BMW: The Ultimate Asshole Machine.. now with more assholery to assholes too!
(Their motorcycles had a better rep until now.)
BMW's Newest "Innovation" Is a Logo-Shaped Middle Finger to Right to Repair
21–30 of 79 posts
Re: BMW's Newest "Innovation" Is a Logo-Shaped Middle Finger to Right to Repair
#22This feels like they want to use trademark law to prevent third-party products. You can't legally produce the screws without baiscally copying the BMW logo onto it. I don't know if a similar argument would hold water for the drivers though.
IIRC in Europe at least that doesn't work because now your third party has the defence of necessity. They didn't want to use your protected mark, but it was necessary or else their product wouldn't work, so, the protection doesn't apply.
Re: BMW's Newest "Innovation" Is a Logo-Shaped Middle Finger to Right to Repair
#23The "screw you" jokes just write themselves.
I wrote one for a test drive but then I forgot the turn signal and got pulled over.
Re: BMW's Newest "Innovation" Is a Logo-Shaped Middle Finger to Right to Repair
#24Now I’m curious, are there any manufacturers still making repairable cars?
Chinese brands, maybe?
Re: BMW's Newest "Innovation" Is a Logo-Shaped Middle Finger to Right to Repair
#25I'd be interested to know how BMW manufactures those screws. The patterns in the metal in the image suggest the entire hole was drilled out? The deepest part has circular marks inside that looks like the marks left by a facing tool on a lathe or similar. Then I guess the two wedges were inserted and the whole screw faced?
Those are end mill marks.
Nearly zero chance of them doing that at production volumes though.
Re: BMW's Newest "Innovation" Is a Logo-Shaped Middle Finger to Right to Repair
#26Earlier quoted context omitted.
Those are end mill marks.
Nearly zero chance of them doing that at production volumes though.
Why not? A properly set up CNC machining center would turn those out by the bucketload. That's precisely the sort of thing that BMW does regularly with exterior details, no reason why they couldn't do it for a batch of bolts.
Re: BMW's Newest "Innovation" Is a Logo-Shaped Middle Finger to Right to Repair
#27BMW: The Ultimate Asshole Machine.. now with more assholery to assholes too! (Their motorcycles had a better rep until now.)
> Their motorcycles had a better rep until now.
No they didn't. Driveshafts are notoriously bad. It's the kind of failure that leaves you on foot in the middle of nowhere.
Re: BMW's Newest "Innovation" Is a Logo-Shaped Middle Finger to Right to Repair
#28This feels like they want to use trademark law to prevent third-party products. You can't legally produce the screws without baiscally copying the BMW logo onto it. I don't know if a similar argument would hold water for the drivers though.
On the contrary, they are asking for trademark dilution with this.
Re: BMW's Newest "Innovation" Is a Logo-Shaped Middle Finger to Right to Repair
#29I think this is misunderstood - everybody points out that how evil BMW is for trying to be proprietary, then immediately points out any Chinese factory can produce a compatible tool for pennies - which one is it?
I think this is a pretty good mechanical design in general because:
- large contact surface (like hex or torx)
- no chance of slide-out (like flathead) or torque-out (like Philips)
- you can use a different size screw bit than the screw, and it wont slide around, or destroy your nut like torx does with hex
Re: BMW's Newest "Innovation" Is a Logo-Shaped Middle Finger to Right to Repair
#30I'd be interested to know how BMW manufactures those screws. The patterns in the metal in the image suggest the entire hole was drilled out? The deepest part has circular marks inside that looks like the marks left by a facing tool on a lathe or similar. Then I guess the two wedges were inserted and the whole screw faced?
I don't see any geometry that would be hard for casting or milling, it's slightly more expensive because you can't do it in one go, but you have to lift the toolhead if you mill.