Brake debacle

BMW has to stop production at Dingolfing plant

(Bild: EPA)

BMW has temporarily halted production at its largest European plant in Dingolfing. The background to this is a recall due to potentially faulty brakes and weakening demand in China. The production lines are at a standstill until Monday evening.

As a spokesperson confirmed, production was interrupted on Thursday afternoon and is not due to restart until Tuesday - provided the brake problem has been resolved by then.

In addition to the brake problem, the 4.3 percent drop in sales in China in the first half of the year is also a reason for the production interruption.

A total of 1.5 million vehicles are being recalled because a potentially faulty brake has been installed. More than 300,000 cars that have already been produced can therefore not be delivered at present, reports Bayerischer Rundfunk. Several BMW, Mini and Rolls-Royce models from the past two years are affected by the recall. Specifically: BMW 2 Series Active Tourer, 5 Series, 7 Series, X1, X5 and X6 as well as Mini Cooper and Mini, plus the Rolls-Royce Spectre.

The problem could lead to the failure of important assistance systems such as ABS, brake booster and ESP. So far, however, no accidents have been reported in connection with the faulty brakes.

The supplier Continental has stated that only a small number of the brakes need to be replaced, but they all need to be checked. The affected Integrated Brake System (IBS) combines several brake components in one module, which are usually installed individually.

Around 12,000 employees are affected by the production stoppage The work stoppages are being compensated for by flexitime or overtime.

Dingolfing is at the heart of BMW production, with over 18,500 employees and 900 trainees. Around 292,000 vehicles are produced here every year: the four, five, seven, eight and iX models as well as components for BMW electric cars and bodies for Rolls-Royce.