Today, many consider BMW's reputation for quality to be near-bulletproof. In an age where almost every high-quality brand is suffering from problems of competition and outsourcing, there is still almost no-one who will disagree that they are very, very well-built cars.

So where does this reputation for quality come from, and why does it seem to be so unique to BMW? For once, it really doesn't look like this is some kind of triumph of marketing. In many ways, it's a simple matter of statistics: if you look, you'll see that far fewer BMWs have to be repaired each year compared to other cars. That fact alone makes BMW owners very, very happy indeed.

BMW makes high-quality engines from very good materials, first and foremost, and lets everything else about the car come second - unlike some carmakers who design their dream car and then figure out how to fit the parts in. It's all about attention to detail. In BMWs, for example, the interiors will always be made of high-quality materials - where other cars suffer through wear and tear, they'll just keep looking fine.

Many people swear that BMWs are actually the cheapest cars to own, as the way everything stays in good condition means that they hardly lose any value over the years. A five-year old BMW really isn't worth that much less than a new one - so if you want to sell it and move up to the next model, you're free to do so, and it'll hardly cost you anything - especially considering how little you probably spent on maintenance.

All this contributes to an amazing sense of community around BMW. There are more BMW forums on the web than there are forums for any other carmaker - and the same goes for real-life car festivals, too. BMW must be doing something right if it can inspire this kind of loyalty.