Bmw X5, Bmw X5 Hybrid, Bmw X7, Bmw Xb7, model year 2021. Filed by BMW of North America, LLC and reported to NHTSA on 10 March 2021. 258 vehicles potentially affected.
What the notice says BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2021 X5 sDrive40i, X5 xDrive50i, X5 M50i, X5 xDrive45e, 2021 X7 xDrive40i, X7 M50i, and XB7 vehicles. The head restraints on the second-row outer seats may be the incorrect type for the vehicle.
Is your vehicle included? Check with your VIN at NHTSA, or ask a dealer. This page is an independent copy of the notice, kept so you can see what changed after it was published. It is not the authority, and the authority’s own text is the one to act on.
What owners ask about this recall
- Which vehicles does recall 21V156 cover?
- BMW X5, BMW X5 Hybrid, BMW X7, BMW XB7, model year 2021.
- What is wrong with them?
- BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2021 X5 sDrive40i, X5 xDrive50i, X5 M50i, X5 xDrive45e, 2021 X7 xDrive40i, X7 M50i, and XB7 vehicles. The head restraints on the second-row outer seats may be the incorrect type for the vehicle.
- What can happen if it is not put right?
- In the event of a crash, the head restraints could detach, and increase the risk of injury.
- Is there a fix yet?
- Yes, and it is free. BMW will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the head restraints, and replace them as necessary, free of charge. The recall began May 3, 2021. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
- What should I do now?
- Check your own vehicle by its VIN with NHTSA, which is the record to act on.
Answered from the register this site holds. NHTSA is the record to act on.
What the authority says can happen if this is not fixed: “In the event of a crash, the head restraints could detach, and increase the risk of injury.”
affected
in the notice
caught
| Campaign | 21V156 |
|---|---|
| Filed by | BMW of North America, LLC |
| System at fault | Seats:Mid/Rear Assembly:Head Restraint |
| Reported to NHTSA | 10 March 2021 |
| Model years | 2021-2021 |
| Vehicles named | BMW X5, BMW X5 HYBRID, BMW X7, BMW XB7 |
What the notice says today
The consequence
In the event of a crash, the head restraints could detach, and increase the risk of injury.
The remedy
BMW will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the head restraints, and replace them as necessary, free of charge. The recall began May 3, 2021. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.
What it said before
This campaign is in the register but not yet in the dated wording archive, so we cannot yet say whether its text has moved. It enters the archive on the next pass.
This is one of 459 notices in the record whose component field names seats. Across that group the median wait before owners were written to was 44 days.
The models named here, across their whole recall history
The recall record and its wording are published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and are US Government public domain. The dated archive, the comparison and any before-and-after above are CarsMultiverse. How fresh every engine behind this page is, is public on the status page. To check a specific vehicle, use NHTSA’s own VIN lookup.
Other BMW notices we hold
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- 26V524: 2024-2026 X3 sDrive30i, X3 30 xDrive, and X3 M50 xDrive
- 26V478: 2024 S 1000 RR US, and 2020-2026 S 1000 RR motorcycles
- 26V441: 2018-2020 530e xDrive, 2017-2019 740Le xDrive, 2018-2020 530e iPerformance, 2016-2018 330e iPerformance
- 26V305: 2017-2018 C Evolution motorcycles
- 26V214: 2017-2025 K 1600 GT, GTL, B and 2018-2025 Grand America
- 26V115: one 2026 S 1000 RR motorcycle
- 26V096: 2025 M5 Sportswagon, 2025-2026 M5, 2024-2025 750e xDrive, 2025-2026 550e xDrive, 2023-2025 I7, 2023-2025 7 Series, 2024-2026 i5, and 5 Series
All 328 BMW campaigns we hold · Every manufacturer in the record
The fingerprint of this notice
We take a SHA-256 of each of the three blocks of text the authority publishes and keep the first eight characters. As we last read campaign 21V156 on 23 August 2026, they were:
- Defect summary
4052028d - Consequence
2708f9bd - Remedy
28e20ec1
We first read this notice on 21 August 2026. It has not moved since. If it ever does, these characters will not match, and the change will be dated here.
The wording we hold for 21V156 · how the whole register is watched
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