Consumers in Korea are growing increasingly suspicious of imported luxury cars following a raft of unexplained fires of BMWs. Import sales have soared in Korea to account for 18 percent of total car sales in the first half of this year, but the latest scandal has shattered long-held faith in their superior quality.

One 34-year-old motorist in Busan now regrets buying a Volkswagen Jetta three years ago. Smoke billowed from the engine recently even though he only had the car checked by a certified dealership in February.

He managed to extinguish the fire under the hood, but what faced him next was a nightmarish series of bureaucratic hurdles as he tried to get compensation for the damage.

"I demanded compensation but the dealership refused saying the cause could not be identified," he said. "It wanted me to share the cost of repairs. I had the car fixed, but I've been too scared to drive it. I'm never going to buy another Volkswagen car."

A staffer at the German automaker denies Volkswagen was to blame.

