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Engine coolingPart report

2006 BMW 325I Engine cooling Problems

Complaints
27about this part
Share
5%of 515 total for the year
Median mileage
71,369miles
Trend
FallingComplaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are at least 25% lower than in the 3 years before.

NHTSA recorded 27 complaints about the engine cooling of the 2006 BMW 325I, 5% of the 515 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 71,369 miles. 2 a fire, according to the filers. 1 recall campaign on record is filed under a similar system.

Example complaints

Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.

“We had bought a 2006 Bmw model # 325I, the vehicle had 33,000 miles on it. Now this car has a head cylinder leakage on it and the dealer needed to replace an engine on it. The fact is that this car was less then 2 yrs, and we had such a major issue already.”

NHTSA complaint #10215170, filed 2008-01, 33,225 miles

“Noticed aluminum headbolt had broken off and caused an oil leak close to the front of the head on the oil filter side of the block, causing a burning oil smell as oil found its way to the burning hot exhaust manifold, thankfully, it did not catch on fire but I feel that it easily could while driving and could cause a serious accident should I or someone else panicked as it would have happened, Bmw has acknowledged this issue in TSB's and already rectified the issue in the 2007 models of the exact same cars. …”

NHTSA complaint #10439239, filed 2011-12, 69,950 miles

“I own a 2006 Bmw 325I. I was on the highway and turning a corner and the engine just stopped. It was towed to united Bmw in gwinnitt ga where all maintenance has been done on the car. I was told that a valve spring broke and fell into a piston chamber. 96000 miles on the car and insurance will not cover. Also, only 50000 mile warranty on the engine. The car has been there for almost 9 months now. I was told it would cost 16000 to fix and they have then since towed the car somewhere else and declared it abandoned. …”

NHTSA complaint #10416901, filed 2011-08, 96,000 miles

“Engine bolts have sheered off at three different mileages: 71,369, 115,162 and 134,835. All times they have created oil leaks and possible engine overheating. Also the sheered bolts could of gotten lodged in the drive belt causing loss of steering (although luckily did not happen). All sheered bolts cost upwards of $1000 per repair to replace.”

NHTSA complaint #10456422, filed 2012-04, 71,369 miles

“This vehicle has a magnesium engine block, and therefore uses aluminum bolts to fasten the head and the valve cover to the engine block. With normal driving, multiple cylinder head and valve cover bolts spontaneously snap off. This type of failure has the potential to disrupt the timing chain and loss of compression, leading to catastrophic engine failure.”

NHTSA complaint #10384560, filed 2011-02, 25,000 miles

Related recalls

Related service bulletins

Engine cooling: other model years

YearComplaintsShare of year
2006275%
200411%
2003116%
200296%
20011711%
1995310%
1994424%
1993524%
19921435%
1989225%
1988120%
1987120%

Other parts of the 2006 BMW 325I

Air bags
241 complaintsElectrical system
85 complaintsEngine
50 complaintsLatches, locks and linkages
47 complaintsSeat belts
40 complaintsSteering
39 complaintsOther or unknown
33 complaintsSeats
29 complaintsTires
16 complaintsFuel system
13 complaintsBrakes
12 complaintsBody and structure
11 complaints

← All problems reported for the 2006 BMW 325I

About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 28, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.

To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology