BMW of North America is recalling 4,630 R 18 cruisers from the 2021 to 2024 model years because the control unit for the optional reverse gear can overheat. These are bikes BMW already recalled for the same part in 2024. Back then, the stopgap was to unplug the unit. This time the BMW R 18 recall replaces it, and riders whose bikes got the first fix have to go back to the dealer.
NHTSA lists the new campaign as 26V658000. It covers only R 18s that left the factory with reverse, an option BMW offered from the start. A bike without it is not part of this recall.
Here is what the new notice says, how the first fix worked, and why it took two campaigns to get to a new part.
What the BMW R 18 recall covers
According to the NHTSA notice reprinted by Motorsports Newswire, the seal on the reverse gear control unit may break down over time. Moisture can then get inside, and the unit can overheat. NHTSA’s summary is blunt about the result: an overheated control unit raises the risk of a fire.
The remedy is a new reverse gear control unit, and dealers will fit it free of charge. BMW expects to mail owner letters on November 27, 2026. In the meantime, owners can call BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417. The affected VINs will also be searchable on NHTSA.gov.
The campaign also shows up in WBIW’s roundup of the week’s NHTSA recalls. There it carries the short title “Reverse Gear Control Unit May Overheat.”
The 2024 fix simply switched reverse off
This is the second recall for the same part. BMW submitted the first one, 24V-716, on September 27, 2024, according to its defect report to NHTSA. That filing covered 5,048 R 18s built between June 19, 2020 and July 11, 2024. It described the same weak seal. In that case, humidity inside the unit could cause leakage current between corroded contacts, and that current could heat the part.
However, BMW had no better part ready in 2024. So its interim remedy was to disconnect the reverse gear control unit permanently from the bike’s electrical system. In the report, BMW promised to retrofit an improved part as soon as one was available. In other words, owners kept the hardware but lost the feature.
At the time, RideApart reported that the main warning sign was a reverse gear that stopped working. BMW notified U.S. dealers on September 26, 2024. Then registered owners were due to get their letters on November 18, 2024.
How the problem surfaced overseas
The 2024 filing lays out a slow build. First, BMW learned of a thermal event in a market outside the U.S. in June 2023. More field reports from other countries followed. Warranty data then showed higher failure rates in hot, humid markets in Southeast Asia. As a result, BMW ran a voluntary recall there in February 2024. Finally, on September 19, 2024, it extended the recall worldwide.
The American picture was calmer. BMW told NHTSA it knew of no accidents, injuries or thermal events in the U.S. market at that point. Even so, it counted about 21 U.S. warranty claims tied to the problem.
Why bikes that were already fixed must go back
The new notice is clear on one point. These 4,630 motorcycles were all part of 24V716, and the ones already repaired under that campaign still need the new repair. That follows from what the first repair did. The 2024 work only cut power to the unit, while this campaign swaps it for a new one.
Yet the two campaigns do not list the same number of bikes. The 2024 report counted 5,048 motorcycles, but the 2026 notice counts 4,630. Neither document explains the gap of 418 bikes. For that reason, an owner who had the first recall done should check the VIN rather than assume either way.
What the R 18 is, and where reverse fits in
BMW Motorrad first showed the R 18’s engine in a press release dated November 29, 2019. The company called it the “Big Boxer.” It is a 1,802 cc flat-twin with a 107.1 mm bore and a 100 mm stroke. BMW rated it at 91 hp (67 kW) at 4,750 rpm, with 158 Nm of torque available from 3,000 rpm.
That same release listed reverse as “an optional extra.” That is why the BMW R 18 recall touches only part of the fleet. Riders who never ordered the option have nothing to fix here.
For the riders who did, the date is now set. BMW’s letters for 26V658000 are due on November 27, 2026, two years and nine days after its first letters told owners on November 18, 2024 that dealers would disconnect their reverse gear.
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