Autobahn bliss> Fook the state

http://members.shaw.ca/pferlow/autobahn_driving.htm Just makes me angry that something that works so well in Germany cannot be allowed in other parts of the world. I live an hour from the German border and once I am driving at 250 legally it always makes me wonder what the hell is wrong with the rest of the world. The autobahn is safe as any other motorway and does not have a larger amount of accidents than any other western european country.

Ahhh, but you have never driven with the natives in New york and New Jersey

...or Boston!

Yes, Ohio drivers are the best.

In Socal it's the self appointed pace-setter soccer mom in the mini van (on the cell phone) in the no.1 lane. They get mad when you flash them. Would love to see them on the autobahn...

If you go in lane 3 you need to have a big motor or you will **** your pants. That is the whole point, I think the soccer mums would soon learn

Good luck actually getting anyone to keep lane 1 clear for faster traffic here. It is always amazing to watch people just float right over to lane 1 after entering the freeway. Most times they don't even know how they got there, like the gardeners with the blowers and trimmers wagging out the back. I remember at the DMV when I got my license, the old lady in front of me was taking the peripheral vision test was told to look into the machine which is of course that box with a big goggle* looking thing on the front... to which she replied, where do I look in? Of course, she passed. *Haha I wrote google the first time.

The Autobahn is overrated. Big time. Don't understand why Americans think this is the solution to all their issues. Here's a picture taken from the cockpit of my Viper : truck to the right, "cloggy" (Dutch citizen) with a caravan (preferably towed by a car with a 1,100cc engine) on the left. Good luck ! This was in the Munich area by the way... Honestly, I've driven faster on my Oregon high desert trips... Not allowed...but then on the other hand, they need to pull you over in the US to hand you over the ticket....

"The Autobahn is overrated" Ahem, not. I drove south to north a couple of months ago mostly 250 racing a motorbike. That was dead cool and legal fun. Funny you meantion the Netherlands as you notice the stark difference in government policies immediately when you cross the border. Germany the pace is quicker and feels safer. In Holland people loathe to let you overtake in the fast lane so they will do 120km/h in the fast lane even though you are tailgating them. You know, I can't so I won't let you either. I remedie this by taking them on the inside lane....haha they do not expect that in a county where everyone loves to follow the rules. Also in holland they have cameras that pace you over the distance. Totally big brother there. I do not care with foreign plates though I will not get a ticket in the post.

Riad, Ohio cars come equipped with those wonderful orange triangles

My comment was not about Dutch highways... please re-read my post, the above picture is taken on the Autobahn near Munich. And it is not an exception. There are still some fast stretches left (further away from main cities), but you start to notice a change. Closer to major cities there are strict regulations as far as maximum speeds are concerned, strictly enforced by police and cameras. Also, since 2 years ago they've got the 'Raser' campaign going on. Due to numerous accidents caused by weekend speed warriors, police started cracking down hard on speeding. I've lived in Germany, Austria and Switzerland for several years, so yes, I know what I am talking about. Also cruised Europe on an R1, similar to your experience I guess. The cameras are death traps. At least in the US you can run from the cops. In Europe the bill comes through the mail.

There was a thread about people gumming up the left lane on Autoblog the other day, and some of the comments drove me batty. Yes, I like the idea of pass left, drive right. But people were going on and on about how "people illegally hog the left lane". Sorry, but in the US, it's *not* the law (except in a few select places). I tend to high beam people after awhile, but I'd never honk like some of the posters there claimed they do. Worse comes to worse, I'll pass on the right if I have to, but that's because this is the US, not the autobahn. One big reason that system would have such difficulty here is the whole speed limit is not raised for passing - it's 55mph (or 65, etc.) in the left lane, too... They seemed to forget this. The system would need to be *completely* overhauled for it to work here... Driver education, road construction methods/design, etc. We'll run out of oil before that happens Justin

I second that.

I third that. Five years ago you could travel at very high speeds on the German Autobahns with a high level of safety and security. Sadly now the condition of the autobahns in many places has degraded, the 120kph speed limits have been extended and many of the drivers on the nowadays heading from east to West on the Autobahn are not well trained in Autobahn use or driving in general to be quite honest. Ciao, Adrian.

Sure guys, I am not on about the 130k limit places. I am on about where YOU CAN speed. No other country can you speed apart from the northern territory in OZ as far as know and that in itself is not overrated IMO.

Well speaking from the perspective of somebody who actually lived in Alice Springs and then Darwin from 1987 to 1993 I can assure you that it is grossly overrated. The Stuart Highway which links The Alice to Darwin (driven it many times) is NOT by any stretch of the imagination a highway. The road is two lanes. It varies in condition from lousy to okay. Whilst there is no speed limit outside of the towns, if you attempt to travel at very high speed you are likely not to make it to the other end. In fact if you do ever travel this road you will see the wreckage of those who have tried and fallen foul of the many hazards which vary from Road Trains, Horses, Camels, Cattle, Kangeroos, Eagles, Dingos, Local inhabitants to sections of the road covered in slimy slippery red mud. The journey from The Alice to Darwin is certainly an adventure, and one I highly recommend is undertaken, but not at high speed. It is approximately 1700km from Darwin to The Alice and it takes an average time of around 17 hours including pit stops. I am fully aware that people have made wild claims of the speeds they have reached on the Stuart, but I take most of them with a grain of salt. I know of staged events where high speeds have been sustained for a period of time, but this is not real life. Ciao, Adrian.

I have lived or driven in about 35 of the 50 states and in about 40 different countries and although the autobahn is not what it used to be before the wall came down it is still very good. Problems with the autobahn tend to be foreigners (yes I know I am one and I am sure they bitch about the American driving too fast) who are not trained as well as German drivers, imported Germans with license from Eastern Europe, and the Dutch. If there is one country that seems like the Golden Estates of Arizona it is the Netherlands. Other issues to watch for are the left blinker meaning that the left lane is clear...ie you are driving at 250kms and some guy behind a truck at 102kms turns on his left blinker and pulls out, good test for the ABS. The most fun place to drive in Southern Italy where the speed limit is more of a recommendation and the driving is the wild wild west. But heck do not take my word for it get a plane ticket and come over to Europe.