BMW 325XI Air Bags Problems
Owners have filed 141 complaints with NHTSA about air bags problems on the BMW 325XI across 6 model years. The 2006 model year has the most (64). The words owners use most often: “air bag” (37% of reports).
- 141air bags complaints
- —median miles at failure
- 8mention a crash
- 8mention an injury
- 8related recalls
- 33%of reports with a speed happened at 50+ mph
What owners describe
Phrases that appear unusually often in these complaints compared with complaints about other cars.
- Air bag: mentioned in 52 of 141 complaints (37%)
- Passenger seat: mentioned in 28 of 141 complaints (20%)
- Sensor mat: mentioned in 8 of 141 complaints (6%)
At what mileage do air bags problems happen?
Based on 66 complaints that reported the odometer reading.
How serious are the reports?
Of 141 complaints, 8 mention a crash, 2 a fire, 8 an injury.
BMW 325XI air bags complaints by model year
| Model year | Air Bags complaints | Share of that year | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 325XI | 64 | 58% | 76,150 |
| 2005 325XI | 18 | 67% | 114,500 |
| 2004 325XI | 30 | 55% | 95,000 |
| 2003 325XI | 14 | 45% | 71,000 |
| 2002 325XI | 13 | 19% | 50,000 |
| 2001 325XI | 2 | 14% | 198,000 |
When owners reported it
Related recalls (8)
Air bags:frontal:driver side:inflator module
Model years: 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012
Problem: BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2006-2011 3 Series Sedan (324i, 325i, 325xi, 328i, 328xi, 330i, 330xi, 335i, 335xi), 2006-2012 3 Series Sportswagon (325xi, 328i, 328xi), and 2009-2011 3 Series Sedan (335d) vehicles. The original steering wheel may have been replaced with a sport or M-sport steering wheel equipped with an inflator that can explode during deployment.
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Dealers will inspect and replace the driver's air bag module as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed August 30, 2024. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
Air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator moduleDo not drive
Model years: 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005
Problem: BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2000-2005 323iT, 325iT, 325xiT, 320i, 323i, 325i, 325xi, 328i, 330i and 330xi and 2000-2006 323Ci, 325Ci, 328Ci, 330Ci, M3 Coupe, 323Cic, 325Cic, 330Cic, and M3 Convertible vehicles equipped with non-desiccated frontal Takata PSAN inflators and PSPI passenger frontal air bag inflators containing phase stabilized ammonium nitrate (PSAN) propellant that were used as interim remedy parts for previous Takata recalls. These inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, high temperatures, and high temperature cycling.
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger's front air bag, free of charge. The recall began February 13, 2020. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
Air bags:frontal:driver side:inflator module
Model years: 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012
Problem: BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2008-2013 128i and 135i Convertibles, 128i, 135i, and M Coupes, 2007-2010 X3 30si and X3 xDrive30i, 2013-2015 X1 sDrive28i, X1 xDrive28i and X1 xDrive35i, 2007-2013 328i, 328i xDrive, 335i, 335is, 335i xDrive and M3 Coupes, 2006-2011 328i, 328xi, 328i xDrive, 325i, 325xi, 330i, 330xi, 335i, 335xi, 335i xDrive and M3, 2009-2011 335D, 2006-2012 325xi, 328i, 328xi and 328i xDrive, 2010-2011 X6 ActiveHybrid, 2007-2013 328i, 335i, 335is, M3 Coupes, X5 30si, X5 xDrive30i, X5 xDrive35i, X5 48i, X5 xDrive48i, X5 xDrive50i and X5 M, 2009-2013 X5 xDrive35d and 2008-2014 X6 xDrive35i, X6 xDrive50i and X6M vehicles equipped with non-desiccated driver frontal air bag inflators containing phase stabilized ammonium nitrate (PSAN) that were used as interim remedy parts for previous Takata recalls. These inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, high temperatures, and high temperature cycling.
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver air bag. On X5 and X6 vehicles, only the inflator will be replaced. All repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began March 11, 2020. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
Air bagsDo not drive
Model years: 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005
Problem: BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2000 323i sedans, coupes, convertibles, and Sports Wagons; 2000 328i sedans and coupes; 2001-2005 325i sedans, coupes, convertibles, and Sport Wagons; 2001-2005 325xi sedans and Sports Wagons; 2006 325i coupes and convertibles; 2001-2006 330i sedans, coupes, and convertibles; 2001-2005 330xi sedans; and 2001-2006 M3 coupes and convertibles to address a safety defect in the passenger side frontal air bag which may produce excessive internal pressure that could cause the air bag inflator to rupture upon deployment of the air bag.
Risk: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger's frontal air bag, excessive internal pressure could cause rupturing of the inflator resulting in metal fragments striking and potentially seriously injuring the passenger seat occupant or other occupants.
Fix: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until they have been repaired. BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger side frontal air bag, free of charge. An interim notice was mailed to owners in September 2014. A second notice was mailed when an adequate supply of parts became available, on December 1, 2014. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417 or email BMW at [email protected].
Air bags:sensor:occupant classification
Model years: 2006
Problem: BMW of North America, Inc. (BMW) is recalling certain 2006 325i, 325xi, 330i, 330xi, 525i, 525xi, 530i, 530xi, and 550i vehicles equipped with the Sport Seat option and certain 2006 525i, 525xi, 530i, 530xi, 550i vehicles with standard seats. The front passenger seat occupant detection mat that determines if, and how, the passenger frontal air bag should deploy in a crash may fatigue and develop cracks which could lead to a system failure.
Risk: Should the system fail, in the event of a crash, the front passenger air bag would be deactivated, increasing the risk of personal injury.
Fix: BMW will notify owners, and dealers will repair the occupant detection mat to eliminate the possibility that it may crack, replacing it as necessary, free of charge. The recall began September 1, 2017. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
Air bags:frontal:driver side:inflator moduleDo not drive
Model years: 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005
Problem: BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2002-2005 325i, 325xi, 330i, and 330xi Sedans, and 325xi and 325i Sportswagons, 2002-2006 330Ci, 325Ci, and M3 Convertibles and 325i, 330i, and M3 Coupes, 2002-2003 M5, 540i, 525i Sedan, and 530i Sedans, and 540i and 525i Sportswagons, and 2003 X5 3.0i and 4.4i Sports Activity Vehicles. Please note that the 5-series and X5 vehicles are only included if they are equipped with the optional sports steering wheel. The affected vehicles are equipped with a dual-stage driver frontal air bag that may be susceptible to moisture intrusion which, over time, could cause the inflator to rupture.
Risk: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the vehicle has been remedied. BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front driver air bag module, free of charge. The recall began Aug 2016. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417. Note: This recall supersedes recall 14V-348 in its entirety. Additionally, vehicles that have had their driver side frontal air bag replaced previously as part of a recall remedy need to have their air bag replaced under this recall as well. Note: On December 17, 2015 BMW removed the model year 2004 X5 3.0i and 4.4i Sports Activity vehicle from this recall. Those vehicles were mistakenly identified as including the air bags that are subject to this recall.
Air bags:sensor:occupant classification
Model years: 2006
Problem: BMW of North America LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2006 325i, 325xi, 330i, 330xi sedans and 325xi sports wagons, model year 2007 328i, 328xi, 335i, 335xi sedans and 328i and 328xi sports wagons, model year 2006-2007 525i, 525xi, 530i, 530xi, 550i sedans and 530xi sports wagons, model year 2006 760i sedans, model year 2006-2007 750i, 750Li, and 760Li sedans, and model year 2006 X5 sports activity vehicles, equipped with certain seat types. The front passenger seat occupant detection mat that determines if and how the passenger frontal air bag should deploy in a crash may fatigue and develop cracks which could lead to a system failure.
Risk: Should the system fail, in the event of a crash, the front passenger air bag would be deactivated, increasing the risk of personal injury.
Fix: BMW will notify owners with an interim notification letter in January 2014 since parts are not currently available. When parts are available, BMW sent a second letter in August and dealers will repair the occupant detection mat to eliminate the possibility that it may crack, free of charge. Additionally, owners of model year 2006-2007 3 Series with standard seats, 5 Series with comfort seats, and Z4 models, will receive an extended warranty on their front passenger seat occupant detection mat. Owners may contact BMW customer relations at 1-800-525-7417 or email BMW at [email protected].
Air bagsDo not drive
Model years: 2002, 2003
Problem: BMW is recalling certain model year 2002-2003 325i, 325xi, 330i, 330xi sedans; 325Ci and 330Ci coupes and convertibles; 325iT and 325xiT Sports Wagons; and M3 coupes and convertibles to address a safety defect in the passenger side frontal air bag which may produce excessive internal pressure causing the inflator to rupture upon deployment of the air bag.
Risk: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking and potentially seriously injuring the passenger seat occupant or other occupants.
Fix: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until they have been repaired. BMW intends to issue initial notifications to owners informing them of the safety defect in June 2013. Once replacement parts are available, estimated for July, BMW will notify owners again to contact their dealers and schedule a replacement of the passenger air bag, free of charge. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417 or email BMW at [email protected].
What owners report
Short excerpts of recent complaints, with personal details removed. Full reports are on NHTSA.gov.
The contact owns a 2005 BMW 325XI. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V018000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was…
[XXX] . I have a 2006 BMW e91, but mine is not listed for recall above in the link. Currently have a fault for occupant detection malfunction. I also have sports seats listed in the above document. The sensor will say active when no one is sitting in the seat which is a safety concern. INFORMATION…
The contact owned a 2006 BMW 325XI. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V513000 (Air Bags) and 22V119000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) would like to be removed from the recall distribution list. The local dealer and manufacturer were not contacted.
The contact owns a 2005 BMW 325XI. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V31800 (Air Bags) and 14V428000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repairs were not yet available. The local dealer was not contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a…
I purchased a used car that now has a passenger restraint sensor warning. Please fulfill a recall as this is a recurring issue with bmw
Frequently asked questions
Do all BMW 325XIs have air bags problems?
No. NHTSA has 141 owner complaints about air bags for the BMW 325XI. Complaint data shows that the problem is reported, not how many of all cars sold are affected.
Was there a recall on the BMW 325XI air bags?
Yes: 8 safety recalls list air bags. Check your VIN on NHTSA.gov to see whether the fix was done on your car.
What do owners say about air bags problems on the BMW 325XI?
The most frequent phrase is “air bag”, in 52 of 141 complaints, followed by “passenger seat” (28).
See all BMW 325XI problems.