Driving in Deutschland

Driving here is quite an experience, but very complicated. The roads in and around town are winding, sometimes very narrow, and are generally difficult to navigate…… but can be very fun after learning the roads, what the signs mean, and where the “blitz boxes” are located – green boxes next to the road equipped with radar and a good camera all for speeding tickets.

The autobahn is similar to driving in town but at much higher speeds. It consists of long curves that smoothly integrate into the terrain that are also difficult to navigate - because there is no direction posted (such as I-75 N, just a city such as Frankfurt aM). In order to get around, you have to know if the city on the sign is in the same direction you want to go…. we now have a nav system and no longer have to worry about this though. For me, the autobahn is all about a round white sign with black lines crossing it diagonally = no speed limit.

This sign is not to be taken lightly though, there are many associated responsibilities on the autobahn and these must be carefully followed in order to return in one piece. Some quick rules to follow:
- Always drive right, even when driving really fast.
- Pay close attention to the road, not the radio or the bottle of water next to you
- Keep a good distance from cars ahead of you
- Don’t drive with your knees, people in the car will get nervous!
- Make sure you have good brakes before driving above 160. It is amazing how often the brakes get a hard workout, and at high speeds – no time for failure
- Make sure you have good tires – think about it…. at a 220km/h cruising speed, the only thing holding you to the road is gravity and a small contact patch of rubber
- Vehicle dynamics are different going 160 km/h and above, don’t go that fast if you don’t know how to control your vehicle.
- Get out of the way quick for Porsche’s doing 250 or more!! (always look in your mirror for twinkling blue lights, they come up very quick)
Really, there is nothing more exciting (and scary) than driving on the autobahn at 240km/h. Its something every auto enthusiast should experience once.