race7117

I'm going to be at Leipzig/Berlin/Belgium/Netherlands that same week! From milan into Switzerland you have to make a stop at Lake Como just beautiful and right on the way. Be careful about weather in Switzerland I got caught in a snow stop in late April and had to be bailed out by the Swiss Army, no joke!

green

Will they hold your car that long? I'm trying to delay my pickup by a couple weeks as well for weather reasons.

Macca

Hi Jim. Roadster Bags make the luggage set and it fits perfect and was brilliant for travelling in the car. We bought the basic version for $200 (3 piece) but they do a more expensive version that can be used for air travel. Do a google and you will find they are based in Germany or close by and can ship direct to Porsche for you.

Your route is an interesting one for late Feb. Germany it will not be legal to drive the car without snow tyres but I assume you know that. Milan will very cold and will Lyon. You dont say where in Switzerland but again you will encounter temps around 0 C so you just need to be sensible. Getting to Como you'll need to use the Ghotthard Tunnel. Paris and Milan will be your most stressful cities to drive the new GT3 in.

Check your weather maps for typical late Feb in the regions you are going. You can find out on the internet which roads ist mandatory to have snow tyres. This will tell you when you are insured and when you are not. I would estimate 70% of the "driving roads" I travelled I was technically uninsured due to the temperature being below 7 Celcius (manufacturers recommended min temp for Michelin PSC2) or because there were mandatory snow tyres/chains signs on the side of the road.

Remember temps on coast are WAY higher than in the areas you are visiting and I strongly suggest you take coastal route

Have no fear, put that out of your mind, wait till 10am at least each day for the weather to warm uo, get heat in the tyres, dont drive when snow/ice, make sure you finish up before 4pm when it gets cold again and you will be fine...A few guys in the UK did trips to Sth Spain with their new GT3 inspired by my trip and they had a ball even at the end of Dec...

My advice as I studied you route when I planned mine is to pick up in Stuttgard (use the down time to see the Museum and Factory) and then hi tail it down the AutoBahn to Zurich (250km - 1.6 hrs). In Zurich take the motorway to Geneva (400km maybe 4 hours). You may wish to stay overnight at Lucerne on teh way its very pretty. Geneva is a very cool town too and much to see - very pretty. The from Geneva to Lyon (maybe just a couple of hours). I think food is the best part of Lyon (and rugby?). From Lyon go to St Tropez then hug the coast all the way to Genoa before heading to Milan. From Milan you can get to Zurich in one day via the tunnel. On to Stuttgart and catch a flight to Paris. I think this route will use up every one of your 14 days - driving to Paris makes no sense as it will eat up 3 days and there is no driving to be done there - fly instead - much easier - Ive been there 3 times and driven it once and its not GT3 territory....

Your biggest challenge that time of the year with the GT3 is staying safe and legal. With the route you have you will not beable to 100% of the time just like me but honestly, its no more risky that walking across a busy road if truth be told p- youll be fine sounds like you are an competent and confident driver and at least you are driving on the side of the road you are used too...

Macca

Ooops. I see you have moved your trip out by 6 weeks - very sensible. You can discount my temperature related info. The rest still applies. Its very hard to find good riving roads near main cities so use the journeys between the destinations to do your driving and buy some valium for your wife...LOL

zorba1331

I love my Cayenne, but the best part about it was the ED trip by far.

The road sign advice is solid. After we picked up in Leipzig and drove to Dresden, I was online at the hotel googling German road signs. Then again when we entered Poland and the Czech Republic. They are different and not super intuitive.

European Navigation installed is an absolute must! We stayed right in the heart of the old parts of each city we visited and still made a few wrong turns. At one point were were 250m from our hotel in Prague and still couldn't get to it! Those roads weren't designed for cars. The ED helps a ton though.

Also, be prepared to feel some stress over narrow streets and parking your brand new baby. Streets not designed for cars with cars parked on both sides and a narrow passage for you to go through will create some stress. It did for me anyway.

Always keep a few loose euros in your pockets for bathroom breaks. Any public restroom were went into you were charged 1 euro or so to use them. They have an attendant and are super clean so it's worth it, but having to go really bad when we just got off the train and not knowing this caused some tense moments haha.

I strongly recommend keeping a blog (mostly because I love reading about peoples' experiences) because you will be doing/seeing a lot in a relatively short period of time and it all might start to blur together. I made sure I wrote at the end of every day so I would be sure to remember my great experience. Here is a link to my entire trip if you are interested. You can also click the link and get to just the pickup day at the factory in Leipzig. I'm so glad I blogged that and enjoy going back to have a read every now and then.

Enjoy your trip!
http://nevermindaboutthat.wordpress.com

zorba1331

I forgot to mention the vignette thing. Some countries require these to drive on their highways and apparently there is a big fine for driving without one. They are little decals you stick in your windshield.

Austria was one and there was another country we passed through where it was required (Czech rep.?--can't remember.) Anyway, we purchased ours at a travel/border crossing before entering the country.

You can buy all of the vignettes you will need at the one location. You might want to do a bit of research as to whether or not the countries you are visiting require them.

race7117

Zorba1331 is spot on the stickers are imperative for Austria they will ticket and fine you for not having them especially when they see the ED specific license plates. Also you may want to get an International Drivers license easy to get and if you do have to deal with the police any where it is a great help. Thanks Zorba for the blog great info for my pickup at Leipzig in April I hope to do something similar!

zorba1331

You will love it. The hotel in Leipzig is fantastic. Right in the heart of the old town square. Food is great. Whole experience is amazing.

If not for people on this board who suggested it when I was originally contemplating a Cayenne, I would have never heard about it. So grateful for all that mentioned it and shared their experiences. It really helped a lot.

koenig_roland

there is a small possibility of snow in the middle of march in the lower areas like stuttgart. There is still snow in the black forest and in the alps of course. In the alp-countries (autria, swiss..) there is a obligation of winter-tyres in these month (i think until the end of march or to the middle of april).

tourist-traffic on nordschleife should be possible - but there`s also the possibility of snow. Two years ago we had fresh snow on the first april weekend at the ring.

Traffic isn`t much different to the us (is was in florida some weeks ago and drove 2k miles with a mustang) except of obligation for driving right when not passing and the prohibition of passing right.
And you`ve always to stop and wait on red traffic lights when turning right - except when there`s a green arrow-sign (realy rare..)

stuttgart sucks, i would go to munich for some days to have some good beer and food. It`s not far :-)

Mike in CA

A little Swabian/Bavarian rivalry showing through here?

I have to say there is a more to see in Munich and the best beer and the best time I've ever had in a bar or pub of any kind was at a beer hall in Munich.

Larry Cable

+1

Larry Cable

That's because it really is intended as a PASSING lane. Cars that stay in that lane are usually in excess of 220km/h ...

ALSO:

1) NEVER "undertake" on the right, its illegal, and the other drivers will *not* be anticipating such a manouever unless the traffic to the left is moving faster than their lane.

2) familiarize yourself with the traffic sign indicating the unrestricted speed sections of the autobahn

3) Do not speed in France!