BMW recalls 750,000 cars due to electrical problem

BMW luxury car logo's are pictured in a spare part store at a BMW garage in Niderwangen near Bern, May 24, 2012.

REUTERS - BMW (BMWG.DE) is recalling about 750,000 of its vehicles in the United States, Japan, Canada and South Africa due the chance of an electrical failure that may cause the cars to stall unexpectedly, U.S. regulators and the company said.

Vehicles sold in Germany, BMW's home market, and the rest of Europe are not involved in the recall.

The recall affects Bayerische Motoren Werke AG's popular 3-Series sedans, convertibles, coupes and sports wagons, as well as its 1-Series coupes and convertibles and Z4 two-seat roadsters. In some markets, the X1 crossover vehicle is also part of the recall.

The affected vehicles were built between March 2007 and July 2011.

A battery cable connection with a fuse box on the cars may degrade over time, which could cause the engine to stall because of a loss of electric power, increasing the risk of a crash, the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said in a report issued on Monday.

BMW on Tuesday said that there was one crash, in Canada, related to the issue, which did not cause injury. There have been no reported crashes or injuries in the United States, BMW said.

Among major BMW markets, the company is recalling 504,545 cars in the United States, 100,000 in Japan, 65,285 in Canada, and 50,000 in South Africa, the company said.

The vehicles involved in the recall include the 3-Series sedans, coupes, convertibles and sports wagons from the 2007-2011 model years, the 1-Series coupes and convertibles from model years 2008-2012 and the Z4 vehicles from model years 2009-2011.

Among the recalls in Canada are 1,800 X1 compact crossover vehicles from the model year 2012. The X1 was not yet on sale in the U.S. market in the period covered by the recall, BMW said.

(Reporting By Bernie Woodall in New York and Andreas Cremer in Berlin; Editing by Gerald E. McCormick and Dan Grebler)