Complaints Lodged Against Foreign Cars Up 55%

[Anchor]

Consumer complaints are mounting over imported cars amid a series of engine fires involving BMW cars following the Volkswagen emissions manipulation scandal.

The number of complaints received against foreign-made cars also sharply increased.

Lee Joon-heum has more.

[Reporter]

A car burst into flames.

Firefighters try to contain the fire, but the fire has already destroyed engine compartments.

The videos show BMW vehicles that have earned the dubious honor of being cars that catch on fire.

In 2015, Volkswagen suffered from the so-called "diesel gate" emissions cheating scandal.

A string of problems is happening that are tarnishing the reputation of imported vehicles.

The number of complaints filed by local consumers asking for damage relief due to quality and safety issues jumped 55 percent over the last five years.

During the same period, the number for locally produced cars dropped.

Taking into consideration the market share, complaints against imports can be considered to be four times greater than those for locally made automobiles.

Unlike expectations, foreign cars perform poorer than locally-produced ones and are difficult to receive after-sales service for.

<Owner of Foreign Car> "It is difficult to access after-sales service, which took a long time, and it costs too much to repair the car."

Sales of foreign cars, which enjoyed over 20 percent of the market share before fires broke out in the engine compartments of BMW vehicles, are feared to slow down.

Considering that consumers are shifting away from diesel cars following the diesel emissions scandal, the latest fires may cause the model to lose ground.

Lee Joon-heum reporting from Yonhap News.

Yonhap News TV: (Inquiry on article/Report) KakaoTalk/LINE jebo23