Deadly Takata airbag gas generators lead to another recall of the BMW 3 Series, 394,000 vehicles affected
Takata. Every car enthusiast knows this name because Takata Kabushiki Gaisha produced millions upon millions of deadly airbag inflators. The much-publicized saga ended with the bankruptcy of the automotive supplier, which was, however, reborn as Joyson Safety Systems after Key Safety Systems bought the company for around $1.6 billion.
Sharp metal fragments from Takata airbag inflators have caused at least 26 deaths in the United States since 2009, which brings us to BMW. The Bavarian carmaker recently submitted recall documents to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for almost 400,000 units of the 3 Series, namely the E90 sedan and the E91 station wagon. The question is, how could BMW have overlooked these vehicles for so long?
In fact, the sedans and longroofs in question had their original steering wheels replaced with Sport or M Sport steering wheels with PSDI-5 inflators. The automaker was alerted by dealers outside the US in early 2024 that certain 3 Series vehicles arriving for service had their original wheels replaced with cooler steering wheels.
The manufacturer claims that the factory wheels were equipped with ammonium nitrate-free airbag inflators, while the replacement wheels are equipped with lethal inflators. BMW of North America emphasizes that suspect wheels with PSDI-5 airbag inflator modules were neither officially offered nor approved as spare parts by the Bavarian brand.
In other words, owners have inadvertently made their vehicles unsafe by opting for a slightly nicer steering wheel. The gas generator propellant in PSDI-5 modules can fluctuate over time, resulting in overly aggressive combustion.
Photo: BMW
The models and years of manufacture of the BMW 3 Series sedans 323i, 325i, 325xi, 328i, 328xi, 330i, 330xi, 335i and 335xi (years of manufacture 2006 to 2011) as well as the BMW 3 Series saloon 335d (years of manufacture 2009 to 2011) are affected. For the station wagon, these are the models 325xi, 328i and 328xi (years of manufacture 2006 to 2012).
Only 5,677 diesel sedans are being recalled, as well as 10,089 sedans with long roofs and 378,263 sedans with petrol engines. The production dates range from February 1, 2005 for the sedans to May 29, 2012 for the 3 Series Sportswagon. In Europe, the station wagon is being marketed as the 3 Series Touring.
Of course, dealers must check the driver’s airbag module and – if it says Takata – replace the inflator with one that does not contain any ammonium nitrate. This process is free of charge. Owner notifications will be sent out nationwide on August 23.
Owners who are uncomfortable waiting that long can take matters into their own hands by entering the 17-digit chassis number on the automaker’s recall portal. Alternatively, the NHTSA offers a similar VIN lookup tool. If the search result includes a message that your vehicle is affected, call your preferred BMW dealer to schedule repairs.
In that sense, the fifth generation of BMW’s 3 Series marked the bitter end of naturally aspirated engines for the premium model. Back then, M3s were equipped with naturally aspirated V8s instead of twin-turbo I6s. It’s also worth noting that this generation was the last hurrah for the 3 Series Coupe and 3 Series Convertible.
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