Recall
BMW recalls 45 530e and 740Le vehicles; battery cable may loosen
Dealers will inspect and, if necessary, replace the engine starter free of charge on certain 2018 740Le xDrive and 2018-2020 530e vehicles, and owner letters are expected to be mailed Dec. 11, 2026.
Checked against 2 sources (2 primary)Records from nhtsa.gov · How we report
Published · 2 min read
Key numbers
Units potentially affected as filed with NHTSA
- Fire risk
- Model years
- 2018–2020
- NHTSA campaign
- 26V-695
Jump to
Is your car affected?
For open (unrepaired) recalls on your car, enter its 17-character VIN in NHTSA's lookup by VIN.
Recall at a glance
- Vehicles
- Certain 2018 740Le xDrive, 2018-2020 530e iPerformance and 2018-2020 530e xDrive
- Risk
- A loose positive battery cable on the engine starter can create sparking, increasing the risk of a fire
- Remedy
- Dealers will inspect and, if necessary, replace the engine starter, free of charge
- NHTSA campaign
- 26V-695
- Report received by NHTSA
- Oct. 21, 2026
- Owner letters
- Expected to be mailed Dec. 11, 2026
- VINs searchable on NHTSA.gov
- Beginning Dec. 11, 2026
- Earlier recall
- Vehicles were previously repaired under recall 26V-441
- BMW customer service
- 1-800-525-7417
Source for every row: source 1.
What to do
Dealers will inspect and, if necessary, replace the engine starter, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed Dec. 11, 2026.
VINs involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning Dec. 11, 2026. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
NHTSA's record for the 26V-695 recall does not carry a park-outside advisory. It does not carry a do-not-drive advisory either.
What happened
BMW of North America, LLC is recalling certain 2018 740Le xDrive, 2018-2020 530e iPerformance and 2018-2020 530e xDrive vehicles under NHTSA campaign 26V-695. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) received the recall report on Oct. 21, 2026.
NHTSA's record lists 45 vehicles as potentially affected. The record lists the same figure, 45 potentially affected units, on each of the seven model and model-year rows for campaign 26V-695, with no breakdown by model. NHTSA lists the component as the electrical system's starter assembly.
The positive battery cable on the engine starter may loosen. A loose positive battery cable can create sparking, increasing the risk of a fire.
NHTSA's record says the vehicles in this recall were previously repaired under recall 26V-441.
That earlier recall, 26V-441, covers certain 2018-2020 530e xDrive, 2017-2019 740Le xDrive, 2018-2020 530e iPerformance and 2016-2018 330e iPerformance vehicles. Its record lists 29,119 vehicles as potentially affected.
In the 26V-441 recall, the engine starter relay may corrode, causing the relay to overheat and short circuit. A short circuit in the starter relay may increase the risk of a fire.
NHTSA's record for 26V-441 advises owners in that recall to park outside and away from structures until the remedy is complete. Under that recall, dealers will replace the engine starter, free of charge.
Is my car affected?
The new recall covers certain 2018 740Le xDrive, 2018-2020 530e iPerformance and 2018-2020 530e xDrive vehicles. NHTSA says vehicles in this recall were previously repaired under recall 26V-441.
Enter your 17-character VIN in our free recall check at /vin-check/ or on NHTSA.gov.
New NHTSA vehicle recalls: Recall tracker
This story was prepared with AI assistance and fact-checked by our AI review process against its sources, then reviewed by Paul Grice before publication. Our AI policy.
Sources
All 2 are primary sources, accessed 2026-10-30.