BMW and MINI steering tie rod may break
critical How serious is it? About this label
Very serious — a tie rod can break and cause a sudden loss of control, and although the notice does not tell owners to park the vehicle, it should be inspected as soon as possible.
What's wrong, in plain English
The tie rod is the bar that connects your steering to a front wheel. On these vehicles it may have been put together incorrectly at the factory. That mistake wears out the joint at the end of the rod faster than normal, and over time the rod can break. If it snaps while you are driving, that wheel stops following the steering wheel and you can lose control of the car. Dealers will inspect and replace the tie rods and ball joints as needed.
What you should do
Affected vehicles (4)
Who to contact
BMW — official BMW recall lookup
Customer service: 1-800-525-7417
MINI — official MINI recall lookup
Customer service: 1-866-275-6464
The bigger picture
- Why do so many BMW models have steering recalls? · all 10 BMW recalls in this area
Official notice
- Component
- STEERING:LINKAGES:TIE ROD ASSEMBLY
- Summary
- BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2018-2019 BMW X1 sDrive28i, X1 xDrive28i, 2019 X2 xDrive28i, MINI Cooper S Convertible, Countryman, and John Cooper Works Countryman vehicles. The steering gear tie rod may have been assembled incorrectly, which may result in excessive wear of the tie rod end, eventually causing it to break.
- Safety risk
- A broken steering tie rod would lead to a loss of vehicle control, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- BMW will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the vehicles and replace the tie rods and ball joints as necessary, free of charge. The recall began October 11, 2019. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417 or MINI customer service at 1-866-825-1525.
Verify your specific vehicle by VIN at nhtsa.gov. Recall repairs are free of charge by law.