Opel Zafira fire risk blamed on non-approved parts

Opel Zafira people carriers, built between 2005 and 2012, are being investigated by Opel - and Vauxhall in the UK - for a potential risk of fire in the air conditioning and heating system.

The problem was flagged up by a Facebook group brought together by three UK-based mothers whose cars all caught fire unexpectedly. The group grew swiftly to 3,000 members and has now triggered an investigation into the problem by Opel.

Opel Ireland told The Irish Times that "any customers who are worried about this matter should contact their nearest Opel dealer who will arrange for a no-cost inspection of the car to see if it's affected by the issue."

The problem has so far been traced to the car’s heating and air conditioning system but does not appear to be a manufacturing fault. According to Opel “so far it seems to be that it’s being caused either by a repair that wasn’t done properly or by the use of parts that aren’t approved by Opel.”

So far no recall is being put in place because the investigation is still ongoing and the Opel spokesperson, for that same reason, wasn’t able to offer and guidance as to whether or not Opel customers will have to at for repairs themselves.

A recall is generally only issued when a car manufacturer has itself made a mistake in the production process which leads to a safety issue. If the problem can be traced to ineffective repairs, especially if they were not carried out by an Opel franchisee, then customers could find themselves out of pocket, but Opel declined to comment on that specific matter until the investigation has been completed.