Driving in Germany

[thegermantruth]

While chatting with an old friend the other day about my stay in Germany I was asked “Isn’t it weird driving on the left side of the road all the time?” Trying not to laugh I informed him that it is not weird because I do not drive on the left side of the road. This inspired me to right this article and hopefully shed some light on the ‘Basics’ of driving in Germany.

I will start off with some ‘common sense’ information like your drivers license. Of course if you are not a German citizen your drivers license may not authorize you to drive in Germany. You will need to contact your local license branch (BMV) and find out the steps you need to take to receive an international drivers license. I have not personally done this because I have a European military drivers license but from what I have heard it is not too hard to do or terribly costly.

Next of course is having a car to drive when you arrive in Germany. This is pretty obvious. Coordinate with any INTERNATIONAL car rental service and they can have a car ready and waiting for you at your arrival city. Another option is to rent the car in Germany, which is a pretty easy process as well. Most service representatives speak English and will be happy to help you out.

Now you will need to know the ‘meat and potatoes’ of driving in Germany, the traffic laws. If you are an American, or have driven in the U.S., you will find that driving in Germany is not much different. Without telling you every single travel law written in Germany, I will try to shed some light on some of the major differences:

Traffic lights: When pulling up to a traffic light you will notice that unlike the U.S. traffic lights which go from green to yellow to red and then directly back to green, German traffic lights will go from red to yellow and then green. This is nothing to worry about. I guess they just want to make sure you have it in gear and your ready to take off. The second thing, but extremely more important, is the ‘right on red’ rule we have in the U.S. This rule DOES NOT EXIST in Germany. If you try to make a right turn when the traffic light is red you may find yourself in a lot of pain and in a major lawsuit.

Autobahn: If you are thinking that the autobahn is the paradise for people with a lead foot you may end up with a speeding ticket. Although there are some stretches of the autobahn that have no speed limit there is a recommended speed limit of 120 kilometers per hour that you should obey. Granted, most do exceed this speed recommendation but now you know you CAN be ticketed.

Accidents: If you are the first on the seen of an accident in which someone has been injured you are required by law to provide assistance. Whether you simply stop and call an ambulance (112) not (911), or you provide medical aid, you must do something to help the casualty.

Where is Ausfhart Germany? No Ausfhart is not a city that seems to pop up everywhere you go. Ausfhart is the German word for exit.

[Andy]

Interesting post, thanks.

I drove in Germany with no problems. However I found the Autobahn an intimidating place with high velocity Mercs charging at me whenever I pulled out to overtake. I prefered driving in Europe to the UK where I am from since there is less traffic and people get out of your way if you want to make swift progress.

[thegermantruth]

Thanks, well the autobahn can be intimidating but for the most part its not so bad. As long as you stay alert its not bad at all.

[Hope]

When I moved to Germany, I had only had my drivers license for 4 months. It was extremely intimidating for a 19 year old who just started driving. I would love to go back now and try it.

[thegermantruth]

lol im sure it was at that age, i am sure if you tried it now you would enjoy it much more. I moved to Germany about 4 years ago and have enjoyed the autobhan ever since. 

[Hope]

I love driving fast and my speeding tickets are proof of it. The country is beautiful and a lot of fun to visit.

Where did you move from and why?

[thegermantruth]

I love it too, no speeding tickets here but I usually get one or two when I go back to the states. I come from southern Indiana and was stationed in Germany with the Army in 2002. Ive been here my whole career.

[Hope]

What part of the country are you located?

[Andy]

What car is best to drive on the Autobahn?

BMW M series - I just need to know which tuning company to use, it's so confusing  I'm erring towards Brabus 

Porsche 911 Turbo - now I have 2 contacts with these vehicles so I can get some idea about why they are popular. The pink one is an issue/concern  though. I used to like the 928 but as a passenger it's a bad idea apart from the G that you pull in turns 

Mercedes CLK? can't think which merc is best sports car. Most people I know who had experience of Mercs wanted something else like a Jaguar (Xj6 4.0 Sport) like I used to own or a Toyota Crown which is exclusive to Japan.

Ferarri - I need one of these but I thought I kicked the habit of impractical vehicles 

Bugatti - I like the idea of 1000bhp (should make for relaxed high speed cruising)

Lambo - the doors are nice until somebody dents them in the shopping mall carpark.

  I just wonder since I want to make the right choice at Hertz/Avis when I rent a car whilst visiting Germany 

My basic needs are: easy overtaking and lane-changing so I don't hold up anybody in the fast lane. I also need powerful brakes to avoid slamming into caravans and small fiats etc along the way. I am a bit rusty with manual gear change now so maybe I should go for the tiptronic route  I'm really confused, please help.

[Hope]

I know there was a cart rental place near Augsburg that would allow military members to rent sports cars for the autobahn. The most popular was the lambo. It cost $300 for 5 hours. They would save up and go far too fast.

[thegermantruth]

I am in Babenhausen Hessen, near Frankfurt.

[Andy]

I would pay $300 for 5 hours in a Diablo or the mercylessagro or whatever it's called. My friend is going to let me drive his Ruf Porshe 911. But he doesn't know about my rehabilitation I am going through for speed addiction on bikes    Oh how I miss the stoppies and wheelies