wear caused gasoline leaking. Yh”

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE · reported 1998-08-21

“Smog device failed. Yh”

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:EXHAUST SYSTEM · reported 1998-08-21
Sources & methodology

Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL, FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 1998 BMW 318ti as of July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.