OT The Autobahn

Nice idea, but I don't think it will ever happen as long as the insurance companies have any influence with the legislators.

Hmm ... was that a rental car from Germany? If so, that was almost certainly 120 KPH, not 120 MPH. so that would have been about

74.5 MPH. No wonder they were being passed like they were standing still -- they *were* standing still by Autobhan standards. :-)

Good drivers, expected to go fast will not be a problem. I wonder how they eliminate the idiots?

I think that there used to be some roads in places like Arizona or Nevada which had no limit other than "reasonable and proper". Probably long gone by now.

Enjoy, DoN.

I would be surprised if a VW rental car would top out at 74.5 MPH, IIRC, even my Metro did better than that.

RogerN

In Tennessee it's 80mph, and the roads are littered with 59,000 tons of shredded tires and wreckage per mile. The 20 foot deep ditches 3 inches from the edge of the highways probably doesn't help any either. Also, it seems like everybody there is a drunk to start with.

History channel occasionally airs their autobahn ditty, and mentioned that there was a state in the US that people from germany would bring their cars to, for highspeed driving. Forgot the state, seemed like the midwest. Don't know if it's still allowed, but these history docu's are not that old.

Not all of the autobahn is unlimited speed, and it seems this US state had some advantages, which I also forgot.

Just remember, a = v^2/R. :)

IIRC they have CCTV cameras monitoring every inch of the road 24/7, and crews on standby along the entire stretch that will immediately remove any debrise that is seen.

One of my German suppliers told me that the highway authorities have bulldozers sited at strategic points along the autobahns. When an accident occurs it's usually so spectacular that there are not many big chunks left. They just close the road briefly and push all the bits to the side.

This may be apocryphal - he was a consummate liar (especially when it came to delivery estimates!)

Mike

They had traffic jams too. In 1966 I walked down part of one while riding a BMW R-50. Charlie

All I remember about driving on the Autobahn was that my deuce-and-a-half would barely go 50 and that I was sure I'd have a BMW embedded in the rear of it before I got back to the motor pool.

Roger, I live in Germany. In point of fact, there are very few stretches of the autobahn system today without speed limits and when found, are short stretches only. The big difference between the autobahn system and the Interstate system is the autobahn system has retention rails on both sides of the traveled road and in the States these are typically only used as a center barrier. In most cases whenever this rule cannot be met, there are speed restrictions in place and severely enforced. Steve

That's smart. When you have an accident at 120 mph or so, it's easier for them to find your head because the retention rails keep it from rolling into the ditch.

'Gotta hand it to those Germans. d8-)

As long as we're telling our autobahn stories, I rode a friend's BMW motorcycle from Dusseldorf to Lausanne, Switzerland when I was 20, which is probably why I went prematurely gray.

-- Ed Huntress

Steve, In the places where there is a speed limit, what is the typical speed limit?

Last year I was sent to Germany to Friedrichshafen to the Zeppelin facility. We visited a couple of other cities in the area. We went by the Autobahn but didn't drive on it. It was a nice trip, too bad it was in the winter.

RogerN

Here in Texas there are long, long stretches of 80 mph speed limits, mostly on I-35 between San Antonio and El Passo. It kills me to drive in the midwest, I feel like I am walking.

LLB, Laredo

I10. odd numbers are north/south. I35 goes to Minnesota from Texas.

Drove that road and raced the trains moving west. Might go hundreds of miles between anything and then a gas station.

I drove and of all things I stopped at the only dinner at the time out near big bend. I pulled in and there were members of my company there from the local region. I ate, saluted and drove to LA on I10.

Mart>> Sounds like BottleBob's dream

I'd sure like to know where in Tennessee it's legal to drive at 80 mph . I-40 is max 70 , at least the part I ride every day to work . And 20 ft ditches ? Get real ! And as far as the drunks , I'd say it takes one to recognize one . I for one don't drink while driving nor do most of the people I ride with . But there's a fool in every grouip ...

"DoN. Nichols" wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@Katana.d-and-d.com:

I've been to Germany quite a few times. The rental cars are governed to

120 MPH. This was confirmed yesterday by our German Engineering intern who is returning to Germany today after a 5 month stint with us. The first and second times I went, we had a company car that wasn't governed to a speed limit. Still got almost blown off the road by a Porche and we were doing about 160 mph. That Porche was running well over 200 mph. Passed us like we were sitting still.

The Autobahn now has speed limits when you get in around towns/cities. They gradually bring you down over a few miles from 200 kph to 120 kph and in some stretches, 60 kph. It is a blast to drive that road though.

Those cameras that monitor the road also monitor the traffic and will get you nailed by the Polizi too. They routinely set up temporary speed cameras on exits to blind curves, behind roadside obsticals, etc. Whatever the speed limit is, you best be doing that and only that.

Yup I-10 not I-35 (I missed the turnoff!) I get this strange feeling out there after about an hour of 85 mph that the car is standing still and the earth is slowing moving under it. You can drive for an hour get out and it doesn't look like you have even moved, everything is the same.

LB (Laredo)

I was there in the early 70's. I was a communications repairman who often traveled around the southern end of the country, sometimes by Autobahn and sonetimes in light aircraft. The spectacular 100+ vehicle accidents I remember happened when fog drifted across the road.

It seemed strange to be flying slower than the traffic below.

"Bill Noble" wrote in news:75eba$4941e7d9$ snipped-for-privacy@news.teranews.com:

Not exactly. States could still have whatever speed limit they wanted. They just couldn't qualify for federal highway funds is it wasn't 55mph.