"Bryan doesn't drive a 1M" (bryantakespictures)
03/29/2016 at 10:52 • Filed to: None
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"Bryan doesn't drive a 1M" (bryantakespictures)
03/29/2016 at 10:52 • Filed to: None | 1
| 23 |
I’m from the US and will be renting a car in Germany in a couple months. Any pitfalls I should watch out for? It’s my first time renting a car in a foreign country/continent.
BmanUltima's car still hasn't been fixed yet, he'll get on it tomorrow, honest.
> Bryan doesn't drive a 1M
03/29/2016 at 11:08 |
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Get something smaller. Especially if you’re planning on visiting medieval era establishments.
Opposite Locksmith
> Bryan doesn't drive a 1M
03/29/2016 at 11:11 |
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Just buy an m3
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Bryan doesn't drive a 1M
> BmanUltima's car still hasn't been fixed yet, he'll get on it tomorrow, honest.
03/29/2016 at 11:17 |
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Good point. So... the Isetta should be small enough, right? For 3 people?
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Bryan doesn't drive a 1M
> Opposite Locksmith
03/29/2016 at 11:17 |
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Don’t tempt me
Honeybunchesofgoats
> Bryan doesn't drive a 1M
03/29/2016 at 11:18 |
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1) Check if your credit card offers complimentary collision. 2) Make sure Germany isn’t excluded. 3) rent a manual, because that's the best part of renting a car in Europe.
My citroen won't start
> Bryan doesn't drive a 1M
03/29/2016 at 11:23 |
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First time driving in germany you will either get a ticket or make a few germans angry and late on the autobahn.
Go for diesels if you are renting a normal car.
If driving in Switzerland add around 20 kph to the speed limit.
Parking in most hotels is going to be a pain.
If you want to use the restroom on the road have some coins in hand
Most Herz car rentals have real-time traffic information with the infotainment thing, not sure about the others.
Cé hé sin
> Bryan doesn't drive a 1M
03/29/2016 at 11:34 |
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Book in advance through a broker. Cars are manual unless specifically stated otherwise.
Most Autobahnen have speed limits (yes, sad but true).
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Cé hé sin
> Honeybunchesofgoats
03/29/2016 at 11:35 |
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I doubt if you can easily hire a car without insurance, if that’s what you mean.
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Bryan doesn't drive a 1M
> Honeybunchesofgoats
03/29/2016 at 11:43 |
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#3 was obvious, but I’ll check my credit card.
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Bryan doesn't drive a 1M
> My citroen won't start
03/29/2016 at 11:57 |
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Thanks!
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Honeybunchesofgoats
> Cé hé sin
03/29/2016 at 12:03 |
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A lot of credit card companies (Amex for sure) cover loss and collision if you pay for the booking on your card. You just waive the optional coverage at the rental desk.
https://www.americanexpress.com/us/content/car…
ly2v8-Brian
> Bryan doesn't drive a 1M
03/29/2016 at 12:13 |
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Look for the word Mietwagen or a combination of Miet and Wagen on a sign. These words mean rental car. There will likely be English of course but these will be in bigger letters.
Mercedes Streeter
> Bryan doesn't drive a 1M
03/29/2016 at 12:14 |
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Rent a new smart forfour if you can. I’ll be your BFF for a lifetime.
fourvalleys
> My citroen won't start
03/29/2016 at 12:17 |
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I followed these (except the restroom part). I rented through Sixt and paid for a Scirocco/GT86. They only had an Audi TT (nah) so I ended up with a 320d estate. Phenomenal rental car, and not at all limited to 200km/h like they said. Every option except leather. Navigation, parking sensors, 4G hotspot, HUD, etc. Just exceptional.
Also, speed cameras are the real deal. I got caught for 86km/h in an 80km/h interchange. In other words, 53mph in a 50mph zone. It happens.
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Cé hé sin
> Honeybunchesofgoats
03/29/2016 at 12:40 |
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Oh, that’s CDW. You’ll be paying for the actual insurance.
As it happens, I recently booked a car for Italy and CDW was included with no option for removing it. There is an excess though so maybe some credit cards will cover that. Not mine though...
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Bryan doesn't drive a 1M
> fourvalleys
03/29/2016 at 12:56 |
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wow, that’s strict. Although, I wouldn’t expect any less from ze Germans.
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Bryan doesn't drive a 1M
> Mercedes Streeter
03/29/2016 at 13:10 |
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Too small for 3 people and their bags, I think. I do want to rent one for just my wife and I sometime, though.
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Mercedes Streeter
> Bryan doesn't drive a 1M
03/29/2016 at 13:16 |
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You won’t find them in the USA...Mercedes-Benz doesn’t ever plan on satisfying our wants for a four door smart. So your only chance is when you’re out there!
Also, you may even see a crossblade...which makes me...omg
That said, I heard the new forfour has a decent amount of room for four people. Boot space depends entirely on how much you plan on carrying. lol
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Bryan doesn't drive a 1M
> Mercedes Streeter
03/29/2016 at 13:19 |
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Just googled Crossblade and now I want one.
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Mercedes Streeter
> Bryan doesn't drive a 1M
03/29/2016 at 13:43 |
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They’re incredibly valuable. A 0 mile (how, I’m not even sure) smart crossblade recently went for $40k in Mexico.
The cool thing is that their interiors are waterproof, so you can even drive in the rain. Mercedes demonstrated it by putting one through an automatic car wash.
Scott
> Bryan doesn't drive a 1M
03/29/2016 at 14:19 |
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Being an Opponaut, I assume you know how to drive a manual... if by some chance you do not, LEARN. It is difficult, near impossible to get an
automatic rental car in Germany. If you want to save some money, rent from a dealership. Pretty much all dealerships have a rental office and you do not need to be a customer. The dealerships tend to rent at lower rates than rental car companies. The down side is that you’ll be driving a car with the dealers name on it in big letters. But if saving money is a priority it can be worth it.
Speed limit signs. most places in the US, although NY and some others are more like Europe have 1 speed limit, generally 25 unless posted otherwise. In Europe you have a speed limit in city’s and towns, Rural road speed limits, and autobahn speed limits. In Germany, if I remember my German Drivers Ed correctly towns are 50kmh, Rural roads are 100kmh, and autobahn is recommended 130kmh. (blue signs are a recommendation, so if you see a blue speed limit sign, it is a recommendation, not the law) If you leave Germany, when you enter another country they will post the 3 speed limits at the border, be sure to watch for it. That might be a bit confusing, so what all this means is that when you are driving on a country road unless posted other wise the speed limit is 100kmh. When you suddenly see a yellow sign telling you, you are entering a town... the speed limit just changed from 100kmh to 50kmh. Often they will post a speed limit sign a short distance down the road, but not always, so realize that town name sign, is also a speed limit sign. Conversely when you see the yellow sign with a red slash through the name of the town you just left, the speed limit just went from 50kmh to 100kmh. While they often remind people of the towns speed limit when they enter the town, they are less likely to tell you the speed limit just increase when you leave. If you are driving on a road that has a speed limit posted, say 80kmh on a rural road, and you see a gray speed limit sign with 3 slashes, that means the previous posted speed limit is no longer in effect, you can go back to 100kmh. You may also see a round blank sign with 3 gray slashes, more common on the autobahn, but some times on lesser roads. This means all previous restrictions are lifted. The common one on the autobahn is a speed limit of say 100kmh and no passing for trucks. This means trucks can now pass, and the speed limit is a recommended 130kmh
Police. As an American you might see a marked Police car, and be used to a raised pulse and watch him closely in your mirrors. No need, while a marked police car could ticket you, it would be very rare. Tickets need documented proof, not just the officers word. Most the marked police cars do not have the cameras they need for this. However you may be following an ordinary looking car and suddenly see in red letter STOP POLIZEI. Your getting pulled over. But don’t panic, the police in Europe are wonderfully friendly and not at all confrontational. Most likely you will not even see that as it is rare. The most common is a camera box, or a van along side the road, and you will have your picture taken, and get a ticket in the mail sometime later. If by some unlikely chance you are pulled over don’t sit in the car waiting for them. They will wonder if you are in need of medical help. Go ahead and get out of the car and go back to see them. Most likely once they discover you are an American they will either say it was a random stop, or they will show you a video of what you did wrong and let you go. The paper work to ticket an American is too much trouble unless you really did something terrible.
Misc. Keep right except to pass on the autobahn. Nothing will show you out as a foreigner more than that. More importantly though... DO NOT pass on the right, especially true on the autobahn. Flashing your headlights to clear traffic is illegal, although you will often see Germans doing it. Also on the autobahn, if you see hazard lights, it means traffic is coming to an abrupt stop, or crawl, slow down and return the favor by turning on your hazard lights. When a lane ends, don’t merge right away, wait until the lane is actually ending and do a zipper merge. This is how Germans are taught, it works fantastically when everyone does it correctly. FOG lights are for... well FOG. Do not turn them on if there is no... you know FOG (Nebel). Driving with fog lights on when there is no fog, is seen to be as rude as driving with your highbeams on. And Germans do have road rage just like here, but unlike here this will piss them off. Yellow diamond shaped signs at intersections mean you have right of way. I wish we did that here. Not as important as a foreigner, but don’t jay walk. For Germans this is a traffic violation, and they get points on their license for this, even though they are not driving a car.
Keep in mind, most Americans, even most people here on Oppo, could not pass a German driving test without a lot more instruction. The process requires passing a first aid test, that includes first aid for help an injured motorcyclist, CPR, and many other types of first aid you might need to perform at an accident. Taking an extensive written test, that is a real test. I failed mine several times and had been driving for over 15 years. Next they have to have a certain number of hours driving with an instructor, in city traffic, on rural roads, on the autobahn, during day time and night time. Also they may go to special courses to practice things away from traffic. The practical test is much stricter, if they make even a minor error they fail. Couple that with the German culture of doing things the right way or not at all and you’ll understand why foreign drivers, especially American drivers can upset German drivers.
Lastly, on the autobahn, especially areas with no speed limit. If you see a truck in traffic and it has Polish plates. slow down, I can guarantee you it will pull out right in front of you with no regards to the fact you are going more than twice his speed or more. Ohh that reminds me of the lest thing, yield to buses. City busses have right of way when pulling out into traffic, and the bus drivers generally use this to their extreme advantage. So if that bus at the curb turns on his signal to pull out, he will pull out pretty much immediately regardless of how inconvenient this may be for you.
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Scott
> Scott
03/29/2016 at 14:38 |
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some how this got cut out of the post so re-typed it
Traffic lights. when you approach a traffic light, some distance prior to the light you will see a line across the middle of the lane. This line means if you are behind it when the light turns yellow you must stop before the intersection. If you are beyond it you may go ahead and enter the intersection. I wish we did that in the US. They do still have the line like we do AT the intersection that you need to stay behind once you stop. I recommend stay back from this line, you will learn quickly why. Other wise find a masseuse. The traffic lights in Germany are on your side of the intersection, but unlike France they don’t typically have a smaller one lower down on the pole. This means you’ll be craning your neck to see when the light changes. Yellow is still yellow, but do not confuse it with red & yellow. Red and Yellow means the light is about to turn green, so get your car in gear and be ready to go. There is generally no Right on red. The exception is if there is a sign with a green right arrow, then right on red is allowed.
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Bryan doesn't drive a 1M
> Scott
03/29/2016 at 15:12 |
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Thanks, that was all useful. I have no doubt the first day or two will be nerve-wracking.