hinch951

I am doing a Research Project on the German Autobahn for school, does anyone have any valuable information for me? Experiences, Facts, Good websites??? Thanks alot..

sweanders

I've done a lof of high speed driving on the Autobahn, what do you want to know?

hinch951

I know for instance, you cannot pass on the right, so people rapidly pass, then get back over in the right hand lane, but what was your overall feel, experience?

Ian Carr

Its a high way..hahaha there are sections painted on the highway and you are alowed to drive as fast as you want, but if you come up to a car you have to go the speed posted (i belive) and if you get with in the space of the two marks to the car in front of you, they send you a speeding ticket (they have video cameras set up every where)

Then again i live in Conneticut so i have no idea, this is just what i have read about.

hinch951

What car did you drive?

streckfu's

Tell the school that they need to fund a research tip to Germany to effectivley complete this assignment .......

DanaT

There is nothing like seeing that "no limits" sign go by as you poke along in the horrific traffic jam doing a breath taking 5mph.

For your research. I would say typical speeds are 120-130kmh. Not many cars drive 160 for very long and fewer still can even hit 200kmh.

You feel like you are going fast after driving for a half house at 190 or so. Then a real car comes by at 250-270.

Basically, can the question for most people is: how fast can you AFFORD to drive. Gas being $5.50 a gallon or thereabouts, you don;t want to run top speed forever.

-Dana

hinch951

WOW...Good information...Yea ill should be like, for me to better understand my topic, it is imperative for me to visit germany to drive on the autobahn, hook up a camera and hit it haha...KEEP THE INFORMATION COMING...Sounds great

sweanders

Well, first of all the recommended speed is 130 km/h and if you drive faster than that you can be held partially guilty in case of an accident.

I have driven in Germany in many different cars, the most autobahn suited ones would be BMW 525, M3, Porsche 928GT.

Unlimited speeds are usually in areas where there are few or no on- or offramps. When there is a speed limit there are signs every 1000 meters or so (not really sure how close they are) posting the speed limit which is usually 120 km/h. Most people do 150-160 as a cruising speed and there is a lot of traffic most time so that continous speeds over 200 km/h is pretty hard to keep at during the day. At night you can often sit for longer periods at or close to top speed. I have sometimes kept over 250 km/h for an hour or so. It feel kinda wierd to pass police cars going twice their speeds at times but it's all perfectly legal.

If you do a search on "Turbo-Rolf" you can find a lot of information and discussions about the road rage.

Oh, and Germany is one of the safest places on the earth to travel with car despite the high speeds. Traffic rules are pretty much the same throughout Europe but the traffic flows a lot better in most countries since there is a sort of unofficial signal language being used...

hinch951

Thanks sweanders, really appreciate your generous information

Rich Sandor

That is what it all boils down to. I drove from Frankfurt -> Stuttgart -> Munich and back a few times, and I know... Average speeds for normal ****box cars are 120 kph.. maybe 160 if they are in a rush. Any faster, and the fuel gauge moves down faster than the revs move up. I rented an Opel astra the last time I drove thru Germany, a little 1.6L 16valve seden. decent car. For ****s and giggles I would floor it for periods of up to 30minutes. Well I stopped doing that when I realised a tank of gas is like 100$cdn. The thing is, after a short while, 200kph does not seem fast at all. In fact it often seems really slow, because the highways are so long and well built.

The people that CAN afford the gas, usually drive expensive cars, and usually go 250kph. BMWs are very very frequent in the passing lane... Porsches are more rare, but BMW's usually move over for them.

If you are passing a slower car, and you see a faster car coming up behind you, move over!! Don't dawdle in the passing lane. No matter how fast you think you are, there is someone faster.

Don't panic or get excited.. german drivers supposedly are trained to stay clam and in control when driving. (unfortuneatly you get non-german drivers mixed in on german roads very often..)

Some other COOL things that autobahn has that you don't commonly see in North America:
In some areas, where fog or traffic jams are frequent, they have ELECTRIC speed limit signs.. one for each lane. If there is a traffic jam or fog ahead, all three signs will read 30kph or 60kph.. and everyone knows something is up ahead. You pass thru the muck, and then you see the circle with the three lines through it and it's all clear ahead. happy times!

There are exits spaced evenly all along the highway... lots and lots of rest stops and gas stations.. very handy!

did you know that in germany your car is required to be equipped with a reflective triangle in case of a breakdown?

there are lots of other bits of cool info. do a search on the web to bring up more.

cheers

Rich Sandor

A few more things.. it is actually against the law to flash or honk at a car in front of you, in the passing lane. Many driver's do it anyways for safety, or as a hint to get out of thier way, but it's actually illegal. one if the things I'd see is a car with its blinker on driving on the shoulder trying to let the car ahead know it's in a rush. I saw that a couple of times.

It's also illegal to drive next to another car, and give the other driver ANY sort of rude or degrading gesture, such as the middle finger, or even a snide look!!! really!!!

There are lots of traffic boxes set up in speed-limited areas, but I don't know if these are still in use. I remember hearing a story a while ago where a german senator or governer or something was speeding along the hgihway, and the photo-ticket was sent to his home. His wife jus tabout kille dhim when she opened that ticket and saw her husband's mistress sitting in the passenger seat!

sweanders

I've been flashed a few times both on the Autobahn and on country roads. Luckily the tickets has never made to Sweden..

hinch951

I heard the exact same story!!! They said on a website that they are now calling the house, or residence I believe, and requesting that you come "pick up your ticket" hahahaha.... THANKS ALOT FOR THE INFORMATION...IT WILL HELP me a BUNCH!!!!

sweanders

Somthing to think about is that 160 km/h is comsidered a pretty normal speed to drive in, 200 km/h is fast and over 250 km/h is normally considered a bit unsafe. Ask your friends and family about what they think about doing 100 mph as a normal driving speed on the highway and I bet you would get some pretty interesting answers.

One thing that you notice when driving out of Germany into another country is that the roads are very smooth in Germany. I have often driven home and after a few hours in Germany at speeds well over 200 km/h I enter Denmark and it doesn't feel safe going much over 180 km/h since the highways are much more bumpy..