We know some unspeakable things happen behind closed doors at every manufacturer’s facility out there, but most of the time, we don’t get to learn what it’s all about. They usually remain locked in the memory of those witnessing them and that’s about it.
Think of it as a lab for demented bio experiments from where all sorts of hybrids and monsters come out only with cars instead of humans or any kind of living being. We all know it’s happening, but we get to sleep better at night if we don’t have any idea about the specifics.
Well, that was the case for me, at least until today, when I’ve learned what happens to a small portion of the cars built in the first batches. The video below should be more than clear for the specifics.
In it, we get to see how the Germans dispose of pre-production cars that were used to test various features of the end product. They probably don’t work as they are supposed to by the end of their life cycles and are recycled, a sensitive choice if you ask us.
However, the process of recycling them makes us think of how “hostilities” must go down in a morgue when an autopsy is being carried out.
First, they deploy all the airbags to make sure they don’t trigger accidentally, sort of like making sure your patient is truly dead and won’t react to you actually ripping their heart out. That’s at least how it feels to us, petrolheads...
Then comes the fluid draining, making sure every sort of liquid is taken out, including the gas tank, the oil inside the engine, the antifreeze, and even the shock absorbers in some cases (some shock absorbers use gas instead of liquids).
After that, various parts are taken off in a precise sequence, apparently beginning with the exhaust systems and ending with the headlights, doors, fenders, but not the windscreen or the seats for some unknown reason. To us, it looks a lot like a wasteful process as they could’ve saved a lot more parts, but we’re sure there’s a reason for that way of doing things.
In the end, the heart and soul of the cars are being pulled out, and while we expected to see a mechanic working on removing the engine and transmission from the car’s “carcass” to be reused, it seems that BMW has a different view on things. The car’s body (or what remained of it anyway) is hooked up and then a crane simply jerks the engine and gearbox out of it. This is probably the most tearjerking moment of the whole 20 minutes. You have been warned! Proceed at your own risk!
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