$70,000 up in flames: Second-hand car catches fire just 10 days after purchase

He'd just finished his lunch and was walking towards the carpark when he saw plumes of black smoke billowing from the front of his newly-bought second-hand car.

By the time the flames from the vehicle were put out, only a pile of scrap metal remained, Shin Min Daily News reported.  

The incident occurred on Friday (Aug 12) afternoon at the carpark next to the Old Airport Road Food Centre.

According to a clip obtained by the Chinese evening daily from a reader, smoke was seen emitting from under the car bonnet before half of the car swiftly caught fire and was engulfed in flames.

When interviewed, the car's owner, 52-year-old business consultant said that he saw a car on fire as he was walking to the carpark.

"After going closer, I realised that it was my car that I had just bought not long ago."

He added that fire fighters from the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) soon arrived and put out the flames.

A clip of the incident was also shared on Instagram account Sgfollowsalll, with the caption indicating that the vehicle involved is a multi-purpose vehicle (MPV).

[embed]https://www.instagram.com/p/ChMpyrtBXo7/[/embed]

The owner expressed frustration at how the fire could have started, telling Shin Min Daily News that he'd only bought the car on Aug 3.

"Actually after I bought the car I went overseas and only returned on the 10th," he added, which meant he had only had the car for 10 days before the unfortunate incident.

He shared that his wife had driven the car to run errands when he was away but did not encounter any problems with the vehicle.

According to him, the five-year-old vehicle was purchased from a used car dealer for $70,000.

When contacted, an agent at the dealership who did not wish to be identified confirmed that the car owner had contacted them regarding the incident.

The agent stated that "all vehicles undergo thorough checks to ensure that there are no issues before they are sold". He declined further comment, indicating that the SCDF is currently investigating the incident.

A media spokesperson from the SCDF told AsiaOne that it was alerted to the fire at 51 Old Airport Road at about 3.15pm, and that the fire "involved the engine compartment of a car".

The fire was extinguished using one hosereel and there were no reported injuries. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

According to Shin Min Daily News, this was the second case of a car fire in two days.

On Thursday (Aug 11), a stationary vehicle engulfed in flames was spotted at the Bedok Reservoir exit along the Pan-Island Expressway (PIE) towards Changi Airport at around 11.40am. According to the Chinese evening daily, no one was injured in the incident.

candicecai@asiaone.com