Phillies8008 wrote

I mean, probably? I don't think that any of us have a monopoly on what constitutes someone's enthusiasm nor whether it's valid or not. I think those tri-color grill things are pretty tacky and wouldn't want one, but I also don't think they're indicative of someone trying to fool people into thinking they're driving something they're not.

Perhaps I simply interpret the whole "fake badge" thing differently or incorrectly, but to me it's for when people are adding a badge to a car to make it appear to be something that it's not, like putting an M badge in front of the "330i" on their trunk. Someone using an M license plate frame or the silly tri-color thing isn't trying to fool someone into thinking they're driving an M – they're just showing enthusiasm for the brand. Whether it's in a way that appeals to your particular aesthetics has no bearing one way or the other, IMO. Lots of people show enthusiasm for lots of things in ways I find to be tacky, but who cares? That doesn't mean that they aren't "enthusiasts," whatever that actually even means.

smokinjoe64 wrote

Lotta 'unsplainin' for meaning of Fake...actually, it's really quite simple and clear

Welp...perhaps let's 'enthusiastically' agree with the generally accepted meanings as defined by Merriam-Webster:

"anything that is not genuine, real, or authentic, often created or presented with the intent to deceive others

OR

to alter, manipulate, or treat so as to give a spuriously genuine appearance to"

Joe-BMW33 wrote

Well since we are all perfect BMW enthusiasts and are the judge and jury, LOL, what do we think about Vanity plates?? I mean this one here really is a bad BMW from the chinese smoked tails to the giant ebay spoiler.

Phillies8008 wrote

I'm glad we agree. So the M plate frame therefore is not faking anything, since it clearly isn't presented with the intent to deceive others. Since no M car comes stock with such a plate frame, I'm not even sure what the deception would be, and it clearly isn't altering or manipulating anything to give a spuriously genuine appearance. Thanks for the clarification!

Phillies8008 wrote

"...full of sound and fury, signifying nothing."

But just for entertainment's sake, what exactly was "not genuine, real, or authentic" about a license plate frame?

Phillies8008 wrote

This is getting silly, even for a stupid badge discussion. So sure, the dude was trying to fool everyone into thinking a license plate frame meant he had an M5, but the courageous M Police were able to stop his nefarious plot, thank god. Not all heroes wear capes.

decaf wrote

I've been pondering if my 2023 BMW X1 XDRIVE28I with M-SPORT package has "fake" badges or not.

My X1 was one of the very first U11 X1 to arrive in the US, according to my dealer. It was ordered in 2022 as soon as BMW announced it for the US. Thanks to the pandemic shortage, it has a few things that got deleted. However, it also came with these fender-mounted "M" logo badges on both the left and right fenders.

It was NOT supposed to be on any US-market X1...(or any other BMW, according to my dealer) Yet when it rolled off the truck a few months later, coming from BMW's port in Brunswick, Georgia, that was the first thing I noticed. There were a few other people watching the truck driver unload it, because it was the very first X1 to arrive at my dealer.(in fact, it arrived even before the demo/loaner X1 they ordered) My salesman said I got bonus free badges. None of the other BMW X1 I saw on the road or at the dealership ever since had them.

However, in the last couple of years, I've had people on the street asking my why I put those on. (other BMW drivers, obviously) I explained that it came like that. Then I discovered this thread and apparently putting these on a US-market BMW is considered to be "fake" badging? Are they really "fake" if they were attached to the car by the BMW factory in Germany?

'Cane wrote

If they were put on at the factory, they are indeed “factory” badges.

decaf wrote

...It was NOT supposed to be on any US-market X1...(or any other BMW, according to my dealer) Yet when it rolled off the truck a few months later, coming from BMW's port in Brunswick, Georgia, that was the first thing I noticed. There were a few other people watching the truck driver unload it, because it was the very first X1 to arrive at my dealer.(in fact, it arrived even before the demo/loaner X1 they ordered) My salesman said I got bonus free badges. None of the other BMW X1 I saw on the road or at the dealership ever since had them.

However, in the last couple of years, I've had people on the street asking my why I put those on. (other BMW drivers, obviously) I explained that it came like that. Then I discovered this thread and apparently putting these on a US-market BMW is considered to be "fake" badging? Are they really "fake" if they were attached to the car by the BMW factory in Germany?

decaf wrote

I've been pondering if my 2023 BMW X1 XDRIVE28I with M-SPORT package has "fake" badges or not. It is absolutely not a "M" car. I only ordered the M-SPORT pack because I liked better-looking bumpers, sport seats, M-style steering wheel and paddle shifters(the last one being the most to me, as they are only available of the X1 is ordered with the M-SPORT package).

My X1 was one of the very first U11 X1 to arrive in the US, according to my dealer. It was ordered in 2022 as soon as BMW announced it for the US. Thanks to the pandemic shortage, it has a few things that got deleted. However, it also came with these fender-mounted "M" logo badges on both the left and right fenders.

It was NOT supposed to be on any US-market X1...(or any other BMW, according to my dealer) Yet when it rolled off the truck a few months later, coming from BMW's port in Brunswick, Georgia, that was the first thing I noticed. There were a few other people watching the truck driver unload it, because it was the very first X1 to arrive at my dealer.(in fact, it arrived even before the demo/loaner X1 they ordered) My salesman said I got bonus free badges. None of the other BMW X1 I saw on the road or at the dealership ever since had them.

However, in the last couple of years, I've had people on the street asking my why I put those on. (other BMW drivers, obviously) I explained that it came like that. Then I discovered this thread and apparently putting these on a US-market BMW is considered to be "fake" badging? Are they really "fake" if they were attached to the car by the BMW factory in Germany?

bucketfoot wrote

...Personally I think the whole thing is just another case of penis compensation

bucketfoot wrote

Frankly you have to decide if you give a damn about other people.

It is a no-win situation. To an M-car owner M-Performance cars like the M240, M340, etc. are not M-cars despite BMW calling them such on the BMW USA website. Then there are the M-Performance car owners who will say that a cars with the lowly M-Sport package should not have M emblems, despite the fact that BMW themselves put them in many locations on the vehicle.

My 230i with the M-Sport package has if I remember correctly 11 spots with the M logo from the factory. Ultimately I de-badged my car simply because I like the look better this way.

Personally I think the whole thing is just another case of penis compensation

25 V8 IS wrote

I'm in the same spot with my IS 500 F Sport "Performance". It's not a real F car.

So what did I do? I installed RC F lower control arm bushings and wider Michelin PS4S tires.

Now it handles like an actual F car while still looking like a sleeper. I love it so much more now.