2006 BMW 325I Seats Problems

The passenger seat occupancy sensor (OC3 mat) on my 2006 BMW 3 Series (VIN: [XXX] ) has failed. As a result, the front passenger airbag is disabled, which poses a serious safety risk. BMW issued a 15-year warranty extension for this issue, acknowledging it as a common failure, but my vehicle is now slightly outside the coverage period. This part is vital for detecting front-seat occupants and enabling the airbag during a crash. I believe BMW should still be required to fix this safety-critical defect, especially in vehicles where the issue was never repaired while under the extended coverage window. This should be reclassified as a full safety recall, not just an expired service campaign. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Put a box of moderate weight into the passenger seat (hard drives) - probably 40 lbs. After driving for a few minutes and over a few bumps, the seat belt warning light came on because the seat sensor was tripped by the weight. Put the seat belt on to silence the warning. Shortly thereafter, both the seatbelt and passenger airbag warning lights showed on the dash, regardless of occupancy. Hooked up to scanning tool and cleared the codes but they always return. This is not a rare event from reading the online forums - it is likely due to the sensor mat in the seat for occupancy being defective, or a combination of that and the seat belt pre-tensioner being defective, for the passenger side only. The vehicle operates normally other than the warning lights. Obviously have not tested the airbag, but that is highly unlikely to be the actual...

Existing vehicle recall excludes this particular VIN among the same MY and model even though this VIN is affected. Report Receipt Date: NOV 12, 2013 NHTSA Campaign Number: 13V564000 Component(s): AIR BAGS Potential Number of Units Affected: 76,565 Manufacturer: BMW of North America, LLC SUMMARY: BMW of North America LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2006 325i, 325xi, 330i, 330xi sedans and 325xi sports wagons, [shortened]. The front passenger seat occupant detection mat that determines if and how the passenger frontal air bag should deploy in a crash may fatigue and develop cracks which could lead to a system failure. CONSEQUENCE: Should the system fail, in the event of a crash, the front passenger air bag would be deactivated, increasing the risk of personal injury.

I BELIEVE THE SEAT SENSOR IN MY 2006 BMW 325I FRONT PASSENGER SEAT IS FAULTY. THE MAJORITY OF THE TIME, THE LIGHT COMES ON THAT SHOWS THAT MY FRONT PASSENGER AIRBAG IS NOT ON AND ALSO THAT THE PASSENGER IS NOT BUCKLED, WHETHER THEY ARE BUCKLED, OR THERE ISN'T A PASSENGER IN THAT SEAT AT ALL. WHETHER I AM STATIONARY OR DRIVING/MOVING AT ANY SPEED, THOSE WARNING LIGHTS ARE ON, AND WILL INTERMITTENTLY GO OFF FOR SHORT PERIODS OF TIME, THEN THEY COME BACK ON AGAIN. I AM IN A CARPOOL SO I FREQUENTLY AM THE DRIVER AND I HAVE SOMEONE IN THAT FRONT PASSENGER SEAT. I AM CONCERNED THAT IF IN AN ACCIDENT, THE AIRBAG WILL NOT DEPLOY CAUSING INJURIES IN THE CASE OF AN ACCIDENT. NEWER MODELS OF THE SAME CAR HAVE THIS SEAT SENSOR ON RECALL, SO THE 2006 SHOULD ALSO BE RECALLED.

GETTING ERROR ON DASH THAT PASSENGER RESTRAINT SYSTEM MALFUNCTION.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 BMW 325I. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE PASSENGER SEAT RECOGNIZED A PASSENGER EVEN WHEN NOTHING OR NO ONE WAS IN THE SEAT. THE DEALER REPAIRED THE VEHICLE PER NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 13V564000 (AIR BAGS); HOWEVER, THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE VEHICLE WAS RETURNED TO THE DEALER IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE LEATHER SEATS NEEDED TO BE RECONDITIONED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 114,000. UPDATED 06/13/17*LJ *AS

PASSENGER RESTRAINT SYSTEM MALFUNCTION. THERE'S A RECALL FOR THE SAME MAKE AND MODEL OF MY CAR BUT FOR SOME REASON "MY VIN" DOESN'T FALL INTO THE RECALL.

AIR BAG SEAT SENSOR FAILURE. I WOULD LIKE TO ADD MY ENTRY TO THE LONG LIST OF BMW 325 OWNERS THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN COVERED BY THE FRONT SEAT OCCUPANT PROTECTION MAT DEFECT RECALL (SEE NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 13V564000), BUT APPARENTLY ARE NOT. ACCORDING TO BMW, MY CAR WAS MADE A MONTH BEFORE I.E. NOV 2005, THE RECALL DATE PARAMETERS, WHICH STARED IN DEC 2005. THIS INVOLVES A FAULTY PASSENGER OCCUPANCY SENSOR MALFUNCTION THAT DISABLES THE AIRBAGS IN 2006 E90 BMW 3 SERIES SEDAN. BMW RECALLED PREVIOUS YEARS SENSORS BUT HAS NOT FIXED THE ISSUE IN LATER MODELS. THERE ARE PLENTY OF FOLKS AFFECTED BY THIS: SEE HTTP://WWW.CARCOMPLAINTS.COM/BMW/325/2006/ACCESSORIES-INTERIOR/SEATS.SHTML NTSB, PLEASE ADDRESS THIS ASAP! AND THANKS!

PASSENGER RESTRAINT SYSTEM MALFUNCTION. MY VIN WAS NOT INCLUDED IN THE RECALL BUT ERROR IS SHOWING. ACCORDING TO TBE NHTSA DATA BASE UNDER VEHICLE DESCRIPTION (MAKE MODEL AND YEAR) THERES AN OPEN RECALL FOR MY MODEL.

TAKATA RECALL. THE PASSENGER SEAT'S AIRBAG/WEIGHT SENSOR ON OUR 2006 325I HAS GONE OUT REPEATEDLY (WE'RE ON THE 4TH OR 5TH REPLACEMENT.) IT HAPPENS WHEN THE CAR IS IN MOTION AND THEN THE SENSOR LIGHT COMES ON TO ALERT US THAT SOMETHING IS WRONG AND STAYS ON UNTIL IT'S REPLACED. HOWEVER, IT USUALLY GOES OUT AGAIN WITHIN 18 MONTHS OR SO. I AM USUALLY SITTING IN THE SEAT WHEN THIS HAPPENS WHICH IS VERY UNSAFE. I CAN'T REMEMBER THE EXACT DATE OF THE FIRST MALFUNCTION, BUT WE HADN'T OWNED THE CAR VERY LONG; IT WAS STILL UNDER WARRANTY. WE HAVE THE SPORTS SEATS WHICH FROM MY READING SEEM TO BE PART OF THE PROBLEM. I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR CAR WAS NOT OVERLOOKED IN THE RECALLS. IT NEVER STAYS FIXED FOR LONG AND I DON'T WANT TO FIND OUT THAT IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN RECALLED WHEN I'M...

THE PASSENGER SEATBELT/AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT WAS ON AND OFF FROM TIME TO TIME AFTER AROUND FOUR YEARS OF MY PURCHASE IN 2005. THE PROBLEM MIGHT HAVE EXISTED EARLIER; HOWEVER, AS MY VEHICLE USUALLY DID NOT CARRY ANY PASSENGERS, I DID NOT NOTICE THE PROBLEM WITHIN THE WARRANTY PERIOD. RECENTLY, THE LIGHT WOULD NOT EVEN GO AWAY. MY MECHANIC INFORMED ME ABOUT THE RECALL NUMBER 13V564000, STATING THE "OWNERS OF MODEL YEAR 2006-2007 3 SERIES WITH STANDARD SEAT ... WILL RECEIVE AN EXTENDED WARRANTY ON THEIR FRONT PASSENGER SEAT OCCUPANT DETECTION MAT." I HAVE CONTACT BMW, BUT THEY SAID THE RECALL AND THE EXTENDED WARRANTY WOULD NOT BE APPLICABLE TO MY VEHICLE.

MY BMW DOES NOT FALL INTO THE RECALL THAT BMW PUBLISHED. AFTER SEVERAL LIGHTS APPEARED IN MY DASH (AIRBAG, BRAKE, SEATBELT) I HAD THE DISNOSTIC TOOL LOOKED UP AND RECEIVED A FAULT CODE 93C3 SEAT OCCUPANCY DETECTOR, PASSENGER . LOOKING ON THE WEB THIS SEEMS TO BE A COMMON PROBLEM.

I RECENTLY PURCHASED A USED 2006 BMW 325I WITH THE INTENTIONS OF LETTING MY DAUGHTER DRIVE IT, DUE TO THE HIGH SAFETY RATINGS OF THESE AUTOMOBILES. I CALLED THE DEALERSHIP ABOUT SOME ISSUES WITH THE TRANSMISSION, AND SOME WARNING LIGHTS ON THE DASH INDICATING A PROBLEM WITH THE SEATBELTS AND AIRBAGS. WHEN I INQUIRED ABOUT THE WARNING LIGHTS, THE SERVICE WRITER OF THE DEALERSHIP IN MERIDIAN MS TOLD ME THAT IT SOUNDS LIKE THE SEAT MAT WAS FAULTY. LATER I GOOGLED INFO ABOUT THE SEAT MAT, AND I CAME ACROSS A LINK THAT SHOWS MY SHOULD HAVE BEEN RECALLED DUE TO THIS ISSUE. I CALLED THE DEALERSHIP BACK AND WAS TOLD THERE WAS NO RECALL FOR THIS CAR. I CALLED NHTSC AND LEFT A MESSAGE ABOUT MY INQUIRY, AND I WAS CALLED BACK PROMPTLY BY MR. NATE HAYES. AFTER I EXPLAINED THE SITUATION TO MR. HAYES, HE DID SOME CHECKING...

A FAULTY PASSENGER OCCUPANCY AIRBAG SENSOR WARNING LIGHT HAS BEEN REPEATEDLY APPEARING. OWN RESEARCH SUGGESTS THAT AS A RESULT OF THIS FAULT THE PASSENGER AIRBAG MAY NOT DEPLOY IN A CRASH. THIS PROBLEM SEEMS TO BE EXTREMELY COMMON TO BMWS FROM AROUND THIS TIME AND A NON-DEPLOYING AIRBAG WOULD POSE A LIFE-THREATENING SAFETY RISK. BMW HAS AS YET APPARENTLY REFUSED TO ISSUE A RECALL.

AIRBAG LIGHT ILLUMINATED ON THE DASHBOARD. MANUFACTURER WAS INFORMED BUT NOTED THAT THE VIN DOESNT FALL WITHIN THE RANGE OF THE RECALL. MANUFACTURER DIDNT AUTHORIZE THE REPAIR ($700 ESTIMATE). RECALL 13V-564 IS SPECIFICALLY FOR BMW/325I/2006/SPORT SEAT/AIRBAG MY EXACT CAR AND EXACTLY THE ISSUE IM EXPERIENCING. THERE ARE HUNDREDS OF BMW/325I/2006/AIRBAG COMPLAINTS. BMW CUSTOMER RELATIONS REFUSE TO HELP

THE AIR BAG LIGHT CAME ON AND I CALLED BMW CUSTOMER RELATIONS. THEY TOLD ME TO TAKE IT TO A BMW DEALER TO HAVE THE FRONT SEAT OCCUPANT PROTECTION MAT REPLACED UNDER AN EXTENDED WARRANTY (NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER 13V564000). THE BMW DEALER IN SCOTTSDALE SAID IT ISN'T LISTED AS A RECALL ITEM AND THEY WANT $180 JUST TO PERFORM A CHECK TO SEE IF THERE IS A PROBLEM, WHICH IS RIDICULOUS THERE SHOULD BE NO FEE AT ALL TO FIX SUCH AN IMPORTANT SAFETY ITEM (AIRBAG). *TR

BMW 2006 325I TAKEN TO MECHANIC DUE TO PASSENGER OCCUPANCY SEAT MAT SENSOR FAILURE ASSOCIATED WITH RECALL OF SAME MODEL YEAR BMW. AIRBAG LIGHT ILLUMINATED ON DASH AND AIRBAG OFF LIGHT SENSOR ILLUMINATED EVEN WHEN PASSENGER SEAT WAS OCCUPIED. MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED, BUT SAID THE VIN DID NOT FALL WITHIN THE RANGE OF THE RECALL. DID NOT AUTHORIZE REPAIR ON THE VEHICLE DUE TO $700 ESTIMATED REPAIR COST. CLEARLY THIS IS AN ISSUE WITH THE BMW 2006 325I AS APPARENT WITH THE NUMBER OF COMPLAINTS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS ISSUE. *TR

THE PASSENGER SIDE AIRBAG LIGHT HAS COME ON NOTIFYING THAT THE AIRBAG IS DISABLED. THERE ARE RECALLS ON THE SAME MODEL/YEAR BMW AS MINE BUT MY PARTICULAR VIN IS NOT INCLUDED. I SPOKE TO A BMW REP WHO SAID THE RECALL COULD BE BASED ON THE PARTICULAR SEATS AND NOT NECESSARILY THE VIN. BUT SHE TOLD ME IT ONLY APPLIES TO THE SPORT SEATS AND NOT THE STANDARD SEATS WHICH I HAVE. ACCORDING TO MY RESEARCH ONLINE, THE PROBLEM SEEMS TO BE WITH A SEAT MAT SENSOR WHICH WAS FAULTY. ALSO, THE NHTSA HAS A COMPLAINT ALREADY LISTED UNDER 08V384000. *TR

PASSENGER AIR BAG WARNING LIGHTS COMES ON AND OFF SPORADICALLY. THIS WILL CAUSE AIR BAGS NOT TO INFLATE IN EVENT OF AN ACCIDENT. BMW ISSUED RECALL FOR DEFECTIVE SEAT MATS/SENSOR BUT THEY SAY MY VEHICLE NOT COVERED BY THE RECALL AND REPLACEMENT IS $1000. IT IS SAME DEFECTIVE SEAT MAT AS ON OTHER 2006 325I CARS AND SHOULD BE INCLUDED IN RECALL. *TR

I AM WRITING TO YOU TO ADDRESS A CURRENT NHTSA SAFETY RECALL AFFECTING MY VEHICLE (AND PRESUMABLY MANY SIMILAR VEHICLES). I CURRENTLY OWN A 06 BMW 325I 4DR AND HAVE RECENTLY EXPERIENCED A FRONT PASSENGER SEAT DETECTION MAT MALFUNCTION. THIS SENSOR MALFUNCTION AFFECTS THE DEPLOYMENT OF THE FRONT PASSENGER SEAT AIRBAG IN THE EVENT OF A COLLISION. THE ERROR CODES MY VEHICLE IS DISPLAYING ARE THE SAME AS THOSE ADDRESSED IN THE NHTSA SAFETY RECALL CAMPAIGN NUMBER 13V564000, DATED 13 NOV 2013. THE NHTSA RECALL INDICATED BMW IS RECALLING 06-07 3-SERIES EQUIPPED WITH SEAT TYPES THAT MAY PRODUCE SIMILAR ERRORS DUE TO CRACKING THAT DEVELOPS WITH AGE. THIS CRACKING IS TRUE IN MY VEHICLE AND HAS BEEN VERIFIED BY LOCAL MECHANICS. IN DEC 2013, I CONSULTED MY LOCAL BMW DEALERSHIP TO DETERMINE IF MY VEHICLE WAS COVERED UNDER THE NHTSA SAFETY RECALL. I WAS INFORMED BY THE DEALER THAT MY...

I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE ONE WEEK AGO WITH THE AIRBAG AND SEATBELT LIGHTS ON THE DASH, AFTER PLENTY OF RESEARCH THERE WAS A RECALL DONE ON ONLY THE SPORT SEATS. AFTER EVERYTHING I READ EVEN THE NON SPORTS SEATS, LIKE MINE ARE HAVING THE ISSUES AS WELL. BMW NEEDS TO FIX THIS ISSUE WITH ALL MODELS. I HAVE NO CLUE AT THIS POINT IF THE AIRBAGS WILL EVEN GO OFF IN THE EVENT OF A CRASH. PLENTY OF COMPLAINTS ON THE SITE ABOUT THIS SAME ISSUE. PLEASE HELP *TR

FRONT PASSENGER OCCUPANCY SEAT SENSOR MAT/PAD FAILURE. INITIAL INQUIRE WITH DEALER RESULTED IN NO COVERAGE OF REPAIRS DUE TO VIN BREAK. AS OF DECEMBER 25, 2013 NHTSA SHOWS THAT ALL EFFECTED BMW 325XI 2006 WILL BE REPAIRED AT NO COST TO OWNER. NHTSA CAMPAIGN #: 13V-564

1. SEAT OCCUPANCY SENSORS ARE BROKEN. THE INDICATOR SHOWS UP ON THE DASHBOARD EVEN WHEN THE DRIVER AND THE PASSENGER HAVE THEIR SEAT BELTS FASTEN. 2. OIL LEAKS FROM PAN GASKET DUE TO THE ALUMINUM BOLTS AND ETC. *TR

THE PASSENGER SIDE OCCUPANCY SEAT MAT FOR THE AIRBAG FAILED. BMW HAS BULLETIN SIB 65 75 06, AIRBAG WARNING LAMP FOR OC3 SEAT MAT FAULT, THAT COVERS MY CARS BUILD DATE, BUT BMW STATES MY VIN IS NOT COVERED. THERE IS ALSO A CURRENT RECALL, NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 08V384000 BUT BMW STATES MY CAR IS NOT COVERED AND REFUSES TO HONOR THE 10 YEAR EXTENDED WARRANTY. MY CAR IS EXPERIENCING THIS SAME ISSUE, AS DIAGNOSED BY A LOCAL BMW DEALERS, BUT THEY HAVE FAILED TO COVER IT. THIS IS A MAJOR SAFETY ISSUE THAT IS AFFECTING MANY CARS OUTSIDE OF THE RECALL. THEY ARE MANY PEOPLE POSTING ON VARIOUS BMW FORUMS THAT ARE EXPERIENCING THE SAME ISSUE. BMW SHOULD BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE TO FIX ALL THE VEHICLES EXPERIENCING THIS PROBLEM. *TR

I HAVE A FAULTY PASSENGER SIDE SEAT OCCUPANCY SENSOR FAILURE, AS DIAGNOSED BY THE LOCAL BMW DEALERSHIP. THE FAILURE CODE IS 93C3, AND THE ISSUE APPEARS TO HAVE BEEN PREVIOUSLY RECOGNIZED BY THE MANUFACTURER, AND PARTIALLY REMEDIED WITH EITHER AN EXTENDED WARRANTY OR RECALL, ALLOWABLE ON ONLY PARTICULAR VIN NUMBERS. THE RECALL / EXTENDED WARRANTY APPLIES TO PARTICULAR 2006 3 SERIES BMW VEHICLES MANUFACTURED PRIOR TO JANUARY 2006. THE 93C3 SEAT MAT OCCUPANCY FAILURE IN MY VEHICLE CAUSES THE AIRBAG AND SEAT BELT LIGHTS TO ILLUMINATE ON THE DASHBOARD OF THE VEHICLE. BMW USA HAS ADVISED THAT THE RECALL DOES NOT IMPACT MY VEHICLE, EVEN THOUGH THE SEATS, AND MANUFACTURE DATE ARE WITHIN THE RECALL PARAMETERS. THE LOCAL BMW DEALERSHIP, AS WELL AS INDEPENDENT SHOPS HAVE ALL ADVISED THAT THE FAILURE SHOULD, BY ALL QUALIFYING MEANS BEYOND VIN NUMBER IDENTIFICATION, BE COVERED UNDER THE RECALL OR EXTENDED WARRANTY, AS THIS...

MY CAR STARTED DISPLAYING A WARNING THAT THERE WAS A MALFUNCTION IN THE PASSENGER RESTRAINT SYSTEM. TOOK IT TO DEALER WHO SAID THAT THERE WAS A LOW VOLTAGE ISSUE WITH MY BATTERY AND FIXED IT. 2 WEEKS LATER THE WARNING REAPPEARED. THIS TIME, WHEN I TOOK IT TO THE DEALER, I WAS INFORMED THAT THERE WAS A DEFECTIVE SENSOR MODULE IN THE SEATS AND THAT THE AIRBAGS WOULD NOT DEPLOY IN THE EVENT OF A CRASH. EVEN THOUGH THE NHTSA ISSUED A RECALL FOR THIS SPECIFIC MALFUNCTION (NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER: 08V384000), THE DEALER REFUSED TO FIX THE MODULE UNDER WARRANTY. THE COST OF THIS REPAIR WAS QUOTED TO BE $1400 AND IS OUT OF MY BUDGET, AND EVEN THOUGH THIS IS A NOTED SAFETY DEFECT THAT BMW IS AWARE OF, THEY REFUSE TO HONOR THE RECALL CLAIMING THAT MY CAR'S VIN NUMBER IS NOT AMONG THOSE COVERED BY THE...

THE AIRBAG WARNING COMES ON INDICATING THAT THE PASSENGER SEAT AIRBAG IS OFF AND THE. BELT TENSION SENSOR IS MALFUNCTIONING. ONLY HAPPENS WHEN THERE IS SOMEONE SITTING IN THE PASSENGER SEAT. *TR

I'VE LATELY BEEN EXPERIENCING AN ISSUE WITH MY VEHICLE WHERE WHEN A PASSENGER SITS IN THE FRONT PASSENGER SEAT, TWO ICONS ON MY DASH COME ON INDICATING THAT SAFETY FEATURES ARE DISABLED; I GET AN AIRBAG DISABLE ICON IN THE DASH ALONG WITH THE ROOF LINING OF MY VEHICLE NEAR THE SOS BUTTON, A TEXT THAT READS, "PASSENGER AIR BAG DISABLED" AND IS ILLUMINATED, INDICATING THAT THE PASSENGER AIRBAG IS DISABLED. ALSO A 'SEAT BELT' ICON SHOWS IN THE DASHBOARD DESPITE IT BEING CLICKED IN. NHTSA ACTION NUMBER: EA08001 THANKFULLY DUE TO NHTSA, THE MANUFACTURER, BMWNA, WAS FORCED TO RECALL A TOTAL OF 200,000 VEHICLES WITH THIS EXACT SAME ISSUE. ACCORDING TO THE NHTSA LISTING, MY VEHICLE IS COVERED UNDER A MASS RECALL OF THE 'SENSOR MAT' LOCATED IN THE PASSENGER SEAT OF VARIOUS BMW MODELS TO DETECT WHEN A PASSENGER IS SITTING ON THE SEAT WHICH THEN TRIGGERS THE...

I HAVE A 2006 BMW 325I SEDAN WITH SPORTS SEATS THAT FAILED THE SEATBELT WARNING SENSOR ON THE PASSENGER SEAT DUE TO A DEFECTIVE "OCCUPANCY SENSOR." THIS IS EXACTLY THE ISSUE AS OUTLINED IN ACTION NUMBER EA08001 BUT BECAUSE THE CARS BUILD DATE WAS LATER THAN STATED IN THE RECALL IS NOT COVERED. THE PROBLEM EXISTS IN ALL 2006 CARS AND WAS NOT RESOLVED BY THE MANUFACTURER. COST WAS $1,000 FOR REPLACEMENT AND 3 DAYS AT BMW. *TR