BMW, Volkswagen recall vehicles in the U.S.

(June 12, 2010) WASHINGTON — BMW and Volkswagen recalled vehicles in the U.S. for defects that could cause fires, the federal auto-safety regulator said Friday.

BMW, based in Munich, recalled 1 Series luxury cars for model years 2008 to 2011 for a flaw in front-seat safety-belt retractors that could ignite, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said on its Web site.

The notice didn't say how many vehicles are affected. Volkswagen, based in Wolfsburg, Germany, recalled 15,902 Routan minivans because rear-door latches can short-circuit and catch fire.

Volkswagen's recall for model year 2009 minivans, built with Chrysler Group LLC, follows a June 7 recall by Chrysler for 284,831 Dodge Grand Caravan and Chrysler Town & Country minivans, according to NHTSA.

Tom Kowaleski, a U.S.-based spokesman for BMW, and Jill Bratina, a U.S.-based spokeswoman for Volkswagen, didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.

The BMW fire risk could occur in crashes of “significant severity,” Jan Urbahn, BMW general manager for safety engineering, wrote in a June 8 letter to NHTSA.