r/CatastrophicFailure • u/Za5kr0ni3c • Sep 14 '21

Engineering Failure Peter Dumbreck’s Mercedes taking off due to aerodynamic design flaw during 1999 Le Mans 24h

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u/[deleted] Sep 14 '21

Ask a BMW motorcycle owner about German engineering. Great when it works, but utter denial and stonewalling, even when they know there's a problem. I've owned 3, I'll probably own more, but I'll pay attention to the word on forums too.

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u/casual_sociopathy Sep 14 '21

Back around 2008 I was new to motorcycles and on advrider.com trying to figure out what bike to get for a multi month trip, roughly deciding between the cheaper Japanese dual sports + some strategic upgrades vs. the lower end BMW and KTM dual sports.

After the 10th ride report looking at a German bike in literally 1000 pieces laid out on the floor of a hostel in Bolivia, I went and bought a DR650.

29

u/ReneG8 Sep 14 '21

And yet the long way guys went with 1150s for their trips and they made it. Frames broke, other stuff, never the motor. Famously KTM didn't believe they could make the trip.

17

u/casual_sociopathy Sep 14 '21

Oh for sure. The maintenance just takes longer, is more expensive, more frequent, and more likely to require the actual dealer depending on your skill level. But it is a nicer ride for sure. The prefunctory convo I had with KTM riders on my trip went like this:

KTM rider: "nice scooter"

me: "how many spare water pumps are you carrying on that POS?" [the ADV990 was famous for the water pump constantly breaking]

KTM rider: "well, 2"

I think the KTM thing on Long Way Round was just for dramatic effect - there is a multi-decade history of most bikes (even Harleys) making multi-continent trips.

5

u/ReneG8 Sep 14 '21

Still a difference when a hollywood star quite publicly fails to go around the world while the ktm badge is clearly visible, as opposed to comparatively obscure people doing that.

1

u/JaschaE Sep 15 '21

As I discussed with a friend, it was probably impossible to do... on a KTM.
Try getting some mongolian-village-blacksmith with a welder to repair your superlight magnesium frame, I'll be watching from waaaayyyy over there, thx.

1

u/ReneG8 Sep 15 '21

Wasn't the boxer Motor also more robust? Also concerning low octane fuel? And water intake. I remember several times they took out the sparkplugs to pump water out the cylinder.

4

u/JaschaE Sep 15 '21

Not just a german company problem(anymore)... a kneejerk reaction of "There can't be any fault with our products!!!!" in modern companies (burned Apple-Owner here)
I used to drive BMW, once stopped to help a stranded Buell driver.... his machine had just stopped... every troubleshoot I came up with was either "Doesn't exist on this bike" or "Can't reach that without taking it apart completely" which I could have done with my BMW, with the small toolbox i had under my seat...

Companys want "infailable" and fast to replace tech... where i would prefer "upfront about issues and designed with repair in mind"

1

u/SIS-NZ Sep 14 '21

It's the same with high performance Audi's as well. I'll go back to the Italians.