Volkswagen is joining Tesla Motors Inc. in the list of auto manufacturers who are not having a good week. Tesla, the manufacturer of the hot new electric car, the Model S, reported there has been a third fire in that model this week, and the company is investigating the cause of the blaze. This makes three fires in less than two months for the California based company.

Volkswagen has a whole different issue on its hands, as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced that it’s opening an investigation into the German automaker’s SUV line.

Tiguan Models From 2009 To 2011 Suspect

The NHTSA is looking into consumer complaints that the exterior lights on the Tiguan SUV have failed. According to the NHTSA there have been 26 complaints so far, and they have all involved the Tiguan’s built between 2009 and 2011. The consumers reported that the vehicle’s lights would malfunction, resulting in both partial and complete failure of the external lights.

One Tiguan owner reported to the NHTSA that the headlights on the Tiguan in question would fail intermittently while he was driving at 60 miles per hour. This particular vehicle is a 2011 model, and the had performed a check on the vehicle, including replacing the main fuse panel. The vehicle had only 35,000 miles on it when the service was performed.

Another consumer reported that after starting the vehicle, the lights would fail and the dealer wanted to charge $630 to repair the melted fusebox under the hood. The owner of the vehicle also noted that the dealer could not give reassurance that the incident would not reoccur.

Problem Gets Worse Over Time

The NHTSA said, “The reports suggest that the problem worsens over time with addition exterior lighting malfunctioning as the problem progresses. Most of the complaints report finding an overheated and melted fuse in the under-hood fusebox.”

This could pose a more serious issue than just the loss of exterior lights while driving. If the fuse is overheating to the point of melting, then it poses a fire hazard, which could be deadly to the driver and passengers in the vehicle.

Companies Lucky So Far

Up to now, both Tesla and Volkswagen have been lucky in that no one has been seriously injured or killed due to the issues with their vehicles. Tesla Motors still maintains that the incident this week, which is the third one in the last 6 weeks, is not due to a defective automobile, but is the result of an accident. Volkswagen has not yet commented on the NHTTSA’s statement regarding the investigation.

Stock Movement

Volkswagen AG (ADR) (OTCMKTS:VLKAY) is currently trading at $49.05, down $0.21 or a .43 percent drop from its opening price.

Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) is suffering from both the fire report and a weak earnings report earlier this week. Its stock is currently down 5.14 percent, or $7.18, to trade at $132.59.

Disclosure: Author represents that he has no position in any stocks mentioned in this article at the time this article was submitted.