# BMW = Break My Windows, or eine kleine schadenfreude **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 12, 2014, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bmw-break-my-windows-or-eine-kleine-schadenfreude/685903 "2014-04-12T00:47:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2014, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bmw-break-my-windows-or-eine-kleine-schadenfreude/685903/1 "2014-04-12T00:47:12Z")
This is [what happens](http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/2014/04/10/firefighters-smash-bmw-windows-get-hydrant/y13xA828vtvbZZrKvIFdtN/story.html) when you park your car in front of a fire hydrant and a fire breaks out. Some stories are suggesting that the car, a BMW 3-series coupe, was only a few days old when this happened in Boston on Wednesday night. But even if it’s not brand new, i’d still love to see the face of the owner when he returned to the car. There are quite a few pictures of the car, and apparently the owner was there with his head in his hands, but no-one seems to have snapped a picture. Not only did they bust through the windows but, as [these](https://twitter.com/pictureboston/status/454076374022508544/photo/1) [photos](http://www.cbsnews.com/news/boston-firefighters-smash-brand-new-bmw-to-access-fire-hydrant/) show, they also put a nice big dent in the side panel when they were hooking up the hose. Apparently, even with the hose going through the car, there was still a kink, so a bunch of firefighters had to [bounce the car](http://bostonherald.com/news_opinion/local_coverage/2014/04/hydrant_violation_at_fire_scene_a_measly_100_fine) a few feet to improve the position. Awesome. 🙂 Is it just me who’s completely unsurprised at the make of car here? I know that there are assholes who drive all sorts of cars, and if i had the money i’d love a BMW 335, but in my experience the 3-series beemer does attract a disproportionate number of assholes and dangerous drivers. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2014, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bmw-break-my-windows-or-eine-kleine-schadenfreude/685903/2 "2014-04-12T01:08:14Z")
I wish they had showed this picture before. I have no problem with the FFs doing this, but they, when other people asked why they couldn’t go under/over/around I didn’t believe them when they said that any extra bends in the hose would reduce pressure. Don’t get me wrong, I believe _that_ but I didn’t know the hydrant was right there. When you only see the first picture, it just looks like another hose running around. When you see the hydrant right there, you can see they actually had no choice. The only other option would have been for them to take their truck and push the BMW half way down the block, something else I would have had no problem with. I remember about 10 years ago finding a website with a bunch of pictures like that and showing it to a friend. She said that her dad (a FF) loved running hoses through cars, under cars (and not making sure the car owner didn’t run over them) blocking them in if they were in a fire zone so they ended up stuck at the scene until the fire trucks left a few hours later. ---
**Author:** ![randompattern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7993a0/32.png) [@randompattern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randompattern)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2014, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bmw-break-my-windows-or-eine-kleine-schadenfreude/685903/3 "2014-04-12T01:17:25Z")
I worked at a place that made fire hydrants, you couldn’t park anywhere near the place. ``` ~Steven Wright ``` ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2014, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bmw-break-my-windows-or-eine-kleine-schadenfreude/685903/4 "2014-04-12T01:20:03Z")
I wonder if insurance will pay for this? I could see them fighting the claim. ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2014, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bmw-break-my-windows-or-eine-kleine-schadenfreude/685903/5 "2014-04-12T01:29:19Z")
In one of the stories i read (can’t remember which one now), they spoke with a former insurance claims adjuster who said that the insurance company would likely pay out without raising an eyebrow. I know the guy’s car was damaged, but i also think that a fine of $100 is too little for parking in front of a hydrant. You can argue that some parking fines are for revenue only, but there are very good public safety reasons for keeping hydrants clear, and the penalties should be higher. ---
**Author:** ![randompattern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7993a0/32.png) [@randompattern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randompattern)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2014, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bmw-break-my-windows-or-eine-kleine-schadenfreude/685903/6 "2014-04-12T01:54:57Z")
They could always start making 5 foot tall hydrants. They could make the areas in front of hydrants impossible to park in. ---
**Author:** ![Knorf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/58956e/32.png) [@Knorf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knorf)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2014, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bmw-break-my-windows-or-eine-kleine-schadenfreude/685903/7 "2014-04-12T02:03:17Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > In one of the stories i read (can’t remember which one now), they spoke with a former insurance claims adjuster who said that the insurance company would likely pay out without raising an eyebrow. Could be, but even so his premiums are likely to go up, as would happen with any at-fault claim. Plus he has a deductible, surely? I am not an insurance expert. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2014, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bmw-break-my-windows-or-eine-kleine-schadenfreude/685903/8 "2014-04-12T02:03:49Z")
> [@randompattern](#): > > They could always start making 5 foot tall hydrants. They could make the areas in front of hydrants impossible to park in. Putting the outlet 5 feet in the air would make it really hard to connect a hose to and, personally, I hate it when the curb bumps out into the road. IMO, that’s dangerous. If you really wanted to do something like that you’d be better off setting hydrants back off street, on people’s front yards, but that’s ugly and you’d still need space to run the hoses to the street and for the FFs to get back and forth. It’s a no parking zone, just don’t park there, simple as that. ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2014, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bmw-break-my-windows-or-eine-kleine-schadenfreude/685903/9 "2014-04-12T03:54:50Z")
In defense of the BMW, parking IS a nightmare in East Boston. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2014, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bmw-break-my-windows-or-eine-kleine-schadenfreude/685903/10 "2014-04-12T04:50:38Z")
If it were a Prius, this thread would not exist. Keep plugging away, **mhendo** , maybe you can afford a BMW someday. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2014, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bmw-break-my-windows-or-eine-kleine-schadenfreude/685903/11 "2014-04-12T05:07:37Z")
I can totally believe that the fire department enjoy putting their hoses through a car when they have to - as **Joey** says, it’s a no parking zone for a good reason, and everyone knows that. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2014, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bmw-break-my-windows-or-eine-kleine-schadenfreude/685903/12 "2014-04-12T05:27:13Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > I can totally believe that the fire department enjoy putting their hoses through a car when they have to - as **Joey** says, it’s a no parking zone for a good reason, and everyone knows that. They do enjoy it, especially a BMW. We all enjoy it, the guy parked in front of a hydrant, that’s one of those things that just about everybody agrees should never be done, so it’s got a poetic quality to it. ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2014, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bmw-break-my-windows-or-eine-kleine-schadenfreude/685903/13 "2014-04-12T05:33:04Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > If it were a Prius, this thread would not exist. Actually, it would. I’d still think the owner was a douche, because parking in front of a hydrant is a douche move no matter what kind of car you drive. I just mightn’t feel quite the same level of satisfaction as i do seeing that hose poking through the BMW. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2014, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bmw-break-my-windows-or-eine-kleine-schadenfreude/685903/14 "2014-04-12T05:40:36Z")
Why can’t they run the hose around my Bimmer? ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2014, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bmw-break-my-windows-or-eine-kleine-schadenfreude/685903/15 "2014-04-12T05:43:27Z")
[nitpick] I noticed a grammatical error in the photo caption: “A car _who_ parked in front of a fire hydrant had a hose run through the windows at an eight alarm fire in East Boston, April 9, 2014.” Come on. A car isn’t a who. The driver is. The car didn’t park itself in front of the hydrant. It seems to me that “A car, which was parked in front of a fire hydrant,” should have been written instead. [/nitpick] ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2014, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bmw-break-my-windows-or-eine-kleine-schadenfreude/685903/16 "2014-04-12T05:47:14Z")
> [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#): > > Why can’t they run the hose around my Bimmer? I actually wondered this myself. According to some of the stories, the car was close enough to the hydrant that running it around would have led to a problematic kink in the hose. You need every bit of pressure that you can get in those hoses, apparently, and kinks are bad for pressure. And, to be honest, even if that weren’t the case, i think that busted windows is perfectly reasonable punishment for parking in front of a hydrant. Even if they can go around your car, why should they? If i were a fireman, and you asked me “Why can’t you run the hose around my Bimmer?”, i’d probably ask you “Why can’t you park somewhere legal?” The answer, in both cases, is probably “I could, but i didn’t feel like it.” ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2014, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bmw-break-my-windows-or-eine-kleine-schadenfreude/685903/17 "2014-04-12T05:54:57Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > I just mightn’t feel quite the same level of satisfaction as i do seeing that hose poking through the BMW. Keep pluggin’ away, then! You might get to experience a whole new level of satisfaction. ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2014, 5:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bmw-break-my-windows-or-eine-kleine-schadenfreude/685903/18 "2014-04-12T05:58:07Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > Keep pluggin’ away, then! You might get to experience a whole new level of satisfaction. I don’t even understand what that means. If you’ve got nothing to say about the actual topic, i guess i’ll just ignore it. ---
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2014, 7:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bmw-break-my-windows-or-eine-kleine-schadenfreude/685903/19 "2014-04-12T07:56:37Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > I don’t even understand what that means. If you’ve got nothing to say about the actual topic, i guess i’ll just ignore it. I think he means you’ll get lots of hot chicks with a car like that. Maybe even firefighter chicks. ---
**Author:** ![RandMcnally](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@RandMcnally](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandMcnally)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2014, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bmw-break-my-windows-or-eine-kleine-schadenfreude/685903/20 "2014-04-12T14:31:47Z")
> [@Knorf](#): > > Could be, but even so his premiums are likely to go up, as would happen with any at-fault claim. Plus he has a deductible, surely? > > I am not an insurance expert. Iaaie and I think we would pay out on that. His deductible would apply. My question is would this be considered at fault? I’d assume so, but this is something I want to follow-up. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bmw-break-my-windows-or-eine-kleine-schadenfreude/685903.md?page=2)