Story highlights
Cars made between 2005 and 2008 are affected
A mat might not pick up the fact that a passenger is in the front
BMW of North America will recall 91,800 Mini Coopers because of a faulty sensor that might not trigger the front-passenger air bag during a crash, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Saturday.
The agency said the sensor in a detection mat might not recognize there is a passenger in the front seat and the air bag wouldn’t deploy during an accident.
The affected models are 2005-2006 Mini Cooper and Cooper S vehicles manufactured between January 5, 2005, and November 28, 2006, and 2005-2008 Mini Cooper convertible and Cooper S convertibles manufactured between January 5, 2005 and July 31, 2008.
BMW will replace the detection mat for free, the agency said.
The recall is expected to begin May 1. Owners may contact Mini customer service at 1-866-825-1525.
In a report BMW sent to the federal agency, the automaker said it estimated 10% of vehicles have the defective sensor mat. The company wrote it had received one report of an injury possibly connected with the defect.