BMW Recalls Minis for Fire Risk

Ah, the Mini: small, fast, luxurious, and only a little prone to catching on fire. BMW has issued a recall on 235,535 Mini Coopers, including some 89,000 in the US, over a possible glitch in the circuit board that controls the water pump that cools the car's turbocharger. At least four Minis have seen their engine compartments catch fire as a result, CNN reports, out of 81 pump failures, though there have been no related injuries or accidents.

The flaw is similar to one seen in other BMW and Rolls-Royce luxury cars. BMW says the Mini uses a different turbocharger cooling system, but says it's investigating whether the problems could nonetheless be related. The recall includes only turbocharged Minis from model year 2007 through 2011; those without turbochargers are safe. (Read more Mini Cooper stories.)