BMW Air Bags: Side/Window

BMW is recalling about 5,761 vehicles over a problem with the air bags. An inflator that ruptures may cause sharp metal fragments to enter or exit the vehicle, increasing the risk of injury.

Campaign
24V288000
Manufacturer
BMW of North America, LLC
Reported
24 April 2024
Vehicles
5,761
Built between
Not published
Models
10
Recall type
Vehicle
Initiated by
NHTSA investigation
Owners notified
4 November 2024
Repaired
34%
Unrepaired
3,665

Does this affect my vehicle?

The manufacturer did not publish a build-date range for this recall, so the model and year list below is the only way to tell whether your vehicle is covered.

  • 2014-2015 BMW 228I
  • 2014-2015 BMW 320I
  • 2014-2015 BMW 328D
  • 2014-2015 BMW 328I
  • 2014-2015 BMW 335I
  • 2014-2015 BMW 428I
  • 2014-2015 BMW 435I
  • 2014-2015 BMW M235I
  • 2014-2015 BMW M3
  • 2014-2015 BMW M4

Repair progress

3,665 of 5,761 vehicles in this recall had still not been repaired as of Q2 2026.

34% repaired — 1,960 of 5,761 reported

Scrapped or exported
136

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 2014-2015 2 Series Coupe (228i, 228i xDrive, M235i), 3 Series Sedan (320i, 320i xDrive, 328i, 328i xDrive, 335i, 335i xDrive, M3, 328d, 328d xDrive), 4 Series Coupe (428i, 428i xDrive, 435i, 435i xDrive, M4), and 2015 4 Series Gran Coupe (428i, 428i xDrive, 435i, 435i xDrive) vehicles. The head air bag inflator may fail at the weld joint, which can cause gas to leak from the inflator or result in an inflator rupture.

What could happen

An inflator that ruptures may cause sharp metal fragments to enter or exit the vehicle, increasing the risk of injury. Additionally, an inflator that leaks gas may only partially inflate during a crash, increasing the risk of injury.

What gets fixed

Dealers will replace the head air bags, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed November 4, 2024.

Parts involved

  • Head Air Bag7239399, 7239400, 7311201, 7311202, 7390327, 7390328Head Air Bag Left/Right

Part numbers are as filed by the manufacturer and are listed for reference. Your dealer will confirm the correct part for your vehicle.

Timeline

  1. Recall reported to NHTSA24 April 2024
  2. Owners notified4 November 2024
  3. Latest repair reportQ2 2026 — 34% 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 24 April 2024.

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
ODI

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.nhtsa.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.

Same component

Same brand