2004 BMW 325CI: recalls and complaints
NHTSA advisory: do not driveCampaign 20V018000. NHTSA received the report on . 292,948 units. Air Bags / Frontal / Passenger Side / Inflator Module
Remedy of campaign 20V018000, in the NHTSA record
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.
NHTSA advisory: do not driveCampaign 15V318000. NHTSA received the report on . 419,235 units. Air Bags / Frontal / Driver Side / Inflator Module
Remedy of campaign 15V318000, in the NHTSA record
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.
Do-not-drive advisory: A mark on a recall campaign in the NHTSA recall file. This site shows the mark as NHTSA sets it.
NHTSA lists 2 recall campaigns for the 2004 BMW 325CI. The newest campaign is 20V018000. NHTSA received the report on 15 Jan 2020. The NHTSA record gives the component Air Bags / Frontal / Passenger Side / Inflator Module. NHTSA has 68 complaints on file for this model year. 3 NHTSA investigations name this model year.
This page cannot show if a recall applies to one vehicle. The NHTSA VIN lookup shows the unrepaired recalls of one vehicle.
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
Recall campaigns
2 campaigns, newest first. 712,183 units in total.
20V018000Received . 292,948 units.
Air Bags / Frontal / Passenger Side / Inflator ModuleDo-not-drive advisory
- Defect, in the NHTSA record
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.
- Consequence, in the NHTSA record
An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
- Remedy, in the NHTSA record
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.
Report filed by BMW of North America, LLC. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .
15V318000Received . 419,235 units.
Air Bags / Frontal / Driver Side / Inflator ModuleDo-not-drive advisory
- Defect, in the NHTSA record
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.
- Consequence, in the NHTSA record
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.
- Remedy, in the NHTSA record
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.
Report filed by BMW of North America, LLC. 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
68 complaints, 76 component mentions.
A complaint can name more than one component. Each component that a complaint names is one component mention. The figure per 1,000 component mentions shows how many of each 1,000 mentions name the component.
- 2004 BMW 325CI
- All 2004 vehicles
| Component | 2004 325CI | All 2004 vehicles | 325CI, all years | Mentions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air Bags | 539.5 | 78.9 | 460.2 | 41 |
| Power Train | 131.6 | 113.4 | 58.8 | 10 |
| Electrical System | 65.8 | 129.3 | 83 | 5 |
| Exterior Lighting | 65.8 | 33.1 | 72.7 | 5 |
| Seats | 39.5 | 18.1 | 17.3 | 3 |
| Visibility | 26.3 | 39.6 | 17.3 | 2 |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 26.3 | 27.9 | 24.2 | 2 |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 13.2 | 41.3 | 6.9 | 1 |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 13.2 | 60.7 | 48.4 | 1 |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 13.2 | 44.1 | 10.4 | 1 |
The table shows the 10 components with the most mentions, of 15.
- Complaints that report a crash
- 1
- Complaints that report a fire
- 2
- Injuries in the complaints
- 1
- Deaths in the complaints
- 0
- Date of the newest complaint
- 21 Apr 2025
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.
Investigations
| Number | Type | Subject | Component | Opened | Closed | Campaign |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EA15001 | Engineering analysis | Air Bag Inflator Rupture | Air Bags / Frontal | 24 Feb 2015 | Open | 14V668 |
| PE14016 | Preliminary evaluation | Air Bag Inflator Rupture | Air Bags / Frontal | 11 Jun 2014 | 2 Mar 2015 | 13V172000 |
| DP04001 | Defect petition | DELAYED TRANSMISSION ENGAGEMENT | Power Train / Automatic Transmission | 3 Feb 2004 | 27 May 2004 |
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.
A year without a link has fewer than 2 campaigns and fewer than 25 complaints. It has no page.
Follow by RSS:BMW recallsVehicle recalls
Official channels
- NHTSA VIN lookupNHTSA shows the unrepaired recalls of one vehicle from its VIN or its license plate.
- NHTSA: report a safety problemThe NHTSA form for a complaint about a vehicle, a tire, a child seat or equipment.
- NHTSA page of the 2004 BMW 325CIThe recalls, the complaints and the investigations that NHTSA shows for this model year.
Cite this page
Recall Register. 2004 BMW 325CI: recalls and complaints. https://recallregister.com/vehicle/bmw/325ci/2004/. 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
- 30 Sep 2026
- Complaint file through
- 30 Sep 2026
- First complaint in the file
- 1 Jan 1995
- Manufacturer in the recall file
- BMW of North America, LLC
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 2004 BMW 325CI?
- 712,183 units in 2 campaigns. A campaign can name other models and model years, and its units include them.
- How many recall campaigns does the BMW 325CI have for all model years?
- NHTSA lists 9 recall campaigns for the BMW 325CI, model years 2000 to 2006. 2 of them name the 2004 model year.
- Which component do the complaints about the 2004 BMW 325CI name most often?
- Air Bags: 41 of 76 component mentions, or 539.5 per 1,000. For all 2004 vehicles the figure is 78.9 per 1,000.
- Is an NHTSA investigation of the 2004 BMW 325CI open?
- 1 investigation has no closing date in the NHTSA file, of 3 that name this model year.