06-20-2011, 10:20 AM | #89 |
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Can some more X3 owners please post pictures of the same areas as in the pictures at the beginning of the thread, then we can compare.
Thnx Last edited by X3andZ4owner; 06-20-2011 at 10:41 AM.. |
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06-20-2011, 10:40 AM | #90 | |
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Some evidence of "finger-finishing", but maybe a little more carefully done than yours. No big "peaks" however. Hope this helps. |
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06-20-2011, 10:44 AM | #91 | ||
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06-20-2011, 10:59 AM | #92 | |
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As for Jap brands, yes, they're screwed together well enough but their interior switchgear leaves a lot to desire. |
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06-20-2011, 11:23 AM | #93 |
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I very much appreciate the interest in the finish of welds and sealants being as visually appealing as possible; however, there is likely no connection between these items and an assessment of the quality of design or assembly. Aesthetics, certainly, and I'm with you there. I prefer a clean, neat appearance as well. Engineering propriety and long term durability, though, require far more detailed examination and testing than a "eyeball analysis" to assess an individual vehicle and/or make comparisons between vehicles. I've seen some "ugly" welds that stood out appearance-wise but were exactly what was required to provide the best solution for the application at hand. Again, not to say I wouldn't prefer a nicely finished sealant. I would.
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06-20-2011, 12:22 PM | #94 |
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What I'm not satisfied with BMW shows that I like it and hope BMW could have a better appearance. I really wish BMW is a perfect car without any defect. Unfortunately the welding problem really annoys me and give me an impression that BMW is cheaper than many cars whose price is lower than BMW.
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06-20-2011, 02:04 PM | #95 | |
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Although some cheaper cars may do a better job at applying sealant or welding, this alone shouldn't be an indicator of the overall quality of a car. I remember a couple of months ago Hyundai was putting out ads where they were comparing their paint quality to Mercedes and having fake hidden cameras in their cars recording people test driving and saying how the car's like a MB. Whether Hyundai's paint is really that good is debatable the fact is a Hyundai is not a Mercedes, although they may have comparable paint to a MB other aspects such as handling, performance, and quality are not the same. I guess what I'm trying to get at is although the welding might bug you and gives you an impression that the X3 seems cheap, just because a actual car that is cheap is better at one area such as welding, there's a good chance that for that one area that they're good at they're lacking in 10 other areas. |
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06-20-2011, 02:11 PM | #96 |
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06-20-2011, 02:29 PM | #97 |
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I looked at mine, a mid-April prod 35i and didn't take pix. I would say mine looks very much like the pix posted by Lotus 7, maybe even a touch smoother. Mine shows no signs for human intervention, nor any spikes, "fingerprints" or anything like that. Looks good to me.
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06-20-2011, 02:33 PM | #98 | |
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06-20-2011, 02:34 PM | #99 |
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Is this the work of man?!
I messed up photo 2 but I have no rough finish below what you see in this photo (as you do) and no sharp points
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06-20-2011, 03:05 PM | #101 |
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Side by Side
Here is a composite of X3andZ4owner's, sfax's and mine.
Not as much difference as you might think. It looks to me like both sfax's and mine could have been done by the same finger. Not so sure about X3and Z4's however (maybe different shift?) |
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06-20-2011, 03:14 PM | #102 |
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My theory is all the same finger but he had a manicure sometime in March this year. Looks like he needed one too
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06-20-2011, 03:22 PM | #103 |
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Look at the back-fill laps on the lower left of each caulk bead. Based on the laps, I'd say the direction of application was going towards the lower left of the photo. What they do at the beginning of the bead, at the top left, is unknown to me. Must be hand-smeared there based on the variability.
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06-20-2011, 03:25 PM | #105 |
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I just saw a video from another post that shows the application and finishing of the sealant. I thought everyone would like to see it. There's even a shot where it looks like the worker leaves a spike in the sealant. The scene cuts away before we can see if he goes back to smooth it out.
http://www.bmwusfactory.com/manufact...ss/paint-shop/ |
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06-20-2011, 03:40 PM | #106 | |
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Looks like they first use a brush and then smear across with a finger. |
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06-20-2011, 03:45 PM | #107 | |
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I told you so.. Stunned they let my car pass QC! Fingers of my car ! What about finger grease on the untreated metal surface... Will the ground-paint stick , alwas heard one must remove all grease before painting something?... BTW I know German workers got free lunch Lager Beer at the German factories a couple of years ago does this also apply to the US factories ? Maybe my car was made just after an lunch hour? Last edited by X3andZ4owner; 06-20-2011 at 05:54 PM.. |
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06-20-2011, 05:52 PM | #108 |
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06-20-2011, 05:57 PM | #109 |
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06-20-2011, 11:42 PM | #110 |
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No humans are involved in the painting process. Once the bare shell is completed it's bathed in various solutions b4 being applied various coats of paint by robots.
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