Why do so many BMW owners like to rebadge their cars in an attempt to appear that they drive a better model than they actually do?

because bmws are image driven, are desirable and appeal to a younger market that wishes to appear rich.
a bmw is the default choice for anyone who cares about image

any car has its "riceboys" so to speak. You see Integras with Type R badges on them, V6 mustangs with the GT badge. Poseurs are everywhere, it doesn't matter which car. I think it's funny, just gives you the opportunity to laugh at them.

Rupert....

Thank you for your opinion. But I disagree, BMW drivers for the most part are looking for shear driving pleasure. BMW provides the best product on the market just for that purpose.

Now to the submitted content. I've seen one re-badged 330i. The driver removed the 330i tag and put an M tag in it's place. Why they did this I don't know. I can only assume they would prefer to drive the M3 instead.

completely untrue (in uk at least). the 3 series is the ultimate rep car, it is the car every market researcher called chantelle or gary aspires to, and they will have a 318 (to reduce tax), have bigger wheels on it, then badge it 330 to feel better and to make a better impression in the car park. the 3 series is used by estate agents, reps and daddy's girls on motorways and in suburbs, and its driving potential is never explored. bmw do make the ultimate driving machine, but in most cases, it is a tool to impress, another piece of bling to use to climb the social ladder.
people will pick the 1 series, 3 series or 5 series over another car becuase they think it looks better and raises their social status. the 1 series is such a hugely compromised car, the golf is better in every way but people will buy the 1er because of the propellor badge. if people truely bought bmws for ultimate driving pleasure, then they wouldn't sell the 318i/d, 320i/d, 323, 520i/d or 525d. bmw know their market and they know they will sell those cars simply because of the bmw badge. think of the x3 or z3, both not very good cars, neither being a real drivers car, but they sell, because of good marketing, publicity and brand kudos and awareness.
my theory does not work for the 6 series coupe (for convertible it does, it is all image) or 7 series.

A friend of mine also has a 530i, but he put on a 525i badge at the back. His reasoning was that he didn't want people to get "jealous" that he had a BMW 530i. Kinda dumb logic I am afraid to say since even a 525i is a luxury car to most Americans.

Rupert....

That's a good sound theory in the UK. But I can only speak for myself and what I've seen here in the USA. I own a BMW and I'm not looking to impress anyone nor am I looking for attention. And I'm definintely not rich. I bought the car because of the drive. When I'm driving my BMW I get my moneys worth by using it just what it was made for driving fast and hard.

BM3W,

You bought your car because YOU KNOW what BMW is about. Many people who buy BMW's don't. They simply see another luxury badge with credibility and go for it. It's the sad truth.

Idiots buy cars just like idiots do anything. Those who are insecure and feel that a BMW will somehow make them a more enviable person are the same idiots who then feel a more expensive BMW will make them even more enviable. So they rebadge them. This is the exact same reason why some peopel feel the need to buy fake Rolex watches. The (wrongly) think that Rolex is somehow the ultimate watch and will make then a better person, but they cannot afford it, so they strap a cheap piece of garbage to thier wrists and hope to fool people.

This is common to ALL luxury brands, LV bags, Tifanny jewelry, what have you. It is much easier to make fake watches and hand bags however than it is to make a fake car. So for those inesucre idiots the next best thing to a fake BMW is a cheap one gussied up to look more expensive.

I think it is mainly because of the image, most people who do switch generally are concerned about image. Now about downgrading the actual model lets say a 530 to a 525, I would do it only for one reason: Stop light drag races. Imagine some idiot trying to race your M3, but you had already switched your sign to a 330i. It would be funny to see the look on his face especially since he'd think he could beat your 330i ;).

bm3w, you are a sensible, intelligent person. which is more than most people.
tvt01, you are completely right.
bmw530i, you're friend sounds a little strange. why not have the badges removed?
in a vaguely related theme, my dad had a friend with some very mundane car, not sure quite what it was, but anyway he stuck a v8 engine in it (it had like a 1.8 before) but kept the badges. he used to have lots of fun seeing peoples faces as this "1.8" out dragged various bmws and the like.

kart1, your post popped up only after i had written mine, so sorry for the repetition

Like I said, he "thinks" people will be less envious if he drives a 525i. I don't understand his logic, a BMW is a BMW, especially here in America. A 525i for most Americans is still a luxury car, especially since they tend to look at the BMW badge rather than the 525i badge. Personally, I have no problems with the 525i. I drove one once and it felt totally ok to me.

This is completely true, alot of idiots for some reason will take their whole badge off. like people wont notice. i see alot of 5 series without their badges, the reason is because their ashamed that they cant get the 550i, people are always trying to impress others, when we all know if your badge is off from the car, its gonna be the cheapest model. their is no need for you take your badge off.. i have a 650i, and i would NEVER take the badge off and put an M6 Emblem, thats just disrespect to those who actually have the car.i would though put quad pipes, and make it loook SEMI like it, but i would never take the badges off. that just makes me look ridiculous.

Well I mildly disagree about why people may REMOVE the badges altogether. I am sure that some people do it so they can hide the fact that it is the base model, but I would think MOST do it because it is simply a cleaner, more modern look. Porsche even offers the option of having it come badgless from the factory.

I tend to like the way cars look with no badges. Very few people know or care about what 3.0 or 4.4 or 525 or 530 means. To me it is just additional clutter on the car. Just as I would never allow a dealer to apply the dealers name to my car because I like it clean and simple.

That said I have never removed badges from my cars because they are what they are and I don't care THAT much. But to me switching to a higher badge means you are an insecure idiot with wrongly placed priorities who is trying to impres strangers. Removing the badges may just mean you think less is more.

Hey actually about the drag races I read about a civic being turbo charged to run like 13 sec 1/4 mile and the girl driving it hadn't upgraded the exterior and had fun racing other guys who would try show her up.
I just don't get the badge thing, if one person is so conscious just buy 330 instead of a 525 or something less expensive. At least the buyer won't look stupid.

Just one example of the poseur side of BMW. You can say BMW's are about driving pleasure all day long. You're in a status-conscious family when you buy a Bimmer.

One of the problems is trying to figure out whether the person in re-badged BMW is really trying to buff his image, or he is one of the few people that like a 'cleaner' car. At this point unless you know the person, reading into people is just not productive.

Unfortunately BMW takes the bigger hit since they have such a broad spectrum and easily identifiable models (wheels, exhaust, body kit, and other features). Tuner cars aside that is. We've all seen the squirrel powered Integra or Civic with Type R stickers all over the place. B/C you all know stickers make the car go faster.

I for one do it because it cleans the lines and look of the rear deck (boot). Plus washing around those stupid name/model plates is a pain in the butt.

i dont know about "rebadging" but i know guys in my area that prefer "DEbadging" meaning, they just take off the numbers altogether! REbadging is just childlike.
Personally, i dont agree that BMW is a default for image. I think BMW is a default for driving characteristics, the feel of the car, the connectivity you have with it when youre behind the wheel. I dont feel like a west coast superstar when i drive my BMW. I feel like im driving a real drving machine designed for real drivers.

It is the BMW owners version of Penis envy. Gotta say "I have more than I really do". But ya gotta give them credit. "They may not hit bottom, but they give the sides hell"

equal number of people do this on an Audi....I definitely don't think so. Unfortunately, BMW owners do take the cake when it comes to rebadging their behicles to make them appear more expensive than they actually are.

blames BMW !!
ppl feels bad when they bought a E46 328i , a yr later , ppl asks wht u have '328' , isnt tht the old model one ?

same for 645 650 , 330i 335i , 325i 328i , the # plays a role too strong to indicate how much and how old is the car

theyd better do it like X5 , same name for all size

Plano A4: that was funny. I've heard that before too....that's it a version of penis envy and therefore the need to drive a BMW.

Personally, I don't really have a problem with debadging.

Poser accussations aside, some people might simply feel that the car looks cleaner without the badge. If we all thought that the people who did this were doing it because of shame, then where either jealous or totally messed up to be making a big deal out of this. :p

de badging is fine, and it is usually a no-cost option, so if you can't be bothered to clean it or think it looks better, why not?
rebadging is ott.

It is a shame that some people feel the need to re-badge their BMW's and attempt to look like a better can than they are. I have noticed here that a lot of people with the povo-pack (base model) 320i's and 525i's take the model designation deletion option so that people think they are driving a better model.

But the inverse is true in Germany, i met many people who had genuine M5's over there who had rebadged them as 518i's or 520i's, literally taking the best car and badging it as the worst in that range. The point? Any young punk in a porsche who thinks his top shit will try and give them a race on the autobahn, plus it's fun to rub it in when you've got a porsche driver baffled by he was so much slower than a 520i.

Actually putting a lower badge is somehow better! At least for me coz lets say i have a 550i and i badge it as a 530i, and i wanted to race a 3.5 V6, I would tare him apart and he will c my badge and feel really bad that he got dissed from a 3.0 I6!!! Dat will make him sell his car at ounce coz of the shame, or just not tell anyone!! I have a friend that does the same thing!

hey did i mention anything about me owning a 550i? i dont think so read properly man.