NHTSA Complaint #10954641 — 2007 BMW 650I

ON SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2017, AT APPROXIMATELY 4:30 PM, I HAD DRIVEN ABOUT 1/2 MILE FROM HOME WHEN I BEGAN TO SMELL SOMETHING BURNING. I WAS ON A TWO-LANE HIGHWAY, IN A 55 MPH ZONE (E. COLONIAL HWY, GOING FROM LEESBURG TO HAMILTON). I LOOKED AROUND ME, INSIDE THE CAR, AND SAW NOTHING THAT WOULD PRODUCE THAT KIND OF SMELL. I WONDERED IF I WAS SMELLING SOMETHING OUTSIDE. THEN, WITHIN SECONDS OF THAT THOUGHT, I STARTED TO SEE SMOKE RISING, ORIGINATING FROM UNDER MY LEFT ELBOW. I WAS STILL DRIVING, AND COULD NOT SEE THE SOURCE OF THE SMOKE. BUT, THE SMELL OF BURNING AND THE STREAM OF SMOKE CONTINUED TO GROW STRONGER. AT THIS POINT, I WAS APPROXIMATELY A MILE FROM MY HOME AND I PULLED INTO A PARKING LOT (THE HARMONY PARK AND RIDE LOT). I GOT OUT OF THE CAR AND SAW A BURN MARK IN THE LOWER THIRD OF THE DRIVER'S SEAT BACK, IN THE PANEL OF THE SEAT NEAREST TO THE WINDOW. THE MARK WAS SLIGHTLY LARGER THAN THE BURN MARK A CIGARETTE MIGHT MAKE. INSIDE THE BURN MARK, I COULD SEE A SMALL, RED, EMBER-LIKE LIGHT GLOWING. I THEN TURNED OFF THE ENGINE. I COULD NO LONGER SEE THE EMBER-LIKE LIGHT, AND EVENTUALLY, THE SMOKE STOPPED. I CALLED THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT OF THE BMW DEALERSHIP IN FAIRFAX FOR GUIDANCE. THEY SUGGESTED I HAVE THE CAR TOWED TO THEM FOR DIAGNOSTICS. I FOLLOWED THEIR ADVICE. THOUGH THE TECHNICIAN THAT I SPOKE WITH HADN'T HANDLED OR HEARD OF A SITUATION LIKE THIS, HE SUSPECTED THE LUMBAR HEATING PAD IN THE SEAT BACK HAD MALFUNCTIONED.