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[roycv]

Hi all, I had a tour around the BMW works in Munich some years ago, very well organised, where we saw the workers drinking beer while they were working.  Also saw lots of them doing remedial work on the cars (series 3) before they left the factory.  I later learned there were more doing remedial jobs in Munich, than running the production lines at Nissan in Sunderland.  Hope things have changed!

I had a Nissan Primera for 7 years and apart from changing the windscreen wipers, (I think they were set at the wrong angle) I had trouble free motoring, mostly on the inner 2 lanes of the motorway.
I have had several trips around car factories and a visit to Ingoldstat to see the Audi range produced was very good, cars being cover protected during assembly.

Most of the accidents start on the outer lane so I avoid them, On a longish journey I am amazed at the antics of the Motorway outsidelaners.  Why do they hare across 3 lanes at the last minute to leave at a junction?  Don't they know where they are? What about their SatNavs etc?

I am sure there are good drivers with BMW's being let down by a few.  I suppose they are an easy target though!
regards Roy

[wibplus]

actually ben, to be accurate and pedantic.......... BMW stands for  Bayerische Motoren Werke
remember it saying so on the paperwork of my successive BMW motorcycles that I owned in the 70's and 80's.


http://www.justgiving.com/lochnessscalesail

Sorry to be more pedantic but .............being a person who speaks German, I can tell you that Bayerische Motoren Werke actually means Bavarian Engine Works (or factory).   

[red181]

Er I thought there wasnt such a thing as a fast lane according to the highway code?  Or is it in the BMW highway code?  And here was me thinking the second and third lanes were for overtaking when necessary not fast lanes for BMW drivers to use 'because they can'

Unless you only passed your test very recently, you might not be aware of this, its an affectionate phrase, or statement, that was some years ago, the fast lane, slow lane, and middle lane, as they where known, and still known to this day, just an old terminology, for that misuse of the English language, I apologise

now, must get my eyes back on the road, usb connection and bluetooth is a great thing, you can have the laptop on your knee whilst travelling twice the speed of sound, in THE FAST BMW LANE, the only place for any car with 6 cylinderrs

Sorry LB, but BMW dont give the cars to the Police, the local authorities all use different brand cars, Range Rover, Volvo, Mitsubishi being favoured, as is BMW by the motorway police, a lot of the cars are actually owned, and end up in closed auctions as they are not leased, A lease means the vehicle is never owned, its returned to the finance company at contract end, some of the police cars are just destroyed

[gondolier88]

Living in the Lakes substitute BMW for RangeRover/Discovery and 'fast' lane for narrowest lane in the county and you get a fair idea. There is a Land Rover garage a few miles up the road and you see the same thing all the time- they are the biggest thing on the road- usually driven by a glamerous woman of a certain age- and they assume they own whatever bit of road they happen to be driving on, even if that happens to be the wrong side of the road and the bit your driving on!

To be fair, (local) BMW drivers round here tend to be fairly good, steady, not suddenly braking and fairly courteous.

My theory, from living inner city and now in the sticks- the worst cars to follow;

1-Nissan Micra
2- Volvo estates
3- Honda CRV's

That isn't a reflection on the cars- they are all good cars but in general the people behind the wheel are unpredictable, slow in the 60 zones, fast in the 30's (basically 35 everywhere), brake at every 'obstruction' (especially those on the other side of a normal width road which happen to be in the national park, so they must be narrower somehow?!?!) and ignore everybody else on the orad.

The worst cars to be followed by;

1- Peugeot 106/ Citroen Saxo
2- BMW 3 coupe's
3- Vauxhall Combo van.

My penniesworth, that's better

Greg

[nhp651]

ahhh, the good old  dixi..............oooooops er .....austin seven. with a beemer badge...........................had a lot to answer for.


must admit......i sold my beautiful mg c roadster to buy a beemer 320i convertible......has got to be the most uninspiring and plain boring motor i ever drove, sadly.



http://www.justgiving.com/lochnessscalesail

[Perkasaman2]

The police have used Volvo T5 machinery for many ,many years and essentially looked no further to meet their needs. The current policy of diversifying from Volvo does reflect the fact that residual values on BMW models are generally higher when the cops dispose of their high performance patrol vehicles. Another important factor is that Volvo don't offer equivalent performance  models powered by diesel fuel, although they have resisted the OTT high tech wizardry which is unessential. The German manufacturers appear to be locked into a costly technical 'one upsmanship' spiral that few customers can afford to buy. The eventual service and repair costs of these confections are masked by extended warranties and most vehicles are obtained by leasing rather than outright purchase, on a 3 year replacement treadmill. These leasing plans put a shiny new car on the path but it has to be pristine when it's handed in after 3 years or the owner is billed at premium rates for the damage/excess mileage etc.   

In the past,  Britain was 'Treasure Island' for European manufacturers and Brits paid top money for machinery that was routinely used for taxi work within the originating manufacturer's borders. Saab, Mercedes, BMW and Volvo realised that Brits perceived their offerings as 'blue chip badge' machinery of relatively high status, compared to the lower quality British built offerings available at that time. The early Japanese imported models were also of poor quality - but they rapidly improved and their quality and reliability outstripped our home grown efforts. The prestige of Japanese built motors has risen to almost equal the price, reputation and snobbery of Germany's finest. There's a much larger picture than the narrow views offered which is worth viewing.     

[Kleban]

BMW driver, in the USA, gets busted for making a Youtube video!

http://uk.cars.yahoo.com/15022011/36/driver-arrested-filming-140mph-sprint-0.html

[malcolmfrary]

There was an old gag that said
"If you put all of the cars in Lancashire end to end, someone would pull out to pass.  And he would be in a Volvo."
Added for balance.

[davidm1945]

and as for them being German all I can say is DIXI  search for that and find out how the first BMW car came about

So. the first BMW was a left-hand drive Austin 7 - brilliant! Of course there are some that say that was the last decent car built in Britain........ with the possible exception of the Morris Minor I suppose.

Dave.

All right you Morgan owners, don't shout!

[red181]

good points perkasaman, however there is also the point that as BMW is the topic, its worth noting the service intervals are condition based, with services being as far apart as 18000 miles or 2 years. Leasing however offers  no return in theory, the driver sells the car to a 3rd party, and the lease company can be entitled to a percentage of the sale proceeds (BMW Finance do not adopt this policy). Business users like this as the car is not an asset of the business, and is off balance sheet. Its a very inflexible method of purchase, and the driver (never the owner) is locked into the contract, its very expensive to get out of, with BMW its a very rare method of purchase. PCP (personal contract purchase) however represents  a very high percentage of all BMW Finnace business. Its an ownership plan, with a guaranteed future value, giving the owner/driver reduced payments, as a percentage of the capital cost is deferred to the end of the agreement, with the option to trade the car, keep it and fund the residual, or give back if in negative equity. 18 months ago, anybody in this method of finance had the golden ticket, as car prices fell so dramatically due to the economic crash , so a massive amount of all Brand cars where returned to the finance companies, which cost them millions as the cars failed to reach equity at auction.
PCP also offers early settlement interest rebates, as its an "ownership" plan many business drivers have the finance in personal details, and charge the costs to the business, also then avoiding costly company car tax, the dealer networks love this finance plan as the owner usually is encouraged with "deals" to swap the car early, giving the dealer a second bite at the trade in, and another sale on the replacement car. "Brand tarts!!" who just crave after a designer badge end up with cars that normally would be out of budget, and just keep changing them based on payments, same for all premium brands, not just BMW . When returning the car at contract end, typical excess mileage charges are 5p per mile, but its up to the owner to be realistic with contract mileage at the start, and the car has to be "average to mileage", which is only fair really.

Well that destroyed a fun thread, I got all serious!!!      

[Shipmate60]

Ahhhhh,
Service intervals of up to 18000 miles. That explains why so many have all the indicator bulbs blown and not replaced!!!

Bob

[Perkasaman2]

Hi Red, when I referred to leasing I assumed the current 3 year deal whereby the customer initially pays a third deposit, then pays a third over 36 months. At the end they either pay the final balance and thereby finally own their vehicle, or take another new vehicle and continue their monthly payment. The zero option is to cancel/walk away from the agreement and forfeit the car when income/savings cannot meet monthly/final payments. In theory, manufacturers sell a car and harvest 2/3 of it's value over 36months.  After 3yrs they either get the final payment or sell off the vehicle at market value and provide a new replacement vehicle based on a 'rolling' deposit and payments. Unless these  'lessees' pay the final installment they are strictly speaking,  users/caretakers and not owners.
Many manufacturers have used extended service intervals (typically 18,000 miles ) as a cost saving sales pitch, however, there is evidence that these intervals are being acknowledged as unrealistic. Manufacturers are having to absorb the increased costs of component failure under their warranty schemes, sacrificing the reliability and reputation of their products.
I owned a 'moggie 1000'.  

[john44]

Does the BMW stand for Battery Milk Wagon?

[red181]

Does the BMW stand for Battery Milk Wagon

dont get it?

yep I agree perks, unfortunately, the rolling deposit for many makes became non existant after the economic meltdown, those that put negligible deposits in, then gave the cars back to the finance company where the winners really as they just in essence rented the car, then started again on  a new car. People who placed a large deposit on the PCP schemes lost that money. BMW Finance are infact a responsible lender, and will limit initial deposit payments, or for those with a large capital sum to put in (could be a part exchange and or cash) have  a duty of care to explain the finance plans and recommend other methods of payment , thats my job!

BMW have gone early with the new consumer credit directive, which will come into play spring time, its a very long discussion with customers regarding affordabilty and what happens during the loan period

[Double D]

Does the BMW stand for Battery Milk Wagon?

No Johnny, I thought it stood for Bald Male -moderated- 

[Sven]

B M W     stands for     Bring Mich Werkstatt       that means         take me to the garage

Sven

[Perkasaman2]

If someone will donate me a new  beemer, I'll happily risk the consequences.

[ben hall]

If someone will donate me a new   beemer, I'll happily risk the consequences.

im with Perkasaman

see i have a driving license until someone asks for it  

and i am insured-untill i crash

[nhp651]

and i am insured-untill i crash   

NEVER EVER  joke about that sort of thing.........too many peoples lives are ruined by uninsured eejits who think they can handle a car, and have no clue how to what so ever.

neil

[ben hall]

i think more  passed drivers die on the roads than unpassed ones   i appriciate your point     i would never do it
the police tend to catch them a lot if you watch the shows
im good with boats and the one rc car

[nhp651]

i think more  passed drivers die on the roads than unpassed ones   i appriciate your point     i would never do it
the police tend to catch them a lot if you watch the shows
im good with boats and the one rc car

after a statement like that, krafty kid, i really DON'T think you do, or really have any idea what heartache those drivers bring, and i hope that you never have to find out.

[ben hall]

i cant drive so i really cant have eny input or have eny idea where you are coming from

so i am zipping out

[nhp651]