Peter L

Am planning to drive down to Italy later on this year in my new STi8 (when I get it ).

Does anyone have any experience of this and can advise of the best route (straight through France, or via Germany and the mountains?) or any general advice?

Cheers
Peter

[Edited by Peter L - 1/14/2003 6:08:00 PM]

Brun

Get a bank loan for the fuel.

bigbigjohn

Go via Germany you will be able to go faster and have more fun . Also if you speed on the French motorways they charge you extra when you come to pay the toll

scooby-si

Also if you speed on the French motorways they charge you extra when you come to pay the toll ???????

never did this when i was driving my wagon over there

go over mount blanc m8 its the dogs b0llocks m8

stewart_mcg

Alright mate?

I'm driving down there on honeymoon in a few weeks. We're going through Holland, Germany, Austria (through the Brennero pass or something which is meant to be a really cool drive) and then finally onto Italy. I am planning to drive the Stelvio Pass when there. Do a search on google or something to see it - now that's a road. Where abouts are you going?

Stewart

Brun

Don't sit at 140mph + cos ya engine might let go.

Suresh

stewart_mcg - if you're driving south in only a few weeks you'll find most of the mountain passes closed for the winter season. Make sure you check first.

Suresh

P.S. Congratulations!

scoobieblue

dont bother
italy is such a ****e place
andy

Stuart J

Went to Imola last year on the Cannonball, Best route if you want a great drive is to head for through France to Nice, then a10 to Genova, Stunning.Some nice long tunnels so get the exhaust mod done before you go.

Drove through France at night with a load of Ferraries, Astons etc, some averaged 175 between toll booths & no fines so I think its a myth but dont quote me on it.
Italian fuel is generally 95 but higher can be found, If your worried I am sure Shell can give you a list of their garages carrying the higher octane stuff. Cary some Octane booster just in case.
French police are rumoured to take your licence away on the spot if you are naughty & without it technically you cant drive so get a spare (apply to the dvlc saying you have lost yours)

The RAC site is good for sorting out anything you have to take as they have a page for each country (spare bulbs, tow rope. Fire extinguisher, first aid kit etc, each country has different requirements & I am not sure of Italys.
I found Italian Scoob dealers very helpful & had no problems doing work on a Jap Import "IM TAKE NOTE"

Lastly Ignore all the meaningless comments from the usual Scoobynet Oiks, most of them are simply jealous, Go & enjoy yourself

stuart



[Edited by Stuart J - 1/14/2003 7:51:19 PM]

STi-Frenchie

The above is utter bollocks.

If you go 50kmph over the limit (the limit being 130km/h in the dry, 110 in the rain) and *get caught* expect to be hung, drawn and quartered. The gendarmes really will throw the book at you. For French nationals, it means an on-the-spot removal of their driving licence plus the usual court case etc.

You should be able to do a ton (160km/h = 100 mph) with relatively few worries - watch out for speed traps on the bridges. They rarely use speed traps when you are going uphill and I've done 220+ km/h on the uphills, easy. Not that I would condone doing it of course but one does like a little blat now and then

I've only driven into Italy a couple of times - once in an Audi and the other time in a rented Golf. The Italians are mad. The French don't believe in using indicators, the Italians don't believe in heeding STOP signs - ever. Motorways in Italy are just as good as in France. Not knowing the lay of the land so to speak, I took it easy in Italy. Perhaps some of our Italian visitors can brief you on what to watch out for.

Hope this helps !

[Edited by STi-Frenchie - 1/14/2003 7:53:12 PM]

R.B

Make sure your horn works

scooby-si

French police are rumoured to take your licence away on the spot if you are naughty & without it technically you cant drive so get a spare

go to post office and get an international driving licence and give them that and this does work and u keep yours

Stuart J

Re fines for speeding in France, a mate got pulled about 12 months ago in a BMW M5 at 140 mph (skis on the roof rack, late for the ferry etc etc), licence taken (has heard nothimg since) & £500 on the spot fine, had to be escorted to a hole in the wall with his mates to get the dosh.
Seems heavy but think, no pixie points on the licence & therefore no effect on Insurance premium.
What would you get for 140 in the UK, possibly Jail, No licence for at least 12 months & an enormous fine.

Word of warning, Radar detectors are illegal in France (dont know about Italy) so always remove it when parked & just before the toll booths, French police tend to hang around these checking cars. The fine if caught is I believe £400 & they will destroy your radar detector before your very eyes, normally by stamping on it but I have heard of one person who was made to drive over his own Radar detector.

BMWhere?

Depends where you want to go in Italy?

I can seriously recommend the Gt. St. Bernard Pass (SW Switzerland towards Turin) or even better the St. Bernadino pass (SE Switzerland [Chur -> Lugano]). Avoid the Gottard pass - its like a motorway!

German Autobahns can be great fun for legal high speeds, but watch out for idiots pulling out in front of you at 60mph! Autobahns can be very busy [=slow] during the day - particularly the A5!

Good tip in France is to stop for petrol between each toll station to keep your average speed down (pretty much required in a scoob anyway).

Watch out for police on the Swiss motorways - they tend to hide around tunnels in particular - I got nicked doing around 100mph and it cost me 500CHF (£200) [they take credit card!]. Another 4kmh and they would have impounded my can and banned me for life from driving in Switzerland!

worley

Try this Looks like someone has beat you to it!

Toerag

I did 4500 miles in europe last summer, and 4000 2 years ago so I should know! Quickest way is via Germany and the Brenner pass in austria, you'll need to get a 'vignette' sticker as you enter Austria to use the motorway, it was about a tenner if I remember correctly.
Being timed between toll booths? Bollocks! Never saw any police on french roads either time.
Italy - avoid 'A & B' type roads unless you want to get stuck behind trucks. Autoroutes are way better. Signage is worse that france, but better than germany as you don't have to get within 5 yards of a sign before you can read it!
Autobahns - not all they're cracked up to be, the scenery was trees, forests, woods, and more trees, the road surface was worn out and you really have to keep an eye on your mirrors due to people coming up the fast lane _really_ quick.
Mountain passes in the dolomites are ace, Eg. Sella pass etc. 30 hairpins up one side, and 23 down the other! Had the turbo glowing cherry-red on my forester there!
The autoroute from italy to france along the med is awesome, loads of tunnels joined by bridges overlooking the sea!
Fuel - no real problems, just be wary of garages being shut on sundays and the 'credit card' type pumps not accepting your card. There seemed to be no pattern as to what cards were/weren't accepted, I used visa & mastercard credit cards and a visa/delta debit card.
No matter where you are it's always ***** in mercs, BMWs and golf TDis in the fast lane.

The Blade

Agree with STi-Frenchie, french police are a lot more tolerant of speeders. I was stopped 6 weeks ago coming back from the UK doing 180km/h. Monsieur Gendarme politely directed me towards the nearest cashpoint to extract 90 Euros whilst he held my licence hostage.

As mentioned all the mountain passes are shut until 1st June generally so that limits you to around 5 routes. South of France via Nice/Monaco towards Genoa is a good fast route. Next is the Mont Blanc tunnel, or via Switzerland & the Gotthard Tunnel. Finally through Germany & Austria & the Brenner Pass. I have probably missed a couple but I'm sure someone will remind me.
It really depends on which part of Italy you are heading for.

Would recommend you head back in the summer and check out some of the mountain passes though.

Rob

SiPie

Drive like a looney and eat pasta

albob

The Brenner pass was open on saturday - but it was
minus 16!!! Just a little bit nippy

alan

BMWhere?

These pics were taken on June 3rd 2001 on top of St Bernard Pass the buildings in the background are the Italian Border



There are two more tunnel routes that The Blade missed out...
1) St Bernard tunnel is between Mont Blanc and Gottard (The Pass is in the pictures!)
2) St Bernadino is between Gottard and Brenner

STi-Frenchie

I have to second BMWhere? - The St Bernadino pass in Switzerland is absolutely, totally, *awesome* around autumn time (which is when I did it a couple of years ago going down and back to Como). Not just for the roads but the scenery is *incredible*.

Autoroutes in Switzerland require you to have a vignette (40 Swiss francs) which you can get at the border.

Quick word about Geneva (should you be passing through and why not, it's a lovely place!) - if you get nabbed doing 50km/h over the limit in and around the Geneva area, expect to spend the evening in prison. Seriously. Court appearance is the next morning or on the Monday following the weekend. Also, beware the BMW M5 with Zurich plates up yer back end...it's the cops "encouraging" you to go over the speed limit.

As The Blade said - South of France, Nice/Monaco direction is a great drive and nice weather for it too. I'd be inclined to get off the autoroute and check out the twisties - good quality roads just made for a scoob!

Caronte

Hi ,
I live in London and I'm Italian. I did the travel probably 20 times.

There isn't a best route.
The shortest depends on where you have to go:
If you plan to go to the north east then it is worth doing germany and switzerland ( however germany is very short mileage whereas Swisse is the entire lenght, and you can't speed because they CATCH you+ you have to pay £25-30 for their annual motorway tax).
If you go to milan genoa or south, the best way is to go to Reims , Lyon, Geneve, Mt. Bianco, Aosta, Santhia', ecc).
France is a little expensive especially when you get closer to the mt Bianco. But the motorways are always empty and you can go as fast as you want (in 5 years I found 1 mobile camera).
If you plan to do some passes then go to Germany but at this time in the winter they're all closed.

A good time to go to milan is 11 hrs, but you can take up to 15.

If you go through milan (or even more important in the south) remember not to stop if somebody hits you from behind at a traffic lights or tells you that you have a flat tyre or an open door!

Tell me if you need any other dubt to be clarified.

Andrea

Caronte

PS.

In Italy we have 95ron.

Only Shell sell V-Power 99ron (but they are VERY rare).

Better buy some bottles of octan booster if you can't find a Shell

Mad 1

I got stopped for speeding in France last year going to the French GP.Licence confiscated and 135 Euro fine.If you exceed the speed limit by 40kph your banned.Get your passenger to take their licence just in case!
Austrian police are worse than ours for speed enforcement,they give very little leeway and are on the spot fines.
99 octane available from Shell stations only in Italy but few and far between.

Much prefer driving on the continent,but be aware their Police are becoming more strict.Enjoy

HCMH

Just driven from the London to Asolo (Near Venice). Left Monday at 2am, arrived here on Tuesday pm and was the worst drive of my life!!!! I have done it in the summer and it was one of the best drives so it just depends on the weather. I was unfortunate and had thick snow on the motorways from Brussles to Munich (Could not go over 50km/h - tyres were like slicks!!). I spent most of the journey going sideways with lorries passing my bonnet at well over 100ks - very scary. Spent the night in Munich and fortunately the sun came out the next day and melted the snow ready for the Brenner pass - awesome!

If the weather is good I would recommend the following route - Calais to Brussles to Luxembourg to Karlsruhe to Stuttgart and then the fun bit. Don't go to Innsbruck via Munich but instead take the route that goes South (not sure what it's called) directly over the mountains to Innsbruck...the most amazing road and has track like road surface - fantastic. Then go directly south over the Brenner pass - motorway but spectacular with very fast sweeping turns and not busy either. This route is very direct and the total road tolls you'll pay are approximately £10.00, plus lots of fuel stations along the way. Hope this helps

HH

Peter L

Thanks for all the advice!

I am actually planning on going in June, so the various passes should be open. Now to get the maps out and do the route - maybe coming back a different way. Current thinking is to go to Tuscany.

Looks like I will need Octane booster for the fuel out there - all I need to do is wait for the car to arrive!

Cheers
Peter

Toerag

You could still be caught out on passes in june, even though it's hot 'n' sunny the snow can linger. I guess the AA/RAC websites could help you?

Group Captain Smudger

Went down thru Colmar, south east France and then it's a relatively short hop to Italy. Did Germany on the way back and was surprised how crappy their roads were (and their driving). Remember the Italians have just got to overtake you whatever you're driving and they'll attempt to do so even if their turn-off is 100 yards ahead (got done by a Fiat Panda up a mountain pass - ouch - but in my defence I was driving a rather ponderous Rover Sterling). But they drive with flair so just join in and have fun. Try and get one of those popular t-shirts with the black diagonal stripe across the chest - they wear these in preference to a seat belt!

Avanti.

Pete Croney

Another vote for the road into Italy from Nice

Toerag

Allegedly Italian driving badness increases exponentially the further south that you go! Oh, and avoid the seafront/coast road east from Genoa on nice sunday evenings as all the city dwellers are returning from the beach on their mopeds in the middle of the road!
Remember, if you're in the mountains your average speed will really drop once you get off the motorways, so take that into account in your route planning. We went from St. Wendel (Rally Germany) to Canazei (Dolomites) in one long day via Karlsruhe, Brenner pass, Bolzano etc. Using the route MS autoroute designed for us.
Also recommended - Val d'Ega gorge between Bolzano and Canazei for not being able to see the sky even looking out your sunroof it's that deep!


[Edited by Toerag - 1/16/2003 2:29:02 PM]