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2008 BMW 335I — Complaint #1519672

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NHTSA Complaint about VISIBILITY:DEFROSTER/DEFOGGER/HVAC SYSTEM:FAN/MOTOR filed November 29, 2018

NHTSA complaint #1519672 (ODI reference 11154846) concerns a 2008 BMW 335I and was filed on November 29, 2018. The owner reports the failure occurred on November 28, 2018. The vehicle had 115,000 miles on the odometer at the time of the incident. The report was geocoded to California based on the filer's self-reported location. The affected component is categorized as visibility:defroster/defogger/hvac system:fan/motor, one of NHTSA's standardized taxonomy codes used to group defect patterns across make, model, and year.

The filer flagged the following severity indicators: crash: no, fire: yes, injuries: 0, fatalities: 0. A complaint that flags a crash, fire, or fatality is escalated on NHTSA's internal review queue and factors more heavily into any Preliminary Evaluation decision on this make and model. Because a VIN was supplied, this complaint is tied to a specific vehicle and not just a model-year cohort.

Individual complaints are consumer-submitted and unverified by NHTSA engineers — the agency's role at this stage is to collect, index, and make them searchable. What matters for federal action is the pattern: when many owners of the same BMW 335I cohort independently describe similar visibility:defroster/defogger/hvac system:fan/motor failures, defect investigators have grounds to open a PE and request manufacturer data. Related filings for the same vehicle and component appear below, and the detail page for the full 2008 BMW 335I shows the complete component-level complaint distribution alongside any active investigations or recalls.

Vehicle
2008 BMW 335I
Component
VISIBILITY:DEFROSTER/DEFOGGER/HVAC SYSTEM:FAN/MOTOR
Fire
Yes
State
California
Mileage
115,000 mi

Complaint Description

TL* THE CONTACT OWNED A 2008 BMW 335I. WHILE WALKING TO THE PARKED VEHICLE, THE CONTACT NOTICED SMOKE COMING FROM UNDER THE HOOD OF THE VEHICLE. THE CONTACT OPENED THE DOOR AND SAW FLAMES COMING FROM THE FLOORBOARD. THE CONTACT EXTINGUISHED THE FIRE WITH A FIRE EXTINGUISHER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE BLOWER MOTOR CAUGHT ON FIRE AND MELTED THROUGH THE DASHBOARD AND GLOVE BOX. THE DEALER (HANSEL BMW OF SANTA ROSA, 2925 CORBY AVE, SANTA ROSA, CA 95407) STATED THAT THEY HAD TO WAIT TO HEAR FROM THE MANUFACTURER BEFORE THEY COULD MAKE ANY DECISIONS ON HOW TO HANDLE THE FAILURE. THEY ALSO DIRECTED THE CONTACT NOT TO TOUCH ANYTHING IN THE VEHICLE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS CONTACTED AND STATED THAT THEY NEVER HEARD OF THE BLOWER MOTOR CATCHING ON FIRE. THE VEHICLE WAS DESTROYED. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS INCLUDED IN NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 17V670000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING). THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 115,000.

Complaint Details

NHTSA Complaint ID 1519672
ODI Number 11154846
Date Filed November 29, 2018
Failure Date November 28, 2018
VIN WBAVB73508V

Source: NHTSA Vehicle Complaints Database. Component taxonomy and severity codes are standardized by NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.