[barcelona]

I would think that they would send this to the Welt, as it the first bmw to hit 1mm mark. Other versions may not hit the same level.

[paul223]

Originally Posted by fecurtis

What's wrong with that? Who cares where they're built.

Made in Germany is better, because jobs are hard to come by that pay decent to well. They are also more passionate about their job and under pressure to put out quality work or you are toast.

In USA, Anyone gets hired, are more careless. If you fire someone, they run to file unemployment, or a lawsuits of some sort. Workers also demand absurd pay for the work they do.

My experience - I have bought a Japan Camry, which was well put together, no rattles. Few years later I bought American assembled Camry, lot of rattling after six months. New crysler minivan had two brand new measuring tape under the hood, I found them while changing oil at 2k miles.

So I think it matters.

[drivethemachine]

I'm still waiting for the day when I can do South African Delivery for an X5, and instead of the autobahn I break it in in a safari.

[lilmacarony]

Originally Posted by 2014_335i

Too bad all 3-series are not Made in Germany any more. Soon your BMW will be made in the USA - just like x3, x5, z4, etc.

Z4 (E89) is produced in Germany, at Plant Regensberg.

[Divio]

Awesome Stuff :-)

Proudly SA

[Roundown]

Originally Posted by paul223

Made in Germany is better, because jobs are hard to come by that pay decent to well. They are also more passionate about their job and under pressure to put out quality work or you are toast.

In USA, Anyone gets hired, are more careless. If you fire someone, they run to file unemployment, or a lawsuits of some sort. Workers also demand absurd pay for the work they do.

My experience - I have bought a Japan Camry, which was well put together, no rattles. Few years later I bought American assembled Camry, lot of rattling after six months. New crysler minivan had two brand new measuring tape under the hood, I found them while changing oil at 2k miles.

So I think it matters.

You're looking at one side of the labor coin; it's hard to get a job in Germany, but it's also nearly impossible to be fired from one as well. Moreover- Germany's tight labor market means BMW is likely hiring whomever is available to take the job- not the most qualified.

The US and SA don't have the same labor protections (particularly since they're non-union)... So if you're not getting the job done, you'll be replaced, quickly. That's not the case in much of Europe.

From what I've read about the Spartanburg (the first, major southern US plant) is that employees are incredibly proud of their jobs and have, on average, very long and productive tenure.

I would add that given the level of automation/robotic assembly these days...this is almost a moot discussion.

I don't think you're giving BMW, or its global workforce, enough credit.

[fecurtis]

Originally Posted by paul223

Made in Germany is better, because jobs are hard to come by that pay decent to well. They are also more passionate about their job and under pressure to put out quality work or you are toast.

In USA, Anyone gets hired, are more careless. If you fire someone, they run to file unemployment, or a lawsuits of some sort. Workers also demand absurd pay for the work they do.

My experience - I have bought a Japan Camry, which was well put together, no rattles. Few years later I bought American assembled Camry, lot of rattling after six months. New crysler minivan had two brand new measuring tape under the hood, I found them while changing oil at 2k miles.

So I think it matters.

Half of this post is made up with no evidence to support the claim, the other half is merely anecdotal. Guess what? They have unemployment in Germany too (known as unemployment insurance).

And no, in the US not "anyone" gets hired. They have standards just like the rest of the developed world.

Also, you get more productivity out of US workers than any other worker in the developed world (this is good and bad, many American workers will work long hours and burn themselves out, we also take the least amount of vacation compared to the developed world and have the least amount of Federal holidays). Germany has the most employee mandated holidays in the world, they also have MANDATORY paid time off that must be taken throughout a calendar year. At a previous employer we had an office in Germany and they were constantly taking PTO or had holidays for days at a time.

It's also common practice in Germany, once employment is terminated, to file a lawsuit in order to get various severances or settle payment disputes, happened with us quite frequently since many of them knew we weren't going to fly over to Germany to argue over a few thousand euro.

Your example is merely anecdotal and isn't indicative of any long standing trend that reflects any statistical significance. Cars like the X5, Camry, and trucks from various manufacturers have no known track record of poor quality.

I hopped over to the webpage for careers at the Spartanburg, SC BMW plant and found several job openings, here's the requirements for a Controls Specialist:

Requirements
1. BS degree in engineering (Electrical/ Manufacturing Engineering preferred) or the equivalent of 4 years of work
experience in a manufacturing engineering role.
2. 2 years of engineering experience in a manufacturing environment (automotive preferred).
3. 3-5 years experience with Robotics, PLCs, Profibus, Drives, Safety PLCs, E-Plan, and pneumatics.
4. 3+ years project management skills.
5. 3+ years computer skills (MS Office including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook).
6. 3+ years Software installation skills to include Allen Bradley Software Siemens S7, Ethernet networks, TCP/IP, PC
hardware trouble shooting, drives, Motors etc.
7. 3+ years Business Administration skills (i.e. budgeting, planning, time management).
8. 1+ years knowledge of manufacturing processes.
9. Basic knowledge of SAP.

After reading your post, I was so confident that the requirements would consist of scratching your ass all day, watching TV, and must show up to work at least 2 hours late.

So basically, your entire post is a massive pile of bullshit. Driven solely by an emotional bias towards preconceived conceptions rather than actual real world evidence and lacking even the most fundamental understanding of how work attitudes and ethics differ in Germany and the US.

I guess I shouldn't be surprised, you didn't just buy one Camry, for inexplicable reasons you found it necessary to buy another one later on...sorry, I couldn't help but throw a jab about the Camry thing....

[Jay-K]

congrats BMW,
keep going forward.
definitely my fav automobile producer.

[Monster900]

Originally Posted by waelbilal

It does not matter where its made
The important thing is where its design and ideas come from
And thats Germany
And besides
Other countries they dont make the supplies
Germany sends them the supplies
America just put it togather

Actually you are wrong. There is a lot local content where cars are produced.

[Sharp_Cai]

Everyone buys an iPhone because its made by Apple, even though it says at back of the iphone "assembled in China". No one question about why Apple not making them in U.S.. Cuz everyone knows why. Same as BMW.

[2014_335i]

Originally Posted by Sharp_Cai

Everyone buys an iPhone because its made by Apple, even though it says at back of the iphone "assembled in China". No one question about why Apple not making them in U.S.. Cuz everyone knows why. Same as BMW.

Building a solid state iPhone with a useful life of 2-3 years cannot be compared to a $50K car comprised of scores of moving parts and (hopefully) engineered to go a couple of hundred thousand miles over 10+ years. Apples to oranges (no pun intended).

[Kowboi]

I don't want SA car, I want a German car made in Germany. I guess I'm done with the 3 series now.

[mkoesel]

Originally Posted by Kowboi

I don't want SA car, I want a German car made in Germany. I guess I'm done with the 3 series now.

So you were perfectly happy with your car, but now that you are aware that they build some of the same model in other countries you'll never buy another one?

Why not boycott BMW altogether? After all, you can't be certain that some South African - or worse, Chinese! - cooties might have made their way into the Munich, Regensburg, or Dingolfing plants.

For that matter, it is probably safest to boycott all cars, and indeed all products whose manufacturer maintains operations overseas. You can never be too careful.

[Blubaron79]

Originally Posted by mkoesel

So you were perfectly happy with your car, but now that you are aware that they build some of the same model in other countries you'll never buy another one?

Why not boycott BMW altogether? After all, you can't be certain that some South African - or worse, Chinese! - cooties might have made their way into the Munich, Regensburg, or Dingolfing plants.

For that matter, it is probably safest to boycott all cars, and indeed all products whose manufacturer maintains operations overseas. You can never be too careful.

My car is SA made. It's great. Haters gonna hate.

[GAS428]

Originally Posted by kent11202

In support of that, I remember a few years back when the fans of Honda were all upset about the Accord being made in Ohio - the quality will suffer and all they will build with American workers will be junk riddled with quality problems.

Well, a study was conducted and it turned out the cars made in Ohio, by those lazy/sloppy/I don't give a damn American workers, were of higher quality (as in fewer defects related to assembly) than those built in Japan.

[Kowboi]

Originally Posted by mkoesel

So you were perfectly happy with your car, but now that you are aware that they build some of the same model in other countries you'll never buy another one?

Why not boycott BMW altogether? After all, you can't be certain that some South African - or worse, Chinese! - cooties might have made their way into the Munich, Regensburg, or Dingolfing plants.

For that matter, it is probably safest to boycott all cars, and indeed all products whose manufacturer maintains operations overseas. You can never be too careful.

I am on my third 3 series. I usually upgrade my car every few years. I purchased a luxury car because it was made in Germany and of good quality. The 5 series is still made in Germany, so my next car will be a 5 series.

I'm just saying I don't want a luxury German car from SA or Mexico or America. I want a German - made in Germany car.

[Kowboi]

Originally Posted by Blubaron79

My car is SA made. It's great. Haters gonna hate.

Here is no hate in my message and no attempt to boycott, the best car manufacturer. I'm just going to change models that I drive. My next car will be the 535 - made in Germany.

It's unfortunate that you automatically jump to a "hate comment".

There needs to be less hate in this world.

[drivethemachine]

Actually I think I would love the exotic-ness of a "Made in South Africa" car.

But if you -for some reason- want to ensure you're getting German build then probably ED is the way to go.

I have been to the SC factory tour and the workers were incredibly proud of their work. That's all that matters. I trust the quality regardless of the assembly plant.

[2014_335i]

Originally Posted by Kowboi

I am on my third 3 series. I usually upgrade my car every few years. I purchased a luxury car because it was made in Germany and of good quality. The 5 series is still made in Germany, so my next car will be a 5 series.

I'm just saying I don't want a luxury German car from SA or Mexico or America. I want a German - made in Germany car.

Hear, hear! Our options for a German MADE car are dwindling. One of these days I may start buying OLDER German cars because they were truly engineered and assembled in Germany.

As a person who has been burned by an American-made foreign car (Japanese) and a Mexican-made German car (VW), I will never buy an American-made BMW or a Mexican-made Audi (rumored to be forthcoming).

[kent11202]

Originally Posted by GAS428

So, is a clip from a comedy intended to support American workers are incapable of assembling cars or just a funny video? I'm confused.

[GAS428]

Originally Posted by kent11202

So, is a clip from a comedy intended to support American workers are incapable of assembling cars or just a funny video? I'm confused.

Watch the whole gong ho movie you will get the point. or at last have a laugh.

[Michael Schott]

Originally Posted by Kowboi

I don't want SA car, I want a German car made in Germany. I guess I'm done with the 3 series now.

Despite your claims, it makes little sense. There is no logical reason in what you say. The engineering, manufacturing system and specs for the parts come from Germany. It makes no sense to be mad at BMW for this. All car companies do this. Mercedes makes cars in Austria the US and other countries. You know that BMW owns Rolls Royce and these are made in England. Many of the parts in a German made 3 series are made outside of Germany. Your attitude makes no sense.