<Anchor>

So far, BMW has been claiming to be a "hardware flaw" in exhaust gas recirculation, or EGR. However, a domestic consumer group has found out the abnormal behavior of the software through road test.

It is the sole report of Jang Se-man.

<Reporter>

The Korea Consumer Association conducted three diesel models of BMW, such as the 520d, which fired domestic automobile experts, on actual roads.

As a result, abnormal behavior was detected in the software.

In the case of an EGR unit that recirculates the exhaust gas, the exhaust gas cools through the EGR cooler and then enters the engine again.

However, EGR has another pathway to send the hot exhaust gas directly to the engine without cooling down.

This is called bypass, which is to raise the engine temperature quickly when starting.

The problem is the exhaust gas temperature passing through this bypass.

According to the BMW maintenance manual, when the coolant temperature is below 50 degrees, the exhaust gas is passing through this bypass.

Experts on the road, however, have found that the bypass opens even when the coolant temperature is above 90 degrees Celsius.

Too hot exhaust gases may pass through the bypass and lead to a fire.

Experts say BMW may have deliberately set up the software in order to improve vehicle performance and fuel economy.

The Korea Consumers' Association will announce this at a press conference tomorrow (Oct. 28) and urge BMW to clarify it.

(Image editing: Park Ki-deok)