Battery Replacement

[36654]

To my knowledge (very limited in this area), Quandt never manufactured batteries. Quandt did own ~40%-47% of BMW and they owned all or most of Varta, but they were never BMW, merely the major shareholder. Try suggesting to a Ferrari owner that they are actually driving a Fiat, or even an Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini or Porsche owner that that are driving a VW. They are not. They are however driving a vehicle whose manufacturer is owned by Fiat and VW respectively, but a Bugatti is not a VW.
While that may be a subtle distinction for many, it is actually a significant distinction.
I don't believe BMW ever owned Varta or the reverse.
Yes, my R90S and likely my R90/6, R80RT, and possibly my R100GS, probably came from the factory with Varta batteries, but BMW did not make them, nor did they own Varta. Quandt had controlling interest in both, but I'm quite certain they did not have any input into the making or specifications of the R90S battery, or even the R90S itself.
It is natural to assume that Quandt did dictate that BMW was to source their batteries from Varta but that in no way shape or form makes any Varta battery a BMW product.
Like you, I suspect that Quandt exerted that type of influence on all or most of its 200+ owned or significant interest investment holdings.
My primary client is infinitely smaller than Quandt, but, it is a privately held company that owns approximately 40 companies. Most of these companies operate completely independently of the others and virtually none have an ownership position in any of the others. They do however, utilize the services of their co-related companies where it makes good business sense for them to. That means that in some situations they actually use services/products from a company that is a competitor to one of their parent companies holdings.
They have just won a contract where they have partnered with one of their local competitors and one of their international competitors. Successful businesses (working outside a monopoly environment) typically operate in that fashion.
As you say, my R90S likely was born with a Varta battery.

Sent from my SM-G960W using Tapatalk

The Quandts made their money with Varta. They used their wealth to purchase controlling interest in BMW

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Günther_Quandt
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbert_Quandt
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harald_Quandt

 

[36654]

No, I don't recall citations to the several articles and books on the topic but I certainly do recall the degree to which the Quandt family not only controlled BMW but saved BMW on more than one occasion. That is my assertion. I don't intend to prove it. I don't have time or inclination to even try to deal with stuff I read on the internet.

The Mrs Goebbel's connection is where most people get queasy.........