The Motor Forum

Twelfth Monkey

From a piece on the new 3:

To this end, BMW has fitted thousands of existing customers’ cars with sophisticated black boxes that record all aspects of their use, helping engineers to plan the shape of future models.

For example, the research shows that of all BMW’s models, the 320d is driven the fastest and over the greatest distances by owners.
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"Accident Blackspot"? These aren't accidents. They're throwing themselves into the road gladly. Throwing themselves into the road to escape all this hideousness.'

cbeaks1 · Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 9:45 am Post subject:

I hope they asked for permission?

"him"

gonnabuildabuggy

Dr. Hfuhruhurr · Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 11:00 am Post subject:

I was going to say - surely there can't be any modern cars that don't have a rev-limiter

Pkh72 · Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 11:04 am Post subject:

I've never felt the need to have my car bounce off the rev limiter, it's not necessary.
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Nothing to see here

Mark · Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 11:06 am Post subject:

"him" · Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 11:07 am Post subject:

Pkh72 · Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 11:10 am Post subject:

"him" · Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 11:11 am Post subject:

Nice Guy Eddie · Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 11:20 am Post subject:

Twelfth Monkey

"him" · Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 11:27 am Post subject:

To be fair, it was before 10am...

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Remember - A gym without chalk is a heath spa...

Gurney · Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 11:33 am Post subject:

Speaking of rev limits. Fiat will not give you that wooden crate with the EssEss bits in for your Abroath if the tell tale on the engine management has recorded two visits to the limiter.
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A Gentleman: Def: A male of the species who can play the Trombone.

But refrains from doing so.

Twelfth Monkey · Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 11:39 am Post subject:

Surely that should be 'unless'?
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"Accident Blackspot"? These aren't accidents. They're throwing themselves into the road gladly. Throwing themselves into the road to escape all this hideousness.'

"him" · Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 11:39 am Post subject:

Really?, 2 visits to the limiter in the life of the car, or just on the journey to the dealer that day?
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Remember - A gym without chalk is a heath spa...

Matt · Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 2:51 pm Post subject:

I'd tell them they could have the sodding 500 back then and get into something less wanky than that.

How dare they! Are we not to believe they have decent operating limits on their cars if they refuse to fit it to a car that's been to the poxy turbo'd rev-limiter? It's not like it will have been running at a VTEC-esque 9k!
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Small car, big heart.

GonnaBreakABuggy · Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 2:59 pm Post subject:

I've only ever been to the limiter once in mine...
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*Innocent Whistle*

PG

"him" · Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 3:02 pm Post subject:

...but knowing you, you have it set at 9000rpm?
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Remember - A gym without chalk is a heath spa...

GonnaBreakABuggy · Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 3:06 pm Post subject:

Nah, I just change 50rpm before it, limiter slows you down ;)
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*Innocent Whistle*

Skyhook

simonp · Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 3:57 pm Post subject:

I hit mine all the time, usually when overtaking. The bits where the peak power is and the limiter is are too close together!

TimR · Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 9:00 am Post subject:

I haven't visited the limiter on the Fiat or the BMW (well, apart from that one time) but on the Alfa I hit it a few times.
Usually when overtaking and concentrating on that rather than being aware of the engine. Probably because it was so smooth you didn't get any sensation of strain from it.

Gurney · Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 9:32 am Post subject:

Have to hold a hand up, I have bounced off the limiter a few times in the Alfa. That damned V6 revs so freely.
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A Gentleman: Def: A male of the species who can play the Trombone.

But refrains from doing so.

SpecB · Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 10:19 am Post subject:

I visit the limiter quite frequently in mine - it just sounds so good when you are there and it revs so freely so is really easy to do.
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Mark

TimR · Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 10:30 am Post subject:

I wonder how accurate and detailed the BMW info is.

It'd be interesting to know the average speed and distance of all the 320Ds and compare it with the true road king, the Audi A4 2.0TDI.

Boxer6 · Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 12:56 pm Post subject:

ALF · Posted: Fri Aug 07, 2009 2:43 pm Post subject:

We quite often get asked about this by customers, given that we fit boxes in commercial vehicles that transmit and record speed and other data in 10-second intervals. Legally, the police can ask us as the vendor to supply the information relating to a particular account, but my understanding is that we can refuse and they can only force us by invoking pretty serious legislation for enquiries where speed information would no longer be relevant. Also, our equipment is not ratified by the home office for speeding convictions so they would not be able to prosecute.

I imagine the systems in cars like these BMW's are just recording information from the car's ECU for download at the next service, not real-time monitoring via a GPS tracker and GPRS connection, like ours. Any vehicles fitted with something like ours, covertly, could get into a spot of bother legally - particularly if unwittingly taken into a location like a fuel depot where such equipment has to be switched off.