Horrifying moment £15,000 BMW suddenly EXPLODES into flames – but who’s to blame?
A WOMAN was left in shock after her sporty BMW 640d coupe burst into flames.
Kim Sharon, 65, from London, narrowly escaped injury when her BMW caught fire just one mile from the garage she was going to - ironically, after being warned that her car was a fire risk.
She claims that weeks earlier, BMW had informed her that the EGR cooler on her car needed to be replaced due to a fire risk.
But Kim is not the only driver affected as more than 1.6 million BMWs worldwide, including 300,000 in the UK, are subject to the recall.
Ms Sharon, a 65-year-old grandmother from North West London, said that due to the traumatic experience, she is now scared to drive.
Sharon explained to : "I was on the way to the garage, and I could smell smoke, then seconds later, there were flames licking up at the windscreen.
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"I stopped and jumped out of the car just as it exploded in a big fire. I just stood there at the side of the road in total shock, watching it burn.
"They had told me to come to the dealership to get this part replaced because there is a risk of fire with it, then, when it blows up on the way there, they say that wasn't the cause."
Her daughter Natalie said: "We could have lost my mum, but BMW has been awful. They seem to care more about money than the welfare and safety of their customers."
After the incident, BMW ordered a vehicle inspection, which ruled out the EGR problem as the cause.
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The inspector stated that "fluid onto a hot surface (oil on the exhaust)" was the most likely reason for the fire.
A BMW spokesperson said: "The BMW Group takes any incident involving its vehicles and all cases of product safety very seriously.
"'As is our usual procedure, at the time of the incident, we contacted the customer and respective vehicle insurance company to offer our support so that the incident's root cause could be established.
"As a consequence, a full and detailed vehicle inspection was carried out in November 2022, which determined that no product fault or any relation to the safety recall regarding the EGR cooler had led to the incident.
"This finding, alongside the full report, was shared with the customer, who had been supplied with a hire vehicle whilst our investigation was carried out."