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Vehicle speed controlPart report

2003 BMW Z4 Vehicle speed control Problems

Complaints
6about this part
Share
1%of 414 total for the year
Median mileage
6,498miles
Trend
Not enough dataFewer than 15 complaints, too few for a reliable trend.

NHTSA recorded 6 complaints about the vehicle speed control of the 2003 BMW Z4, 1% of the 414 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 6,498 miles. 2 of these say a crash was involved, according to the filers.

Fewer than 15 complaints name this part, so treat the figures as a rough indication only.

Example complaints

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

“Driving on the interstate in my june 2003 production Bmw Z4 3.0i roadster. The car suddenly dies at 65 MPH. The eml light comes on, brake lights come on, RPM needle surges, throttle is unresponsive, and the foot brakes are frozen and cannot be depressed. I was barely able to swerve off the interstate, across the service road, and into a parking lot where I had to use the hand brakes to get the car to stop completely.”

NHTSA complaint #10033253, filed 2003-08, 4,800 miles

“Note: this is my second complaint for the same problem.... When coming to a stop at a traffic signal, my car began to rev uncontollably at speeds so high I though the engine would blow. As happened the first time, I pressed as hard as I could so as not to lunge forward. I shut the engine off but upon starting, it was still out of control. I don't know what it was that stopped this problem as one gets pretty much panicked when one can't control the situation.”

NHTSA complaint #10047706, filed 2003-11, 7,600 miles

“I was approaching a traffic signal and I had to stop. I began easing up on the brake pedal as the car was coming to a stop. It was then that I realized I was having to press harder on the brake pedal as the car was not maintaining the slow speed I was expecting. Having reached the point at which I had to stop, I found myself pressing quite hard on the brake pedal. I immediately put the car into neutral and noticed the tachometer reading 3,500 to 4,000 RPM's. …”

NHTSA complaint #10031217, filed 2003-08, 5,095 miles

“The contact owns a 2003 Bmw Z4. The contact stated that while driving at 20 MPH, various warning lights illuminated on the instrument panel and the vehicle began to accelerate independently without the accelerator pedal being depressed. The vehicle began to veer side to side and as a result, an oncoming vehicle on the left lane crashed into the contact's rear driver side. The air bags failed to deploy. A police report was filed. The contact did not sustain any injuries. The vehicle was towed to a junkyard. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 143,000. …”

NHTSA complaint #10852919, filed 2016-04, 143,000 miles

“The contact owns a 2003 Bmw Z4. While driving 3 MPH, the vehicle suddenly stalled. The contact coasted the vehicle to a parking spot and attempted to restart the vehicle. The vehicle would idle but if he depressed the accelerator pedal, it would stall again. The failure occurred twice. The vehicle had not been repaired at the time of the complaint. The contact called the manufacturer and was told that the vehicle was not included in any recalls. The current and failure mileages were approximately 50,100.”

NHTSA complaint #10335451, filed 2010-06, 50,100 miles

Vehicle speed control: other model years

YearComplaintsShare of year
200815%
200713%
200622%
200511%
200410%
200361%

Other parts of the 2003 BMW Z4

Steering
342 complaints
Air bags
31 complaints
Electrical system
13 complaints
Engine cooling
11 complaints
Body and structure
8 complaints
Transmission and drivetrain
7 complaints
Fuel system
6 complaints
Other or unknown
5 complaints
Latches, locks and linkages
4 complaints
Seat belts
4 complaints
Suspension
4 complaints
Equipment
3 complaints

← All problems reported for the 2003 BMW Z4

About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 30, 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