Driving in Germany

[postoak]

One of the most beneficial things I did before my ED was to go to this site:


http://home.att.net/~texhwyman/regeln.htm


and print out a copy of all the German Driving Laws and their incredibly complex signage. This resulted in about a 1/2 inch thick document!

On the flight over, I studied the section on the general laws, and then, once on the road over there, my wife sat with the document in her lap and looked up every sign as we passed it until we were "experts". Highly recommended.

[Nat Brown]

Great web site. I'll be sure to print that out next time I go over.

I've got a couple of Euro Delivery journals on my web site (http://www.bariaur.com/e39/) that may be of interest.

--gary

[bluer1]

"Still, much of the Autobahn is unlimited, but there is a
recommended limit of 130 km/h (81 mph). This recommendation is
generally seen for what it is--an attempt by the government to
cover itself without having to upset millions of Porsche and BMW
owners/voters. However, if you exceed the recommended limit and
are involved in an accident, you could be responsible for some of
the damage costs even if you are not at fault."

:thumbup:

[Dale Pickle]

I'm leaving for Germany next week so I just printed out a copy of this to read before I get there. Does anyone have a link to something similar for Austria and Switzerland? Are the rules pretty similar?

thanks!

[beewang]

Thet are the same. Difference is that they have a speed limit. You will see a sign like this:http://home.att.net/~texhwyman/g_imgs/z393.gif as soon as you cross into the country. Pretty basic stuff.:)

Be careful w/ this one, as I learned the hard way on my first trip and whacked a center medium cone.

http://home.att.net/~texhwyman/g_imgs/z515_12.gif

have fun!!

beewang:bigpimp:

[Spectre]

Originally posted by beewang
Thet are the same. Difference is that they have a speed limit. You will see a sign like this:http://home.att.net/~texhwyman/g_imgs/z393.gif as soon as you cross into the country. Pretty basic stuff.:)

Be careful w/ this one, as I learned the hard way on my first trip and whacked a center medium cone.

http://home.att.net/~texhwyman/g_imgs/z515_12.gif

have fun!!

beewang:bigpimp:
Let me guess. 50 kph in cities. 100 outside. 130 on motorways?

I don't get the other one -- left lane ends in 2 km?

[beewang]

Originally posted by Spectre
Let me guess. 50 kph in cities. 100 outside. 130 on motorways?

I don't get the other one -- left lane ends in 2 km?

LOL!! Sorry pal!! :rofl: I learned it "the hard way" and so will you:p You'll soon find out.

Note the 130 kph is not a "speed limit" (as in red circle), in Deutscheland. Other countries they will.

beewang:bigpimp:

[Tanning machine]

Originally posted by beewang
LOL!! Sorry pal!! :rofl: I learned it "the hard way" and so will you:p You'll soon find out.



Are you driving an X5 cabrio now?

[Spectre]

Originally posted by beewang
LOL!! Sorry pal!! :rofl: I learned it "the hard way" and so will you:p You'll soon find out.

beewang:bigpimp:
Oh, foo. What does a cone mark look like in the paint of a new BMW? :(

[roots]

Originally posted by beewang
LOL!! Sorry pal!! :rofl: I learned it "the hard way" and so will you:p You'll soon find out.

Note the 130 kph is not a "speed limit" (as in red circle), in Deutscheland. Other countries they will.

beewang:bigpimp:

http://home.att.net/~texhwyman/g_imgs/z515_12.gif

IIRC that sign means the left lane is only 2 meter wide (is it right, Bee?) I've seen that a number of times when I was there. They were doing maintenance on the autobahn and realigned the lanes around the section they were working on.

[dlloyd1975]

Originally posted by roots
http://home.att.net/~texhwyman/g_imgs/z515_12.gif

IIRC that sign means the left lane is only 2 meter wide (is it right, Bee?) I've seen that a number of times when I was there. They were doing maintenance on the autobahn and realigned the lanes around the section they were working on.

I believe that's a lane shift and lanes that are 2m wide. (6.6 feet for the non-metric speakers.)

That site was great. Not only did I print it out and take it, but I studied it before going. Helped immensely to know what the road signs would look like.

All of the countries in Europe use the same pictograms, the only difference is what language is under them for additional descriptions. Don't worry about it, the pictograms give you a good enough idea.

[DaveSchneider]

Here's one for you:

On the back of all of the trucks in Germany and France were three circled numbers which were usually 60, 80 and 90. What the heck were these?

[Spectre]

Originally posted by DaveSchneider
Here's one for you:

On the back of all of the trucks in Germany and France were three circled numbers which were usually 60, 80 and 90. What the heck were these?
If those are different sizes (size of font), then I believe they are of the type "if you're going N kph and you can read that number on the back of my truck, you're too close."

[cruztopless]

On the back of all of the trucks in Germany and France were three circled numbers which were usually 60, 80 and 90. What the heck were these?

Isn't that the speed limit for that particular vehicle?

Some of those lanes are NARROW when in a construction zone. Sometimes I didn't think I would fit between the concrete barrier and the car in the right lane. I figure they would make the lane wide enough for a 3er to fit through so I just kept on going. :eek:

[dlloyd1975]

Originally posted by cruztopless
Isn't that the speed limit for that particular vehicle?

Some of those lanes are NARROW when in a construction zone. Sometimes I didn't think I would fit between the concrete barrier and the car in the right lane. I figure they would make the lane wide enough for a 3er to fit through so I just kept on going. :eek:

I believe that they are the vehicle's speed limits. I think it's for different types of roads. The lower number is for 2 lane roads and the higher one is for Autobahn, Autoroute, Autopista, Autovia, etc.

The construction lanes do seem pretty narrow. It was nice to have my wife in the passenger seat tell me how much room I had left. :)

[Spectre]

Originally posted by dlloyd1975
The construction lanes do seem pretty narrow. It was nice to have my wife in the passenger seat tell me how much room I had left. :)
Or you could just listen for the crunching sound as your right hand mirror impacts the car in the next lane. :D 2m wide lanes really do not sound like a lot of fun. I sure hope the speed limit decreases as well when those are in force.

[jl5555]

Note the lane sizes in this pic. Indicative of how the lanes under construction work. There is only that foot high thingy between you and oncoming traffic. The lane in this particular shot was quite wide compared to some of the other ones I came across Munich - Berlin. (BTW, no comments on the driving form)

[tr1jr2]

Just got back from our ED trip, traveled close to 1000 miles in Europe, mostly in Germany. A couple of notes on driving there.

1. Be prepared to go S L O W on the romantic road. This road is 2 lanes most of the way and if you get behind a truck or camper you'll be doing 60 MPH at best.
Note: We traveled during the day so it may be less crowded at night.

2. When passing on this road your on your own, do not assume that white dashed lines in the road mean its safe to pass (like the US), 95% of the road is dotted white lines and passing can get pretty hairy.
As for myself I probably passed on this road at least 10 times and in doing so broke the 4500 RPM mark several times. We also saw many close calls with on coming traffic frantically flashing high beams at the would be passers.yikes

3. The Autobahn is a joy! We found our sweet spot at around 95 MPH and several stretches we were cruising at 100 MPH+
Note: You can go really far really fast doing these speeds. Duh:bigpimp:
Note: While doing these speeds YOU WILL be passed up rather frequently by either a Porshe, BMW, or MB.

[·clyde·]

Originally posted by Spectre
Oh, foo. What does a cone mark look like in the paint of a new BMW? :(

I have not been able to find marks from the cones I've hit while autocrossing...not yet anyway.

[dlloyd1975]

Originally posted by tr1jr2
Just got back from our ED trip, traveled close to 1000 miles in Europe, mostly in Germany. A couple of notes on driving there.

1. Be prepared to go S L O W on the romantic road. This road is 2 lanes most of the way and if you get behind a truck or camper you'll be doing 60 MPH at best.
Note: We traveled during the day so it may be less crowded at night.



The autobahn parallells the romantic road. I didn't mind getting stuck behind campers sometimes. It gave me a really nice chance to look at the beautiful scenery and towns.



2. When passing on this road your on your own, do not assume that white dashed lines in the road mean its safe to pass (like the US), 95% of the road is dotted white lines and passing can get pretty hairy.
As for myself I probably passed on this road at least 10 times and in doing so broke the 4500 RPM mark several times. We also saw many close calls with on coming traffic frantically flashing high beams at the would be passers.yikes



Try driving in Spain. Passers on two lane roads scared the crap out of me. Passing in Germany was no big deal by comparison. Same for France.



3. The Autobahn is a joy! We found our sweet spot at around 95 MPH and several stretches we were cruising at 100 MPH+
Note: You can go really far really fast doing these speeds. Duh:bigpimp:
Note: While doing these speeds YOU WILL be passed up rather frequently by either a Porshe, BMW, or MB.

Agreed. That speck in your rear view turns into a big S Class or 7 series pretty quickly, as happened to me one time when I moved out into the left lane to pass.

[beewang]

Originally posted by tr1jr2
...........2. When passing on this road your on your own, do not assume that white dashed lines in the road mean its safe to pass (like the US), 95% of the road is dotted white lines and passing can get pretty hairy. ....

LOL!! Oh yeah!! This is important!! I don't ever recall seeing the familiar "Double Yellow Lane" that we have here in US. DO NOT assume the white dotted lane is okay to cross. As it is often the equivalent of the (double) yellow lane :p Ask me how I know..:rolleyes:

beewang:bigpimp:

[Spectre]

Originally posted by ·clyde·
I have not been able to find marks from the cones I've hit while autocrossing...not yet anyway.
Yeah, but were you driving at autobahn speeds? I sure hope those cones don't do any real damage. I don't want my car to enjoy the services of the VPC anymore than necessary.

[·clyde·]

Originally posted by Spectre
Yeah, but were you driving at autobahn speeds? I sure hope those cones don't do any real damage. I don't want my car to enjoy the services of the VPC anymore than necessary.

I think the fastest I was going when hitting a cone was about 45. How fast are you planning on driving in 2m wide lane? Or, getting back to your original question, how fast was beewang going? :eek:

[Spectre]

Originally posted by ·clyde·
I think the fastest I was going when hitting a cone was about 45. How fast are you planning on driving in 2m wide lane? Or, getting back to your original question, how fast was beewang going? :eek:
I suppose he could have been going 100 mph when the 2m wide lane surprised him. I figure I'll be going slower if I manage to notice the sign and react appropriately. Otherwise :mad: