KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 16 — A driver escaped unharmed after the Mercedes Benz 450 being driven caught fire at Kilometer 18 of the Setiawangsa-Pantai Expressway (SPE) near the Wangsa Maju Toll Plaza yesterday.

The Kuala Lumpur Fire and Rescue Department’s Operations Centre received a distress call about the incident at 1.38pm, according to a report published in Malay news portal Berita Harian today.

Operations Commander Nor Saiful Ibrahim said that a fire engine with seven officers and personnel was dispatched to the scene immediately upon receiving the call.

"Upon arrival at the scene, the team found that the fire involved a car. The fire started in the engine compartment and was fully extinguished by 2.15pm,” he said in a statement yesterday.

He added that the car was completely destroyed, but no victims were involved.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.