Drove a short distance with a women's purse in the front passenger seat. Since that time, I get two fault messages every time I start the car, regarding an error in the passenger air bag or seat belt restraint system. Message states to ensure passenger wears seat belt as they air bag may not operate.

- Bella Vista, AR, USA

Without warning while driving, I was bombarded with driver's airbag and seat belt faults, informing me of "malfunction in seat belt, air bags, or belt tensioner. Continue wearing seatbelt, consult nearest service center". vehicle was diagnosed with faults for "driver's seat belt tensioner - line connected incorrectly" and "battery safety terminal 2 - line connected incorrectly". BMW corporate instructed running new replacement wiring from the battery, and I was told by customer relations that BMW stands behind this product and they offered a small amount of money to buy my satisfaction. I informed BMW that as a former automotive engineer, I find the repair job to be inconsistent with the fault and expect the error to return. BMW did not respond, and surely enough one week later I started the car to find the same two fault lights on again and the vehicle is back at the dealership. BMW is attempting to replace additional parts in the car including the active crash safety module, leaving the vehicle in the shop for 21 days in the original incident and 4 days and counting this time. I do not feel confident in the safety of this vehicle following these incidents and would like the failure of the seat belts and airbags to be investigated by a neutral 3rd party. Throughout this incident BMW refused to acknowledge this vehicle as a lemon or one-off so I am led to believe that this problem may affect all 3 series that use the same active crash safety module.

- Santa Clara, CA, USA