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Jacksonville woman wants answers after her BMW catches fire while parked in driveway

"I came home, sat down, ate my lunch went to the trash can, turned around and I could see flames coming from my driveway."

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- What's left of Virginia Chamblee's BMW SUV are charred metal frame and melted rubber.

Tuesday she came home from work and parked her luxury vehicle in the driveway.

"I came home, sat down, ate my lunch went to the trash can, turned around and I could see flames coming from my driveway," Chamblee explained.

She called 9-1-1 and firefighters were quick to respond, but her SUV would become a total loss.

"The car wasn't on at the time," she said. "The key was not in the ignition or anything like that."

What happened? What caused the vehicle she purchased in 2012 to suddenly go up in flames?

She said she had it serviced as recently as May 25, and it was in great shape.

"BMW so far has not told me what could be the problem," Chamblee said.

In 2017 the automaker issued a voluntary recall of one million vehicles for fires; the recall included model years 2007-2011.

Chamblee's 2005 model was not part of that recall.

"When they (BMW) finally called me three days after the fact, they told me that it could have been an oil leak, maybe I didn't drive the car enough, maybe I drove it too much," she said.

On Your Side checked the government's database and found a recall in March 2012 and August 2012 for potential fires.

Chamblee, not being the original owner, was never notified of the 2012 recalls.

"It was in good shape," she said. "I didn't hear any strange noises. I didn't smell anything, I definitely see any oil leaking prior to this happening."

She feels fortunate that her home did not catch fire and that she was not injured. But she wants answers and wants to be sure other BMW owners are aware of the potential hazard.

"I would like to know what happened to my car. I would like to ensure other BMW drivers and that BMW is investigating this issue," she said.

She filed a complaint with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. On Your Side reached out to BMW for comment and have yet to hear from the German Manufacturer.

If you want check the department of transportation's database for recall this is the link:

https://www.nhtsa.gov/

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