- Vehicles
- 3,012
- Built between
- Jan 2019 – Oct 2019
- Models
- 3
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- Manufacturer
- Owners notified
- 7 February 2020
- Repaired
- 97%
- Unrepaired
- 78
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between January 2019 and October 2019. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 2019-2020 BMW M5Built January 2019 to October 2019
- 2020 BMW M8Built February 2019 to October 2019
- 2020 BMW M8 Gran CoupeBuilt June 2019 to October 2019
Repair progress
78 of 3,012 vehicles in this recall had still not been repaired as of Q2 2021.
97% repaired — 2,932 of 3,012 reported
- Scrapped or exported
- 2
Manufacturers file these figures with NHTSA each quarter. Vehicles the manufacturer could not trace, or that have been scrapped or exported, are counted separately and are not included in the unrepaired figure.
What the defect is
BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2019-2020 M5 and 2020 M8 Gran Coupe, M8 Coupe, and M8 Convertible vehicles. The transmission wiring harness can become damaged, resulting in an electrical short circuit.
What could happen
An electrical short circuit can cause the transmission to shift to neutral resulting in a loss of propulsion, increasing the risk of a crash.
What gets fixed
BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace any damaged transmission harnesses. All harnesses will be rerouted and secured. These repairs will be performed, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin February 3, 2020.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtJanuary 2019 to October 2019
- Recall reported to NHTSA11 December 2019
- Owners notified7 February 2020
- Latest repair reportQ2 2021 — 97% repaired
Your rights
A safety recall repair is free. Under US federal law the manufacturer must fix a safety defect at no cost to you — no charge for parts, labor or diagnosis — whether or not you are the original owner. A dealer cannot charge you for recall work, and cannot require you to have bought the vehicle from them.
That entitlement is not unlimited. It applies where the vehicle was first sold less than 15 years before the recall was announced — 5 years for tires. Past that a manufacturer may still do the repair free of charge, and many do, but they are no longer obliged to. This recall was reported on 11 December 2019.
To arrange the repair, contact any franchised dealer for the brand. If a dealer refuses the work or tries to charge for it, you can report that to NHTSA at nhtsa.gov/recalls or on 1-888-327-4236.
Manufacturer contact
Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
Official source
- Recalling manufacturer
- BMW of North America, LLC
- Recall initiated by
- MFR
Everything on this page — the models listed, the build dates and the repair figures — comes from the manufacturer's filing to NHTSA and describes the vehicle line as a whole, not any individual car. Only the manufacturer can confirm whether a specific vehicle is affected, and whether its recall work has already been carried out. Check yours by VIN and read the official notice at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Additional notes
Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.safercar.gov.
Check your own vehicle
This page describes the recall, not any one car. To see which recalls cover a specific vehicle, search by make, model and year.
A VIN lookup here identifies your vehicle and shows recalls issued for that make, model and year. It cannot tell you what is still open on your individual car - only the manufacturer knows that. Search by VIN instead, or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov for whether a recall is still open on your individual car.