BMW Tells 720,000 Drivers To Park Outside Over Fire Risk In Repeat Recall

by Aaron Leong — Friday, November 13, 2026, 11:21 AM EDT

A previous BMW water pump recall has led to another recall - Image: BMW

BMW and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) are urging owners of more than 720,000 BMW vehicles to park their cars outside due to a possible fire risk.

If you currently drive one of the popular mid-2010s BMW models (see below), you might want to consider where you leave your car tonight. The NHTSA has issued an urgent park-outside recall to owners of roughly 720,796 BMW vehicles, instructing them to keep their cars parked outdoors and away from garages, homes, or other parked vehicles. And here's the crazy part: this recall is to fix a previous recall.

NHTSA says the culprit is an improperly sealed connector on certain recalled water pumps - Image: BMW

According to the NHTSA, an electrical connector on the water pump can become improperly sealed, leaving it vulnerable to water exposure. If moisture sneaks in, it can trigger a short circuit even when the car is turned off and parked.

What makes this situation particularly frustrating for owners is that these exact vehicles were recalled back in 2024 to have the water pumps replaced. Unfortunately, BMW has already logged about 10 fire incidents in the United States involving vehicles that were part of the 2024 recall. Thankfully, no injuries have been officially tied to these incidents, but we're betting that nobody wants to stick around to see if their car becomes unlucky number 11.

A 2015 X3 burnt supposedly due to a short in the water pump connector - Image: Rokhead via Bimmerpost forum

The affected lineup is massive, spanning 14 models built between 2012 and 2018. If you own certain variations of the 3 Series, 5 Series, Z4, the X1 and X3 crossovers, various 2 Series and 4 Series coupes and convertibles, or even an X5 plug-in hybrid from those model years, your car is likely on the list. Because the solution is still actively being developed by BMW, there is no permanent fix available at the dealership just yet.

Official notification letters are slated to hit mailboxes around late December, at which point VIN-checking tools will go live to help everyone confirm their status. Until engineers finalize a foolproof repair and dealerships can roll out the free fix, the safest bet is keeping your BMW out in the open air.

Despite becoming one of the most reliable premium car brands in recent years, some models in its lineup have had to face a string of major recall campaigns, including a recall affecting hundreds of thousands of vehicles over integrated brake system malfunctions that could cause a loss of power-assist, as well as an over-the-air software fix for electric drive motor issues affecting 70,900 i4, iX, and i7 EVs.