hey guys the countdown is on! 14 days til stuttgart and the autobahn, im in spain right now and have been for the past three weeks, i tell you what this place is different! i got the confirmation from the car rental place and im driving a 2010 BMW 525i, the anticipation is killing me but i wish i could drive my x fire on the autobahn more than the 5 series, i do see now why the USA is the greatest country in the world! JR

p.s.-try not to rub in how awesome it is to drive your x fire, i havent driven mine in a month and am having crazy withdrawals lol

 

jrf05, enjoy the autobahn but realize there is somew autobahn etiquette that you need to get familiar with. DO NOT drive in the fast lane unless you are maintaining a rather high rate of speed. Use the fast lane to pass and then scoot back over. If someone runs up on your *** with their headlights flashing, you have pissed them off by being in their way. Nothing can ratttle your nerves like a ferrari inches from your bumper at 110mph. BTDT.


There is a speed limit on the autobahn of 125 kph (about 75 mph). It is mostly ignored by the polizei but if anything occurs at a speed above that they (german government) will throw the book at you and you'll be in jail for awhile.

We as americans are unprepared for the lack of response time when traveling at excessive rates of speed. Things happen real quick at 125+. I have seen horrendous accidents that the wreckage is unrecognizable.

Have fun but please be careful. Many of their worst accidents are citizens from countries other than Germany.

 

When did they implement speed limits on the autobahn in Germany? When I lived there..... 1986 to 1989, there were no speed limits except within city limits.

 

I remember seeing them back in 1972, the first time I went over there. Autobahns are posted, always have been. It is 130kph (about 80 mph) I was wrong on that, oops.

Quick google search came up with this:The German Way & More | The German Autobahn - Driving in Germany - Autobahn Sticker/Vignette

One other word of caution is be aware that German lawmakers have decided photo enforcing cameras are legal and they use them on the autobahns. Mostly in the city but they can be anywhere. Next to your picture driving the car is your speed at the time of the picture and they cannot be challenged in court.

 

In my 3 years living there, the only speed limit signs that I ever saw on an autobahn were when in or near a town or city, and they were strictly enforced. I do not recall ever seeing one on the rural stretches. I have on many occasions passed a polizei doing 140 mph or faster without a second thought. Maybe I am just getting senile. LOL

 

Sorry, I can't help but rub it in a little. You got Stuttgart in two weeks, we have the CAA.
Cars from all over the North American land.
We got race track time.
We got Drag racing
We got dyno tunes
We got an SRT raffle
We got a road course

But mostly we got St Louis Spirit.

What 's at Stuttgart?


roadster with a stick

 

As have I. I'm just trying to make the gentleman aware that there is actually a speed limit, it's just not enforced until something bad happens.

I was born in Germany and enjoy dual citizenship. I still have a lot of family over there including an uncle that sells BMW's. Makes trips there a lot of fun.

 

Here's a post I came across from a guy who got popped on the autobahn by the picture thing. He also made mention of the speed limit.

https://www.crossfireforum.org/forum...tml#post497179

 

The 5 series made me think of something.... While there, maybe you'd want to get the **** scared out of you by having Sabine Schmitz scare the hell out of you in an M5 on the 'Ring...

YouTube - Motorsports BMW Ring-Taxi with Sabine Schmitz

 

thanks for all the info guys, i recently downloaded an autobahn speedlimit map of germany and a lot of it still has a no restriction zone (meaning no speedlimits) the A8 that runs between stuttgart and munchen doesnt have a speedlimit for the majority of it, the section im really interested in is the part that runs between munchen and salzberg, its relatively flat and straight for the most part, im going out to berchesgaden to see hitlers eagles nest, it should be interesting, im goin to take a lot of pictures and will try to upload them as i take them, im visiting the birthplace of the automobile(gottlieb daimlers greenhouse is only about three blocks from my hotel) as well as unterturkheim which is mercedes world headquarters and the porsche campus, but i will keep you guys posted, take care! JR

 

Yes, I got my picture taken last October when I didnt slow down fast enough after passing into a 100kmh zone..... and the speed limits are sprinkled all over.... I had lots of fun pegging out the 1.8L turbo Seat I was driving(200kmh)..... but pay attention to the super zoomers and the speed limit signs.....

 

In my opinion, the "autobahn experience" is overrated. I drove on German autobahns for 3 years. They are good roads, but you still cannot escape the fact that you are in tiny Europe. Driving fast on the autobahn means driving fast in fits and starts. There are many, many sections of the autobahn where you cannot drive fast due to road construction, speed limits, cities, villages, and accidents (which occur constantly). Autobahns are also dangerous because German drivers, in particular, are dangerous. It's almost as if they lose all common sense and respect for others once they get behind the wheel. Drive fast where you can, but beware German nutjob drivers and accidents occurring in front of you. Don't expect any breaks from the Polizei if you get caught speeding. Some of the best roads in Europe are in France and Norway.

 

Incorrect.

I drive the autobahns anually and the only time a speed limit is imposed is during hazardous driving conditions. Apart from that its pedal to the metal. If you doing less than 130mph in the fast lane then your holding up traffic. Germans are very considerate to other roads users. They overtake and then pull back into the inside lanes. Hold them up through being inconsiderate and they will tail gate you.

Regards accidents, I've seen very few on the autobahns as the germans can actually drive, have consideration for other road users and follow the rules of the road.

 

I'm jealous... Actually, I've done the drive on A8 all the way from Stuttgart to salzberg. Stayed in a gasthaus on a farm in berchesgaden where we could see the eagles nest from the balcony... What a gorgeous place. Don't forget to visit the salt mine in salzberg!!! I also stayed at a hotel in stuttgart right across from Mercedes HQ... Enjoy! Thanks for bringing some memories back.

Oh - and drove really, really fast on the autobahn. In a mercedes. Don't remember what model, sadly as it was about 12 years ago. God that was fun. My brother in law was stationed over there at the time, so I got all the info that the Army provides to servicemen who will be driving off base. The thing that sticks out in my mind was a reminder to slow down when getting off the autobahn. You've been driving really fast, and when you've slowed down, you may think you're going slow, but you may still be going way to fast for an exit...

 

From the United States Diplomatic Mission to Germany (who advise US servicemen):

"Driving in Germany can be both an exhilarating and frustrating experience. In a country renowned for its high performance cars, high speed Autobahns, and frustrated drivers, Germany hosts more traffic volume than any nation in Europe and, as a result, suffers the Continent's highest injury-accident rate."

The above quote is consistent with my experiences driving in Germany over a period of years. Few drivers in Europe are as aggressive on the road as German drivers, with the possible exception of the Dutch. Traffic volume on Germany's autobahns can be daunting, especially on weekends, and during the morning and early evening rush hours. A better driving experience can therefore be had by avoiding driving at those times, and by never sitting in the left-hand lane and slowing down anyone coming up behind you. Over three years' time I personally came across something like six accidents on Germany's autobahns that involved fatalities. Two of those accidents were mass car wrecks that occurred just before I came on site (both mass accidents also occurred in foggy and rainy weather). My advice is to be especially careful in rainy or low-visibility weather (where you will have far less reaction time), and always to be on the look-out for accidents up ahead. As you already know, driving on the autobahn is not like driving on I-80 through Nebraska -- it's much more challenging, there's a lot more traffic, there's a lot more going on around you, and other drivers probably pose the biggest single risk to your safety. Be careful driving on the autobahn, have fun, and watch out for other drivers.

 

Ooh, I was there a few year ago with my buddy. It was a total guy vacation---oktoberfest, women, cars, and WWII stuff.

I will tell you up front that the strip clubs in Stuttgart are fantastic. If you can, you owe to yourself to check one out. I'm not typically someone who frequents those places, but my buddy was all about it. I was not at all disappointed.

But yeah, Stuttgart is good fun. If you don't check out at least the Mercedes or Porsche museum, you aren't a car guy. We also took factory tours at both places and the mercedes plant they took us to in stuttgart was disappointing to me. It was an engine assembly plant, which was kind of interesting in its own way, but I wanted to see a whole car assembled. Though it was neat to see a bunch of superchargers stacked up and ready to be installed. The porsche factory tour was awesome! We got a tour because my buddy's mom (who wasn't with us) bought a Cayanne and they were friendly with the guy she bought it from. I now know why Porsche's are such amazing cars.

If you are going to spend more time in S. Germany, you should also visit Munich (for BMW of course!) and Ingolstat. We toured the Audi museum and factory as well. We got to watch the assembly of an A3--which was cool because I was driving a mkV GTI at the time, which is very similar to that era A3. And if you are crazy, like we were, we took a bit of a detour into the country to visit RUF in Pfaffenhausen. They gave us an impromptu tour of the facilities and a free DVD which according to their website, cost about 80.00 at the time. They were a top notch group of professionals and were as excited about having some random Americans visit as we were to look at their gorgeous Porsche-based iron. If I ever have the money to own a RUF, I will do so based not only on the performance of the cars but how we were treated, considering we just popped in without notice.

One thing I noticed is that the Germans take an AMAZING level of pride in their vehicles. I suppose it might be how us Americans may view our military. One day I'd like to visit a domestic Ford and GM plant to see how the two countries compare. I would imagine that visiting the Corvette plant would be a very similar feeling to visiting the plants I saw in europe.

Me and my buddy spent two weeks over in southern german, saw some awesome cars, drank some awesome beers, saw some history (we also spent time in Berchtesgaden) and on occassion enjoyed the company of some lovely women. I got almost NO sleep and drank way more in a 2 week period than I ever did in any 2 week period during my fraternity days in college. I think I slept for 4 days when I got back. If you can do up close to this, you will have the time of your life.

Next up---N. germany to visit Berlin, Wolfsburg, and the Nurburgring. It will be a much more laid back trip!

 

I was there in March and drove from Munich to Salzburg & back on the A8. I didn't see anyone driving over 160kph. Most cars were doing 130-140. One nice thing is that the big trucks stay in the right hand lane.
If you have time in Munich, check out the Duetches transportation Museum. Also I have heard that if the weather is nice the scenery at the Englischer Garden is great.

 

If I recall correctly, according to Jeremy Clarkson of Top Gear, the best road for spirited driving in the entire world is in the north of Italy.

As someone who has lived most of my life in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, but have driven many tens of thousands of kilometers in Europe, I can only say that the roads in Minneapolis in particular are degenerating into third world status and do not even begin to compare with the roads I have driven in the past couple of years in Spain and Italy. I used to work in the Bay Area of California, where the roads were good but the traffic horrible. Even the roads in Turkey literally seem better than many in Minnesota these days.

I've always enjoyed the autobahn experience, especially in the north of Germany where the roads seem less congested. Sunday mornings are best. Enjoy your visit!

 

love the stories guys, its now down to 5 days, 3 til the mercedes and porsche museum, i think it might be the greatest four days of my life lol, we re actually goin to be doing a pseudo documentary of us driving the autobahn, once it is up on the youtubes i will let you guys know, im gonna give this 5 series a run for its money! we re gonna do it hours what it took the allies to do in months! Regards, JR

 

Just came across this thread. Maybe I can clarify some things.

- There is no general speed limit on the autobahn. The above mentioned 130kph are a general suggestion for save driving when there is no speed limit. IT is a sign with white letters on blue ground.

- If there is a speed limit it's always marked with a red circle and black (regular sign) or white letters (digital sign). Escpecially around Stuttgart are most parts of the autobahn regulated by a traffic control system which includes digital signs that vary the speed limit according to traffic and weather conditions.
Be aware that most of these digital signs have integrated speed cams!!

- In general for driving on the autobahn: You're not allowed to overtake the car in front of you on the right (should be the same in spain). If you're driving on the very left lane make shure to watch you're mirrors - even when you're going +180kph. There are a lot of Porsche around Stuttgart...

- Fast driving on the autobahn directly around Stuttgart is nearly impossible - heavy traffic, many construction going on. The A8 to munich is a PITA to drive - except for very late in the evening or in the night. You should try the A6from Heilbronn to Nuernberg or the A81 from Heilbronn to Wuerzburg.

And if you're around munich write me a PM