NHTSA Complaints · Active Recalls · California Lemon Law Data
The NHTSA tracks consumer complaints, manufacturer recalls, and safety investigations for every vehicle sold in the United States. These publicly available records are a critical resource for California lemon law cases because they establish patterns of recurring defects.
As of July 2026, the NHTSA has logged 10 complaints against the 2025 BMW iX. Each complaint is filed by a vehicle owner or lessee through the NHTSA’s Vehicle Safety Hotline or online portal at SaferCar.gov. You can review all 2025 BMW iX complaints directly on the NHTSA complaint database.
The 2025 Bmw Ix has generated 10 NHTSA complaints and has 1 active recall. If your 2025 Bmw Ix has experienced a defect that the dealer has been unable to repair after multiple visits, you may qualify for a full repurchase or replacement under California lemon law. Bmw pays all attorney fees when we prevail. You pay nothing.
Advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) defects — including malfunctioning forward collision warnings, lane keep assist failures, and erratic automatic emergency braking — can create dangerous driving conditions. The 2025 Bmw Ix has 2 NHTSA complaints for this defect type. Owner reports include: “BMW iX driver-assistance safety malfunction. In approx. April 2025 vehicle displayed “driver assistance permanently disabled.” Dealer contacted BMW an…”
Brake defects affecting safety may qualify for California’s two-repair threshold under Cal. Civ. Code § 1793.22, which applies to defects likely to cause death or serious bodily injury. The 2025 Bmw Ix has generated 2 NHTSA complaints related to braking, including ABS failures, grinding, reduced stopping power, and warning lights. Owner reports include: “On [XXX] I went to start the car and received warnings about Manual Braking being engaged and to contact roadside service along with other notifications and the car wouldn’t power on. After numerous attempts the car powered up and alerted me Drive Carefully Fault. I began to drive slowly through a parking lot and it took over 200 lbs of pressure to bring the car to a complete slow stop. I pulled over and turned off the car. I tried rebooting the car and did so assuming it was a bug in the system. When the car powered back up the flaw had vanished and I carefully drove home. A short time later when I turned the car on I followed the instructions and called roadside service and described my situation. To my surprise, roadside service had never heard of the problem before. I then contacted Rusnak BMW service center and talked them through what was happening. Once again I was surprised to learn that they too had never heard of the problem. I brought the car into Rusnak BMW on May 30th. Over the course of the next week and a half I was never given any concrete news about why the car had acted that way. In fact I was told that they had to elevate the situation to NEW JERSEY where the higher ups would review the situation. No concrete information was provided other than they drove the car for 11 miles and felt comfortable having me pickup the car. Admittedly, it was frustrating to be called to pickup my car not knowing why there was a problem with the braking system and being given no assurances it wouldn’t happen again. As I went to leave the Rusnak dealership my car wouldn’t start and the process began all over as it had on [XXX]. When I got the car to start the brakes were not reacting and I drove the car 100 feet to the front door of BMW front door and with over 200lbs brought the car to a stop. Rusnak BMW is once again working on a problem they seemingly dont know how to fix. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)” (NHTSA Complaint #11666511)
Powertrain and transmission defects directly impair the vehicle’s core function and are generally considered substantial defects under California lemon law. Owners of the 2025 Bmw Ix have reported harsh shifting, shuddering, slipping, and transmission warning lights. 2 NHTSA complaints have been submitted for this defect category. Owner reports include: “UNINTENDED ACCELERATION The car accelerated unintentionally at 25 mph just before a red light at an intersection. It simultaneously started a bonging alarm, and showed a large red triangle on the dash telling us to pull over and to not drive the car thank God we were able to do before the intersection as we would have crossed a busy intersection at 30mph while we had a red light!!” (NHTSA Complaint #11649312)
Advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) defects — including malfunctioning forward collision warnings, lane keep assist failures, and erratic automatic emergency braking — can create dangerous driving conditions. The 2025 Bmw Ix has 1 NHTSA complaint for this defect type. Owner reports include: “Driver was in parking space/nearly fully parked (her foot was on the brake coming to a full stop and about to place the car in park), when the car’s self drive function or cruise control engaged on its own. It then rolled up the hill, and into the trees. Thankfully no one was hurt (3 people in the car – 2 adults and 1 child) and the car stopped while leaning on a tree, otherwise it would have rolled over. She never uses cruise control, nor any of the self drive functions on the car at all. In her words, the car was “unstoppable”. The speed of the car at that time was a near crawl into the space, ready for a full stop. When the self drive/cruise control engaged, the car jumped over the curve in front of the parking space on its own. No button was pressed by the driver, nor should any self drive feature of the car engage while the car was nearly parked. Additionally, while manually parking, the 360 degree parking camera was on, yet the car still engaged in self drive. Luckily, no other person nor vehicle was in front of the car when this happened. There was a post collision warning light (note, the airbags did not deploy), but we have asked the certified collision center to review the alerts to confirm what may have triggered. The BMW app never showed that the car was in a collision, and to-date still does not. The car is now with the collision center for an estimate (via insurance company), and the process has already started with BMW Consumer Affairs regarding safety issues with this automobile. We have also formally requested that BMW downloads all information regarding the collision from the Event Data Recorder (EDR). The police was not involved in the incident, since no one was injured. NHTSA indicates there have been similar incidents/recalls reported for the BMW IX from 2022 -2024 models, but no recall for the 2025 model – although the incidents are also reported for this model. We are concerned over the the safety of this car moving forward.” (NHTSA Complaint #11716615)
Advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) defects — including malfunctioning forward collision warnings, lane keep assist failures, and erratic automatic emergency braking — can create dangerous driving conditions. The 2025 Bmw Ix has 1 NHTSA complaint for this defect type. Owner reports include: “My 2025 BMW iX xDrive50 has experienced three separate random shutdown events while driving in active traffic. These shutdowns occurred without warning and caused sudden loss of vehicle functionality. One of these shutdowns resulted in a rear-end collision. The vehicle has been brought to BMW of Carlsbad three separate times. Each time, the dealership stated no defect could be found and blamed the driver for “user settings.” A BMW of Carlsbad service advisor later sent written messages stating that BMW software can crash and shut off the vehicle and that normal phone contact data (such as emojis in phone contacts) can cause the system to crash and shut the vehicle off. Customers were instructed to change normal phone usage and re-pair phones to avoid shutdowns. Despite software updates, the vehicle continues to generate shutdown warnings. A vehicle that can randomly shut down while driving constitutes a serious safety defect.” (NHTSA Complaint #11708608)
The following 1 recall has been issued for the 2025 Bmw Ix by the NHTSA or Bmw. If your vehicle is affected, the manufacturer is required to provide a free remedy. Check your VIN at NHTSA.gov/recalls.
Component: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:PROPULSION SYSTEM:TRACTION BATTERY
Defect: See NHTSA database for details.
Risk: Battery module failure may lead to a shutdown of the high-voltage system which can result in a loss of drive power, increasing the risk of a crash. In addition, module failure increases the risk of a fire.
Remedy: Dealers will replace specific high-voltage battery cell modules, free of charge. Interim owner notification letters explaining the safety risk were mailed September 11, 2025. Another notice will be sent once the remedy becomes available, anticipated December 31, 2025Owners may contact BMW customer s
California’s Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act (Cal. Civ. Code §§ 1790–1795.8) is one of the strongest lemon laws in the United States. It protects buyers and lessees of new and certified pre-owned vehicles that develop substantial defects the manufacturer cannot repair after a reasonable number of attempts.
Under Cal. Civ. Code § 1793.22, a lemon law presumption is triggered when any of the following apply to your 2025 Bmw Ix:
Once the presumption is triggered, the burden shifts to Bmw to prove the vehicle is not a lemon. Under Cal. Civ. Code § 1794(d), Bmw must pay your attorney’s fees if you prevail — meaning qualified representation costs you nothing out of pocket.
If your 2025 Bmw Ix qualifies as a lemon under California law, Bmw may be legally required to:
Step 1: Document every repair visit. Keep all repair orders, work orders, and dealer invoices. Each visit counts as a repair attempt, even if the dealer says nothing is wrong.
Step 2: Keep returning for repairs. You must give Bmw a reasonable opportunity to fix the defect. Visit different authorized Bmw dealers if needed and ask for written documentation of each visit.
Step 3: Contact a California lemon law attorney. Once you believe the threshold has been met — 4 attempts for non-safety defects, 2 for safety defects, or 30 days out of service — contact an attorney for a free case evaluation. Under § 1794(d), Bmw pays your fees if you win.
Step 4: Send a demand letter. Your attorney will send Bmw a formal demand letter. Most California lemon law cases resolve through negotiation without going to trial.
Under Cal. Civ. Code § 1793.22, four or more repair attempts for the same non-safety defect, or two attempts for a safety-related defect, triggers the lemon law presumption. Additionally, 30 or more cumulative days out of service qualifies regardless of the number of repair attempts.
Yes. Under Cal. Civ. Code § 1794(d), Bmw is required to pay your reasonable attorney’s fees and court costs if you prevail in a lemon law claim. This means qualified lemon law representation is free to you if your case succeeds.
Yes. A recall is not required to file a lemon law claim. The Song-Beverly Act covers any substantial defect that impairs the use, value, or safety of the vehicle that the manufacturer cannot repair after a reasonable number of attempts. NHTSA complaints support the claim by establishing a pattern, but are not a prerequisite.
California lemon law claims are generally subject to a four-year statute of limitations from the date you discovered or should have discovered the defect. However, you must still be within the manufacturer’s original warranty period when the defect first appears. Contact an attorney promptly to preserve your rights.
If your 2025 BMW Ix has a recurring defect, California’s Lemon Law may entitle you to a full refund, replacement vehicle, or cash settlement — at no cost to you.
Our attorneys answer the questions we hear most from California vehicle owners — fully updated for 2026.
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