Recall of 1.6m BMWs due to safety fears over airbags

Thousands of BMWs on the roads in Ireland are understood to be among 1.6 million vehicles being recalled due to safety fears over their airbags.

The recall affects 3-series models manufactured between May 1999 and August 2006. The German auto giant needs to replace passenger-side front airbags made by Japanese company Takata Corp.

There is a fear the inflators in the bag could break apart during deployment and injure passengers. BMW has said it is not aware of any accidents or injuries related to the issue.

“As a precaution, we just feel now that the right thing to do is just to bring them all in and replace the passenger-side air bag,” BMW spokesman Dave Buchko said.

Irish owners of BMWs manufactured between 1999 and 2006 should bring their cars to the nearest BMW dealership to see if their vehicle needs a replacement airbag. The recall is an extension of last year’s recall of 240,000 cars globally for the same issue. In the latest recall, about 574,000 of the BMW cars were sold in the United States, 450,000 in Germany and 189,000 in the United Kingdom. Last year, BMW recalled 42,000 cars in the United States for this issue.

In addition, BMW said it has also recalled 26 Mini cars and one BMW i3 from model year 2014 to replace Takata passenger-side air bags.

Takata has seen more than 12 million vehicles recalled over the last five years for related issues.

Other makes affected include Honda, Toyota, Nissan, Mazda and Ford.