You thought your 2018 Alfa Romeo Giulia was perfect, and every week, you looked forward to taking it for a long Sunday drive through the local countryside. That was before the last Sunday when your gorgeous vehicle spontaneously caught on fire, and you and your family barely escaped with your lives. It sounds like a horror story out of a work of fiction, but this could actually happen to one of the 6,100 Alfa Romeo owners affected by a recent recall announced in December 2018.
The recall, which didn’t affect nearly as many cars as other recently announced recalls, was the third-largest in the month of December. Giulia sports sedans with 280-horsepower, four-cylinder engines and all-wheel drive have a brake fluid line problem. Essentially, the fluid hose could come in contact with a coolant hose clamp and result in a brake fluid leak. If the fluid leaks onto the exhaust, a fire could start.
Fortunately, Alfa Romeo already has a fix to the problem. Dealers need to install a special bracket that holds the brake fluid line in place. Alternatively, if the dealer finds that the brake fluid line has already been compromised, it will replace the line as well.
A car that has the potential to catch fire could erupt in flames during a relatively minor accident. It could also spontaneously catch fire when the driver and his or her passenger doesn’t expect it. In vehicle fire cases that were caused by a defective or negligently manufactured or designed automobile, those who were injured by the fire might want to explore whether they have a viable cause of action to pursue financial damages in court against the manufacturer of the car and other at-fault parties.
