BMW must recall 14,086 vehicles in the U.S. because of a software issue that could lead to an unusual problem for an electric vehicle. Oddly, the i4, i7 and iX could actually stall on the road, due to a resetting electronic control unit.
The root of the issue lies within the electronic control unit’s high-voltage battery software, which can cause an interruption of electrical power under certain circumstances. More precisely, a misdiagnosis can happen within the battery management electronics, which cause the control unit to reset.
That resetting can lead to a brief power loss or stalling, which documents filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) report can lead to the increased risk of an accident.
Read: 2023 VW ID.4 Needs Battery Charging Cable Fix To Prevent Fire
BMW first became aware of the issue in 2022, when a dealer in China saw a vehicle with a warning lamp on. The light was related to a powertrain issue, and an engineering review was initiated.
The automaker’s investigation found that there was a warranty claim rate of less than one percent, but did find five examples of the issue occurring in the U.S. Analysis suggested, though, that the likelihood of this fault occurring increased over time.
Fortunately, BMW is not aware of any instances in which a vehicle bricked completely, nor is it aware of any injuries or deaths related to the problem. Instead, the problem seems to make vehicles lose motive power only momentarily.
This recall affects 5,389 iXs made between February 4, 2021, and October 28, 2022, 8,659 i4s made between March 7, 2021, and October 26, 2022, and 38 i7s built between February 22, 2022, and October 27, 2022.
BMW plans to start reaching out to owners in February, by first class mail. They will be informed that their cars need a software update, which will be performed by a BMW dealer free of charge.
