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BMW Announces E46 tail light recall -- finally

302K views 463 replies 259 participants last post by  Tom in Crozet 
#1 · (Edited)
BMW recall for E46 tail lights
Affected vehicles
325I - 2002-2005
325XI - 2002-2005
330I - 2002-2005
330XI - 2002-2005

Manufacturer: BMW OF NORTH AMERICA, LLC Mfr's Report Date: AUG 25, 2011
NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID Number: 11V438000
Component: EXTERIOR LIGHTING:TURN SIGNAL
Potential Number of Units Affected: 241,000

Summary:
BMW IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2002-2005 325I, 325XI, 330I, AND 330XI VEHICLES MANUFACTURED FROM SEPTEMBER 1, 2001, THROUGH MARCH 1, 2005. OVER TIME, RESISTANCE IN THE ELECTRICAL CONTACTS MAY CAUSE ONE OR MORE REAR LAMP FUNCTIONS (TAIL LIGHT, BRAKE LIGHT, AND/OR TURN-SIGNAL), WITHIN THE VEHICLE'S BODY PANEL, TO STOP WORKING.

Consequence:
INTERMITTENT LIGHT OPERATION REDUCES THE ABILITY TO WARN OTHER MOTORISTS OF THE DRIVER'S INTENTIONS. THIS COULD CAUSE A VEHICLE CRASH WITHOUT WARNING.

Remedy:
BMW WILL NOTIFY OWNERS, AND DEALERS WILL REPAIR THE VEHICLES FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN DURING OCTOBER 2011. OWNERS MAY CONTACT BMW CUSTOMER RELATIONS AND SERVICES AT 1-800-525-7417.

NHTSA Details - http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/recall...&summary=true&prod_id=936770&PrintVersion=YES

241,000 cars

The recall is for model years 2002-2005 of the 325i, 325xi, 330i and 330xi cars, the Munich-based company said today in a posting on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's website.

Lights including tail, brake and turn signals may only work intermittently on the cars, BMW told the auto-safety regulator. This "reduces the ability to warn other motorists of the driver's intentions" and "could cause a vehicle to crash without warning," the company said.



http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-01/bmw-recalls-241-000-cars-in-u-s-for-rear-light-malfunction-2-.html


Or they could have come to E46Fanatics and used the search function and found the cheap DIY
 
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#17 · (Edited)
From what I've heard about other people receiving recalls, the dealer generally will not fix it until the letters are sent out.

Manufacturers are obligated to attempt to notify owners of recalled products. For vehicles, that means manufacturers merge their own records of vehicle purchasers with current state vehicle registration information.
http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/recalls/recallproblems.cfm
ShepsBMW said:
"there have been "no accidents" as a result of the problem"

How the F would they know
They base it off of accidents reported to the NHTSA.
 
#18 ·
It looks like the free repair will expire at some time, so I guess we need to be sure to have our cars fixed before the recall period ends. Is there any way to check if BMW NA has me on file as the current owner other than calling and asking?

Now, they need to go about recalling these wonderful ZKW headlights...
 
#20 ·
I remembered there was a little modification recommended by the forum, using a short cable ground the light (I guess). The symptom is the (right) rear light will indicated on the dashboard. However, no malfunction is found on my car except the noising warning.

Will BMW send the notice to all of owners? Or we just visit dealer directly?
 
#27 ·
I'm not sure this is actually new news. When I bought my sedan I found out about this later. There was a paper BMW put out and they offered a kit and or install. I don't think there was anything about free labor, just that it is well known problem and a fix has been in the works for some time. The brown return wire on the sedans is too small of a gauge to support the load. It melts the insulation and the connector at the light. Then you get bulb out indications because the bulb intermittently goes out. I changed 3 of those little buggers before I found the DIY on the forum and what caused it. It's a fire hazard if unchecked.

I wish I had the link.
 
#28 ·
You are right it is not new. What has changed is that BMW has issued a recall.

Prior to this BMW had issued a service bulletin (in 2006?). A lot of us did the DIY and as you know it works fine. In fact (as the recall states) that is all the dealer is going to do to repair the defect.
 
#29 ·
Mine has been acting up about a year now....almost dont even see the tail light indicator anymore....it will be nice to have THEM pay to make it go away...even though I wish they would just give me the stuff and let me do it myself...but whatever.... maybe in another 6 years they will recall the crappy power steering pumps... LOL!
 
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