The defect
BMW of North America, Inc. (BMW) is recalling certain 2006 325i, 325xi, 330i, 330xi, 525i, 525xi, 530i, 530xi, and 550i vehicles equipped with the Sport Seat option and certain 2006 525i, 525xi, 530i, 530xi, 550i vehicles with standard seats. The front passenger seat occupant detection mat that determines if, and how, the passenger frontal air bag should deploy in a crash may fatigue and develop cracks which could lead to a system failure.
The risk
Should the system fail, in the event of a crash, the front passenger air bag would be deactivated, increasing the risk of personal injury.
The remedy
BMW will notify owners, and dealers will repair the occupant detection mat to eliminate the possibility that it may crack, replacing it as necessary, free of charge. The recall began September 1, 2017. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
NHTSA's own wording · initiated by MFR
Vehicles covered
| Model | Model years |
|---|---|
| BMW 325i | 2006 |
| BMW 325xi | 2006 |
| BMW 330i | 2006 |
| BMW 330xi | 2006 |
| BMW 525i | 2006 |
| BMW 525xi | 2006 |
| BMW 530i | 2006 |
| BMW 530xi | 2006 |
| BMW 550i | 2006 |
Components: AIR BAGS:SENSOR:OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION
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 325i | 2006 | 515 | 7 |
| BMW 325xi | 2006 | 110 | 6 |
| BMW 330i | 2006 | 219 | 7 |
| BMW 330xi | 2006 | 104 | 6 |
| BMW 525i | 2006 | 77 | 3 |
| BMW 525xi | 2006 | 28 | 3 |
| BMW 530i | 2006 | 84 | 3 |
| BMW 530xi | 2006 | 91 | 3 |
| BMW 550i | 2006 | 23 | 3 |
Other air bags recalls in 2017
90 of the 810 recall campaigns reported to NHTSA in 2017 concerned the air bags; BMW of North America, LLC filed 347 campaigns in all.
| 17V822000 20 Dec 2017 | Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. |
| 17V837000 20 Dec 2017 | Nissan North America, Inc. |
| 17V803000 18 Dec 2017 | Ford Motor Company |
| 17V818000 18 Dec 2017 | Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC. |
| 17V813000 18 Dec 2017 | Bluecar SAS |
| 17V806000 14 Dec 2017 | Mazda North American Operations |
| 17V807000 14 Dec 2017 | Mazda North American Operations |
| 17V801000 13 Dec 2017 | Hyundai Motor America |
NHTSA recalls (public domain) · all recalls of 2017