Epic European Delivery Adventure!
05-31-2016, 06:54 PM
#46
Oh, there is one thing I must warn you about- watch out For the eiffel mountains wheter, it could change fast. Please see 24h just a few days ago...see 6min in to film.
It can bee all sunny and blue sky, 1km futher on it can snow or hard rain.
It can bee all sunny and blue sky, 1km futher on it can snow or hard rain.
06-01-2016, 12:24 PM
#49
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I was planning to go the Nürburgring this weekend (or even during the week in the late afternoon) but it has not stop raining for a second. I life in a village by the Mosel river and there has been some floods and ships cannot use the river. However, the Ring is at higher altitude, so floods are not a problem even with heavy rain for days.
So, I may try to re-scheduled for next weekend, 10th, 11th or 12th. The hurry is because I collected a new to me Boxster GTS, 3 weeks ago and it is time to do some laps.
So, I may try to re-scheduled for next weekend, 10th, 11th or 12th. The hurry is because I collected a new to me Boxster GTS, 3 weeks ago and it is time to do some laps.
06-01-2016, 12:28 PM
#50
Race Car
I was planning to go the Nürburgring this weekend (or even during the week in the late afternoon) but it has not stop raining for a second. I life in a village by the Mosel river and there has been some floods and ships cannot use the river. However, the Ring is at higher altitude, so floods are not a problem even with heavy rain for days.
So, I may try to re-scheduled for next weekend, 10th, 11th or 12th. The hurry is because I collected a new to me Boxster GTS, 3 weeks ago and it is time to do some laps.
So, I may try to re-scheduled for next weekend, 10th, 11th or 12th. The hurry is because I collected a new to me Boxster GTS, 3 weeks ago and it is time to do some laps.
Let's hope it will stabilize until then.
06-01-2016, 03:53 PM
#51
Drifting
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Whenever I imagine Spa or Nürburg, I always hear Steve Matchett (Formula 1 TV journo) in my head: "... if it's not raining now, it's about to."
06-01-2016, 05:06 PM
#52
Drifting
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I ate at an Italian restaurant last night that my pal suggested, OGGI. More like OMG! Delicious!! Sat outside to dine alfresco. Only slightly chilly and breezy, but I figured I should enjoy any chance of fresh air now, as the weather forecast is wet for Nürburg.
This morning in the breakfast room, I again met the tour group. The were in fact NOT part of the Porsche tours, but another group that advertises in Panorama magazine - Fast Lane Travel. They told me that the tour was fantastic, with VIP treatment and great attention to detail. They all raved about the factory and museum tours. Stuttgart was the first day of the tour and they were headed out on the road as they left.
After breakfast I took the local train out to Porsche for a personal museum tour today. Took the S6 line out to the museum. 4 quick stops and boom, there you are. Directly behind the museum. I got there about a hour ahead of time. I took in the scene, and realized how small and cramped it all is. The photos all seem to make it to be larger than it really is. I was cool to see the place buzzing with cars and people. There were loads of folks wearing factory jackets. Lots of GT3 RS cars parked here and there, wearing their transport garb. Even a few buzzing about. The new factory building construction is very obvious.
At 10 AM my tour started. A young Danish woman greeted me and promptly informed me that I would be her last and final tour (and I was her only guest - private tour as well!). She is moving away to work in a more traditional museum. She seemed genuinely bitter sweet about it. She was also very generous with her time, as we went well over the allotted 2 hours. Sitting out in front of the museum were a pair of R's.
I came back into town for lunch and to rest. The museum was tiring. I tried a highly rated local German restaurant, Ochs'n Willi. I was pretty disappointed. The spätzle was nothing like the hand-made version I can get back home. I did a little shopping, then stopped by the Schlossgarten hotel for kicks. I didn't see the rooms there, but they seem pretty equal. I'm happy with my choice.
I had dinner at Christophorus. Wow! One of the best steaks I've had in a very, very long time. The restaurant is in the front of the museum, and the view of the surrounding buildings is great. If you watch carefully, you can see the car bodies ever so slowly crossing the road from one building to another via a bridge built exclusively for that purpose. Prior to dinner I walked to the building where the actual ED takes place. It's only a few blocks away, down a small side street that leads into one of the larger factory complexes. I saw a Miami Blue Carrera Coupe something whizzing by, wearing that familiar plastic face shield, but no badges what so ever on the car to ID it.
This morning in the breakfast room, I again met the tour group. The were in fact NOT part of the Porsche tours, but another group that advertises in Panorama magazine - Fast Lane Travel. They told me that the tour was fantastic, with VIP treatment and great attention to detail. They all raved about the factory and museum tours. Stuttgart was the first day of the tour and they were headed out on the road as they left.
After breakfast I took the local train out to Porsche for a personal museum tour today. Took the S6 line out to the museum. 4 quick stops and boom, there you are. Directly behind the museum. I got there about a hour ahead of time. I took in the scene, and realized how small and cramped it all is. The photos all seem to make it to be larger than it really is. I was cool to see the place buzzing with cars and people. There were loads of folks wearing factory jackets. Lots of GT3 RS cars parked here and there, wearing their transport garb. Even a few buzzing about. The new factory building construction is very obvious.
At 10 AM my tour started. A young Danish woman greeted me and promptly informed me that I would be her last and final tour (and I was her only guest - private tour as well!). She is moving away to work in a more traditional museum. She seemed genuinely bitter sweet about it. She was also very generous with her time, as we went well over the allotted 2 hours. Sitting out in front of the museum were a pair of R's.
I came back into town for lunch and to rest. The museum was tiring. I tried a highly rated local German restaurant, Ochs'n Willi. I was pretty disappointed. The spätzle was nothing like the hand-made version I can get back home. I did a little shopping, then stopped by the Schlossgarten hotel for kicks. I didn't see the rooms there, but they seem pretty equal. I'm happy with my choice.
I had dinner at Christophorus. Wow! One of the best steaks I've had in a very, very long time. The restaurant is in the front of the museum, and the view of the surrounding buildings is great. If you watch carefully, you can see the car bodies ever so slowly crossing the road from one building to another via a bridge built exclusively for that purpose. Prior to dinner I walked to the building where the actual ED takes place. It's only a few blocks away, down a small side street that leads into one of the larger factory complexes. I saw a Miami Blue Carrera Coupe something whizzing by, wearing that familiar plastic face shield, but no badges what so ever on the car to ID it.
Last edited by 24Chromium; 06-01-2016 at 05:52 PM.
06-02-2016, 03:42 AM
#56
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06-02-2016, 01:09 PM
#58
Drifting
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Wow! What a day. I’m exhausted from the experience. Especially the part where you actually get in the car, turn the key, and have to suddenly start driving in a foreign country in your new six-figure car.
I set my alarm crazy early for some strange reason. I guess my brain really wanted to be wide awake when the excitement started. I again took the S-Bahn out to the plant. I arrived about 10 minutes ahead of the suggested time.
The S-Bahn stations are easy to spot, look for the 'S' in the green circle, this one is conveniently located in front of the Steigenberger hotel
Naturally, I was the only one there. I lingered outside a while, watching all the goings on at the busy factory.
The customer delivery building is very unassuming from the street
Excitement awaits beyond these doors
Then I went inside at the prescribed time. Again, I’m all alone and the staff is still setting thing up for the day. The room is very nice, spacious and filled with stuff to look at. It’s almost like the customer waiting rooms at the dealers, except way bigger. Finally some other customers came in.
Customer reception/waiting area
Then I noticed the doors to the Exclusive area were opened. I wandered around that room, admiring the cars and some of the interesting options.
Finally a gentleman came to greet me and explain the itinerary. I purchased extra days of insurance, so we next door to the Porsche Selection shop so that I could pay for that. Then we set off up the stairs to see my car!
The first car I saw was a 911 R, and I oohed and aahed in appreciation. He told me it wasn’t a customer car, but a demonstrator car. We turn a corner into the long side the L-shaped room and there were all the customer cars. There were a few GT4s. A lovely couple from Toronto were picking up a Guards Red GT4 at the same time that I was picking up mine.
My demonstration wasn’t much more than what I have gotten in the past at a dealership. He made sure the navigation worked properly and we plugged in a few of my destinations. We paired my phone. We set the units to metric. I got a few pictures taken by Porsche.
They must have thought I was a 49ers football fan, being that I'm from the SF Bay Area
I had pre-arranged to have SchwabenFolia come to pick-up the car for wrapping, so my delivery specialist drove the car outside for me to park it for pick-up. Then I left to go on the factory tour. I turned out to be only myself and the gentleman with the GT4 from Toronto. His wife said she’d been on the tour before, so she stayed behind.
The factory tour is fantastic. We got to see the main assembly area, the marriage of the engine to the chassis, and the engine assembly area. Porsche takes great pride in showing off their ingenuity and flexible, JIT manufacturing process. Our guide constantly pointed out how you’d see a Boxster, followed by a 911 coupe, followed by a cabriolet, followed by a Turbo and so on. He explained that they even run the Cup cars on this same line. In fact, they had one to look at. I offered a swap for my GT4, but he wouldn’t take it. Sorry I don't have any photos of the tour. It would seem I'm not a VIP, like a certain member of RL.
After the tour, we walked to lunch at the ‘Casino’. Since the gent from Toronto and myself hit it off, we had lunch together. The lunch was excellent, with champagne, wine, an appetizer, main course, as well as dessert. Coincidentally, we both are enrolled in the PSDS, so we’ll cross paths again shortly in Nürburg. We continued chatting while drinking espresso.
View of the museum and circus from the Casino
I had time to kill before SchwabenFolia was to return with my car, so I walked to the museum and picked out the cars and exhibits I either missed the first go-round or wanted to spend more time looking at. I’m a sucker for the race cars, so I focused on the 919 and the 917s.
The winning car from the last WEC race in Rio
SchwabenFolia was to bring the car back to where they had picked it up, so again I simply walked back, retracting my steps. However, now I was alone and had to navigate the narrow lanes to reach the customer delivery building. Exactly as I was walking up to the door, in pulled my new GT4. I got to review all the work and details and pay for the job. I asked Sandro if I could give him a ride back to his shop, but he’d left his car there. Now comes the real terror of getting into the car, turning the key and having to drive off in a foreign country, completely unfamiliar with where I’m going. I was so thankful that the hotel was in the navi!
I soldiered on, reaching the hotel without any drama. I found an isolated, single stall parking spot in the garage. I broke out my clear LED indicators and swapped them for my US-spec amber units.
I set my alarm crazy early for some strange reason. I guess my brain really wanted to be wide awake when the excitement started. I again took the S-Bahn out to the plant. I arrived about 10 minutes ahead of the suggested time.
The S-Bahn stations are easy to spot, look for the 'S' in the green circle, this one is conveniently located in front of the Steigenberger hotel
Naturally, I was the only one there. I lingered outside a while, watching all the goings on at the busy factory.
The customer delivery building is very unassuming from the street
Excitement awaits beyond these doors
Then I went inside at the prescribed time. Again, I’m all alone and the staff is still setting thing up for the day. The room is very nice, spacious and filled with stuff to look at. It’s almost like the customer waiting rooms at the dealers, except way bigger. Finally some other customers came in.
Customer reception/waiting area
Then I noticed the doors to the Exclusive area were opened. I wandered around that room, admiring the cars and some of the interesting options.
Finally a gentleman came to greet me and explain the itinerary. I purchased extra days of insurance, so we next door to the Porsche Selection shop so that I could pay for that. Then we set off up the stairs to see my car!
The first car I saw was a 911 R, and I oohed and aahed in appreciation. He told me it wasn’t a customer car, but a demonstrator car. We turn a corner into the long side the L-shaped room and there were all the customer cars. There were a few GT4s. A lovely couple from Toronto were picking up a Guards Red GT4 at the same time that I was picking up mine.
My demonstration wasn’t much more than what I have gotten in the past at a dealership. He made sure the navigation worked properly and we plugged in a few of my destinations. We paired my phone. We set the units to metric. I got a few pictures taken by Porsche.
They must have thought I was a 49ers football fan, being that I'm from the SF Bay Area
I had pre-arranged to have SchwabenFolia come to pick-up the car for wrapping, so my delivery specialist drove the car outside for me to park it for pick-up. Then I left to go on the factory tour. I turned out to be only myself and the gentleman with the GT4 from Toronto. His wife said she’d been on the tour before, so she stayed behind.
The factory tour is fantastic. We got to see the main assembly area, the marriage of the engine to the chassis, and the engine assembly area. Porsche takes great pride in showing off their ingenuity and flexible, JIT manufacturing process. Our guide constantly pointed out how you’d see a Boxster, followed by a 911 coupe, followed by a cabriolet, followed by a Turbo and so on. He explained that they even run the Cup cars on this same line. In fact, they had one to look at. I offered a swap for my GT4, but he wouldn’t take it. Sorry I don't have any photos of the tour. It would seem I'm not a VIP, like a certain member of RL.
After the tour, we walked to lunch at the ‘Casino’. Since the gent from Toronto and myself hit it off, we had lunch together. The lunch was excellent, with champagne, wine, an appetizer, main course, as well as dessert. Coincidentally, we both are enrolled in the PSDS, so we’ll cross paths again shortly in Nürburg. We continued chatting while drinking espresso.
View of the museum and circus from the Casino
I had time to kill before SchwabenFolia was to return with my car, so I walked to the museum and picked out the cars and exhibits I either missed the first go-round or wanted to spend more time looking at. I’m a sucker for the race cars, so I focused on the 919 and the 917s.
The winning car from the last WEC race in Rio
SchwabenFolia was to bring the car back to where they had picked it up, so again I simply walked back, retracting my steps. However, now I was alone and had to navigate the narrow lanes to reach the customer delivery building. Exactly as I was walking up to the door, in pulled my new GT4. I got to review all the work and details and pay for the job. I asked Sandro if I could give him a ride back to his shop, but he’d left his car there. Now comes the real terror of getting into the car, turning the key and having to drive off in a foreign country, completely unfamiliar with where I’m going. I was so thankful that the hotel was in the navi!
I soldiered on, reaching the hotel without any drama. I found an isolated, single stall parking spot in the garage. I broke out my clear LED indicators and swapped them for my US-spec amber units.
Last edited by 24Chromium; 06-02-2016 at 01:26 PM.
06-02-2016, 02:46 PM
#60
Great Stuff!
Wait - are you NOT a 49er fan?
It's a cool plate in any case.
Swapping in the clear markers 1hr in - classy!
Keep it coming.
Wait - are you NOT a 49er fan?
It's a cool plate in any case.Swapping in the clear markers 1hr in - classy!
Keep it coming.