Ever since Volkswagen got embroiled in the worst automotive scandal in recent memory, other German automakers have found themselves in the crosshairs of regulators looking into whether they were involved in transgressions similar to those that bought VW to its knees. BMW has been the one company that has so far come unscathed by the issue, but that has now changed after German prosecutors in Munich searched the automaker’s headquarters as part of their continuing investigation into these alleged emissions-cheating scandals.

Multiple reports coming out Germany say that around 100 investigators turned up in the BMW headquarters in Germany and an engine factory in Austria as part of what has apparently been a months-long investigation surrounding the German automaker. According to a statement prepared by Munich prosecutors, the raids were part of an investigation surrounding BMW and whether the company installed cheating devices in some of its diesel models. It’s largely similar to the scandal that rocked Volkswagen to its core and has brought other German auto brands like Mercedes, Audi, and Porsche under the microscope.

In an alarming twist, BMW admitted that the software that prompted the raids to take place was, in fact, erroneous, but that they were installed on the cars by mistake. “In the course of internal testing, the BMW Group realized that a correctly developed software module had been allocated in error to models for which it was not suited,” the company said in a statement. The company already has plans to recall around 11,400 models of the 750d and M550d that contain the software “mistake.” The number is infinitesimal compared to the 11 million VW vehicles affected by its own diesel emissions scandal, but it’s still 11,400 models more than it should be. The good news, if there is any, is that none of the affected models come from the U.S.

BMW can plead innocent all it wants, but the extent of cheating that’s allegedly been happening across a swath of German automakers, is painting a serious a black eye on the country’s largest export product. These cheating scandals not only puts the entire German car industry at risk, but it could also have a devastating long-term effect on the entire German economy, considered as the fourth largest economy by nominal GDP in the world.

It’s not just BMW, either. Volkswagen continues to draw the ire of German investigators over a new round of false claims regarding carbon dioxide emissions of its vehicles. Mercedes parent company, Daimler, is also in the crosshairs of German prosecutors, as well as the United States Justice Department and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on allegations that it also sold Mercedes models in the U.S. that were equipped with illegal emissions software.

Where the investigation of BMW goes from here is anyone’s guess, but even if the automaker does escape any penalties, the mere fact that it got investigated is a huge blow to its reputation. And, just when we thought we’d seen the worst of this wide-ranging scandal, there are apparently a lot more skeletons in the closet.

References

Read our full review on the 2018 BMW M550d xDrive.

Read our full review on the 2017 BMW 750d xDrive.

Read more BMW news.