Blitz Bureau
BMW is recalling more than 720,000 vehicles in North America due to an issue with the water pump’s electrical connector that could potentially lead to a fire. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said that the recall includes some X1, X3 and X5 vehicles as well as some other models.
Short circuit risk
The impacted vehicles have water pumps with insufficient sealing, according to the NHTSA report, and may be susceptible to fluid ingress at the electrical plug connector over time. There is the possibility that a short circuit could occur, and there’s the potential for a fire, in rare cases. Water pumps and plug connectors will be inspected and replaced as necessary. A shield will be also installed to divert any fluid that might drop down onto the pump from the positive crankcase ventilation system’s intake air house, the report said.
Vehicle owners are expected to receive a recall notification in October. They will be instructed to take their cars to an authorised BMW center to have the appropriate remedies performed for free. BMW said it was contacted by the Korean Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport in March about a “thermal event” involving the defect, adding it became aware of one “incident” that occurred in the U.S. in January, though the automaker did not clarify what the incident was.
The NHTSA said BMW was aware of about 18 customer complaints, concerns or field instances that may be related to the defect in the U.S.
