From our "This Story Is Never Going To End" Department comes the latest announcement on Takata airbag-inflator recalls involving BMWs. Actually, this latest recall involves about 12,000,000 vehicles in the U.S.—but fewer than 100,000 of those are BMWs. We're not sure why these announcements come in spaced-out waves instead of all at once.
As with some previous airbag recalls, this one is being scheduled by region. The ammonium nitrate in airbag inflators is more likely to become unstable in hot and humid climates, so vehicles in those areas will be recalled first.
These are the regions as specified by NHTSA:
Zone A: Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Zone B: Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.
Zone C: Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
In any event, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), BMW has added another 91,806 vehicles to the Takata front-passenger airbag inflator recall. This time they are all BMW X5s and X6s, as follows:
• 2007–2011 BMW X5 xDrive30i
• 2007–2011 BMW X5 XDrive35i
• 2007–2011 BMW X5 xDrive48i
• 2007–2011 BMW X5 xDrive50i
• 2007–2011 BMW X5 M
• 2009–2011 BMW X5 xDrive35d
• 2008–2011 BMW X6 xDrive35i
• 2008–2011 BMW X6 xDrive50i
• 2008–2011 BMW X6 M
• 2010–2011 BMW X6 ActiveHybrid
Check the list at the end of this article to see a further breakdown of recalls by year and region.
The NHTSA explained the worst-case scenario, saying, “In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the front airbags, these inflators may rupture due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity and temperature cycling. An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.”
No fatalities or injuries have been reported in its vehicles, according to BMW. The company also claimed it is not aware of any ruptures in ballistic testing or confirmed field incidents in the inflators in question.
If you have one of these vehicles and have not yet heard from your dealer, be patient, The recall is supposed to begin July 8, 2016. Owners may contact BMW Customer Service at 1-800-525-7417. BMW owners in the U.S. also may visit http://www.bmwusa.com/standard/content/owner/safetyrecalls.aspx and enter their vehicle identification numbers to see if their Bimmers are subject to any recalls.—Scott Blazey
[Photos courtesy of BMW AG.]
2007–2011 BMW X5 and X6 recalls by area:
2007–2008 BMW X5 xDrive30i (Zone A & Zone B)
2009–2011 BMW X5 xDrive30i (Zone A)
2007–2008 BMW X5 xDrive35i (Zone A & Zone B)
2009–2011 BMW X5 xDrive35i (Zone A)
2007–2008 BMW X5 xDrive48i (Zone A & Zone B)
2009–2011 BMW X5 xDrive48i (Zone A)
2007–2008 BMW X5 xDrive50i (Zone A & Zone B)
2009–2011 BMW X5 xDrive50i (Zone A)
2009–2011 BMW X5 xDrive35d (Zone A)
2007–2008 BMW X5 M (Zone A & Zone B)
2009–2011 BMW X5 M (Zone A)
2008 BMW X6 xDrive35i (Zone A & Zone B)
2009–2011 BMW X6 xDrive35i (Zone A)
2008 BMW X6 xDrive50i (Zone A & Zone B)
2009–2011 BMW X6 xDrive50i (Zone A)
2008 BMW X6 M (Zone A & Zone B)
2009–2011 BMW X6 M (Zone A)
2010–2011 BMW X6 ActiveHybrid (Zone A)
