NHTSA Complaint #11591409 — 2014 BMW 328D

The driver side door lock mechanism failed completely while the driver was in the vehicle, making it impossible to open the driver side door or exit the vehicle normally. Neither the interior door handle, nor the central power lock/unlock control, nor the remote key fob, nor the physical key inserted into the door lock from the outside can unlock the door. The driver was forced to exit the vehicle by moving the driver seat to an extreme aft position, then climbing over the center console into the passenger seat, to exit via the passenger door. If the power seat adjustment had been inoperable, egress would have bee significantly more difficult. If the driver had been involved in a collision, or otherwise needed to exit the vehicle very quickly, they would have been severely hindered from doing so. Inability to operate the driver side door represents a safety hazard to the driver. No warning messages or lamps were present in the vehicle before or after the door lock mechanism failure. The driver side door remains inoperable after completely switching off the vehicle ignition and turning it back on.