A New Beetle 2.0, a car currently being recalled by Volkswagen Japan for brake system defects, caught fire because of the problem while being driven in Kumamoto, the company said Wednesday.
The accident occurred May 30 and the 50-year-old male driver was not hurt, according to the Japanese unit of the German automaker. The car had not yet been brought in for the repairs, it said.
The accident is the second of its kind involving Volkswagen cars subject to the recall, which covers 6,573 units of the Golf E, Golf ZM Edition, Golf Wagon E and New Beetle 2.0 that had inappropriate material used in their antilock braking systems.
On May 16, the company notified the Land, Infrastructure and Transport Ministry of the problem and subsequently sent letters to the owners of the cars to inform them about the recall.