BMW recalls over 300,000 diesel vehicles in Europe

BMW said it was recalling a number of diesel vehicles across Europe due to a potential malfunction in the exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) module.

In rare cases, the malfunction may cause fires, the luxury carmaker explained in a statement released late Wednesday, noting that the problem was similar to an issue that appeared in its vehicles in Korea.

The number of vehicles to be recalled is around 324,000 vehicles, German newspaper Allgemeine Zeitung reported. The number of cars affected by the recall was not disclosed by BMW.

“The BMW Group has decided to carry out a technical campaign to check the EGR module and replace any faulty components on the potentially affected vehicles,” it added.

The Munich-based auto manufacturer said that the technical issue pertains to its BMW 3 Series, 4 Series, 5 Series, 6 Series, 7 Series, X3, X4, X5, X6 vehicles with 4-cylinder diesel engines, who production ran from April 2015 until September 2016, as well as the 6-cylinder diesel engine, whose production from July 2012 until June 2015.

BMW’s recall is being carried out in accordance with the EU approved guidelines for risk assessment, the carmaker said, noting that customers whose vehicles are affected by the recall will be contacted by their BMW Service Partner.

Explaining the issue even further, BMW said that as part of the EGR module, there is an EGR cooler, which “in some cases, small quantities of the glycol coolant can escape and build up in the EGR module. When combined with carbon and oil sediments, this deposit can become combustible. With the high temperatures of the exhaust gases in this unit, these deposits can ignite. In rare cases this may cause melting of the intake manifold and in extreme cases a fire may result.”