Adafruit: From Ultimate Driving Machine to Ultimate Rent-Seeking Machine: The BMW Logo Screw Patent.
If you haven’t already heard, BMW’s R&D teams have been busy “innovating.” Unfortunately, they aren’t focusing on the things that actually matter—like stellar engine performance or the legendary driving dynamics that gearheads love. Instead, the C-suite execs decided that the best use of their engineering budget was to design a proprietary security screw specifically intended to prevent BMW drivers from fixing their own cars.
As soon as the rollout for BMW dealers starts, Chinese toolmakers will churn out compatible bits and screwdrivers. They might even be on the market before the BMW dealers have them in the mail.
You could almost manufacture it based on this image, granted that’s a 1/4" impact bit. All it would take is one bolt being smuggled to their factory or one photograph of a spec sheet.
that’s not the only issue, it’s also just a plainly worse design that will likely lead to lots of broken screws and bits.
Torqued to spec AND properly aligned.
Remember kids, every screw is a flathead with an angle grinder
A dremel with a metal cutting wheel is easier to carry!
Or they can be replaced
No biggie. In less than a week we’ll have thousands of Chinese Amazon sellers providing these tools to everyone for lose to.
Yes, but. If they add enough “special” things you need, that will reduce the number of average people and independent mechanics that will go through the trouble of getting all the “special” tools. Thier goal isn’t to stop you. It’s to inconvenience enough people so that they won’t bother. Which drives more business to thier shops, which in turn makes them more money. And since they are publicly traded, it doesn’t even have to actually make them money. Just make the market think it might.
Yeah, security screws are security theatre. I had an electronics screw driver set that came with a bunch of the rarer screw bits by default. Actually ran into one I didn’t have, then noticed another set with that one (plus other features like the long bendy bit for hard to reach screws) next time I was in the tool section and just bought it.
That said, I won’t be needing this one. Driving a BMW would go against the image I’m trying to cultivate of not being an asshole.
BMW drivers have this fame of being douchebags (most absolutely are) , which makes me wonder, how the hell do we describe Tesla drivers then?
Nazi collaborators
Supercilious
In my head that sounds like what they actually want to be called, not what they are. I’m pretty sure those drivers actually want to come across as arrogant.
It’s almost, as if the article answers that question with a resounding “no, that’s not going to help either.”
But the novelty wears off the moment you consider the physics. Because this head prioritizes branding over utility, neither the bit nor the screw head can withstand the torque of a standard Torx or Hex fastener. The result? Broken bits, stripped screws, and more time spent on what would otherwise be a simple task.
neither the bit nor the screw head can withstand the torque of a standard Torx or Hex fastener
Which “standard” Torx head? Maximum torque of 0.43Nm of a T5? Or maybe 10.5Nm of a T20? 132Nm of a T50? T60 is rated for 437Nm.
If you need a bolt that can handle 50Nm, you put a head that’s sized to that on the bolt.
If it’s a Torx, you put a T40. If it’s Hex, you put an 8mm on it. And if it’s a stupid BMW one, you pick the size that can handle 50Nm. The shape doesn’t matter.
Until you’re halfway through putting in new brake pads and realize you need a specialty bit and now you’re stuck without a working car until you get that Amazon package.
At that point that bolt is getting destructively removed and replaced with a different bolt from the hardware store. Unless they have custom thread pitches, there’s going to be an easy replacement.
Edit but I don’t own a BMW and never will, my first car was the bargainest basement commuter car and my next one will be too.
You can find them next to the 10mm sockets under your workbench.
That would be circumventing a protection mechanism. Isn’t that a violation of the DMCA in the US?
Yes and and violating anti-circumvention is now a crime… not a civil offense, prison. For repairing an item that you own.
I guess that’s what we, the labor class, get for not spending tens of millions of dollars on lobbyists like the Founding Fathers intended.
There is a really, really simple solution to this problem. This might sound crazy, but hear me out. Maybe don’t buy their cars? Not like there’s a lack of competition.
I’ll never buy a car that has subscription features
Until they force you. Like how pretty much all new housing developments have oppressive HOAs now.
I am so happy to live in a non-HOA neighborhood…
The day when the only options are subscription based cars will be the day jailbreaking your car is as common as jailbreaking an iphone.
It’s a choice to live there. And you have a choice on how you spend your money. No one is holding a gun to your head making you buy a shitty car.
“specifically intended to prevent BMW drivers from fixing their own cars.”
Give me a break.
I hate to break it to people but every manufacturer has a lot of brand specific tools. You need a special socket for Toyota head bolts, 10 point sockets for Honda suspensions, a special multipoint socket for Audis, a special socket for Mercedes lug nuts and it’s good to have a 21.5mm for Fords. 5 point security torx are starting to pop up on GMs.
That’s just an example of a few sockets, the deeper you go into a car, the higher the possibility that you need a $400 special tool or kit for a specific manufacturer, or even specific year or engine.
I also highly doubt this screw is made with intention to keep users out of repairing their cars. I guarantee they are dress ups for engine bay/ interior. Having the bmw logo along panel screws looks far more puff than a bunch of torx screws. Every car requires either special tools or special software to work on, NO exceptions in modern vehicles. You cannot truly clear error codes from a Chrysler without a subscription to their gateway and internet access. You can go in limp mode where there’s no service and ur 3k autel scanner won’t help you without wifi as it cannot connect to the gateway. I don’t give a crap about special fasteners that’s the name of the game, my gripes are what they do on the computer side of things to lock you out. Right to repair just means you have the right to pay dealer networks thousands a year for the privilege of accessing your own modules on ur car with your scanner. What a fucking racket.
Sure, they can afford a luxury foreign automobile, but one particular drill bit? We’re not made of money!
Doesn’t BMW already use a lot of proprietary screws?
Harbor freight will have these weird screwdriver tips in a kit within 12 months.
Ebay definitely will
Just take out your rotary tool, grind a notch into a bit, et voila! You have a tool for your BMW.
Because this head prioritizes branding over utility, neither the bit nor the screw head can withstand the torque of a standard Torx or Hex fastener. The result? Broken bits, stripped screws, and more time spent on what would otherwise be a simple task.
Ugh.
I like the PlayStation stylized screw much more.
(Original credit for the image goes to an old reddit post)
I thought that was so cool when I took my PS4 apart 😂 pointless, but fun for the 1% of people who would dive under the hood.
Same!
It has two Xs lol
The O ones are the hardest to get out.
Haha, nice.
Funnily enough I’ve been talking to people a lot about screw types recently. My wife was taking some hardware out of the house and cursing the varied kinds of screws used during installation; a friend and co-worker has been obsessed with the varieties ever since I met him; and my six year old found some of the screws dropped by my wife and asked why they were different.
Oh no. Another reason to not buy a BMW.
Have they actually used it anywhere or just have the patent? Because I expect they won’t actually use it anywhere, like with Sony’s (IIRC) patent where you have to shout “McDonald’s!” after watching an ad. Though I wouldn’t be too surprised if they actually use it
That’s what’s often missing from stories about patents: big companies churn out patents in case they ever need to use them in patent warfare against competitors. For the sole reason that the competitors are doing the same thing.
However, I doubt it that BMW would ever have a chance to use this particular patent on a competitor.
Most of these employera pay employees a couple thousand dollar bonus for any patw t they get out there successfully, with zero limitations on actually implementing the patent.
It’s not like it’s going to prevent people from working on their cars, either. It’s probably just for decorative purposes.
VW made these funky triangle topped bolt on TDi injection pumps ( or maybe it was Bosch who cares). My buddy who’s a mechanic said “don’t mess with those ,you need special sockets”.
I took 12pt sockets and used a dremmel to grind out every other two points in the socket and had my own set to mess with the bolts they didn’t want me messing with.
Why is it repost weekend this weekend? Feels like half of my feed sorted by active is reposts.
Clippy would never do that!
