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Tuesday, February 17, 2026
BMW patents logo-shaped screw to block DIY repairs
Boing Boing: In the latest blow to right to repair, BMW has patented a screw which incorporates the automaker's iconic logo design into the head. The screw head design patent filing was spotted by Autoblog
I think it is interesting how the patent can either be a cool aesthetic touch, or a target objective to make it more difficult to repair their own equipment. I think that the idea of having unique touches on your vehicle like this screw with a logo is potentially interesting, if a little bit cheezy. That being said, this looks a lot more like a way to keep people from actually using these screws for what screws are supposed to do, screw. I think that anything that a company does to make their equipment intentionally harder to service is probably not a good thing. That being said, I do think that it is a more nuanced conversation about whether serviceability is a good thing. There is a lot of safety-critical equipment in the world that you really only want qualified technicians to service. While there may be situations like that, I think the majority of companies fighting right-to-repair is for their own profit, not for the good of the customers.
1 comment:
I think it is interesting how the patent can either be a cool aesthetic touch, or a target objective to make it more difficult to repair their own equipment. I think that the idea of having unique touches on your vehicle like this screw with a logo is potentially interesting, if a little bit cheezy. That being said, this looks a lot more like a way to keep people from actually using these screws for what screws are supposed to do, screw. I think that anything that a company does to make their equipment intentionally harder to service is probably not a good thing. That being said, I do think that it is a more nuanced conversation about whether serviceability is a good thing. There is a lot of safety-critical equipment in the world that you really only want qualified technicians to service. While there may be situations like that, I think the majority of companies fighting right-to-repair is for their own profit, not for the good of the customers.
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