South Korea announced its intention to fine the famous German manufacturer BMW $9.93 million, as well as to initiate criminal proceedings against him.
The reason was the statement of the Ministry of Transport of the country that the company delayed the recall of cars, the defect of the engines of which could lead to a fire.
A Department of Transportation investigation revealed that the automaker deliberately did not report technical problems with the Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR) system. At the same time, there were 52 ignitions of models with diesel engines in the country. It got to the point that some parking lots even refused to accept BMW cars. But it wasn't until June 20, 2018 that the company acknowledged the problem, recalled 172,080 vehicles, and apologized.
However, the Koreans insist that in bmw knew about the problem back in October 2015. It was then that a special group was created that dealt with the problem with EGR. The company denies malicious intent and claims that the recall was made in a timely manner. But if the company's guilt is proven, then it faces much larger fines, while its representatives in the country risk receiving long prison terms.
Meanwhile, sales of brand cars in South Korea fell immediately by 10%. However, BMW is still the second largest foreign car manufacturer in the country, second only to Mercedes Benz. Over the past few years, these German companies have managed to significantly push the brand Hyundai, which dominated the home market for many years.