The 1993 BMW 740il has 1 NHTSA recall campaign affecting an estimated 180,000 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 10 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the engine and engine cooling. Last updated July 5, 2026.
THE BRAKE LIGHT SWITCH CAN FAIL ALLOWING THE SWITCH TO REMAIN IN THE "BRAKE LIGHTS OFF" POSITION OR IN THE "BRAKE LIGHTS ON" POSITION.
Consequence
IF THIS HAPPENS, THE BRAKE LIGHTS EITHER WILL NOT OPERATE OR WILL BE CONTINUOUSLY ON, REGARDLESS OF BRAKE PEDAL POSITION. FOLLOWING DRIVERS WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO DETERMINE WHETHER THE VEHICLE IS STOPPING, INCREASING THE POTENTIAL FOR A VEHICLE ACCIDENT.
Remedy
DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE EXISTING BRAKE LIGHT SWITCH WITH A NEWLY DESIGNED SWITCH.
Complaints by component
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE
2
AIR BAGS:FRONTAL
1
1crashes
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:COOLING SYSTEM
1
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE
1
POWER TRAIN
1
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:LEVER AND LINKAGE:FLOOR SHIFT
1
1crashes
SEATS:FRONT ASSEMBLY:RECLINER
1
STEERING:HYDRAULIC POWER ASSIST:HOSE, PIPING, AND CONNECTIONS
1
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
1
1crashes
Total complaints10
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal
information removed.
“While in park and after turning on ignition switch vehicle suddenly accelerated and took off, resulting in a vehicle crash. Manufacturer was notified. Feel free to provide any further information.*ak”
“Vehicle was involved in a crash and neither air bag deployed. Manufacturer was notified. *ak the new small safety switch which allows the vehicle to start in park and neutral positions.*yh”
“Vehicle was involved in a crash and neither air bag deployed. Manufacturer was notified. *ak the new small safety switch which allows the vehicle to start in park and neutral positions.*yh”
“I set memory seat position 1 and it worked fine. I was driving home at 70 mph and wondered if I should set position 2 for greta. I hit the button memory two and the seat back fully reclined and went all the way back. Being short with short legs I lost control for a second and fought my way to a…”
“My car started missing and smoking on dec, 2001. I took it to my mechanic, and aftertairing down the engine, he found that the block was deective. And it was changed in 1999 by the dealer. I have made research and found that this is a common problem in this year and model. Some people have had 2…”
“Known defect by manufacturer & dealer. Not disclosed upon sale. Unwilling to fix now. No safety defect mentioned. *ak”
“The water pump froze, the engine cooling system was on recall, however not covered by dealer. Mjs”
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL,
FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 1993 BMW 740il as of
July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page
contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.