The government says it will complete an investigation into the cause of the fires involving BMW vehicles by the end of the year.

Kim Jeong-ryeol, second vice minister for land, infrastructure and transport, made the pledge during a parliamentary hearing on the BMW fires held Tuesday.

He said the joint government and civic probe will not be limited to the exhaust gas recirculation(EGR) module which the German carmaker blames as the root cause of the engine fires.

The vice minister said the government will also look into components and software other than the EGR modules to analyze possible defects and even test BMW cars on the road.

Kim said the probe will seek to determine the cause of fires from square one with the goal to reach a conclusion within this year. 

He also said the government will improve the recall rule and strengthen punitive damages against carmakers.

Improving related regulations will also be sought to enable swift recalls and to hold carmakers more accountable.