The German automotive company BMW intends to recall hundreds of thousands of its vehicles due to a potential risk of fire caused by starter motors.
The recall on a global scale will include hundreds of thousands of cars. The company will contact owners to replace starter motors that may be defective.
BMW stated that 16 models equipped with starter motors produced between July 2020 and July 2022 could be affected due to excessive corrosion of the electric magnet over time.
The company recommends “not leaving the vehicle unattended after starting the engine, especially after a remote start.” It explained that after receiving customer complaints and inspecting vehicles, “it was found that the starter motor in the specified vehicles could become defective.”
An electrical short circuit cannot be ruled out, which could cause “a localized increase in the starter motor’s temperature. In the worst case, this could lead to a vehicle fire while driving.”
In 2024, BMW was forced to lower its profitability forecasts after incurring losses of hundreds of millions of euros due to a recall of 1.5 million vehicles for defective brakes supplied by Continental.
The latest recall is expected to have a minimal or negligible impact on BMW’s profits.
