Total Recall

[barrychan]

So i recieved a phone call from my dealership about a recall on the engine mount screw?
They said there will be a loaner for the day but would not cover any travel cost.....i live on a island and it takes ferry service, round trip is about $250.00, soooo can i wait til my first brake fluid service which due in 6 months? Is it safe to drive?

 

[jadnashuanh]

The latest software update available at least in the USA, addressed some of the issue by improving the logic to detect when a wheel is unloaded and able to spin up to high speed. The issue is, when it lands back down on the pavement! The shock has shown to be able to break the motor mount if it was extreme, maybe preceded by shearing off the bolt, putting more load on the remaining ones. THe updated software limits that unloaded speed up, and thus, the load. Sounds like installing a stronger bolt should reinforce that, as well.

My guess is that if you had a failure and did not have the recall done, you might have some issues getting a free, warranty repair had you ignored the recall. But, unless you experience the right set of conditions where it can occur, the car is no less safe until it breaks. THen, from what I hear, it gets noisy, and maybe a little sloppy, and you'd not want to drive it far for fear of doing more damage.

 

[alohart]

Until the motor mounting hardware is updated, it could break. What those affected have reported varies from a clunking sound when cornering which doesn't prevent the car from being driven to a catastrophic failure that renders the car immediately undrivable with expensive damage to many components. Would BMW cover extensive damage under warranty if you didn't have the recall performed in a timely manner? I don't know, but I would check with BMW explaining your situation.

I, personally, am not concerned about the motor mounting hardware breaking on our i3 BEV, especially after the November software update was installed which supposedly reduces the probability of the hardware breaking. If you can avoid situations in which a rear tire leaves the road briefly while accelerating (e.g., accelerating over a curb), you probably won't have any problems.

 

[jadnashuanh]

FWIW, while it may come to this, that recall has not been posted on the USA government NHTSA.gov website. The US dealers may deal with it as a service campaign, or, it could become a safety recall. Only time will tell. I'm sure they'd rather keep it out of the government monitoring of a recall if possible.