⌘K
Federal filingsHome›Recalls› 18V680000
NHTSA campaign 18V680000

2019 BMW X6: suspension recall

If a rear upper control arm breaks, it can affect vehicle handling and control, increasing the risk of a crash.

high 108 vehicles affected 85% reported repaired

What was reported

Source: manufacturer filing, 49 CFR Part 573
Problem BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2019 BMW X6 sDrive35i, X6 xDrive35i, X6 xDrive50i and X6M vehicles. The rear upper control arm pivot bolts may have been improperly hardened, possibly causing the rear upper control arms to break. Risk If a rear upper control arm breaks, it can affect vehicle handling and control, increasing the risk of a crash. Fix All affected vehicles remain on dealer lots, therefore owner letters will not be mailed. BMW dealers will replace both rear upper control arms, free of charge. The recall began September 21, 2018. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.

Reported to NHTSA Sep 28, 2018 by BMW of North America, LLC, owners notified Sep 21, 2018.

What that means, in plain English

Source: WhichTrim's reading of the filing above — not NHTSA's wording

A broken rear upper control arm due to improperly hardened pivot bolts can cause loss of vehicle handling and control, constituting a suspension failure that can directly cause a crash, though the filing uses hedged language ('may have been', 'possibly causing') and all vehicles are on dealer lots b

Written for us by a language model from the manufacturer's filed text, which is quoted in full above. Where the two differ, the filing is the record and this is only our summary of it.

The fix, from the dealer bulletin

Source: NHTSA remedy instructions and dealer notice
Stop-sale Yes: the bulletin says the vehicle may not be sold or delivered until repaired
Remedy Instructions filed: the dealer bulletin exists

Parts named

Part numberDescriptionQty
33 32 6 796 001Control arm with rubber bushing left1
33 32 6 796 002Control arm with rubber bushing right1
33 32 6 760 380Combination nut2
33 32 6 760 668Self-locking collar nut2
07 11 9 906 093Hex screw with collar2

The advisory, as filed: “Next and identified with the description: STOP013407 B330218 Recall: Rear Upper Control Arms All of the other systems including DAR and the RDR system will show the Stop Sale Sign starting tomorrow.”

Read from NHTSA’s copy of the manufacturer’s dealer documents. The procedure itself is in the bulletin; a franchised dealer has the current copy on the manufacturer’s portal, and that copy governs. Working a lot or a fleet? Recall Watch carries this line on every VIN it checks: remedy status, hours, stop-sale.

Which vehicles are covered

Source: NHTSA campaign 18V680000

Vehicles built Sep 10, 2018 to Sep 20, 2018 — a VIN outside that window is not part of this campaign even if the year, make and model match.

Model yearClassSafety SignalRecalls on file
2019 BMW X6Large SUVC4

Those are the model years inside WhichTrim's range, 2016 onward. The campaign may cover others outside it, and the only thing that settles whether one specific vehicle is included is its VIN.

How much of it has been fixed

Source: manufacturer quarterly report, 49 CFR 573.7
Reported repaired 85%

of the campaign

The final figure: the six quarters of reporting that 49 cfr 573.7 requires have closed.

This is the manufacturer's own cumulative count of vehicles it has inspected and repaired, divided by the vehicles the campaign covers. It files that count with NHTSA every quarter for six consecutive quarters, starting from the quarter in which owners were told a remedy was ready, and then the obligation ends — so a figure on an older campaign is where the count stopped, not where it stands today.

It rarely reaches 100%, and not because the work was not done. The same report asks manufacturers to count vehicles they could not reach at all — exported, stolen, scrapped, or simply never located — and those stay in the denominator. A low number means a lot of these vehicles are still out there unrepaired; it does not tell you which ones.

The federal paperwork

Source: nhtsa.gov

Check one specific vehicle

A recall applies to a build range, so year, make and model cannot settle it. Type the VIN and the WhichTrim recall report checks this campaign’s build window and engine against it.

Campaign 18V680000

Own one, or run a fleet? Recall Watch checks each VIN against every new NHTSA campaign and emails you when one lands, this one's expansions included. Or take a free one-line alert by model year.

Advertisement

A recall covers a build range. Only your VIN settles it.

Check it with the WhichTrim recall report now, or have us check it every night and email you when something new is filed.

Photo: Taiga Miyamoto / Unsplash

Common questions

Source: NHTSA, 49 CFR Part 573

Does this recall repair cost anything?

No. Federal law requires the manufacturer to remedy a safety defect or a compliance failure at no charge, for vehicles up to 15 years old measured from the date of first sale. A dealer that asks you to pay for a recall repair is in the wrong.

How do I know whether my vehicle is included?

By VIN, not by model year. This campaign covers vehicles built Sep 10, 2018 to Sep 20, 2018. The manufacturer files a build range with NHTSA and only vehicles inside it are covered, so two identical-looking cars from the same year can differ. NHTSA's own lookup checks a VIN against the manufacturer's list.

What if the repair is not available yet?

It happens, and often. Manufacturers must notify owners when a defect is found even if the parts or the software are not ready, then notify them a second time once the remedy exists. The remedy filed for this campaign is described above.

What did the manufacturer say was wrong?

The problem, risk and fix quoted on this page are the manufacturer's own words as filed with NHTSA under 49 CFR Part 573. WhichTrim does not paraphrase them.

Who started this recall?

NHTSA's record credits the manufacturer. A recall can begin with the manufacturer's own testing, with a defect investigation, or with a compliance test against a Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard.