[sfax]

Originally Posted by cheesebag

You have to state that you want your car debadging in your order like I did....

Needs a clean already mate

[cheesebag]

That was after the drive home from the dealer!!!!

[egal]

Originally Posted by lbjgh

What are you saying about American workers? My current car was built in the USA and it's fine.

Your current Accord? Built in Marysville? Perhaps it is a brand specific. Personally I would not buy a built in the USA - Mercedes ML "Grand Cherokee".

[Le Chef]

The issue is not the workers but the designers and engineers, regardless of country. Honda is a great example of building great, reliable cars wherever they build. Mercedes however with their German workers crashed through the JD Power floor a few years ago. The same workers had been building great cars then they were building crap ones. The workers hadn't changed, the design of the car had to an extent that it was not properly developed for production. Now Mercedes are making great cars again with improved reliability. What changed? Not the workers, but the design integrity of the vehicles that are now production ready...

[dnw]

Originally Posted by Le Chef

The issue is not the workers but the designers and engineers, regardless of country. Honda is a great example of building great, reliable cars wherever they build. Mercedes however with their German workers crashed through the JD Power floor a few years ago. The same workers had been building great cars then they were building crap ones. The workers hadn't changed, the design of the car had to an extent that it was not properly developed for production. Now Mercedes are making great cars again with improved reliability. What changed? Not the workers, but the design integrity of the vehicles that are now production ready...

Totally agree. It is the components that are failing not the screws coming loose. It seems that they tolerate higher MTBF values on parts than they used to. Bean counters saw to that as BMW became a volume manufacturer no doubt.

The X3 in particular concerns me. I have never seen so many different problems each with so many forum members reporting experiences of in the last 4 car model forums I have participated.

[renderfarmer]

Originally Posted by Le Chef

The issue is not the workers but the designers and engineers, regardless of country.

Exactly. I work in product development and I can tell you even before the first piece of tool steel is cut whether a product will have issues just by reviewing the final design spec. And that spec is almost never what the designers want, but rather compromised to meet the desires of management...

I took delivery of my X3 35i on Jan 4th and it's flawless. My dealership placed the order Dec 8th and manufacturing was done on the 23rd according to the website. I was watching the production video on the 28th while I waited for it to get QC'd and delivered.

No, it doesn't have a toolkit or a first aid kit, but I'd much prefer having to chose and purchase my own kits rather than paying what this car would cost in the Europe or Asia and have OEM kits included.

God bless america.

[Helm108]

Got this email from my dealer today:

The owner's manual is written for international use and in Europe it is required by law to have those two features [first aid kit and warning triangles] standard while it is not in the U.S., so the vehicle does not come standard with those safety items. If you would like to purchase the warning triangles and the first aid kit just let me know and I will place an order for you. The warning triangle and the first aid kit are $27.00 each.

[GenX3]

Originally Posted by cheesebag

You have to state that you want your car debadging in your order like I did....

I didn't know de-badging was an option!!! I was prudent with the dealership not to get any of their advertising on the car (except for the plastic cheapy tag frames - quickly replaced). Had I known, definitely would have gone badgeless. Looks nice!

[roundtree]

Originally Posted by Helm108

Got this email from my dealer today:

The owner's manual is written for international use and in Europe it is required by law to have those two features [first aid kit and warning triangles] standard while it is not in the U.S., so the vehicle does not come standard with those safety items. If you would like to purchase the warning triangles and the first aid kit just let me know and I will place an order for you. The warning triangle and the first aid kit are $27.00 each.

New 2012 X3 28i owner here and I can confirm that there is no first aid kit or warning triangle, just the barebones tookit behind the panel in the back on the drivers' side.

Good news is that the space looks like it will accommodate some complete toolkits and aid packages. Anyone have suggestions beside "Use Google" or "Use Amazon".