DETROIT NEWS -- November 1, 2011 - BMW AG said Saturday it is recalling 32,000 vehicles to replace potentially faulty electric auxiliary water pumps that can overheat and cause a vehicle fire. The recall comes after BMW found at least 102 cases of pump failures worldwide — including two engine-compartment fires. BMW said it is unaware of any crashes or injuries as a result of the condition. The auxiliary pump helps cool the turbocharger during some driving conditions and in some cases can fail, causing the circuit board to overheat. That could lead to a fire. BMW said in most cases drivers will be alerted by a warning message on the instrumental cluster during driving. BMW first discovered the issue in June 2009 on test vehicles. In April 2010, a smoldered electrical cable of the water pump was found on a BMW-owned vehicle. The company set up a task force in May 2010 after two customer vehicles reported burned engine compartments. Dealers will replace the electric auxiliary water pump and will be notified next month.
Owners will be notified starting next month as well. OCTOBER 2010 -- BMW is recalling certain model year 2008 X5 SAVs vehicles with 6-cylinder engines manufactured from November 1, 2007 through August 31, 2008. Due to a manufacturing process fault, the fuel pump was not produced to specifications. Under specific vehicle operating conditions, the fuel pump's commutator could experience an increase in wear. This wear could lead to fuel pump malfunction and engine stalling. Engine stalling could create a potential for a crash resulting in injury or death. The manufacturer has not yet provided a remedy or an owner notification schedule for this campaign. YAHOO NEWS -- October 27, 2010 - BMW of North America announced a recall Tuesday of more than 150,000 vehicles because of potential problems with their fuel pumps. BMW said the problem is specific to vehicles with twin-turbo inline six-cylinder engines with the High Pressure Injection direct fuel injection system.
The high-pressure fuel pumps for these vehicles run the risk of failure, BMW said. BMW said a recall of 130,000 vehicles extends to 335i models from 2007 to 2010, as well as the following models from 2008 to 2010: 135i, 535i and X6 xDrive35i Sports Activity Coupes. About 40,000 of the 130,000 vehicles are expected to need a new high pressure fuel pump, the company said. BMW also announced a separate recall of about 20,800 MY 2008 X5 Sports Activity Vehicles. These vehicles will also need a new low-pressure fuel pump, the company said. JULY 2009 -- BMW is recalling MY 2009 X5 and X6 vehicles. The rear brake discs may not have been manufactured according to specifications. As a result, a reduction in braking performance at the affected rear wheel could occur. In an extreme case, the affected rear brake disc could break resulting in a loss of braking at that wheel increasing stopping distances and the risk of a crash.
BMW will notify owners and will repair the vehicles by inspecting the rear brake discs and, if necessary, replace them free of charge. The recalled BMWs include the 2004 to 2005 5-Series standard and sport seat models, the 2004 to 2006 X3 and the 2006 3-Series with sport seats. NHTSA reported on its Web site that the passenger-side airbags can deactivate because of wear associated with a passenger getting in and out of the vehicle. BMW dealers will repair the sensor system in the passenger seat when the recall begins in late September. BMW will extend the warranty for airbags on the recalled vehicles "to 10 years from the first registration without any mileage limit," according to NHTSA. The warranty extension covers the 2006 6-Series, 3-Series with a standard seat, 2004 to 2005 Z4, 2004 to 2006 7-Series, 2006 X5 and 2004 to 2006 5-Series with a comfort seat. NHTSA advises on its Web site. The models included in the initial investigation were the 2004 to 2006 BMW 5 and 7 series sedans, Z4 convertibles and X3 SUVs, as well as 2006 BMW 3 and 6 series cars and X5 SUVs. NHTSA reported "729 non-duplicating owner reports and 23,739 non-duplicating warranty claims" prompted the investigation or engineering analysis. In conditions of below freezing temperatures combined with low humidity, it is possible for electrostatic discharge to occur at the fuel rails. If this were to occur, the engine electronic control unit (ECU) could be affected resulting in engine stalling. If stalling were to occur, the driver may not be able to maintain vehicle speed or accelerate and the power steering could fail increasing the risk of a crash. Dealers will attach two ground cables in the engine compartment.
While the driver puts the vehicle in gear, the engine speeds up; when the driver releases the clutch, it has reached idle speed. Audi combines its start-stop system with particularly powerful batteries that continue to function even at very low outdoor temperatures. Only during the initial warmup period of the engine is the battery not yet active so that the engine oil and interior can be brought to temperature more quickly. The driver can deactivate the start-stop system at any time with the push of a button. The start-stop system reduces consumption by roughly 0.2 liters/100 km, which corresponds to approximately five grams of CO2/km (8.05 g/mile). Like many Audi production models, the Audi A5 Cabriolet is equipped with a recuperation system that utilizes kinetic energy during deceleration. The alternator increases its secondary voltage during the coasting and braking phases. It is then able to convert the kinetic energy into electrical energy that is stored in the battery.
