FRANKFURT • German high-end carmaker BMW said yesterday it would recall more than one million diesel cars, citing a problem with the exhaust system that "in extreme cases can cause a fire".

"In some diesel vehicles, glycol cooling fluid can leak" from a faulty component called the exhaust gas recirculation cooler, which can combine with other substances in the system to create the fire risk, the group said.

BMW said it was contacting sellers, which would in turn get in touch with owners of the affected vehicles to arrange a check-up. "The exhaust recirculation module will be checked and if there is a fault the parts will be exchanged," it said.

BMW had in August announced a recall for Europe and some Asian countries of more than 480,000 vehicles affected by the same problem, and issued an apology in South Korea after around 30 cars caught fire there this year. It said yesterday it had checked more diesel models and identified a "minimal risk" of fire in some of them.

The latest recall brings the total number of cars affected to some 1.6 million worldwide.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, BLOOMBERG