2012 BMW 335Xi

Defect. BMW North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2012-2015 320i, 320xi, 328i, 328xi, 335i, 335xi, and ActiveHybrid3 vehicles manufactured October 20, 2011, to June 22, 2015, 2014-2015 328xi Sports Wagon vehicles manufactured March 21, 2013, to March 17, 2015, 2014-2015 328d, 328xd vehicles manufactured June 28, 2013, to April 21, 2015, and 2014-2015 328xd Sports Wagon vehicles manufactured July 5, 2013, to April 21, 2015. The affected vehicles may have been programmed with new software that inadvertently makes the front side marker lights inoperative in conjunction with the parking lights or the headlights. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 108, "Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment."

Risk. If the side marker lights do not illuminate, the vehicle may be less visible at night, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy. BMW will notify owners, and dealers will upload revised software to correct the issue, free of charge. The recall began on October 7, 2015. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417 or by email at [email protected].

TAKATA RECALL - I RECEIVED MY LETTER IN SEPTEMBER 2017 THAT BMW HAS THE PARTS TO REPLACE THE AIRBAG AND TO CALL IMMEDIATELY TO SCHEDULE THIS REPAIR. I CALLED AND WAS TOLD THAT IT WOULD TAKE 4-8 WEEKS TO GET THE PARTS AND THEN I COULD SCHEDULE AN APPOINTMENT. GIVEN THAT THIS IS A SERIOUS SAFETY RECALL, I AM SHOCKED THAT IT HAS TAKEN THIS LONG TO EVEN BE NOTIFIED THAT THE REPAIR CAN FINALLY BE DONE (WHEN INFORMATION ABOUT DEATHS FROM THESE AIRBAGS HAS BEEN AVAILABLE FOR MORE THAN A YEAR). I HAVE ASKED FOR MORE THAN A YEAR TO GET THIS FIXED. NOW I GET A LETTER THAT BMW CAN MAKE THE REPAIR, BUT IT WILL BE MORE THAN ONE MONTH AND MAYBE TWO MORE MONTHS BEFORE THIS CAN BE DONE. WHAT OVERSIGHT DO YOU HAVE TO ENSURE THAT BMW AND OTHERS ARE GETTING THESE REPAIRS DONE IN A TIMELY FASHION. THANK YOU. [XXX] ARLINGTON,VIRGINIA *JB

TAKADA RECALL WE RECEIVED A RECALL NOTICE IN MARCH 2016 (BMW RECALL CAMPAIGN NO. 16V-071) REGARDING THE "DRIVER'S FRONT AIR BAG MODULE". WE HAVE SPOKEN AND EMAILED OUR LOCAL BMW SERVICE CENTER ABOUT HAVING THIS PART REPLACED AND HAVE BEEN TOLD REPEATEDLY THAT THEY DO NOT HAVE THE PART. WE CONTACTED A CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE FROM BMW AND WERE TOLD THAT THE PART WOULD NOT BE AVAILABLE UNTIL JUNE 2017 AT THE EARLIEST. WHEN I SAID THAT I THOUGHT THAT THIS WAS AN UNREASONABLY LONG TIME TO REPLACE A PART THAT, IF IT RUPTURED, COULD CAUSE SERIOUS INJURY OR DEATH TO THE DRIVER AND/OR PASSENGERS, THE BMW CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE TOLD US THAT THEY RECEIVED THEIR TIME SCHEDULES FROM THE NHTSA. IT APPEARS AS IF EACH LEVEL OF THE CHAIN FOR SOLVING THIS PROBLEM IS MORE INTERESTED IN FINGER POINTING THAN SOLVING A POTENTIALLY LIFE-THREATENING PROBLEM. IT WOULD BE NICE IF THE NHTSA WOULD USE THEIR AUTHORITY TO "ENCOURAGE" A SPEEDIER RESOLUTION TO THIS ISSUE.