Merv the Derv

Went to the Ring last year in my 535d and can say its the experience of a lifetime. Driving down the autobahn is well worth it too especially at 157mph without the cops on your tail

skaffa

With my 525iA I wouldn't not bother, with a K1 I would like to try.

I hope I'm not stupid enough to buy the new K1200S...

I do not need it, not need it, nor do I need it...
[/quote]

But it's bargain! And sooooo nice!

Skaffa

tonye60

daft question, how do you know when the autobahn is deristricted

Herwig

German autobahns are deristricted in general. Only restricted sections (roadworks, dangerous sections etc) have signs showing maximum speed. Following such a section is a white round sign with diagonal black stripes - thats the end of the speed restriction.

arthur.tjon@planet.nl

Banglebox is right: driving the Ring is one of the things automotive to be done IF you have a reasonable amount of self control.

Because of its weight and orientation towards comfort the E60 is hardly track material (except M5), nevertheless it holds up well for a car of this size. I drove the Ring several times in several cars, last time in my 530d and although I felt a bit 'detached' from the section, handling, traction and power were good enough to have fun!

BTW, as a matter of caution: Playstation gives you a very limited idea of what it's like. The road in GT on the PS is smooth like a billard table, which is not the case in reality. You get no feel of the gradients and camber changes and grip levels are much higher in the game. So imagine: you're coming round a "familiar" bend, but now the road is so bumpy that ABS kicks in early, the track goes down by about 12% and the track is slippery because of leaves/dust/oil/worn tarmac. Then it's welcome to the Crashed-on-the-outlap-club. Oh yeah, and did I mention the bikers which are standing still in turns, touring cars and VW Golfs/Rabbits which overtake you with a zillion mph? Never seen those in the game. PS is good however, to get a feel for whether a bend goes left or right, which is helpful because there are quite some turns to remember.

pedrollo

I was thinking of going this year too, just for the experience. Nice thing about a non-track car is that there is nothing to prove, you can just have fun.

BangleBox_530d

ANY car will be fun to drive. It's just that a Porsche GT3 is so much MORE fun

The bumps change from year to year. So you always need to learn where they are each year. There are several corners where I could go a lot faster, but the car (not my E60) gets unsettled over the bumps. I drive to enjoy, not to scare myself crapless.

Loads of info here: www.nurburgring.org

Most weekends there are "ringers" there. A bunch of guys who love the ring, and many of them from the UK. Even if you're too cautious to take your E60 on track, you can get yourself a passenger lap with many people. Worth the detour if you're close (like the factory tour in July).

Also, I prefer to stay until Tuesday. Mondays are always quiet, which is safer and gives you a clear track. Sundays usually are much better watching.

moema535d

Drove 20 laps there with my 535d in September. I am originally from this area and know the track quite well (close to 2000 laps over the last 40 years).

Even in the tight sections, the car behaves much better than You would expect from a 1800kg sedan. In the fast parts and over the jumps the car is very stable and easy to control. In my humble view, Dynamic Drive is the single most important feature on a track like this since it combines sufficient spring travel with good roll stiffness when needed. I was observing an E60 with M-suspension getting much more upset by the elevation changes in the fast sections.

One of the laps I started right behind an E39 M5. I stayed with him through the first twisty sections (Hatzenbach/Hocheichen). After that, the track opens up and he pulled away slightly - but not for long. He obviously misjudged his breaking into the Aremberg downhill right-hander and first hit the Armco barrier on the right side, then on the left side. Thankfully, the guy was okay but his car definitely needed some detailing....

Franko

I think this all sounds *really Fun!*

What percentage of Americans go with thier own car vs. renting a car in Europe?

...This is definately going on the list of "lifetime must do's."

Frank