German car makers Volkswagen and BMW are recalling more than half a million cars, due to possible technical faults.

Volkswagen, BMW recall over 500,000 cars?

A spokesman for Volkswagen, Europe's largest auto maker by sales says the company began a recall of 299 thousand cars with diesel engines in October last year. The recall was initiated because of possible problems caused by cracks in the car's fuel-injection system.

The cracks can possibly occur in VW's Golf, Passat, Jetta, Tiguan and other models built since 2009. The company's Audi, Skoda and Seat brands are also affected. VW has informed owners of the affected models, but didn't say how many vehicles had been recalled so far.

BMW is also recalling a total of 235 thousand units of its Mini brand worldwide. That's due to a possible malfunction of the electric water pump that cools the turbo charger.

A BMW spokesman said no incidents have been reported so far, and the recall will be rolled out next month.