2019 BMW X3 Driver assistance Problems

hello I am formally reporting: Safety‑Critical Failures and Applicable Federal Requirements the attached 2019 BMW X3 – VIN [XXX] 1. Rearview Camera Failure Federal Requirement: FMVSS 111 – Rear Visibility Relevant Obligations: - Rearview image must activate automatically when shifting into reverse. - System must provide a minimum field of view. - System must function reliably under normal operating conditions. Failure: The rearview camera failed completely, resulting in loss of federally required rear visibility. 2. Emergency Call (eCall) System Malfunction Federal Requirement: 49 CFR § 573 – Defect and Noncompliance Responsibility (NHTSA considers eCall part of the post‑crash safety architecture.) Relevant Obligations: - Manufacturers must investigate safety‑related failures. - Manufacturers must determine defect scope and affected population. Failure: The vehicle displays “Emergency Call System Malfunction” warnings, indicating loss of automatic crash notification capability. 3. Forward Collision Warning / Pedestrian Warning Failure Federal Requirement: FMVSS 126 – Electronic Stability Control (ESC) - NHTSA ADAS Safety Guidance (Forward Collision Warning, Pedestrian Detection) Relevant Obligations: - ADAS systems supporting collision avoidance must function reliably. - Failures must be investigated for potential safety defects. - Manufacturers must document defect determination and scope. Failure: The vehicle displays warnings indicating failure of forward collision warning and pedestrian detection systems, impairing collision‑avoidance capability. 4. Telematics Control Unit (TCU) Failure Federal Requirement: 49 CFR § 573 – Defect Reporting - NHTSA Safety Recall Rules (TCU failures affecting safety systems) Relevant Obligations: - TCU failures affecting safety‑critical subsystems must be investigated. - Manufacturers must determine whether the failure constitutes a defect. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

11723606

Incident

Jul 15, 2025

Beginning in July–August 2025, my 2019 BMW X3 (VIN [XXX] ) began experiencing multiple safety‑critical system failures affecting federally regulated components. The rearview camera intermittently failed to activate and later stopped functioning entirely, resulting in loss of rear visibility required under FMVSS 111. The Emergency Call (eCall) system displayed repeated malfunction warnings, indicating loss of automatic crash notification capability. The vehicle also displayed “Driver Assistance Restricted,” “Collision Warning Malfunction,” and pedestrian detection failure messages, showing that forward collision warning and related ADAS functions were not operating properly. During the same period, the telematics control unit (TCU) lost functionality. This caused loss of ConnectedDrive services, backend communication, remote diagnostics, remote status reporting, and safety‑related over‑the‑air updates. These failures match known BMW defect patterns involving water intrusion into the antenna/telematics module and backend provisioning issues. I submitted a detailed written escalation to BMW of North America. BMW issued two brief responses on February 11–12, 2026 that did not address any of the safety issues, did not provide the engineering basis for excluding my VIN from the applicable recall, and redirected me to a dealer, which has no authority over recall determinations. BMW closed the case without providing any investigation results, defect determination, or technical explanation, contrary to obligations under 49 CFR § 573. These failures materially impair federally regulated safety functions, including rear visibility, collision avoidance, emergency crash notification, and telematics‑based safety communication. The pattern suggests a potential broader defect affecting additional vehicles. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

11717547

Incident

Aug 1, 2025

- Frontal Collision warning, Pedestrian warning - yes because safety features were shut off, back up camera doesn't work as well - yes - yes

NHTSA ID

11712814

Incident

Dec 22, 2025

Starting in July/August 2025, my 2019 BMW X3 (G01) suffered a total failure of multiple safety-critical systems, including the Emergency Call (eCall) system, the rearview camera, and frontal collision/pedestrian alert sensors. These failures were accompanied by a persistent "Emergency Call System Malfunction" warning on the dashboard. BMW Service Information Bulletin SIB 65 12 22 acknowledges a manufacturing defect where the roof-mounted antenna housing seal was "not optimal," leading to water ingress. This water ingress has damaged the Telematics Control Unit (TCB), which manages these safety features. I have contacted BMW North America and local dealerships; however, they have provided a written refusal to repair the damaged internal electronics because the vehicle is out of its original 4-year warranty. Safety Risk: This defect leaves the vehicle in a non-compliant safety state. In the event of a crash, the vehicle cannot automatically notify emergency services (eCall failure). Furthermore, the loss of the rearview camera and collision avoidance systems significantly increases the risk of a crash or injury. BMW is aware of the defect that causes these safety systems to fail but has not issued a safety recall to address the resulting hardware damage. This issue is currently the subject of the Craft v. BMW of North America class-action lawsuit.

NHTSA ID

11711955

Incident

Aug 1, 2025

At some point in June 2025, between approximately 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., I was driving southbound on the 110 Freeway in Los Angeles, just south of the 134 interchange, at approximately 45 mph. Traffic was light, with no vehicles in front of me and no vehicles attempting to merge into my lane. Without warning, a bright red alert appeared on the dashboard of my 2019 BMW x3 and the vehicle suddenly applied full braking. The position of my arms at that moment caused an injury to my right elbow, which has remained painful since the incident. In January 2026, under nearly identical circumstances, the emergency warning appeared again. This time, the brakes did not engage. In July, I contacted BMW Corporate and service center regarding these incidents. I found their response dismissive, stating that “sometimes that happens.” A service center later informed me that this is a known issue referred to as “phantom braking.” Having experienced this firsthand, I believe this represents a serious safety concern. In addition to my injury, I could easily have been rear-ended at freeway speed. Despite acknowledging the issue, BMW Corporate requested that I sign an indemnity waiver in exchange for covering only the inspection cost. This response feels inappropriate, as their initial focus appeared to be limiting liability rather than addressing a known safety defect. Given that this is reportedly a known issue, I believe an inquiry is warranted into how often this has occurred and whether others have been injured.

NHTSA ID

11710937

Incident

Jun 20, 2025

Subject: Rear Differential Mount Failure and Driveshaft Breakage — Sudden Loss of Vehicle Control at Highway Speed Complaint Summary: While driving at highway speed, I experienced a sudden and extremely loud bang from the rear of the vehicle. Immediately afterward, I lost complete control of the rear end, accompanied by violent clanking and grinding noises from the driveline area. The gearbox then stalled, leaving the vehicle disabled in the middle of the highway. Upon inspection, it was determined that a rear differential mounting bolt had sheared, causing the differential to shift violently out of position. This sudden movement resulted in the driveshaft breaking, which further destabilized the vehicle and led to a severe and immediate loss of control. This failure occurred without warning and created an extremely dangerous situation. The sudden loss of drivetrain integrity at highway speed placed both myself and nearby motorists at serious risk of a crash. A component as critical as a differential mount or driveshaft should not fail under normal operating conditions. This incident strongly indicates a serious design or manufacturing defect affecting the vehicle’s powertrain and structural safety. Requested Action: I urge the NHTSA to investigate rear differential mounting and driveshaft failures on this vehicle model. Such failures can lead to catastrophic loss of control, and immediate attention is necessary to prevent future incidents and ensure driver safety.

NHTSA ID

11695243

Incident

May 1, 2025

1- Passenger Restraint System Malfunction error codes- related to wiring or front passenger seat- long timeframe and expense to diagnose 2- Engine mounts broken Oct 2023 and again Aug 2025- known issue by BMW service- high repair cost & repeat failure 3- Front crash assist will brake for shadows caused by trees or adjacent trucks and has nearly caused accidents

NHTSA ID

11689994

Incident

Oct 31, 2024

The automatic emergency braking system randomly applied itself while I was driving 40mph down a highway where there was no obstacle/animal of any kind. My vehicle braked hard and quickly and a red car image appeared in the dash simultaneously. Thankfully there were no other vehicles around me at the time. Prior to today, my vehicle has had regular maintenance and has had no issues. I have not yet brought his forward to a dealership, service center, police, insurance, etc.

NHTSA ID

11678359

Incident

Aug 4, 2025

The contact owns a 2019 BMW X3. The contact stated that on several occasions while driving at various speeds, the blind side indicators did not detect passing vehicles. The contact also stated that the lane departure feature, which vibrates and corrects the wheel, no longer worked as intended. The contact stated that there was a system indicator light on the dashboard that turned orange. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 35,000.

NHTSA ID

11662556

Incident

Jan 1, 2025

Mileage

35,000 mi

The contact owns a 2019 BMW X3. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, the message "Driving Assistance Reduced and Pedestrian Warning not Working" was displayed on the instrument panel. The contact stated that while driving 40 MPH in stop and go traffic, the Collision Warning feature failed to function as intended. The contact depressed the brake pedal to stop the vehicle. Additionally, the contact stated that the rearview camera was not working as intended. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the KAFAS (Camera Assisted Driver Assistance Program) system was heated and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V096000 (Back Over Prevention). The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact to file a complaint with the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 62,000.

NHTSA ID

11642553

Incident

Feb 13, 2024

Mileage

62,000 mi

When driving on citi street at 40MPH the vehicle randomly initiated the automatic emergency breaking system. The vehicle almost came to a complete stop in the middle of morning traffic. Almost had the vehicle behind me rear end me. The vehicle was taken to BMW dealer and a software update was performed. This is the second time that this has occurred. The vehicle will periodically still display collision warning light when nothing is even near the vehicle.

NHTSA ID

11615284

Incident

May 13, 2024

Back up camera not engaging

NHTSA ID

11589153

Incident

May 15, 2024

The contact owns a 2019 BMW X3. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle would suddenly brake and would stop abruptly though there were no other vehicles or objects nearby. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who duplicated the failure. However, the dealer was advised by the manufacturer that the vehicle was operating as designed. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact notified the manufacturer of the failures and the concerns he had regarding the vehicle's safety. The failure mileage was 31,000.

NHTSA ID

11478956

Incident

May 12, 2022

Mileage

31,000 mi

On May 20, 2022 at around 10 AM. I pulled into my work parking lot. I proceeded to park the car in front of the main building. I put the car on park but the car accelerated on its own at high speed. It curved around the bushes yanking them out and then smashed into the building. The airbags opened. I called 911 for help. Ambulance took me to a hospital nearby. I lost a lot of blood due to a large cut in my mouth. I had some other minor injuries including a fracture in my sternum and nose.

NHTSA ID

11472104

Incident

May 20, 2022

REPEATED WARNING OF 'RREDUCED DRIVER ASSISTANCE SUPPORT

NHTSA ID

11406848

Incident

Feb 2, 2021

MY CAR HAS BEEN AT THE BMW DEALERSHIP TWICE FOR THESE INCIDENTS. THE INCIDENTS HAVE HAPPENED A TOTAL OF 4 TIMES. THE FIRST TIME, I WAS DRIVING ABOUT 45 MILES PER HOUR ALONG THE CITY STREET, WOODRUFF AVE IN LONG BEACH. IT WAS A SUNNY DAY AND THERE WERE NO OTHER CARS AROUND ME WHEN THE CAR SUDDENLY STARTS BEEPING AND DASH BLINKS AND THEN CAR SLAMS ON BRAKES AUTOMATICALLY UNTIL IT COMES TO A STOP. I AM NOT SURE WHAT CAUSED THE PROBLEM BUT I THINK IT MAY BE THE SENSORS FOR THE AUTOMATIC COLLISION BRAKING SYSTEM. THE SECOND TIME I WAS GOING ABOUT 15 MPH COMING UP TO A RIGHT TURN IN THE RIGHT TURN LANE OF A CITY STREET. THERE WAS A CAR IN THE LEFT LANE THAT WAS STOPPED AT THE TRAFFIC LIGHT. MY CAR THEN SOUNDS THE ALARM, FLASHES THE WARNING AND SLAMS ON THE BRAKES TO A STOP. MY BUSINESS PARTNER WAS IN THE CAR WITH ME DURING THIS TIME. THE THIRD TIME WAS OCTOBER 16, 2020 WHEN I WAS DRIVING ON A CITY STREET AND THERE WAS A CAR STOPPED ABOUT 30 FEET AHEAD. I WAS SLOWING DOWN WHEN THE CAR SOUNDED THE ALARM, FLASHED ON THE SCREEN THE WARNING (WHICH I TOOK A PIC OF) AND THE BRAKES APPLIED AUTOMATICALLY AND THE CAR STOPPED. THE FOURTH AND LAST TIME, THE CAR DID NOT APPLY THE BRAKES BUT THE WARNING SYSTEMS CAME ON AND THE DASH FLASHED. I TOOK THE CAR AGAIN TO BMW AND BMW NORTH AMERICA SENT OUT A FIELD ENGINEER. THEY HAVE THE CAR FROM OCTOBER 23, 2020 TO NOVEMBER 18, 2020 AT WHICH TIME THEY SAID THEY COULD NOT FIND ANYTHING WRONG WITH MY CAR.

NHTSA ID

11375995

Incident

Oct 1, 2020

Mileage

7,800 mi

THE SPEEDOMETER IS INACCURATE. BMW TOLD ME THAT THEY HAVE A DIRECTIVE WHICH STATES THAT IT IS NORMAL FOR A SPEEDOMETER TO BE OFF BY UP TO 7MPH. THEY TOLD ME IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO RECALIBRATE. I DO NOT KNOW MY TRUE SPEED WHICH IS DANGEROUS AND MAKES IT DIFFICULT TO KNOW IF I AM DRIVING WITHIN POSTED LIMITS. IT ALSO ADDS FALSE MILEAGE TO MY VEHICLE AS IT ALWAYS INDICATES A SPEED HIGHER THAN I AM ACTUALLY MAINTAINING.

NHTSA ID

11338358

Incident

Jul 1, 2020

Mileage

9,000 mi

THE CAR HAS A WARNING SYSTEM THAT HAS A PROXMITY SYSTEM. THE CAR AT LEAST ONCE A MONTH BRAKES WHILE DRIVING INDICATING A CAR OR OBSTICLE IN FRONT OF ME. NOTHING HAS BEEN IN FRONT OF ME WHILE THE CAR SELF BRAKES. THE DEALERSHIP SAID IT MUST OF BEEN DUE TO FOG. WITH THE REPEATED PROBLEM NO FOG OR BAD WEATHER EXISTED.

NHTSA ID

11288012

Incident

Dec 1, 2019

Mileage

9,250 mi

THE DIGITAL SPEEDOMETER READS IN KILOMETERS PER HOUR, INSTEAD OF MILES PER HOUR, SO I DO NOT KNOW HOW FAST I AM GOING. A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO, BMW ISSUED A RECALL RELATED TO THE REVERSE CAMERA ON THE 2019 X3. TO REPAIR THIS RECALL, THE SOFTWARE IN THE CAR HAD TO BE UPGRADED. AFTER THE DEALERSHIP REPAIRED THE RECALL ISSUE AND UPGRADED THE SOFTWARE, THE DIGITAL SPEEDOMETER MALFUNCTIONED. THE SPEEDOMETER DEFAULTED TO KILOMETERS PER HOUR EVERY TIME I STARTED THE CAR. IT WOULD NOT STAY ON MILES PER HOUR. THUS, AFTER EVERY START, I WOULD HAVE TO GO INTO THE MAIN MENU AND SWITCH THE DIGITAL SPEEDOMETER TO MILES PER HOUR. I TOOK MY CAR INTO THE DEALERSHIP TODAY TO FIX THE SPEEDOMETER ISSUE (SO IT WOULD STAY ON MILES PER HOUR), AND THEY MADE THE SITUATION WORSE. THE OPTION TO SWITCH THE DIGITAL SPEEDOMETER FROM KILOMETERS PER HOUR AFTER EVERY START TO MILES PER HOUR HAS DISAPPEARED. THE DIGITAL SPEEDOMETER IS NOW PERMANENTLY STUCK IN KILOMETERS PER HOUR (AND CANNOT BE SWITCHED TO MILES PER HOUR). BECAUSE OF THIS ISSUE, I DO NOT KNOW HOW FAST I AM GOING (WHICH IS A MAJOR SAFETY ISSUE), AND ALSO MAKES IT DIFFICULT FOR ME TO KNOW IF I AM BREAKING THE SPEED LIMIT AND THUS SUSCEPTIBLE TO GETTING A SPEEDING TICKET. THE DEALERSHIP ADVISED ME THAT DOZENS, IF NOT HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE, HAVE COMPLAINED ABOUT THE ISSUE AND BMW IS WORKING ON A SOFTWARE FIX, BUT ADVISED THAT IT COULD TAKE MONTHS. I FIND THIS ABSURD FOR A SIGNIFICANT SAFETY ISSUE. THERE IS AN ANALOG SPEEDOMETER IN THE DASH THAT IS IN MPH, BUT IT IS DIFFICULT TO READ AND NOT SPECIFIC ENOUGH (IT INCREASES BY 20 MPH; FOR EXAMPLE, 0, 20, 40, 60, 80, ETC.). THE ANALOG SPEEDOMETER DOES NOT HAVE SUFFICIENT SPECIFICITY TO TELL WHETHER I AM GOING 22 OR 39 MPH. THE DESIGN OF THE ANALOG SPEEDOMETER IS EXTREMELY POOR AND CANNOT BE RELIED UPON TO DETERMINE ACTUAL SPEED, WHICH IS WHY THE DIGITAL SPEEDOMETER IS CRITICAL.

NHTSA ID

11280429

Incident

Oct 18, 2019

WHILE REVERSING OUR CAR IN OUR GARAGE, THE CAR TRUNK POP OPEN AND HIT OUR GARAGE ROOF CREATING SCRATCHES AND PEELED PAINT ON THE TRUNK LID.

NHTSA ID

11244804

Incident

Jul 25, 2019

Mileage

1,175 mi

PROBLEM IS MORE NOTICEABLE DRIVING AT 80MPH ON THE HIGHWAY. VEHICLE VEER LEFT AND RIGHT AND CONSTANT VERY SMALL TURNINGS NEED TO BE APPLIED TO KEEP CAR CENTERED, MUCH MORE NOTICEABLE WHEN PASSING BETWEEN TWO TRUCKS OR WHEN MODERATE WIND IS ENCOUNTERED. TOOK TO THE DEALER, THEY DROVE THE CAR AND MECHANIC STATED NOTHING WRONG WITH THE CAR AND. HOWEVER, I NEVER HAD THIS SAME PERVASIVE PROBLEM WITH ANY OTHER SUV I OWNED IN THE PAST. IS DANGEROUS AND CAN CAUSE AN ACCIDENT WHILE THIS IS OCCURRING.

NHTSA ID

11210576

Incident

Feb 19, 2019