BMW is recalling 36,922 2025 and 2026 X3s for an alarming potential fault that can cause the steering wheel to jerk violently like a glitching racing simulator. BMW believes that all 36,922 vehicles included in the recall have the issue, but fortunately the fault only appears to occur when affected vehicles are stationary, so BMW is not aware of any accidents or injuries related to the fault. Our very own Andy Kalmowitz didn’t experience the fault during his week with the underwhelming 2025 X3 30 xDrive, but several X3 owners have posted videos of the phantom jerking, showing the surprisingly violent fault in action.
BMW says the fault lies within the X3’s steering system software, which it says, “may not be sufficiently robust.” The recall report says the issue occurs if one of the two channels within the steering torque sensor malfunctions while the vehicle is in a standstill condition during startup or in drive mode, but stationary, the software diagnostics may not appropriately detect the condition, sometimes causing unintended steering wheel movement.
Luckily the remedy is available as an OTA software update
No, the answer to the problem is not restarting the owner’s steering subscription. It’s a simple Over-The-Air update that can be performed at home, or owners may have the update performed at a dealership, free of charge.
BMW first became aware of the fault when an X3 experienced the unintended steering wheel movement upon startup at a vehicle assembly plant on Aug. 22 last year. It wasn’t until Sept. 1 that BMW began an engineering review, and by mid-September BMW issued a dealer delivery stop and an assembly plant hold. BMW conducted the voluntary safety recall on Dec. 4, and BMW became aware of approximately 21 cases that may be related to this issue that occurred between Aug. 22 and Dec. 4.
Dealers should already be aware of the issue, but owners won’t be notified until Feb. 2, which is also the date when VIN search tools will show the recall. Vehicles included in the recall were produced between Aug. 14, 2024 and Oct. 20, 2025.
