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BMW · NHTSA safety record

2021 BMW X1

Every safety complaint, recall and defect investigation the US government holds on this vehicle.

Owners have filed 9 safety complaints about the 2021 BMW X1 with the US government. Of those, 4 describe a crash, 4 people were injured and no death is recorded. One recall campaign is open against it, covering the seat belts.

The most complained-about system is the air bags, named in 4 complaints, 44% of the total.

Compiled from NHTSA's complaint, recall and investigation files · Covers December 2021 to September 2026 · How this is counted

What is on file

9 complaints on file

9

Complaints

4

Describe a crash

0

Mention fire

4

People injured

0

Deaths

A complaint is an unverified account by the person who filed it, not a finding of fault. One complaint is one ODI number, which is how NHTSA counts them.

A recall is the manufacturer conceding a defect, and the repair is free. Whether one covers your particular car is a question only its VIN can answer, because a campaign covers a production range rather than a model year.

Which system owners named

Complaints naming each system
AIR BAGS 4 · 44%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 3 · 33%
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 2 · 22%
ENGINE 1 · 11%
SERVICE BRAKES 1 · 11%
SUSPENSION 1 · 11%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 · 11%
0 4 8

Red marks a system with a recall campaign against it. One complaint can name several systems, so these add up to more than 9.

When the complaints arrived

By the year NHTSA received them

By the year NHTSA received them, which is not the year the failures happened. They peaked in 2026 at 4.

8 6 4 2
21 22 23 26

This is the year the complaint was filed, not the year the failure happened. The range runs from 2021 to 2026, the last of them a part year, which is why its column is drawn faint.

Crash test ratings

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program

NHTSA crashes a car into a barrier and a pole and measures what happens to the dummies inside. This is what it awarded the 2021 BMW X1, and it is a separate question from what owners report going wrong later.

Test SUV AWD SUV FWD
Overall
Frontal crash
Frontal, driver
Frontal, passenger
Side crash
Side barrier
Side pole
Rollover
Chance of rollover 14.3% 15.7%
Stability control standard Forward collision warning standard Lane departure warning standard

A rating belongs to a tested body style and drivetrain, not to the model as a whole, which is why more than one is listed. A dash means NHTSA did not rate that test for this vehicle.

Recall campaigns

1 on file

SEAT BELTS

21V554000 · July 21, 2021

The defect
BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2021 2 Series (230i, 230i xDrive, M240i, M240i xDrive), 330e, 330e Xdrive, 4 Series Coupe (430i, 430i xDrive, M440i xDrive) M4 Coupe, M4 Competition Coupe, BMW 4 Series Convertible (430i, M440i), BMW X1 sDrive28i, xDrive28i, 2 Series Gran Coupe (228i, 228i xDrive, M235i xDrive), M2 Competition Coupe, 330i, 330i xDrive, M340i, M340i xDrive, M3, M3 Competition, 530i, 530i xDrive, 540i, 540i xDrive, MINI Hardtop 2 Door (Cooper, CooperS, JCW), X2 sDrive28i, X2 xDrive28i, X2 M35i, Z4 sDrive30i, Z4 M40i, MINI Hardtop 2 Door (Cooper SE), MINI Convertible (Cooper, Cooper S, JCW), MINI Clubman (Cooper S, Cooper S All4, JCW), MINI Countryman (Cooper, Cooper All4, Cooper S, Cooper S All4, JCW All4), Rolls Royce Ghost, MINI Countryman (Cooper S E All4), Rolls Royce Phantom, Rolls Royce Cullinan, and Toyota Supra vehicles. The passenger seat belt Automatic Locking Retractor (ALR) may deactivate early, before the webbing fully retracts. As such, these assemblies fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."
The risk
During a crash, a seat belt retractor that does not function as intended increases the risk of injury.
The remedy
Dealers will inspect the seat belt retractors (including the seat belts) and, if necessary, replace the retractors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on September 3, 2021. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417; 1-866-825-1525 (MINI); 1-877-877-3735 (Rolls Royce); and 1-888-270-9371 (Toyota).

BMW of North America, LLC · up to 21,537 vehicles across all model years covered

In owners’ own words

Quoted from the complaint file

Quoted from NHTSA's complaint file. These are unverified accounts by the people who filed them, not findings of fault.

AIR BAGS

2 injured · crash · towed

I was involved in an accident today and the front steering wheel airbags didn’t deploy The blue car in the pictures turned in front of me and I hit them

NHTSA complaint 11523048. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

AIR BAGS

1 injured · crash · towed · 6,000 miles

The contact owns a 2021 BMW X1. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 65 mph, another vehicle crashed into the front passenger side of the vehicle. The contact mentioned the air bags failed to deploy from the intensity of the vehicle. A police report was filed. The contact stated that the driver sustained a broken right hand that needed medical attention and was unaware of the other vehicle injuries. The vehicle was towed to the body shop. The dealer was not contacted. The contact attempted to contact the manufacturer but there was no answer. The approximate failure mileage was 6,000. The VIN was not available.

NHTSA complaint 11444704. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

AIR BAGS

1 injured · crash · towed · 59,000 miles

The contact owns a 2021 BMW X1. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving 10 MPH, she was involved in a head-on crash with another vehicle and the air bags failed to deploy. The vehicle was towed to a tow lot. The driver was transported to the hospital for level two severe trauma to the neck, head, and chest with pain. The contact stated that there was a possibility that the failure was caused by the dealer. There was an air bag system sensor malfunction at the time of the purchase. The dealer was called and provided the documentation for previous work performed, but there was none about the air bag. The contact believed that the vehicle was deemed a total loss. The approximate

NHTSA complaint 11765262, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

AIR BAGS

crash · towed

I got into an accident, i was hit on the driver side and the car was pushed to hit a tree, the air bag did not deploy.

NHTSA complaint 11763806. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ENGINE

35,000 miles

The contact owns a 2021 BMW X1. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled. The contact stated that the navigation screen was glitching and became inoperable. The service message was displayed. There was a red triangle with an exclamation mark displayed. The vehicle was difficult to start. The contact stated that the failure was caused by a failure with the grounding cable. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the grounding cable was underneath the vehicle. The battery was previously replaced. No additional repairs were completed. The manufacturer was contacted and referred the contact to the dealer for

NHTSA complaint 11756155, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

SERVICE BRAKES
At approximately 20,000 miles, the vehicle was inspected by an authorized dealer due to abnormal noises from the front suspension when turning the steering wheel. The dealer confirmed abnormal noise from the front struts when the wheels were turned while the vehicle was on a lift and diagnosed premature front strut failure. The affected components are available for inspection upon request. Repair was quoted but not performed. This condition involves a safety-critical suspension component and may affect vehicle handling, stability, and braking performance, particularly during turning or emergency maneuvers. This issue follows a prior safety-related brake failure at approximately 17,000

NHTSA complaint 11713081, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
While I was driving my BMW X1 1 to 3 weeks ago, frontal collision warning malfunction, pedestrian alert and request service flashed. It was a distraction and not safe. When My husband brought it to the dealership, they were not certain how to fix it. They took a video while doing diagnostic. The right bumper is pop out a little bit because it got hooked to a protruding rod in a concrete parking block while I was parking in front of a food store in Raritan sometime last year. I did not have it fix yet because it was not so obvious and the aesthetics of the car was not much affected. For that reason, the man in the video was saying that he saw a little damage there and was assuming that

NHTSA complaint 11522577, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

Compare

Other years of the BMW X1

Model year Complaints Recalls Deaths
2025 17 3 —
2024 30 3 —
2023 70 6 —
2020 13 1 —
2019 11 3 —
2018 59 4 —
2017 156 2 —
2016 159 3 —
2015 52 2 —
2014 54 2 —
2013 38 2 —

Other 2021 BMW models

X3 111 X5 108 X7 46 330I 29 530I 17 430I 15 M340I 11 540I 9

Complaints on file, same model year.

Every BMW on this site — 257 vehicles.

If this is your car and a dealer keeps failing to fix it, your state's lemon law may require the manufacturer to replace it or buy it back. How many repair attempts it takes, and how long you have to file, is set by the state you bought in and by nothing on this page.

Where these numbers come from

A complaint is one owner's account and has not been verified by NHTSA or by us. A vehicle with more complaints is not necessarily worse: models that sold in larger numbers collect more of them. How this is counted.

Compiled and maintained by
Independent developer and analyst