BMW Recalls

BMW of North America is recalling one model year 2016 MINI Cooper Hardtop 2 Door vehicle manufactured November 24, 2015, and one BMW X1 Sports Activity Vehicle (SAV) manufactured October, 19 2015.

The steering gearbox may have been manufactured with incorrect parts. A malfunction may cause a loss of vehicle control and increase the risk of a crash.

BMW will replace the steering gearbox, free of charge. Affected vehicles are located in dealer inventory and will be remedied before customer retail.

The recall began on December 28, 2015. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.

BMW of North America is recalling 6,073 model year 2014-2016 MINI Cooper S and MINI Cooper two-door vehicles, 2015-2016 MINI John Cooper Works and MINI Cooper S and MINI Cooper four-door vehicles, and 2014-2015 BMW i3 vehicles.

Due to a manufacturing error, the front passenger air bag may not deploy properly in a low speed crash. Thus, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection." An air bag that fails to deploy properly increases the risk of injury to the front seat passenger.

MINI and BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag module, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin on November 20, 2015.

Owners may contact MINI customer service at 1-866-825-1525 and BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.

November 24, 2008
BMW is recalling about 2,500 M3 vehicles from the 2008-2009 model years with an optional double clutch transmission.

The problem involves the double clutch gearbox. In a situation of rapid deceleration, the transmission software may perform a multistage downshift. At low speeds, it is possible that the engine could stall, increasing the risk of a crash.

Dealers will reprogram the engine and transmission electronic control unit free of charge. The recall is expected to begin in November.

Owners may contact BMW at 1-800-831-1117.

Consumers may contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY: 1-800-424-9153) or at www.safercar.gov.

BMW of North America is recalling 3,679 model year 2014 Mini Cooper Hardtop 2 door vehicles manufactured December 1, 2013, to May 14, 2014.

The vehicles do not meet the side impact performance requirements for the rear seat passengers. If the side impact performance requirements are not met, rear seat passengers may be at a higher risk of injury during a crash.

The remedy for this recall is still under development. The recall is expected to begin February 18, 2015.

Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-831-1117.

BMW of North America is recalling 1,420 model year 2013 R 1200 GS motorcycles manufactured November 2012, through August 2013.

Pressure inside the transmission may cause the transmission output seal to be pushed out of place. That could cause oil to leak from the transmission onto the rear tire, increasing the risk of a crash.

BMW will notify owners, and dealers will fit a bracket to prevent the transmission seal from being pushed out of position, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin in June 2014.

Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.

A class action filed in California yesterday says that software unilaterally installed by BMW on several turbocharged models led to dangerous turbo lag and other engine problems.

The suit, brought in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, implicates the BMW 1-, 3-, and 5-Series lines, as well as the Z4 convertible, X5 sport utility, and X6 crossover. All subject vehicles were manufactured between 2007 and 2010 and are equipped with the "N54" engine, a three-liter six-cylinder motor equipped with a twin turbo.

According to the suit, BMW tried to remedy an "undisclosed defect" with the cars by installing an updated version of its so-called "Engine Control Unit" (ECU) software. The defect allegedly originated in the cars' turbochargers, fuel pumps, gas waste mechanisms, and/or turbo software.

The plaintiffs contend that BMW installed the updated ECU software without customers' permission and, in some cases, without their knowledge. The complaint says that BMW installed the software "whenever one of the vehicles in question appeared in the service department of a BMW dealership, regardless of the reason for the service visit." Thus, consumers who experienced "problems with loud rattling...under the hood," for example, were unwittingly outfitted with updated ECU software and sent on their way.

Shortly after the software update, consumers began to complain of engine problems, specifically "loss of power in the lower RPM [revelations per minute] range, decreased fuel efficiency, and most notably, turbo acceleration lag."

Turbo lag, a little-known but potentially dangerous phenomenon, describes a delay between the time a turbocharged car's accelerator is depressed and the time its engine develops enough power to properly accelerate. Turbo lag presents an especially serious risk if it occurs on a highway on-ramp or other area where traffic is moving quickly.

According to the suit, BMW at first dismissed consumers' complaints, assuring them that their respective experiences were "normal." As the complaints continued to grow in number, BMW allegedly installed more ECU updates in a futile attempt to make the problems go away. The plaintiffs also contend that BMW quietly did away with ads bragging that the automaker "eliminated turbo lag altogether."

The class is being represented by Wayne Barney of Orange County. Barney began experiencing turbo lag after his 2007 BMW 335i was serviced for a faulty fuel pump. Barney communicated his concerns to BMW several times, but was "repeatedly assured that he was mistaken about the existence of any problems."

The suit alleges breach of implied and express warranties; breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing; deceptive trade practices; and breach of the Magnuson-Moss Act, a federal statute that governs consumer product warranties. The plaintiffs accuse BMW of "us[ing] ECU software to deceive its customers and avoid the cost and labor of properly resolving the hardware problems, which required actual engine work and/or part replacement that was covered under BMW's warranty." The class is seeking compensatory damages and an injunction.

BMW of North America is recalling 1360 model year 2012-2014 C 600 Sport, and C 650 GT motorcycles manufactured August 2, 2012, through February 18, 2014.

The camshaft chain tensioner in the affected vehicles may not function properly, resulting in an engine stall. An engine stall may increase the risk of a crash.

BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the camshaft chain tensioner, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin in July 2014.

Owners may contact BMW Customer Relations at 1-800-525-7417.

BMW of North America is recalling 3 model year 2013 X3 xDrive 28i/35i vehicles manufactured February 11, 2013, through February 27, 2013.

Due to a production process error, the tear seam on the instrument panel was not manufactured correctly. In the event of a crash, the air bag could improperly deploy, increasing the risk of injury to the front passenger. In addition, parts or fragments from the air bag system could strike and injure the front passenger or other vehicle occupants.

BMW has notified owners and dealers will replace the instrument panel, free of charge.

Owners may contact BMW customer relations at 1-800-525-7417 or email BMW at CustomerRelations@bmwusa.com.

BMW of North America is recalling 4,453 model year 2013 C 600 Sport, C 650 GT, F 700 GS, F 800 GS, F 800 GS Adventure, F 800 GT, R 1200 R and R1200 GS motorcycles.

Water may enter the side-stand switch preventing the motorcycle from starting or potentially shutting off the motorcycle while it is being ridden. An unexpected shutdown increases the risk of a crash.

BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the side-stand switch, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin in April 2014.

Owners may contact BMW at 1-800-831-1117.

BMW of North America is recalling 13,130 model year 2014-2015 MINI Cooper Hardtop two door vehicles manufactured December 1, 2013, to December 14, 2014.

The vehicles may have been manufactured with an incorrect maximum capacity weight stated on the Tire Information Placard. The maximum weight listed on the label is incorrect (too low) and therefore does not comply with Federal Regulations.

MINI will notify owners, and dealers will replace the incorrect labels with corrected labels, free of charge. Owners will notified by March 13, 2015.

Owners may contact MINI customer service at 1-866-825-1525.

BMW of North America is recalling 188,668 model year 2011-2017, X3 sDrive28i, X3 xDrive28i and X3 xDrive35i, vehicles manufactured July 2, 2010 to April 14, 2016; 2015-2017 X3 xDrive28d vehicles manufactured March 10, 2014 to March 31, 2016; and 2015-2017 x4 xDrive28i, X4 xDrive35i and X4 xDriveM40i vehicles manufactured March3, 2014 to April 15, 2016.

The affected vehicles have lower anchor bars for securing child restraint seats that may become damaged when using the European-ISOFIX-type, rigid-style connector, child restraint system.

Damaged lower anchor bars may increase the child's risk of injury in the event of a crash.

What to do

BMW will notify owners, and dealers will weld a reinforcing bracket to the lower anchor bars and the vehicle body, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin on July 12, 2016.

Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.