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driving through Europe

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Old 03-17-2009, 01:25 PM
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Thinking of taking a week for my anniversary to drive through france,beglium and germany (starting from London by train to france). Picking up car in France and driving through to Munich.

Would this be a memorable ride with the best scenery or not worth it?

Thanks.
Old 03-17-2009, 01:28 PM
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Originally Posted by gregg2gs' post='819457' date='Mar 17 2009, 05:25 PM
Thinking of taking a week for my anniversary to drive through france,beglium and germany (starting from London by train to france). Picking up car in France and driving through to Munich.

Would this be a memorable ride with the best scenery or not worth it?

Thanks.
DO IT. Just try to stay out of the big cities except for of course the places you want to visit.
You should try taking the roads through the land where the road curves and you can drive fast.
Old 03-17-2009, 02:22 PM
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I think parts of the German autobahn's are still unrestricted, i.e. you can do any speed you wish sure some of the German members will be able to confirm this is still the case, so its definately worth it if you have a something with some power.
Old 03-17-2009, 03:06 PM
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Almost 60% is unrestricted.
It's however not very easy to see if it's unrestricted or not.
Things to look for are:

This sign:
When you see this on an autobahn, this means all restrictions are no longer in effect, so floor it.

Also, after each on-ramp to the autobahn, there should be a maximum speed sign. If there isn't or there is a sign like the one above, it means you can go flat out.

But the easiest to see if the road is unrestricted is if you're doing 130km/h and every German is overtaking you, it's highly likely that you're driving on an unrestricted road.

On restricted autobahns, your maximum speed is 130km/h unless otherwise indicated.
Also, please, don't stick to the left, no matter what car you drive, there will always be somebody that's faster than you, and it's just rude to think: screw him, i'm doing 230!
Old 03-17-2009, 03:18 PM
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Do you know some of the basic rules for driving in Germany? Especially the autobahn?
You can only pass to the left on the autobahn. They'll kill you for tailgating and the richer you are the more you have to pay for the ticket.
Old 03-17-2009, 03:36 PM
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Originally Posted by Krozi' post='819546' date='Mar 18 2009, 12:18 AM
... and the richer you are the more you have to pay for the ticket.
Nonsense... That's only in Finland, not in Germany.
Of course you can only pass on the left. I thought that was a worldwide rule, it would be dangerous to allow passing on the right.
Tailgating is very very frowned upon in the whole of Europe and the fines are really high.
Old 03-17-2009, 03:48 PM
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Originally Posted by OverSoft' post='819556' date='Mar 17 2009, 07:36 PM
Nonsense... That's only in Finland, not in Germany.
Of course you can only pass on the left. I thought that was a worldwide rule, it would be dangerous to allow passing on the right.
Tailgating is very very frowned upon in the whole of Europe and the fines are really high.
Trust me it's the same in Germany. I lived there for 11 years.
Also, it's illegal to run out of gas.
Old 03-17-2009, 04:05 PM
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Originally Posted by gregg2gs' post='819457' date='Mar 17 2009, 02:25 PM
Thinking of taking a week for my anniversary to drive through france,beglium and germany (starting from London by train to france). Picking up car in France and driving through to Munich.

Would this be a memorable ride with the best scenery or not worth it?

Thanks.

absoulutely...do it...i took a trip across europe last summer...we started off with a car from England, and drove through 13 countries...went all the way to Hungary...it was fantastic....the drive was the best I ever had...and the sceneries were amazing...u must do it...
Old 03-17-2009, 04:06 PM
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what route do you plan on taking?
Old 03-17-2009, 04:08 PM
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Originally Posted by Krozi' post='819565' date='Mar 18 2009, 12:48 AM
Trust me it's the same in Germany. I lived there for 11 years.
Also, it's illegal to run out of gas.
This is the fine chart for Germany for speeding for people not living in Germany:
Code:
within city limits (especially in 30km/hr zones)
as of 10 km/h 15,- EUR
11-15 km/h 25,- EUR
16-20 km/h 35,- EUR
21-25 km/h 50,- EUR, 1 Point
26-30 km/h 60,- EUR, 3 Points
31-40 km/h 100,- EUR, 3 Points, 1 month suspension
41-50 km/h 125,- EUR, 4 Points, 1 month suspension
51-60 km/h 175,- EUR, 4 Points, 2 month suspension
61-70 km/h 300,- EUR, 4 Points, 3 month suspension
over 70 km/h 425,- EUR, 4 Points, 3 month suspension

Autobahn and country roads
as of 10 km/h 10,- EUR
11-15 km/h 20,- EUR
16-20 km/h 30,- EUR
21-25 km/h 40,- EUR, 1 point
26-30 km/h 50,- EUR, 3 points
31-40 km/h 75,- EUR, 3 points
41-50 km/h 100,- EUR, 3 points, 1 month suspension
51-60 km/h 150,- EUR, 4 points, 1 month suspension
61-70 km/h 275,- EUR, 4 points, 2 month suspension
over 70 km/h 375,- EUR, 4 points, 3 month suspension
Points only applicable to certain countries which carry the same system (like the UK). Suspension is in effect immediately, no matter what country you're from.
They can take your license even if you're from the US.
They can't fine you according to your income, because they simply do not know what your income is. They can only do this to German citizens.

Running out gas is true, but only if your gas meter is working (dumb law, i know, but if you can prove your gas meter is out of order, they rip up the ticket).

Oh, and IF you get a ticket, be prepared to pay on the spot. They can not collect tickets from foreigners from outside of the EU, so you'll need to pay immediately.


Maybe it's an idea to read this:
http://www.howtogermany.com/pages/driving.html


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