New Takata Airbag Recall ?
 

Read an article this AM about a new round of Takata recalls. I've kept up with this in the past and neither of my Xers have been affected.

However, in my most recent NHTSA search it appears the 180k mi 2003 currently being driven by my 16 yr old daughter IS in fact now affected.

My question is whether BMW has released enough information on the subject to be able to check for myself to see if the car is really at risk. I remember the prior owner (my dad) had an airbag light at some point and the bag was replaced in 08 or 09. Are there part numbers or manufacturing dates on the parts themselves that indicate faulty products or am I just gonna have to bite the bullet and spend half a day or more fetching the car from my kid (25 min away) and driving it to the dealership...which I absolutely LOATHE and avoid at ALL costs.

I know I know...SO MUCH IS RIDING ON THOSE TIRES...but if this is a matter of removing the driver airbag and checking a production date, i'd really rather the 15 minute inspection vs taking a personal day at work for the latest round of BMW foibles.

Alternatively, is there anyway to use ISTA or BMW Scanner to figure it out?

The replacement airbag serial number will tell the stealership when and where it was built, and if it is affected by the recall. I'm sure they'll have this information if you call them.



Thanks for the tip though. My 2003 non-sport 3.0i was not affected by the recall until last month either! I thought I was in the clear.

I ran my 2004 on the NTHSA VIN search again and came back still no airbag recall.

Unless the 2001 I just bought has been changed I should get another recall postcard for that one in a few days I imagine.

My 2005 doesn't have takata airbags in it. I cant remember the brand name it has but the drivers side isn't a takata.

From what I read on my 2001 at least its only the sport steering wheel models that have the bad airbags. My 2005 is the plain 4 spoke steering wheel.

My 2000 323i on the other hand has the plain 4 spoke steering wheel and is on the recall list.

They will notify you if your car is affected. Then they can order the part and notify when its in and then bring it in for the recall. Its not that bad. Both my M5 and X5 4.6is were completed within 30 minutes of bringing it into the dealership.

Yep, it's easy to swap an airbag. Though I share OP's dread for dealing with the dealership. Any simple task can be screwed up by an incompetent advisor.



Also, it may take time to get the inflator in. I have a friend who got a rental car for three months from Honda for his CRV.

Its easy to replace SOME airbags.

E53 = easy.

E70 = Rebuild the entire front interior.

Some moron at bmw decided to put the passenger airbag between the dash and the windshield. The entire dash and I mean the ENTIRE dash has to be removed and I don't trust some dealership mechanic to have the skill needed to do that correctly.

That explains that. Have had an annoying rattle on the driver's side of the wife's e70 after having both airbags replaced by the dealership under the recall. It seems like the rattle is coming from either in the column trim or gauge cluster area. I HATE this rattle... HATE it, but have not had the time to lookinto it yet. :rolleyes:

That's why I have a huge stack of recall notices for that car right now. I may get it done one day but its not high on my todo list.