Oct 16, 2005 3:36:29 PM
Quote:VKSF said:I'd bet most of the car guys in Europe would be well-served by buying a house in the Munich region for autobahn runs, drives into the nearby mtns and for quick blitzes to more global playgrounds in S France/N Italy for arguably hotter chicks and better cuisine.... Correct me if I'm wrong, but Europe, ex-Germany, certainly doesn't sound any more car-friendly than CA....there are speed lims everywhere but Germany....VKSF, your description about the advantageous location of Munich is absolutely correct, but regarding the driving-friendly legal and political environment here in Germany it maybe time to correct some myths: yes it is true that there is no GENERAL speed-limit on the Autobahn, but meanwhile the stretches with a speedlimit (in most cases 100 km/h or 120 km/h) are becoming more and more "popular" due to "green" politicians and other bureaucrats disliking so-called "racers" (= car enthusiasts) - in fact accident statistics do not support the idea, that speed limits on the autobahn would lead to a significant decrease of crashes, so it's more a thing of political correctness. Actually appr. 50% of the autobahnen are "spoiled" by speed-limits today already and this percentage is increasing every year. For example back in the eighties I could rush from Cologne to Bavaria (appr. 700 km) in just 4 hrs + 15 min, if taking off on a sunday early morning. Today I would run the risk of loosing my driving licence if driving at that pace.Up to a couple of weeks ago I could enjoy at least two extended stretches of my daily commuting autobahn-route without any speed-limit (sort of nice concentration workout if you can rush to your office at a speed of > 200 km/h) - still way slower than Carlos' commute at > 300 km/h Then all of a sudden the party was over as these ugly signs for a 120 km/h speed limit have been installed.I hope that the rumors saying that there will be a general speed limit in the near future due to European "harmonization" will never turn into reality....But sometimes the autobahn-myth helps when driving abroad: my wife has had a friendly encounter with a police officer in California when riding a 911 (in the early eighties) way to fast. First the officer was admiring the 911 and then he looked at the old-style grey German Führerschein like it would be some kind of an official race-licence "I heard that you don't have those speed-limits in Germany, is that really true ?" so she was not charged with a fine. I experienced the same situation some 10 years ago on a Brazilian highway (between Rio and Sao Paulo).I allways have been asking myself whether the success of the German carmakers actually is supported by the fact that the German cardrivers could enjoy the autobahn without a speed limit, forcing the carmakers to look for the best technologies in terms of suspension, brakes etc. - maybe an interesting topic for a new thread... Enjoy the fantastic scenic routes in California (I envy you when thinking of the upcoming German winter)
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