German automaker Volkswagen said Friday it had filed a complaint against the makers of a video clip depicting a suicide bombing using one of its cars.

The 22-second film, which has been making the rounds on the Internet, shows an Arab-looking man with a Palestinian scarf driving a VW Polo through a city where he pulls up in front of a crowded cafe and sets off a bomb in his car.

The Polo and the surroundings remain unscathed and the slogan "Small but tough" appears. In a German version, the phrase reads "Extremely well-built".

VW spokesman Hartwig von Sass described the clip as "violence- glorifying, cynical and criminal" and said it amounted to "an attack on Volkswagen´s good reputation".

The state prosecutor´s office in the northern city of Braunschweig confirmed it had received a complaint against persons unknown. It said it had opened a probe on suspicion of public incitement which could later include other charges.

Sass said a steering wheel on the right-hand side, the license plate and the appearance of a London taxi in the background of the film indicated that it had been shot in the British capital.

He said he could not confirm reports that a London advertising agency had made it but said it was in any case not an agency that worked with Volkswagen, Europe´s biggest carmaker.

Sass said the company would consider a civil lawsuit against the filmmakers, if they are identified, based on copyright violations. (© Copyright 2005, Simon Wiesenthal Center 01/28/05)