Tag Archives: Recall

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Waymo Recalls 3,800 Robotaxis After Software Glitch Raises Highway Safety Concerns

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Autonomous driving’s most visible success story hits another speed bump.

Waymo, the autonomous ride-hailing company owned by Alphabet, has issued a voluntary recall affecting approximately 3,800 robotaxis after identifying a software issue that could allow its vehicles to enter closed highway work zones at normal driving speeds. The recall, announced through a bulletin from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), adds to a growing list of challenges facing the industry’s most advanced self-driving operation.

According to federal regulators, the software defect could cause Waymo vehicles to incorrectly navigate through highway construction areas that have been closed to traffic. While there have been no reports of injuries or confirmed crashes linked to the issue, the potential consequences were serious enough for the company to proactively limit highway operations while engineers develop a fix.

“We identified an area where we can improve vehicle performance near highway work zones,” Waymo said in a statement. The company noted that it voluntarily restricted highway driving, informed regulators, and initiated a software recall while working on corrective updates.

Unlike traditional recalls that often require vehicles to visit service centers, Waymo’s latest action highlights the unique reality of software-defined transportation. The affected Jaguar I-Pace-based robotaxis aren’t being pulled from service. Instead, the recall serves primarily as a formal notification that the company intends to deploy updated software across its fleet.

The issue arrives at an awkward time for Waymo, which has spent years positioning itself as the autonomous driving industry’s benchmark for safety and reliability. Highway operation represents one of the most technically demanding environments for self-driving systems, requiring vehicles to process rapidly changing traffic conditions, construction zones, lane closures, and high-speed decision-making.

Waymo only recently expanded its highway operations. In Phoenix, the company’s robotaxis first gained approval to operate on freeways in 2024, initially carrying employees before eventually transporting paying passengers. Prior to that milestone, highway driving required the presence of a human safety driver behind the wheel.

The recall also marks the company’s second major software-related action in just over a month.

In May, Waymo recalled 3,791 vehicles after one of its autonomous Jaguars entered a flooded roadway in San Antonio. The unoccupied vehicle was swept away by flash-flood waters, though fortunately no injuries were reported. Earlier recalls have addressed even more concerning scenarios, including instances in which some Waymo vehicles failed to properly stop behind school buses displaying active stop signs and flashing warning lights.

Taken together, the incidents illustrate the difficult reality of autonomous vehicle development: even systems capable of handling millions of miles of routine driving can struggle with edge cases that human drivers encounter only occasionally.

Yet despite the recent recalls, Waymo’s broader safety record remains impressive. The company says its autonomous fleet has been involved in 92 percent fewer crashes resulting in serious injuries or worse compared with human drivers operating over similar distances. Waymo also reports a 92 percent reduction in crashes involving pedestrians.

Those figures help explain why regulators have generally allowed the company to continue expanding service despite periodic software corrections. In the world of autonomous driving, recalls increasingly resemble smartphone updates rather than traditional automotive defects—a reminder that the cars of the future may spend as much time receiving code revisions as they do getting mechanical maintenance.

For Waymo, the latest recall is unlikely to derail its expansion plans. But it does reinforce a reality that has followed autonomous vehicles since their inception: even the most sophisticated artificial intelligence still has lessons to learn when the road ahead suddenly changes.

Source: Waymo

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BMW Recalls Over Half a Million Vehicles After Starter-Motor Fire Risk

BMW is once again dialing up the recall hotline—this time over a component most drivers never think about until it fails: the starter motor. The German automaker has announced a worldwide recall covering a mid–six-digit number of vehicles after discovering a defect in the starter (referred to internally as the “anlaser”) that could, in extreme cases, lead to a vehicle fire.

The issue affects 16 BMW models built between July 2020 and July 2022, all of which use starter motors supplied by a third-party manufacturer. According to BMW, excessive wear inside the starter’s electromagnetic solenoid can create electrical resistance that may result in a short circuit. That, in turn, can cause localized overheating—and in the worst-case scenario, a fire while the vehicle is in operation.

BMW says it identified the problem after receiving customer complaints and conducting inspections of affected vehicles. The company will contact owners directly and replace the faulty starters free of charge.

Until repairs are completed, BMW is urging owners to take a cautious approach. The company specifically recommends that vehicles not be left unattended after starting, especially if the engine has been restarted while still warm—a condition that places higher electrical demand on the starter system.

While any recall involving the word “fire” is bound to raise eyebrows, BMW downplayed the financial impact. A company spokesperson told AFP that the campaign will have little to no effect on earnings—welcome news after a difficult 2024, when BMW took a hit of hundreds of millions of euros from a massive 1.5-million-vehicle recall caused by faulty brake components supplied by Continental.

This latest recall serves as another reminder that even as modern cars grow ever more complex, some of the most serious problems can still come from the simplest hardware. A starter motor is about as basic as it gets—but when it fails electrically, the consequences can escalate quickly.

For BMW owners of 2020–2022 vehicles, the message is clear: watch for that recall notice, book the fix, and don’t leave your car running unattended until it’s done.

Source: BMW

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BMW Recalls Nearly 37,000 X3 Crossovers for Unintended Steering Movement

BMW is calling back almost 37,000 examples of its X3 crossover in the United States after discovering a software flaw that can cause the steering wheel to move on its own—while the vehicle is standing still.

The recall affects 2025 and 2026 model-year BMW X3s, with the automaker estimating that all 36,922 vehicles included may be affected by the issue. While the cars aren’t driving themselves off into traffic, unexpected steering inputs are still the sort of behavior that earns immediate attention from regulators—and drivers.

According to documents filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the issue stems from the electric power steering system. If one of the two steering assist torque sensor channels fails while the vehicle is parked, the system may not correctly detect the fault. In rare circumstances, that oversight can result in random steering wheel movement.

The behavior can occur when the engine is started or when the vehicle is stationary with the transmission in gear. In other words, the X3 might appear perfectly calm—until the steering wheel decides to make a move of its own.

This isn’t a purely theoretical problem, either. At least one real-world example has already surfaced on video, showing a parked X3 turning its steering wheel to one side, returning it to center, and repeating the motion—all while the vehicle itself remains motionless. It’s unsettling to watch, even if the risk of immediate danger appears low.

BMW says the fix is straightforward: a software update for the steering control system. Most owners won’t need to visit a dealership, as the update will be delivered over the air (OTA). For those who prefer the traditional route, BMW dealers will install the update free of charge.

The recall is another reminder that as modern vehicles rely increasingly on software, the definition of a “mechanical issue” continues to evolve. Sometimes, solving a steering problem no longer requires a wrench—just a stable internet connection.

Source: NHTSA