Recall Register

1986 BMW 325: recalls and complaints

NHTSA lists 3 recall campaigns for the 1986 BMW 325. The newest campaign is 93V015000. NHTSA received the report on 1 Feb 1993. The NHTSA record gives the component Visibility / Defroster/Defogger/HVAC System / Heater Core. NHTSA has 8 complaints on file for this model year. 4 NHTSA investigations name this model year.

The NHTSA recall file shows no do-not-drive advisory and no park-outside advisory on these campaigns.

This page cannot show if a recall applies to one vehicle. The NHTSA VIN lookup shows the unrepaired recalls of one vehicle.

Remedy of the newest campaign, 93V015000, in the NHTSA record

Dealers will install a thermostatic bypass valve in the engine compartment to control coolant temperature in the heater core. Also, a new design radiator cap will be installed, to control pressure and provide greater coolant overflow in the event of overheating.
NHTSA VIN lookup

Complaint information entered into NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation vehicle owner's complaint database is used with other data sources to identify safety issues that warrant investigation and to determine if a safety-related defect trend exists.

NHTSA publishes these words. Source: NHTSA Datasets and APIs, section Complaints, read on . Complaint file through . Recall file through .

Since the last update

No tracked figure of this page changed in a data update. What the log tracks

All updates to the register

Recall campaigns

3 campaigns, newest first. 592,561 units in total.

  1. 93V015000Received . 375,000 units.

    Visibility / Defroster/Defogger/HVAC System / Heater Core

    Defect, in the NHTSA record
    The malfunction or failure of a coolant system component results in significantly increased coolant temperature and a resulting increase in system pressure.
    Consequence, in the NHTSA record
    Vehicles operated under this increased cooling systempressure condition can suffer damage or failure of parts of the cooling systemsuch as (1) leakage from a coolant hose, (2) leakage of the radiator orexpansion tank, (3) disconnection of a hose from a pipe or a fitting, and (4)cracks in the heater core end piece resulting in coolant leakage. In some cases,boiling coolant can contact the lower right leg of the driver resulting inburns. Also, escaping coolant in the passenger compartment can cause vaporfogging of the interior surface of the windows, reducing driver visibility.
    Remedy, in the NHTSA record
    Dealers will install a thermostatic bypass valve in the engine compartment to control coolant temperature in the heater core. Also, a new design radiator cap will be installed, to control pressure and provide greater coolant overflow in the event of overheating.

    Report filed by BAYERISCHE MOTOREN WERKE. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .

  2. 86V151000Received . 97,300 units.

    Exterior Lighting / Brake Lights / Switch

    Defect, in the NHTSA record
    Brake light switch could overheat, eventually leading to melting of plastic internal parts in area of electrical contacts.
    Consequence, in the NHTSA record
    Consequence of defect: switch plunger could jam, rendering brake lights either inoperative or continuously illiminated, regardless of brake pedal operation.
    Remedy, in the NHTSA record
    Replace brake light switch with revised switch with increased electrical load capacity.

    Report filed by BAYERISCHE MOTOREN WERKE. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .

  3. 86V138000Received . 120,261 units.

    Steering / Steering Wheel/Handle Bar

    Defect, in the NHTSA record
    The two parts of the steering column disengagement element could completely disconnect if the car contacts an object in the roadway or elsewhere of sufficient mass to apply a significant force directly to the steering gearbox. Consequence of defect: steering control would be lost.
    Remedy, in the NHTSA record
    Bolt two specially formed plates to the disengagement element so that steering capability will be retained.

    Report filed by BAYERISCHE MOTOREN WERKE. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .

The campaign number opens the NHTSA record. Each quotation is the text of the NHTSA recall file.

Recall campaign: One recall in the NHTSA recall file, with one campaign number. A campaign can name many makes, models and model years.

Units: The number of vehicles or products that a recall can include. The manufacturer or the firm reports the number to the agency.

Complaints by component

8 complaints, 10 component mentions.

A complaint can name more than one component. Each component that a complaint names is one component mention. This model year has fewer than 50 component mentions, so the table shows the number of mentions only.

1986 BMW 325: component mentions in complaints
ComponentMentions
Visibility3
Equipment2
Engine and Engine Cooling2
Service Brakes, Hydraulic1
Seat Belts1
Latches/Locks/Linkages1
Complaints that report a crash
1
Complaints that report a fire
0
Injuries in the complaints
3
Deaths in the complaints
0
Date of the newest complaint
22 Jun 2007

These figures are the entries of the persons who sent the complaints.

Complaint: A report about a possible safety problem that a person sends to NHTSA. This site shows the number of complaints and not their text.

Complaints about the 1986 BMW 325, by the year NHTSA received them. The largest year is 1995, with 2 complaints.

Investigations

NHTSA investigations that name the 1986 BMW 325
NumberTypeSubjectComponentOpenedClosedCampaign
EA92017Engineering analysisHEATER CORE FAILUREVisibility / Defroster/Defogger/HVAC System2 Jun 199230 Mar 199393V015000
DP92004Defect petitionDEFECTIVE HEATER CORESVisibility / Defroster/Defogger/HVAC System3 Mar 19922 Jun 1992
EA90002Engineering analysisMSTR CYL FAILS TO RELEASEService Brakes, Hydraulic12 Oct 198930 Oct 1990
PE89142Preliminary evaluationBRAKES DRAG & FAILService Brakes, Hydraulic14 Jul 198912 Oct 1989

Investigation: A study of a possible safety defect by the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. An investigation with no closing date in the NHTSA file is open.

Other model years

The number under each year is the number of recall campaigns.

  1. 19841
  2. 19852
  3. 19863
  4. 19872
  5. 19882
  6. 19892
  7. 19902
  8. 19913
  9. 19923
  10. 19933
  11. 19941
  12. 19950
  13. 19960
  14. 19970
  15. 19980
  16. 19990
  17. 20002
  18. 20012
  19. 20022
  20. 20061
  21. 20071
  22. 20081
  23. 20091
  24. 20101
  25. 20111
  26. 20121

A year without a link has fewer than 2 campaigns and fewer than 25 complaints. It has no page.

Official channels

Cite this page

Recall Register. 1986 BMW 325: recalls and complaints. https://recallregister.com/vehicle/bmw/325/1986/. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, recall, complaint and investigation files. Data through .

Sources

Source
NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Licence
US government work, public domain
Recall file through
29 Sep 2026
Complaint file through
29 Mar 2018
First complaint in the file
1 Jan 1995
Manufacturer in the recall file
BAYERISCHE MOTOREN WERKE

The NHTSA record is the authority. A complaint count is the number of different complaint numbers for the make, the model and the model year. How the register is made. Report an error.

Questions

How many units are in the recall campaigns for the 1986 BMW 325?
592,561 units in 3 campaigns. A campaign can name other models and model years, and its units include them.
How many recall campaigns does the BMW 325 have for all model years?
NHTSA lists 11 recall campaigns for the BMW 325, model years 1984 to 2012. 3 of them name the 1986 model year.
Which component do the complaints about the 1986 BMW 325 name most often?
Visibility: 3 of 10 component mentions.
Is an NHTSA investigation of the 1986 BMW 325 open?
No. Each of the 4 investigations that name this model year has a closing date in the NHTSA file.