Driving in France - Tips?
 

Apart from driving on the right :iamwithst
Going in the summer - anything I need to know?

Dont have a radar detector in the car as they are illegal there.
Heard a few horror stories of English being pulled and the police making them drive over their detector and then demanding a fine.
If haven't got the cash for the fine they will drive you to a cash point to get it.
Dont speed too much between the toll booths as you are timed between the two and the tool booth operator can easily pass ypur ticket to the waiting police.
Variable speed limit on motorways (cant remeber what they are) for good weather and raining
Other than that enjoy the roads - they are so much better than the english motorways
Richard

And Remember in france, they drive on the wrong side of the road. :D

Fill up at garage on your side of the road to avoid you going into auto mode and driving out of garage on wrong side of road.

watch the tits on the ferry smacking their car doors into ur scoob apart from that had no probs on the roads went as fast as i wanted no harrasment at all. couldnt find any 98 ron over there though

....err it's available obsolutely every where......even at the most secluded petrol station :confused:

Its fantastic, driving over there.
fast flowing, smooth roads, motorway users who know what lane discipline is etc etc.

As for tips, as someone said above, pay attention pulling out of car parks and petrol stations etc as you instinct steers you onto the left side of the road. Its an easy mistake to make, especially if you are tired.

As for speeding, Ive done the length of the country a few times and only ever seen 1 speed-trap (radar gun type) I didnt see it till I was upon it and sailed through at about 20mph over the limit without any problem. I was once stopped at a random checkpoint and breathalysed though, but the cops were polite enough.

Also, when going into the petrol stations, slow down a fair bit, I found a hell of a lot of them have quite a deep channel round the forecourt which is a sore one on the suspension if you hit it at any speed.

well i didnt see any signs stating 98 ron en france

Went a few years ago (when I was a wee lad), got lost haflway down the country, stepdad just said

"if we can find this sortie place they keep signposting we can work out where we are..."

Drive on the right, and keep telling yourself or get a passenger to keep reminding you until it becomes more natural.

We drive down to the south using the main motorways, but on the way back up we took what I would guess are their A road equiv and it was a lot more fun and no toll booths (not sure what it's like now).

We are doing it all again in July so I'll get a go over there, although not looking forward to it after an "incident" with a hire car on holiday last year :)

Motorways - great fun, people don't hogg the outside lane. If you turn your lights on they just move out of your way :-) Drove to Monaco and back last year very fast....

Twisty roads also good fun, although overtaking without some one in the passenger seat (to tell you that you are clear) can sometimes be difficult.

Plenty of threads on here about driving in my neck of the woods :) Try searching for "France" and "gendarmes" and you should get the info you need.

98 ron, Super, Super Plus whatever you want to call it...available everywhere.

Auto-routes are a blast - you'll never forgive the stat of English roads afterwards. Watch your lane discipline - and dont hold people up (no matter what speed you're doing move over smartly when you can). 98 available everywhere I've ever needed it.

I think the the being timed between tolls is overhyped - even on Le Mans trips I havent seen/heard anyone whos been done 1st hand that way (though everyone's knows a friend of a friend who has been done apparently).

130kmh (~80mph) for Dry 110kmh (~65mph) when wet!


Its actually unusual for them to time you between toll booths on the Autoroute, although it does happen. More common is for them to have an unmarked car on the hard shoulder about 1km before a toll, they then stop you when you arrive at the toll.

If you're in Paris, and on a roundabout, you have to stop mid way round, and give way to let someone else on the roundabout - in theory its true elsewhere, but they have a sign which means dont bother with this rule, Paris is the only place in 3000 miles I saw it used......

Take care if someone flashes you. It means they are coming through, unlike here when it can mean you go.
Nearly caught me out once on a rural crossroads.
As others have said, lovely roads in good nick and they build new roads!

Run as many French over as possible :thumb:

stay off the tolls road - you see nothing. Try and get your paws on an IRL sticker instead of a GB one. Got pulled doing 130 on a bike once - guy said "Are you English?" I said "I'm Irish" He checked the sticker and said "Nice bike - go easy"

First thing I drive probably 6-7k miles in france and belgium a year, Most of the french police i have meet have been great, as long as you are not doing anything to stupid they dont even bat an eyelid.

here are some tips.

If you plan to drive at night get the headlight convertors. (do not if you have hids sticky melted plastic YUK). Buy them at halfords before you go or on the ferry itself, do not buy them from the shops at the terminal they charge double.

I normally dont drive at night over there so dont bother getting them.

There are a growing number of speed camera's in france, see 3 or 4 new ones every time i go. been flashed once, never heard anything about it.

No radar / laser detectors or jammers allowed. I have used my roadangel and been asked what it was twice. But I use it for the gps sat nav with my pda and can prove this to the policeman, but im also recording every french speed camera I pass as well :).

The speed limits are 110 wet 130 dry on the motorway, the steady cruise is around 150 160kmh, what the french seem to average at. allthough french people in mercs seem to think they are allowed to do 200+ everywhere. I have never been pulled for doing 160 or less, been overtaken by police at that speed. and passed parked up police cars. I have been pulled for going faster and just questioned told to keep at a lower speed and that was it, still not a nice experience

DO NOT SPEED IN TOWNS AND VILLAGES. the local police will pull you and drag you down the local plod shop, unlike the traffic police.

I have been told by locals being caught speeding on the toll roads is an urban myth. But as a precaution i always use the automated credit card booths, as on a big trip you normally dont get charged a couple of tolls, and you dont risk the timed speeding calculation.

oh and the petrol prices are very experince of the tolls and motorways, if you pull off into towns it isnormally a lot cheaper. Same at the tunnel / ports petrol is always expensive.

Whilst the roads are excellent in the dry, watch them in the wet as they are slippery as f~~k. Spent a whole weekend last year fighting to keep my MK2 escy on the roads without fishtailing it off, and that was in sensible driving mode!

Further to what David has said; try to avoid driving whilst tired and be especially careful when pulling out of junctions as this is when youre most likely to pull into the left hand lane.

Simon (did that.....)

I have just returned from a year in France and found the roads superb.

Watch out for mad french county bumpkins though and check your mirrors constantly. They WILL overtake you on blind bends, they WILL ignore road markings, and if you have an accident they WILL blame you.

Be careful in towns as there is a rule that if the junction is unmarked, ie no give way or lines on the road, then the person coming from the right has priority. Have been caught out with that a few times.

The gendarmes are generally not bothered what you do, cos they cant be arsed with the paperwork. I would advise using a radar detector over there cos they are very crafty and hide behind hedges, completely out of sight. But make sure you can remove it quickly in case you get pulled. I drove round with mine on the windscreen without any problems. They only dont like it if they stop you and its blatantly there.

Also if, when travelling on N-roads the oncoming traffic is flashing their lights, it usually means the feds are out with a laser further on. Always slow down, its usually a radar trap. Oh and btw, speed limit on N-roads is 90kph not 110kph as most people think.

Do slow down to the speed limit in villages as well. Take nothing for granted, the french have a nasty habit of surprising you. They appear to think that cars should give way to pedestrians.

Most of all, if you do nothing else, have a great time and when you can get your foot down. We speed tested our wagon on the autoroute and got it up to 160mph without anyone batting an eyelid. A useful tip, if your going to try it - put radar detector on definately and stop at a service station for 15mins for a coffee to bugger up the timing between peage's. It will lower your average speed(for obvious reasons).

Hope this helps :)

Ummm.... I think maybe you should have put a smiley on that sentence. It's what's supposed to happen over here too.

J.

Not when you are driving along at 40 and someone steps out 10 ft in front of you and expects you to stop on a sixpence. They think that god will protect them! Roads are for driving on and pavements are for walking on :) The elderley are particularly prone to this.
S

- It's a LEGAL requirement to carry a spare set of light bulbs and a warning triangle.
- Without a green card from your insurance company you may only be covered 3rd party, best to phone them and check.

:)

I'm Steffiraf's other half so been with her in France for the last year.

I'm afraid that the days have gone when you could go to France and drive as if there were no speed limits.The main roads (N Roads) are littered with Gendarmes with laser.There is no warning,no signs and they do it from concealed locations.
Radar detectors are illegal and you will get your car confiscated if you are caught using one.
However the D roads which are smaller than the N roads still offer some great driving opportunities,good surfaces and the Gendarmes seem to stay away from them.
Autoroutes are a lottery because there may be blanket radar checks on a lot of them from concealed locations and you get done at the next peage station where a team of Gendarmes wait.
Fines are on the spot and hefty,100 Euros for every 10kph over the speed limit as a general rule.
Carry all your driving docs too and some ID.

Paul.