There are 4 owner-reported speed control & cruise complaints for the 2003 BMW Z4in NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
TL*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.
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. *AK
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. I BELIEVE IT WAS MY TAPPING ON THE GAS PEDAL THAT GOT THE CAR TO REV AT THE NORMAL RPM'S FOR A CAR THAT IS A STATIONARY POSITION, HOWEVER, THIS HAPPENED SO FAST AND CAUGHT ME OFF GUARD, THAT PERHAPS THE PROBLEM FIXED ITSELF AND IT WASN'T MY TAPPING ON THE GAS PEDAL. *NLM
ENGINE SURGED THEN REVVED UNCONTROLLABLLY AFTER STARTUP. CONTINUED TO SURGE AND IDLE WITH RPM ALTERNATING BETWEEN 0 - 2500 RPM THE ACCELORATOR WAS UNRESPONSIVE.*AK AFTER STARTUP THE CAR SURGED FORWARD. DAMANGE TO FRONT BUMBER AND CRACKED LIGHT RESULTED. DEFECTIVE PART: BAD THROTTLE HOUSING, REPLACED ENGINE THROTTLE (R6385) DEFECT CODE 15 540 712
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 26, 2026