The seat bag sensor is continuously on. There is no one in the seat. This started at about 65K, the car now has 106K...is this dangerous to a passenger? of course, this seems to activate the seatbelt light also...

- Arlington, VA, USA

Passenger airbag restraint failure - BMW's, in particular 3 series and E90 models, have a known and common failure where the seat based electrical mat fails in the passenger seats. This is not related to wear and tear as the seats often go unused but simply fail after a certain period of time. The error causes the passenger side airbag to default to always on, which can cause injury or death to children or small passengers in that seat. The cost to repair this is usually $200 for parts and $400 for labor which means many drivers simply don't fix it creating a vulnerability. The issue has been recurring with bmws for several generations and across model types and should be addressed by the manufacturer as its a poorly made part and set up. There are numerous documented cases on BMW forums and a partial recall for some models was implemented. A full recall is needed on all cars affected, including 2007 3 series models. The issue does not appear fixed until the F model 3 series came out. Https://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/showthread.php?P=4746508#post4746508 https://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/archive/index.php/T-496444.html

- Mclean, VA, USA