Well it does seem from the link that it was just one model year–1988 actually so I guess BMW fixed that screw up pretty quickly.
That link talks about inserting the key and turning in the lock. The problem is the lock mechanism isn’t working. I don’t think anyone recently has made a car without a physical key.
I can’t find any google reference to it now (too many infants in cars stories are drowning it out 
) but wasn’t there a case a couple of years ago where the parents left their ten-year-old or so son sleeping in the car overnight … and when he woke up he couldn’t get the door open because there was no mechanism to open a locked door from the inside?
When I was a truck driver working for an agency I got to drive a lot of old trucks as well as some nice new ones. One day I jumped into a tractor unit and hooked up a trailer. When I went to get out, the handle on the inside of the door didn’t work. Ok, wind the window down…
No handle - electric windows that didn’t work. So use the passenger door… There was no handle at all on that side, I assume someone had cannibalised it to attempt a repair to the driver’s door.
I was at the far side of a large trailer park and no one in sight, so I phoned my agency (at 6am…) and they phoned the firm to come and rescue me. “Just keep the window open,” the guy said. I took my bag and walked off the site
That happens at auto auctions a lot with some of the old clunkers we see. Toyotas especially have a bad habit of the interior door handles breaking off…cheap plastic or something. Have never understood why Toyota has never really fixed that problem as they are known for quality.
Anyway some guys have come close to dying because of that. Get in car to start it. Close door. Fond the car has a dead battery. Try and open the door to find a jump box. Both inside door handles are broken off. Power windows don’t work because battery dead. Can’t sound horn because battery is dead. It is middle of July and temps in mid 90’s. You start screaming for help because you know you only have a few minutes to live. In my case somebody has always walked by close enough to hear my screams and open door from outside.
I keep thinking I should always have something in my pocket to break a car window because of those stupid Toyotas. Quality my ass.
Umm, how about you start the car up before you close the door? Or is that too easy of a solution?
True enough. Should leave any car door open til you find out if is a jump too. I always also write JUMP on the drivers side window on any cars I find to be jumps. Many workers don’t though and many dealers get irate if anything is written on a window.
I also always write no power steering, brakes weak, 2 footer, wasps and/or roaches in car, key problem, security problem (and how to override), car has super high idle, car surges, very low on gas, tranny probs, anything I can think of for any car I get into…to help the next fellow out.
I have gotten into trouble for doing that. I don’t care. I do it anyway and haven’t got fired yet. Kind of silly anyway. I know dealers don’t like negatives written on the windows of their cars. But the driver’s window is DOWN when driven thru the auction so nobody sees what I wrote there. After the car is sold, it is good thing for the buyer to know. He’s going to find these things out soon anyway.
So many cars are iffy as far as being jumps when you get inside to start them. And speed in moving cars is paramount on days when you are setting up for the next sale. Work too slow and you’re out of a job.
So you get on a hurry and forget stuff, which could be deadly. I really should keep one of those window shatterers in my pocket though.
Auto auctions all emphasize safety of course. But they can be pretty callous.
I remember one time a dealer had a heart attack and died in the middle of an auction. Did the auction stop? No way …car auctions don’t stop for anything almost.
Drivers just drove around the body …and later on the ambulance and the body.
I am high jacking my own thread it seems. If mods don’t like it, tell me and I’ll stop.
A few minutes to live? Maybe if you’re an infant. I’m sure it would be uncomfortable, and you would certainly want out before long, but I don’t think it’s immediately life-threatening.
I’ve personally driven a beater car where the power windows broke and the blower motor didn’t work for a time, and in the middle of summer (temps as described above), I regularly drove it back and forth to work. It was hot in the car, but I never came close to dying…
Sorry Rick… Am responding to a different post than yours. Don’t know how to change that now. But there is a specific post I am responding to about heat In cars being killers.
I’m not sure if you are comparing apples to oranges. In Florida in the mid summer months the temps can get in the low 90’s with super high humidity. So you can sweat all you want and doesn’t do anything but make you sticky and miserable.
You can’t touch an ignition key without burning your fingers without gloves. You can’t touch the steering wheel without burning your hands without gloves. If you are wearing shorts, which all of us do, you burn the inside of your thighs on leather.
I don’t use gloves because I lose sensitivity so I very quickly turn the ignition key and let go. I steer by touching and releasing the steering wheel quickly over and over again. Probably should give it up and wear gloves like most others do. I suffer with the burnt inner thighs…part of the job and I like shorts.
Used to work AC/refrig before my retirement and crawled through many super hot attics and came close to passing out many times.
A closed up car especially with black upholstery sitting for hours in the low 90’s outside temps in Florida is worse than any attic I ever crawled through as far as heat. Been there done that and cars at auto auctions can be killers. And very quick killers. Once you have passed out, you are a goner unless someone happens by to rescue you.
Don’t worry, there are always more of these out there (SFW).
Why I thought of this after a week I don’t know.
Simple is what simple is. Bust out window and open door unlock hood and charge or change battery. 2). Died battery us a wedge on door and wire hanger to unlock the hood or door handles. 3) trickle charge battery from a assessable source, I.e. starter or head light.
Both suggestions have already been made.
HichiYoung, welcome to the Straight Dope. In General Questions, we prefer that old threads only be bumped to post new factual information. Since these suggestions were already made five years ago (and a couple are either destructive or not possible per the situation described in the OP) I’m going to close this.
Colibri
General Questions Moderator