36th BMW Car this Year Catches Fire in South Korea
You would think that with all the media attention on BMW cars catching fire that the owner of this vehicle would have had his car inspected and repaired by now. The cynic in me thinks we may be at a point where owners want their cars to catch on fire to launch lawsuits against BMW:
A BMW sedan caught fire in South Korea on Monday in the latest in a series of similar cases that have sparked a police investigation the German carmaker’s massive recall in Korea.
The fire broke out in the 520d sedan around 4:49 p.m. as it traveled on an expressway in the city of Mungyeong, 155 kilometers southeast of Seoul. Firefighters put out the blaze and no one was hurt, officials said.
It was the latest in more than 35 similar fires that have affected BMW vehicles this year.
Police have launched an investigation after a group of BMW owners filed a complaint accusing the carmaker of negligence and other charges. BMW has blamed defects in the exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) for the fires. [Korea Times]
Korea banned The BMWs I’d with the problem from operating until fixed, so why was this guy driving?
Its been reported recently that many other brands of diesel vehicles, even local made, have also caught fire in Korea. BMW is a rich target as GI notes. Also noted is BMW’s fix point to the area I mentioned a few days ago: cleaning the EGR pipes. A BMW executive, a Mr. Frey, who is now in trouble and back-pedaling, spoke the truth when he at least partially laid blame on Korean driving habits. Its the feather-footing. I’ll bet hard working diesel Bongo trucks never catch on fire!
Car Nut,
My 2.5l turbo diesel Galloper has not caught fire, at least not yet.
You are ON that then Flyingsword!
One thing I wonder about too, is diesel fuel sold in Korea the current global low sulphur type? The price gap to gasoline in Korea is big, too big by global standards. That price I think is the biggest reason driving all those luxury diesel cars sales to people that don’t drive them like diesels.
Interestingly, gasoline BMWs have also caught on fire. I was going to blame the quality of the fuel but seems to be some sort of manufacturer defect.
😈 Gasoline ones probably set on fire by owners to get out from under payments.
I saw that too. It was an fairly new model M3. Expensive. I wondered.