ferry "etiquette" ?

Hi there, As a new Porsche owner, british roads cannot contain my baby Well, Im scheduling a week and a half trip to Europe and that means hovering in a Ferry - never been in one with a car... Know this sounds a bit of a silly question, but what to expect ? How long before the ferry sails on should I be there with the car ? Is there a checkin thing or something ? Do we have to carry any belts or something to keep the car in place ? Any tips ? Thanks in advance ps : I will be going Harwich -> Rotterdam and then germany, belgium, luxembourg, north of france and then return via Calais -> Dover

Your ferry operator will give you details about check-in procedure and also how long before the sailing you should be there. You don't need anything special to secure your vehicle. However, driving in Europe does mean you have to adhere to certain rules which may be different from those in the UK. Details can be found here http://www.theaa.com/ and here http://www.theaa.com/motoring_advice/overseas/index.html .

You might want to be careful about the ground clearance over any ramps so take it slowly and see if some one can keep an eye on the front spoiler for you as you drive on. If you ask, they will sometimes put you on the deck with the lorries which is usually easier to get on/off.

If you're coming back from Calais, have you considered using the Tunnel instead of a ferry? http://www3.eurotunnel.com/ukcp3main It's probably easier and you won't have the same concerns if a low spoiler is an issue.

Ground clearance Ground clearance Ground clearance [ ]

Harwich to Hoek-van-Holland is a great crossing - wonderful new ferries. I did it last summer on a trip to Norway. If you're going on the night crossing they let you on about an hour before sailing, so you can get your cabin / meal / drink etc before departure. The put me on the lower deck with lorries etc. Go carefully up down the ramps on the ferry and remember to put your handbrake on fully and leave it in gear to be safe. Don't park too close to those in front in case they need to get bags out of their boot etc. check in ... inside ... nice cabins ... view early am near holland ... loading on way back ... inside on return ... Have fun !!!

When you drive on ask them to go on lower part with lorries as your car is low, they always oblige.

Never had a problem with my GT3, so a regular 996 should be a piece of p1ss.

Just a thought as we messed up last year, do you have a fob to leave in your car for the tracking unit, we do and forgot to leave it in the car, after we had had numerous calls on our mobiles asking if the car was being stolen, we had to ask a steward to take us back to the car to add the fob!! If you have the ordinary alarm, don't set it when you leave your car as the motion sensors will just constantly set it off! We had no problems taking out gt3 on 2 weeks after getting it last year, we rang the ferry company and they advised us that it would be fine (they must be used to us Porsche lots!!) Lastly enjoy yourself, but watch out for the ever zealous french police on the french autoroutes as you approach Calais they sit in dark blue cars and bikes hidden behind bridges etc, making our police seem very visible indeed!! Be careful turning out of T junctions on quiet roads that is when you are most likely to get it wrong!

Agreed! A quick double-press of the lock button on the remote will turn off the internal sensors - so the vibrating rear-screen does not set off the alarm! (you will get a single beep to tell you something is not alarmed)