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A BMW 520d model combusting along Yeongdong Expressway near Wonju, Gangwon Province, on Aug. 2. (provided by Gangwon Provincial Police Agency)
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BMW spokespersons continue to emphasize defective parts
Automobile experts speaking at a public hearing organized by the National Assembly Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee on Aug. 28 on recent fires involving BMW vehicles raised questions about possible software errors and design flaws in addition to the hardware issues identified by the company as the reason for the fires. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) said it would “consider every possibility” and “investigate the cause of the fires from the beginning, completing [the investigation] within the year.” Attorney Ha Jong-seon from the firm Barun Law, speaking on behalf of an association of BMW vehicle fire victims, brought up the issue of design flaws in the vehicles’ exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) modules. “In a Ministry of Environment test comparing NOx emissions in terms of Euro 6 standards for 20 vehicle models in the spring of 2016, the BMW 520d only met the standards on the actual road,” Ha said. “That was the result of BMW operating its EGR module a few times extra,” he continued. “They should have reinforced their valve and cooler design, but they did not.” Ha argued that because the EGR valves are opened and closed much more frequently than with other vehicles, they should have been designed with greater durability and strength. Kim Pil-soo, an automotive science professor at Daelim University, suggested the possibility of software error in addition to hardware issues. “The software is what moves the hardware,” he explained. “The algorithm area needs to be investigation to see why leakage is taking place in the EGR cooler and what happens when it operates excessively. For them to name ‘driving habits’ and ‘long-distance travel’ as conditions for the fires to occurs is just making excuses,” he added. In addition to allegations of BMW covering up the defects, ruling and opposition party lawmakers also went after MOLIT for its “inadequate” response. Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Jung-ho said the “failure to collaborate with MOLIT even after the Ministry of Environment had recalls in connection with EGR defects in BMW vehicles on three occasions between 2015 and April of this year only added to the public’s fears.” In connection with the series of fires, BMW Korea chairman Kim Hyo-joon acknowledged defects in the vehicles and repeatedly apologized. When asked by lawmakers whether the fires were the result of production flaws or driving happens, he answered that they were an “issue of defects in the vehicles.” Suspicions whether company deliberately concealed defects for two years In response to questions about whether the company deliberately kept quiet for two years after learning about the cause of the fires in 2016, Kim replied, “It was only this past June that we learned the EGR defect led to fires.” “I pledge to make 100 percent of the data public if the government [and] joint government-private investigation team goes to Germany,” he said. In terms of the investigation into the cause of the fires, Second Vice Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Jung-ryul said the joint investigation team would “conduct a focused investigation of the causes from the beginning without limiting it to the EGR module cited by the company as the cause of the fire,” adding that the investigation would be “completed within the year.” Meanwhile, a Korea Consumer Association team assisting with legal action held a press conference the same day at the Press Center in Seoul’s Jung (Central) district. “The setting of the electronic control unit (ECU) that opens the bypass valve during driving to reduce exhaust gas has been identified as the cause of the MBW vehicle fires,” the team said. Daeduk College automotive studies professor Lee Ho-geun, who heads the support team, explained, “The bypass valve normally has to close to prevent high-temperature exhaust gas from entering, and cases of it opening during driving have been found in on-site testing in the BMW’s Euro 6 models.” By Hong Dae-seon, staff reporter Please direct comments or questions to [english@hani.co.kr]
