WASHINGTON -- American Honda Motor Co. says it's going to notify dealers about a possible problem with the newer CR-V sport utility vehicles.

The Washington Post reported Friday morning on more than two dozen cases of 2003 and 2004 CR-Vs bursting into flames shortly after their first oil changes.

The newspaper cited records provided to the federal government by Honda.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has determined the problem is caused by vehicle technicians. When the oil filter is removed, part of the seal may stick to the engine. If that seal isn't removed before the new filter is put in -- there is a risk of oil leakage which could cause a fire.

No injuries have been reported, and many of the vehicles were destroyed.

Honda said a design flaw is not to blame, but it's still studying the cause of the fires. The company said it's not planning a recall.

Auto safety advocates are bothered that the NHTSA did not take a stronger stand on this, The Post reported.

"Relatively new cars catching on fire? Running the risk of injuring their occupants? It's a very unusual and a very dangerous situation," Sally Greenberg of Consumers Union, publisher of Consumer Reports told The Post. "The fact that a routine oil change could have such catastrophic results 'suggests a dire and a dangerous situation that both the automaker and the auto safety agency should have looked much more closely at.'"

The Post told the story of a driver in Virginia last January whose 2003 CR-V caught fire. She reportedly swerved onto the shoulder of the highway and then her electrical system shorted out and all the doors locked. That woman escaped without injury.

About 140,000 CR-Vs were sold in the United States in 2003, according to The Post.