The defect
BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2017 BMW 640i, 640i xDrive, 650i, 650i xDrive, M6, 535i, 535i xDrive, 430i, 430i xDrive, 440i, 440i xDrive, M4, X1 sDrive28i, X1 xDrive28i, i3, i8, Rolls-Royce Dawn, Mini Clubman Cooper, Clubman Cooper S, Cooper All4, Cooper S All4, Mini 4-Door Cooper, Cooper S, Mini 2-Door Cooper, Cooper S, John Cooper Works and 2016 BMW 528i, 528i xDrive, 535i, 535i xDrive, 550i, 550i xDrive, M5 and 535d vehicles. The affected vehicles have seat- mounted side air bag inflator initiators that may fail to ignite during a crash.
The risk
If the air bag inflator initiator fails to ignite, the seat-mounted air bag will not deploy, increasing the risk of injury.
The remedy
BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the air bag modules, free of charge. The recall began February 6, 2017. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
NHTSA's own wording · initiated by MFR
Vehicles covered
Components: AIR BAGS
Model years in this recall
NHTSA complaints and the number of recall campaigns for each model year this recall covers.
| Model | Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|---|
| BMW 430i | 2017 | 25 | 2 |
| BMW 440i | 2017 | 5 | 2 |
| BMW 528i | 2016 | 59 | 4 |
| BMW 535d | 2016 | 9 | 5 |
| BMW 535i | 2016 | 12 | 2 |
| BMW 535i | 2017 | 0 | 1 |
| BMW 550i | 2016 | 1 | 2 |
| BMW 640i | 2017 | 0 | 1 |
| BMW 650i | 2017 | 1 | 1 |
| BMW M4 | 2017 | 2 | 3 |
| BMW M5 | 2016 | 1 | 2 |
| BMW M6 | 2017 | 1 | 2 |
| BMW X1 SAV | 2017 | 8 | 2 |
| BMW i3 | 2017 | 53 | 3 |
| BMW i8 | 2017 | 0 | 1 |
| MINI Clubman | 2017 | 23 | 2 |
| MINI Cooper | 2017 | 28 | 3 |
| MINI Cooper S | 2017 | 6 | 3 |
| Rolls-Royce Dawn | 2017 | 0 | 2 |
Other air bags recalls in 2016
92 of the 919 recall campaigns reported to NHTSA in 2016 concerned the air bags; BMW of North America, LLC filed 347 campaigns in all.
| 16V946000 30 Dec 2016 | Porsche Cars North America, Inc. |
| 16V956000 30 Dec 2016 | Hyundai Motor America |
| 16V943000 29 Dec 2016 | Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC |
| 16V941000 29 Dec 2016 | Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC |
| 16V939000 28 Dec 2016 | Nissan North America, Inc. |
| 16V953000 28 Dec 2016 | Chrysler (FCA US LLC) |
| 16V935000 27 Dec 2016 | Daimler Vans USA, LLC |
| 16V947000 22 Dec 2016 | Chrysler (FCA US LLC) |
NHTSA recalls (public domain) · all recalls of 2016