Photo: AC Schnitzer
Once again, the 2020 Supra is under recall in the United States but it’s not Toyota who’ll fix the problem. That’s the responsibility of the BMW Group, which is proof that the purists were right from day one: the Supra is more BMW than Toyota.
NHTSA campaign number: 19V850000 covers five nameplates from the 2020 model year. In addition to the Japanese sports coupe, the remaining lot consists of the Z4 M40i, Z4 sDrive30i, 330i, and 330i with xDrive all-wheel drive. These vehicles are affected by a headlight control unit that may fail, resulting in the loss of one or both headlights. In other words, it’s a safety risk that needs to be fixed.
BMW explains the problem with a review of the supplier’s production records, thus determining the start and end dates of the potentially affected control units. As for the core of the problem, that has something to do with a production issue of the printed circuit board. In total, 245 cars were called back in the United States.
A centering pin produced with debris may lead to the failure of headlamp illumination, but the problem can also extend to the turn-signal function. If the inevitable happens, the cars are programmed to light up the instrument cluster to inform the driver about the condition. A higher-frequency-than-normal clicking sound will also be audible if the turn signal fails on one or both of the lamps.
BMW first caught wind of the PCB manufacturing error in July 2019, and in October, the German automaker identified 10 cases of headlamp failure through Vehicle Distribution Centers and dealers. On the upside, BMW of North America hasn’t received any reports of accidents or injuries related to this defect.
Owner notification by first-class mail is scheduled to start on January 17th, 2020, and the fix consists of a replacement headlight control unit with a proper PCB without any contamination to the centering pin. In the meantime, owners are advised to contact their nearest dealership for further info on the recall.
BMW explains the problem with a review of the supplier’s production records, thus determining the start and end dates of the potentially affected control units. As for the core of the problem, that has something to do with a production issue of the printed circuit board. In total, 245 cars were called back in the United States.
A centering pin produced with debris may lead to the failure of headlamp illumination, but the problem can also extend to the turn-signal function. If the inevitable happens, the cars are programmed to light up the instrument cluster to inform the driver about the condition. A higher-frequency-than-normal clicking sound will also be audible if the turn signal fails on one or both of the lamps.
BMW first caught wind of the PCB manufacturing error in July 2019, and in October, the German automaker identified 10 cases of headlamp failure through Vehicle Distribution Centers and dealers. On the upside, BMW of North America hasn’t received any reports of accidents or injuries related to this defect.
Owner notification by first-class mail is scheduled to start on January 17th, 2020, and the fix consists of a replacement headlight control unit with a proper PCB without any contamination to the centering pin. In the meantime, owners are advised to contact their nearest dealership for further info on the recall.
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