2006 Bmw Z4 - Ratings, Complaints and Recalls

The 2006 BMW Z4 Roadster w/SAB has received mixed safety ratings according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). While it scored a 4 out of 5 in both the front crash driver side and front crash passenger side ratings, its overall side crash rating was lower at 3 out of 5. The car is equipped with standard electronic stability control, which enhances its safety features. However, it does not have forward collision warning or lane departure warning systems.

In addition to the safety ratings, it is important to note that there have been a total of 90 complaints reported for this vehicle. Furthermore, there have been 2 recalls issued for the BMW Z4, indicating potential issues that needed to be addressed by the manufacturer. Despite its mixed safety ratings, the presence of stability control adds a layer of protection for drivers and passengers of this model.

auto generated summary, may be inaccurate.

Top stats at a glance

Complaint Count

90

Recall Count

2

Investigation Count

1

Safety Rating

Not Rated

Search Vehicle Details

Advanced Search

The advanced search lets you search by safety ratings and features. This will return a list of vehicles that match your search criteria.

Safety Features

2006 BMW Z4 Roadster w/SAB Safety Features

Here are the safety features that come as standard on the 2006 BMW Z4 Roadster w/SAB

Electronic Stability Control (ESC)

ESC is an advanced safety feature in vehicles designed to help drivers maintain control during challenging driving conditions. By continuously monitoring various factors such as steering angle, vehicle speed, and individual wheel speeds, ESC can detect and reduce the risk of skidding or loss of control. It achieves this by automatically applying brakes to specific wheels to stabilize the vehicle.

Standard
Forward Collision Warning (FCW)

Forward Collision Warning (FCW) is a safety feature in vehicles that helps prevent frontal collisions by alerting the driver of an imminent collision with a vehicle or obstacle ahead. Using sensors such as radar or cameras, FCW monitors the distance and speed of vehicles in front, and if it detects a potential collision, it provides visual and/or auditory warnings to prompt the driver to take evasive action.

No
Lane Departure Warning (LDW)

Lane Departure Warning (LDW) is a safety feature in vehicles that alerts drivers when their vehicle unintentionally drifts out of its lane without signaling. Utilizing cameras or sensors to monitor lane markings on the road, LDW detects when the vehicle crosses these lines and triggers visual, auditory, or haptic alerts to notify the driver of potential lane departure.

No

2006 BMW Z4 Roadster w/SAB Safety Ratings

Here we have the crash and rollover ratings for the 2006 BMW Z4 Roadster w/SAB Where possible we've included the ratings for the oldest and latest models of this car so you can compare how the safety ratings have changed over time.

Frontal Crash Ratings

Combines Driver and Passenger star ratings into a single frontal rating. The frontal barrier test simulates a head-on collision between two similar vehicles, each moving at 35 mph.

Test 2005 Score 2006 Score 2024 Score
Overall Front Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated
Front Crash Driver Side Rating 4 4 Not Rated
Front Crash Passenger Side Rating 4 4 Not Rated

Side Crash Ratings

Combines Side Barrier and Side Pole Star Ratings into a single side rating.

Test 2005 Score 2006 Score 2024 Score
Overall Side Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated
Side Crash Drivers Side Rating 3 3 Not Rated
Side Crash Passenger Side Rating Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Front Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Rear Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated
Overall Side Barrier Rating Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated

Rollover Ratings

The Rollover Resistance test measures the risk of rollover in a single-vehicle, loss-of-control scenario.

Test 2005 Score 2006 Score 2024 Score
Rollover Rating Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated
Rollover Possibility % 0% 0% 0%
Dynamic Tip Result
Side Pole Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated

Complaints for the 2006 Bmw Z4

This chart show the number of complaints for each car component. A Higher number of complaints could indicate that this car might have a common fault. Something to look out for when purchasing one.

Component Complaints

Choose a component to see what complaints people have made about them.

Complaint:
"in hot weather, the steering binds, making keeping the car in the correct lane extremely difficult. the car will dart from one side to the other. the car will be nearly impossible to keep in the correct lane."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2023-12-07
Complaint:
"when the car gets hot (parked in the sun) the steering becomes knotchy or sticky and the car becomes difficult to control. no problems whatsoever when the car is cool or on a cooler day. this problem has been witnessed by a bmw technician and there are no warning lights. this appears to be a fairly common issues with these cars."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2023-11-04
Complaint:
"the steering wheel gets hard, looks like power steering gets disabled automatically while driving, making it almost impossible to steer. this has started to happen after hot weather had started few months back. i have tried to reproduce this issue several times, but it happens randomly and not all the time. i don't drive the car much. but this is definitely a serious issue, i checked the bmw community and a lot of people are facing this issue. not sure how many have filed a complaint here. but this definitely should be addressed by bmw as this is not just one person facing this issue, there are hundreds and thousands of them. level of severity is high, as someone who might have not faced this issue yet might suddenly face it on the highway could result in an extremely fatal accident. havent reported to bmw yet, but found this issue is being faced by alot of people i thought to file my complaint here. i will soon get it repaired or replaced. there were no warning lamps or messages prior to this. it started happening in september 2021."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2022-03-09
Complaint:
"when the outside temperatures are warmer (mid 80's and above) the steering wheel will stick in the center position and require it to be jerked a bit to keep control. this occurs at all speeds, but does not seem to be the case when stopped. since it requires the steering wheel to be jerked to correct, it can cause the car to swerve. i have had the car for several years began noticing the issue once the weather got warmer. the date entered below is today's date, but i have had the issue for perhaps 5 years."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2021-12-08
Complaint:
"during warm weather the steering will momentary stick while driving which requires additional force to overcome. this happens at all speeds but is more noticeable at highway speeds while trying to maintain vehicle in driving lane. there are numerous complaints of this on the nhtsa site. i have written to bmw north america about this safety problem and mentioned the multitude of similar complaints but they refuse to address the problem and suggest i purchase a new steering column at $2500+!"
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2023-04-04
Complaint:
"vehicle steering becomes "sticky" after vehicle has been exposed to warm temperatures. this causes the steering to center and require greater than usual force to off center the wheel, causing the car to be difficult to control especially at highway speeds."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2022-05-06
Complaint:
"very sticky steering, dangerous in hot weather, this happens at all speeds. it sometimes requires significant effort to correct it. this is a serious safety issue."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2020-06-07
Complaint:
"steering appears to be sticking or staying at a certain point in the steering radius. i almost veered into oncoming interstate traffic. i compensated immediately, but it released its "stick" and turn to much and almost veered into traffic i was in. very scary, very dangerous. there was a possibility of much injury or death because of this issue. bad"
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2021-05-03
Complaint:
"recurring problem with steering input effort when driving on highways. the steering sticks when in the center position. resistance is felt and is difficult to return back to the center position. sticking problem seems worse at higher speeds and with warm outside temperature above 80 degrees. the faster the speed, the more effort needed to overcome the detent resistance, to the point that it becomes easy to oversteer the car. this can be real scary during avoidance maneuvers and quick lane changes."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2018-08-10
Complaint:
"steering is extremely notchy and unpredictable, especially on hot days. when in motion, the steering wheel requires force to turn, and sometimes will turn slightly without driver input. it appears that the power assist steering is actuating when it should not be, causing either resistance to steering inputs, or applying force when no steering input has been applied. when the engine is not running, or at very slow speeds, noise can be heard from the power assist motor. it actuates when no steering inputs are being applied. when steering inputs are applied, too much resistance can be felt and the motor makes additional noises. i purchased the car in february of 2016, and this has been happening since approximately spring of 2016. it has been getting progressively worse."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2019-04-09

Recalls for the 2006 Bmw Z4

Component Recalls

Choose a component to see what recalls people have made about them.

Recall:
"bmw of north america, llc (bmw) is recalling certain 2006 525i, 525xi, 530i, 530xi, 530xi sports wagon, 325i, 325xi, 325xi sports wagon, 330i, 330xi, z4 3.0i and z4 3.0si vehicles. the heater for the positive crankcase ventilation (pcv) valve may short circuit."
Consequence:
An electrical short can cause the parts within the PCV valve to melt, increasing the risk of a fire, even when the vehicle is not in use.
Remedy:

BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the PCV valve heater, free of charge. The recall began May 30, 2019. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417. Note: This recall is an expansion to recall 17V-683.

Component(s) Involved: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING > EXHAUST SYSTEM > EMISSION CONTROL > CRANKCASE (PCV)
Date of incident: 2019-04-04
Recall:
"bmw of north america, llc (bmw) is recalling certain 2008-2013 1 series coupe (128i); 2007-2013 3 series coupe (328i, 328xi, 328i xdrive); 2007-2010 x3 sav (x3 3.0si, x3 xdrive30i); 2008-2013 1 series convertible (128i); 2006-2011 3 series sedan (325i, 325xi, 328i, 328xi, 328i xdrive, 330i, 330xi); 2006-2012 3 series wagon (328i, 328i xdrive); 2007-2013 3 series convertible (328i); 2006-2010 5 series sedan (525i, 525xi, 528i, 528xi, 530i, 530xi); 2006-2007 5 series wagon (530xi); 2007-2010 x5 sav (x5 3.0si, x5 xdrive30i); 2006-2008 z4 coupe (z4 3.0si); and 2006-2011 z4 roadster (z4 3.0i, z4 3.0si, z4 sdrive30i) vehicles. the heater for the positive crankcase ventilation (pcv) valve may short circuit."
Consequence:
An electrical short can cause the PCV valve heater to overheat, increasing the risk of a fire while driving or, soon after driving when parked.
Remedy:

This recall supersedes and expands previous NHTSA recalls 17V-683 and 19V-273. Dealers will install an electrical wiring harness with fuse protection for the PCV Valve heater in potentially affected vehicles, free of charge. This recall supersedes and expands previous NHTSA recalls 17V-683 and 19V-273. Vehicles previously repaired under the prior recalls will need to come back for the new recall remedy. The remedy is currently being developed. Interim owner notification letters informing owners of the safety risk were mailed on April 1, 2022. Owner notification letters were mailed on July 22, 2022. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.

Component(s) Involved: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING > EXHAUST SYSTEM > EMISSION CONTROL > CRANKCASE (PCV)
Date of incident: 2022-03-02

BMW Overall Complaint Ranking

This table shows the ranking of car manufacturers when it comes to most complaints and recalls. The manufacturer with the most complaints is at the top. However this doesn't necassarily mean they should be avoided. Some manufacturers might just have more popular or affordable cars which a lot of people have bought. Which means there's more scope for a complaint to be made. Use the ranking table below as a part your wider research into buying a car.

BMW ranks 12 out of 44 in the complaints ranking table.

Manufacturer Complaint Count Recall Count Ranking
FORD 208,358 3,259 1
CHEVROLET 111,306 2,082 2
TOYOTA 81,019 1,852 3
HONDA 61,937 1,268 4
NISSAN 56,226 930 5
DODGE 45,756 827 6
HYUNDAI 44,150 649 7
GMC 34,441 1,410 8
KIA 29,832 501 9
CHRYSLER 27,698 254 10
TESLA 26,230 730 11
BMW 24,890 1,877 12
VOLKSWAGEN 23,125 829 13
MERCEDES-BENZ 19,066 2,925 14
SUBARU 18,513 703 15
MAZDA 10,599 364 16
PONTIAC 10,430 138 17
CADILLAC 9,434 444 18
AUDI 7,865 1,093 19
BUICK 7,851 279 20
SATURN 7,672 84 21
MERCURY 7,374 135 22
LEXUS 6,373 408 23
LINCOLN 5,897 423 24
ACURA 5,722 382 25
MINI 5,585 366 26
INFINITI 4,000 187 27
MITSUBISHI 3,912 397 28
VOLVO 3,875 727 29
PORSCHE 2,646 1,231 30
SUZUKI 2,272 123 31
FIAT 2,205 80 32
SAAB 1,536 76 33
JAGUAR 1,195 198 34
SMART 528 17 35
GENESIS 436 42 36
ISUZU 249 37 37
ALFA ROMEO 161 37 38
MASERATI 76 46 39
BENTLEY 46 159 40
POLESTAR 42 2 41
LUCID 14 6 42
CODA 4 2 43
MAYBACH 0 0 44

Related Vehicles

Why not check out other BMW vehicles?

2023 I7 SEDAN
BMW
  • Overall Safety Rating: Not Rated
  • Complaints Count: 1
  • Recall Count: 7
View Car
2023 X5 HYBRID
BMW
  • Overall Safety Rating: Not Rated
  • Complaints Count: 0
  • Recall Count: 0
View Car
2012 750LI
BMW
  • Overall Safety Rating: Not Rated
  • Complaints Count: 25
  • Recall Count: 2
View Car
2010 Z4
BMW
  • Overall Safety Rating: Not Rated
  • Complaints Count: 9
  • Recall Count: 5
View Car