Saturday, August 8, 2026
RecallGazette

Vehicle problems, recalls & safety intelligence

2016 BMW i3 structure problems

10 owner complaints filed with NHTSA name the structure on the 2016 BMW i330% of all complaints for this model year.

10
Structure complaints
30%
share of all complaints
median reported incident mileage
0 / 0
crash / fire reports

What owners report

  • The roof has bubbled and peeled away leaving an exposed permeable roof, meaning if it rains, water will get into the car because of the roof material being not safe, not strong, peeling away. Just terrible! Looking online, so many people with i3s ha e all had the same issue!

    filed Mar 3, 2025

  • Translucent protection coat on roof delaminated; pieces blown into air. Bare roof and some coat pieces available for inspection upon request (no inspection yet). Other BMW i3 owners have reported same issue. No prior indication of problem on vehicle itself.

    filed Feb 3, 2025

Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.

Structure problems in other i3 years

YearReportsShare
2017 i31122%
2015 i3715%
2014 i3611%
i3 structure problems by year →

Counts are unique NHTSA complaints naming this component group. Complaints are unverified owner reports; mileage is computed only from complaints that included a usable odometer reading.