Recalls and US Highway Traffic Safety investigation for BMW

BMW has revealed that brake problems forced a recall of 198,000 of its BMW and Rolls-Royce brand cars in the US and that the recall may affect more cars in other countries which could bring the total to 350,000.

In the US, BMW “has recalled 198,000 vehicles” from its 5, 6 and 7 series models, along with cars made by Rolls-Royce.

Sky News has reported that BMW has recalled 26,000 BMW cars and 1,200 sold by Rolls-Royce in the UK.

The problem was “without danger” for occupants of the vehicles and concerned braking systems that could become “slightly more difficult to use” following an extended period of operation, a BMW spokesman said.

This news comes after it was revealed that Mini Coopers built in the UK are being investigated by the US authorities due to potential power steering problems.

The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has received 54 complaints from drivers relating to power steering on the 2004/5 model, which was built at Oxford’s Mini plant and it said there were an estimated 80,000 of that year’s models in circulation.

A report on the NHTSA website said it had received complaints that some drivers had reported “difficulty when trying to steer or control the vehicle”.

BMW, which owns Mini, builds more than 200,000 models a year at its Oxford plant and sells to 74 countries, said it would cooperate with the inquiry.

Production began in 2001 and the Oxford factory is the only Mini plant worldwide.