The defect
BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2020-2021 X3 sDrive 30i, X3 xDrive 30i, X3M 40i, X3 xDrive 30e, X4 xDrive 30i, X4M 40i, 530i, 540i, 540i xDrive, M550i xDrive, M5, 550e, 550e xDrive, and 550e iPerformance vehicles. A small portion of the rearview image may be slightly obscured. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 111, "Rear Visibility."
The risk
If the driver relies on only the rearview camera image, the reduced rearview image view can increase the risk of a crash or injury.
The remedy
BMW will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, if necessary, program the rearview camera with updated software. The recall began November 18, 2020. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
NHTSA's own wording · initiated by MFR
Vehicles covered
| Model | Model years |
|---|---|
| BMW 530i | 2020, 2021 |
| BMW 540i | 2020, 2021 |
| BMW 550e | 2020, 2021 |
| BMW M5 | 2020, 2021 |
| BMW M550I | 2020, 2021 |
| BMW X3 | 2020, 2021 |
| BMW X4 | 2020, 2021 |
Components: BACK OVER PREVENTION: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA
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 530i | 2020 | 10 | 5 |
| BMW 530i | 2021 | 17 | 7 |
| BMW 540i | 2020 | 3 | 5 |
| BMW 540i | 2021 | 9 | 6 |
| BMW 550e | 2020 | 0 | 1 |
| BMW 550e | 2021 | 0 | 1 |
| BMW M5 | 2020 | 2 | 3 |
| BMW M5 | 2021 | 3 | 1 |
| BMW M550I | 2020 | 2 | 3 |
| BMW M550I | 2021 | 1 | 3 |
| BMW X3 | 2020 | 110 | 16 |
| BMW X3 | 2021 | 113 | 10 |
| BMW X4 | 2020 | 15 | 10 |
| BMW X4 | 2021 | 6 | 7 |
Other back over prevention recalls in 2020
15 of the 782 recall campaigns reported to NHTSA in 2020 concerned the back over prevention; BMW of North America, LLC filed 347 campaigns in all.
| 20V766000 10 Dec 2020 | Subaru of America, Inc. |
| 20V716000 18 Nov 2020 | Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. |
| 20V647000 21 Oct 2020 | Braun Ambulances |
| 20V575000 23 Sept 2020 | Ford Motor Company |
| 20V191000 10 Sept 2020 | Chrysler (FCA US LLC) |
| 20V512000 27 Aug 2020 | Chrysler (FCA US LLC) |
| 20V452000 3 Aug 2020 | Bentley Motors, Inc. |
| 20V443000 29 Jul 2020 | BMW of North America, LLC |
NHTSA recalls (public domain) · all recalls of 2020