BMW recalls 32,000 vehicles because they could set on fire

By Jeffrey Van Camp November 1, 2011

bmw-5-series-gran-turismo — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Would your rather have your Toyota uncontrollably accelerate or your BMW set on fire? It’s a choice you could have unknowingly made in the past few years. The NY Times is reporting that BMW plans to recall 32,000 vehicles because of a fire hazard. BMW has informed the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that a number of its cars have a faulty electronic circuit board that could fail, leading to a “smoldering of the water pump,” which is needed to help cool the engine’s turbocharger. In other words: your car could set on fire.

The affected models are from 2008-2011:

5 Series
5 Series Gran Turismo
7 Series
X5 equipped with turbocharged 8- or 12-cylinder engines
X6 equipped with turbocharged 8- or 12-cylinder engines

According to BMW, the driver would be, in most cases, warned on the dashboard of the car, but there have been two cases of fires in the engine compartment reported of the 102 known cases of pump failure. The recall is currently voluntary.

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