Chris Harris drives the M5 30 Jahre flat out in Germany (/DRIVE)

[BarryB]

Originally Posted by Venom

I remember a while back one of the mods posted something regarding a HP cap of 600. Was that a reference to this special edition BMW, in other words was that for this generation only? Or is that definite for generations to come?

This is the most powerful BMW street car to date. Probably won't last forever.

[raysspl]

[neo871]

Spine-tingling, as they say!

[fsfikke]

Originally Posted by greentrbo95gst

Can't wait for my next ED in the G90.

That's gonna take a while, maybe start with the F90 first

[infamousq]

Originally Posted by NlckyBlack

Americans are too incompetent and ignorant to even understand how to drive like the Germans. Having driven on the autobahn, its such a refreshing feeling to be a part of something where everybody's on the same page and you can safely share the road with a vehicle doing 80mph or 180mph.

After living in Germany for 8 years I agree 100% I loved when I picked my baby up there best few days of my driving life!!! Only here in America can you be on the Highway an see three dump trucks doing a drag race at 45 in a 65 zone......

[Andrew115]

Originally Posted by Venom

I remember a while back one of the mods posted something regarding a HP cap of 600. Was that a reference to this special edition BMW, in other words was that for this generation only? Or is that definite for generations to come?

That was in reference to a rwd m5 platform.

[DeeKay]

Originally Posted by bruza

Driving the Autobahn is one of the main reasons I've done an ED on both of my ///M Cars. The drivers there have much better discipline, respect, everything.

Dont think I saw any idiots weaving in and out of traffic out there. The left lane stays clear for those who are DRIVING.

I have just returned from my summer holiday in Northern Italy. We drove from Copenhagen, through Denmark, Germany on the Autobahn, Austria, Switzerland and of course to Italy.

My God I love the Autobahn - not just for the sheer excitement of the de-restricted sections, but for the nice wide stretches with a very well disciplined German people driving them..

I love every part of the trip, because of the variation of the nature and roads, but the best part of the 1650 kilometer (each way) stretch was by far Switzerland though - God it's beautiful - you drive through mountains and are constantly presented with waterfalls, big lakes AND roads like the one attached here

[timot]

That vid was great. Instills a kind of pride for German made driving machines.

[13M5F10]

Originally Posted by DeeKay

I have just returned from my summer holiday in Northern Italy. We drove from Copenhagen, through Denmark, Germany on the Autobahn, Austria, Switzerland and of course to Italy.

My God I love the Autobahn - not just for the sheer excitement of the de-restricted sections, but for the nice wide stretches with a very well disciplined German people driving them..

I love every part of the trip, because of the variation of the nature and roads, but the best part of the 1650 kilometer (each way) stretch was by far Switzerland though - God it's beautiful - you drive through mountains and are constantly presented with waterfalls, big lakes AND roads like the one attached here

I couldn't agree more. I always look forward to my trips to Germany to visit my in laws (wife is from here). I rent a nice fast car from Sixt and drive everywhere. My favorite trip was to Austria, driving through the alps was very beautiful.

I'm currently in Germany and loving every moment on the autobahn. Wish we could have suck nice roads and disciplined drivers back in the states.

[//M235ixD]

So topical here in the USA if you are not riding someone's ass they will not move from fast lane. I had quiet an experience in my last ED driving through the autobahn in Germany with my F22 and not warring about flashing light behind me!!

[marcva]

Originally Posted by ozbmwnut

i hate watching this stuff...
australia, just like the USA it appears, is full if idiot drivers who are totally clueless, PLUS speed cameras everywhere. i have received a couple
of speeding fines this year, the fastest i got shafted for was .. 115 KPH.

THATS RIGHT ,, KPH, not MPH.....

So, are you buying a 316d next, our do you get lots of track time?

I the US we have some open spaces. I'll get up to 100-120 mph going to visit my sister next weekend driving through some rural spaces in Pennsylvania. I am currently in coastal Spain, with 120 kph limits and random speed traps. The mountain roads around nearby Ronda are magical, but not with young kids in the car.. Maybe next visit.

Marc

[marcva]

Originally Posted by Venom

I remember a while back one of the mods posted something regarding a HP cap of 600. Was that a reference to this special edition BMW, in other words was that for this generation only? Or is that definite for generations to come?

I think it is a philosophical limit as they can reduce weight rather than throwing power at the problem. They're playing with CF and aluminum now and they should be able to build more agile cars that accelerate enough to "crush our spleens." (Bye, Jeremy C.)

[ozbmwnut]

[QUOTE=marcva;18342676]So, are you buying a 316d next, our do you get lots of track time?

No, neither.....
Why did I buy an M5?.. Simply because you are a long time dead.. Even though I may rarely get to utilize its full potential, the driving please is still there, all be it at the pace of a fast moving snail..

[ciprian75]

Originally Posted by SteveC

German Autobahns now carry a lot of traffic from Eastern Europe without the same lane discipline. Personally I would never close up at high speed on a group of cars in the middle lane, where a car may move to the outside lane without checking mirrors. There are some MAJOR smashes caused by cars pulling into the path of much faster vehicles

Steve,
I think your commentary about Eastern Europe traffic being somehow less disciplined is a load of rubbish. It does make you look sort of cool on the surface as if you know your stuff but in reality you just come across as ignorant .
I'm not sure which countries you are referring to, or have direct experience with (dash cam videos on YouTube don't count), but I can tell you from experience that driving in Eastern Europe is just as fun and organized as West and South West Europe. I drove through Hungary, Romania, Croatia, Czech Republic and not only they have top notch free ways that would put to shame the California free ways on which I drive on everyday, but they drive properly as well.
These countries have very strict and rigorous driving and knowledge tests and guess what; when they drive they can read and obey all the traffic signs even though the Euro traffic signs have no words under the symbol to explain what it means! And they also know how to drive in roundabouts!
I do admit some of them drive with their winter jackets on which I find very funny to this day! It makes for nice and cozy ride I guess!
On a second note, after Drive went to the $4.99 subscription plan I signed up only to cancel my monthly membership after Chris Harris left. Without Chris Harris, Drive is nothing but an empty vessel going nowhere. These guys are trying to be funny and interesting but they fail miserably because they are just not funny.
One last point. I drove through all the countries in the west, south west, central and most east European ones except the former USSR. They all have road discipline and no one drives in the left lane except to pass or go fast. I can see why Germany gets most of the credit for great driving but fast driving is possible and not frowned upon pretty much everywhere in Europe.

[B-1Pilot]

Originally Posted by RPiM5

This is a few weeks old but I never saw anyone post it before. This makes sense as Chris Harris posted a while back on his Instagram that he drove the 30 Jahr M5 on the Autobahn.

It is also a small showcase of why American driving laws are outdated.

Dave, you know you want to visit Germany again... The Autobahn is calling you.

From a nice jaunt this morning:

[RPiM5]

Originally Posted by B-1Pilot

Dave, you know you want to visit Germany again... The Autobahn is calling you.

From a nice jaunt this morning:

Stop making me jealous!!!

[EdM5]

Originally Posted by ciprian75

Steve,
I think your commentary about Eastern Europe traffic being somehow less disciplined is a load of rubbish. It does make you look sort of cool on the surface as if you know your stuff but in reality you just come across as an ignorant fool.
I'm not sure which countries you are referring to, or have direct experience with (dash cam videos on YouTube don't count), but I can tell you from experience that driving in Eastern Europe is just as fun and organized as West and South West Europe. I drove through Hungary, Romania, Croatia, Czech Republic

Well, living in the Netherlands, working in Germany I can substantiate SteveC's comment. The general feeling here definitely is that road discipline is deteriorating, and that it's probably also related to the influx of eastern european traffic.

Some facts: road user fatalities in most eastern european countries (including Hungary, Croatia, Romania) are twice as high as compared to western europe.

Check the source:

Btw: the German AutoBahn is specifically designed for high speed use (think of slip road design, banking in corners, width of lanes etc). Not so in other european countries. So driving full throttle is much more risky outside D.

[EdM5]

Great vid by the way
Deutschland

[vladberca]

The number of accidents is related to infrastructure and culture.
Awesome vid, thanks for sharing!

[sor]

To be fair, I think a lot of the perceived "incompetence" of American drivers is induced by the law itself. They could learn to handle the freeway like the autobahn if the laws were in place (or out of the way, as it were). For example, it's easy for someone to justify not getting out of your way if they are already going the speed limit or faster, even though it is bad etiquette. The law backs them up. However, without a speed limit suddenly there is no excuse, and only a true dick will not stay out of your way. Additionally, without a speed limit it becomes truly dangerous to hang out in the passing lanes, and people will simply be afraid to do so.

[ciprian75]

Yes, the fatalities are way higher in Eastern Europe because as @vladberca mentioned is due to the mostly outdated road network. As noted by the chart, the accidents are higher in those respective countries and have no relation to the discussion at hand which is about road etiquette.
@EdM5 commentary on "road discipline is deteriorating" is baseless and purely speculative.

[SteveC]

Originally Posted by ciprian75

Yes, the fatalities are way higher in Eastern Europe because as @vladberca mentioned is due to the mostly outdated road network. As noted by the chart, the accidents are higher in those respective countries and have no relation to the discussion at hand which is about road etiquette.
@EdM5 commentary on "road discipline is deteriorating" is baseless and purely speculative.

• Poor outdated road networks
• Poor law enforcement
• Integrity of the driving license system
• Driver training
• Unroadworthy cars and trucks
• Truck drivers driving for too many hours
• Rural drivers not well versed with freeway and city driving
• Alcohol
• Fatigue

Now take these drivers and put them on a German autobahn. They are not used to the speeds that people drive, nor the volume of cars being driven very quickly. Their speed tends to gradually increase until they are driving way faster than they are used to. Due to economic reasons and the laws in their countries related to vehicle testing, their cars may not be well or expertly maintained. Suddenly their braking distance has doubled and the distance they need to check behind has increased dramatically. The laws that govern the use of the road are also sometimes different, for example laws regarding overtaking, Vorfahrtsregeln etc.

In Germany, young drivers are required to complete a certain number of hours with a qualified instructor, including night driving, city driving and time on the autobahn. This is not the case in all countries and was certainly not the case before EU accession, when many older East Europeans obtained their drivers license.
I have driven more than half a million kilometres on German autobahns and extensively in the New Member States of Eastern Europe. Driving German autobahns has a very different quality than roads in other countries, based simply on the speed differentials you can encounter and the volume of very fast moving traffic.

In summary, its nothing to do with etiquette per se. Its to do with practice and ability. If you're used to driving mainly rural roads in Romania or Bulgaria for example, you're likely to find your first experience on the A5 Bundesautobahn pretty intimidating.

BTW, you mention roundabouts. The UK is roundabout HQ, so the average driver in the UK is pretty expert at negotiating something as common as traffic lights. However, if they apply what they've learned to German roundabouts (Left Hand Drive aside), they're likely to have an accident....a perfect example that skills learned in one country may not be applicable in another. I now live in the UK. Whenever I visit Germany there's a period of adjustment and a certain rhythm required for driving the Autobahn, at least for driving it well.