Like him or loathe him, David Beckham has set the soccer world on fire. And now it seems that his car was just trying to return the favor.

On a recent drive around Los Angeles in his custom 4×4, the Galaxy star apparently had a little trouble with the seat warmer. (Because we all know how cold it can get in L.A. during the summer.) Things got a bit too toasty for David as his undercarriage began overheating.

But let’s let Charli Morgan & Amy Watts of the DAILY STAR’S GOSS explain what happened next, in that ol’ stoic way of British tabloid storytelling:

Amused onlookers followed the scent of burning flesh across Beverly Hills, like unsavoury Bisto Kids, to find David, 33, pulled over and searching for a DIY cod-piece.

Eventually, the erotic roll-on deodorant settled for a bag of Victoria’s designer threads and put them beneath his molten manhood.

(Not tonight, ladies - David needs an icepack)

Hot times in Hollywood, indeed. And for a second opinion, here’s how one witness described Beckham’s behind-the-wheel ball burning:

“One minute he was tearing across LA, the next, he was rolling down his windows, panting and staring down at his crotch in horror.”

Seems like a typical drive in La-La-Land to us.

This week, David is about to unveil a new round of Armani underwear ads. Maybe his next set of briefs will be installed with cooling pads.

But the best part of this whole scrotum-singeing story is the name of the site where we originally spotted it:

WELT ONLINE. How perfectly apropos.