A small number of BMW owners with electric vehicles may have a bad Combined Charging Unit (CCU), which could lead them to stall while they are being driven. In order to remedy the situation, BMW has launched a recall of 69 vehicles in the United States.
The suspect parts were installed in 54 2022-2023 BMW i4 eDrive40 and M50s, 14 2022-2023 iX xDrive50 and M60s, and precisely one 2023 i7 xDrive60. All received a CCU from Panasonic that BMW has determined may have been incorrectly manufactured.
The automaker first became aware of the issue on May 17, 2023, and started an engineering investigation. It reached out to the supplier, which found an internal electromagnetic compatibility anomaly in the parts.
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Although BMW doesn’t go into much detail about what, specifically, is wrong with the CCU, it does reveal that the issue was small enough for the parts to pass end-of-line testing at Panasonic’s factory.
Nevertheless, the CCU might glitch, leading to other problems. The biggest safety concern is that a CCU performance issue could interrupt a vehicle’s electrical power while it’s driving, leading it to lose power. If that were to occur, the vehicle could become stranded in a dangerous place on the road.
Fortunately, BMW is not yet aware of any accidents or injuries related to this issue. Still, it will launch a recall campaign, and will start reaching out to affected owners on August 18. They will be asked to return their vehicle to a nearby dealership, where its CCU will be replaced. The repair will be conducted free of charge, and since the part is still covered under the warranty of any vehicle it is equipped to, the automaker does not have to reimburse any owners.
