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6 week Euro Delivery or how to stay below 6000km in my GT4RS
European Delivery and or Porsche Experience CenterThis forum to ask questions and get answers about collecting your Porsche in Europe or the outstanding Porsche Experience Center.
6 week Euro Delivery or how to stay below 6000km in my GT4RS
A week ago, we returned our GT4RS in Sindelfingen to have the car shipped back to the beautiful Pacific Northwest. I did post most of my trip (except for some of the early days) on my IG account (https://www.instagram.com/mike981gt4), but decided to also post some of my experiences here, to share it with others that may plan their own Euro Delivery and may want to glean some tips or routes for their own enjoyment.
Before I start posting pictures, experiences and routes, a bit more about my relevant background and how we spec'd the car and what we did in preparation.
Both my wife and I grew up in Europe (me in Switzerland, her in Westfalia in Germany) but have lived for almost 30 years in the States. So, we speak at least some of the local languages (German, Swiss German, some French and a little Italian) and still have relatives in Europe. This was our third Euro Delivery after taking delivery in Leipzig of our 981 Boxster S in Oct 2012 and of our 981 GT4 in May 2016.
Since our kids are now out of school and my work allows me to take longer vacations, we decided this time to take our time and spend 6 weeks on the trip (2012 was 2 weeks and 2016 was 4 weeks with a 5-day work conference in-between). The goal was to do a lot of driving but also take the time to spend more time on exploring museums, landscapes and spas along the way, something we both enjoyed in the earlier trips but didn't get to as often or lead to driving 400 to 600km on days to keep up with our schedule.
While we were planning on traveling for 6 weeks, we still had the limit of packing light (fortunately my wife is an even lighter packer than myself, since I pack too much tech). One of the ways we dealt with this, was to often stay 2 to 3 days in a location, thus allowing us to wash and dry the clothes. And stopping by my relatives and use their washing machine and dryer helped too.
In terms of travel planning, we are used to be flexible and adjust the route based on road/pass conditions, weather, interesting detours and meetings along the way. So, we booked our flights in and out of Frankfurt and had 3 nights booked at the Steigenberger in Stuttgart before the day of the delivery. All other stays we would book between a few hours to one to two days in advance using one of the many online booking apps (such as Expedia, Agoda, Booking.com, Trivago etc).
At first, we planned to take the train from Frankfurt to Stuttgart, but after looking at the costs and lack of flexibility (and given the uncertainty of strikes in March/April), we decided to rent a car (ca $80 per day which turned out to be a roomy wagon).
As for the car itself, I spec'd the 18-ways (aka sofas), since the biggest complaint my wife has about the GT4 are the buckets for longer drives. Since we were not planning on taking the car to the 'Ring or Spa but drive it in the Alps and other curvy roads (and use it for road trips in the US as well), we felt the 18-ways were the right choice. And after having driven the car as intended for 6 weeks, we both feel we made the right choice. The 18 ways with the Racetex inserts are very comfortable and still give you great support.
Furthermore, since Porsche is too cheap to load the European Maps into their GPS and the new PCM 4 has not been "hacked" yet to allow unlocking Android Auto, I also brought a Carlinkit 4.0 dongle that allowed me to use Android Auto via the PCM's Apple Carplay. As I mentioned in https://rennlist.com/forums/718-gts-...l#post19477945, it worked well. We also brought a blue parking disc that we had from previous trips to Europe (though they are cheap to buy at a gas station). This disc is often needed in cities where they allow you to park free for a certain amount of time. Another item I ordered in Germany and had delivered to my family in Zurich was the DBCarbon mirror triangle with wind deflector, that eliminates wind buffeting (an easy install with a T15 Torx screwdriver).
Since our delivery date was on Monday, April 22nd, we arranged to visit the Porsche Museum on Sunday. We also fitted the Mercedes Museum into the same day, though the line to get in was a bit long, best to book your tickets online a few hours ahead of time. To reduce our jet lag (9 hours difference), we arrived in Frankfurt on Friday and drove along the scenic route to Stuttgart, enjoying the fresh asparagus for lunch and dinner. On Saturday, we went shopping for some hiking poles and visited the interesting Landesmuseum Württemberg in Stuttgart | Landesmuseum Württemberg (landesmuseum-stuttgart.de.
Here are some pictures from the pre-pick up days:
A castle on the way from Frankfurt to Stuttgart Clock at the Landesmuseum Porsche Museum: 911 Carrera 2.7RS Porsche Museum: 908 Spyder Porsche Museum: 917 Porsche Museum: The Pig Mercedes Museum: Long line Mercedes Museum: Benz Patentwagen Mercedes Museum: Rennabteilung Trailer with Stirling Moss Mercedes Mercedes Museum: One of 2 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Mercedes Museum: Classic Race cars
Great write up. Gorgeous car. The 4RS delivery last summer pushed the boundaries of what my wife would accept! It was so loud and rough that she was eager to not be in the car!
I do ED every year, usually for at least 2 weeks trying to coordinate it around track days, last summer hit 3 different tracks with my 4RS and dropped it off with 5000km, needed new tires and front brake pads!
when planning these ED adventures flexibility is key. You never know what weather might happen, or if suddenly find events you want to enjoy elsewhere, ect etc. precautionary tale however: flexibility is difficult during high season, especially August, as Europeans are vacationing; but most other times booking hotels on the fly even the same day is usually pretty easy.
one lesson I have learned over the years is to have a base camp. Often renting a house for a week in a central area I want to stay in. This becomes a drop off area for luggage, and allows pursuit of adventures in the region. Can then take simply a small overnight bag and head out leaving larger luggage and belongings behind. Works well in these cars with limited space.
ED is a box that should be checked on every new car, truly and wonderful time. I leave tomorrow for my next ED adventure!
Great write up. Gorgeous car. The 4RS delivery last summer pushed the boundaries of what my wife would accept! It was so loud and rough that she was eager to not be in the car!
I do ED every year, usually for at least 2 weeks trying to coordinate it around track days, last summer hit 3 different tracks with my 4RS and dropped it off with 5000km, needed new tires and front brake pads!
when planning these ED adventures flexibility is key. You never know what weather might happen, or if suddenly find events you want to enjoy elsewhere, ect etc. precautionary tale however: flexibility is difficult during high season, especially August, as Europeans are vacationing; but most other times booking hotels on the fly even the same day is usually pretty easy.
one lesson I have learned over the years is to have a base camp. Often renting a house for a week in a central area I want to stay in. This becomes a drop off area for luggage, and allows pursuit of adventures in the region. Can then take simply a small overnight bag and head out leaving larger luggage and belongings behind. Works well in these cars with limited space.
ED is a box that should be checked on every new car, truly and wonderful time. I leave tomorrow for my next ED adventure!
Enjoy your adventure! I agree that having a base camp is helpful. I used my parents' place to keep some of the souvenirs that we bought and/or received during the collection day to reduce luggage and often booked 3 days in a place to explore the local roads and passes. And yes, be aware of the seasonal impact on hotel availability (and pass openings and traffic impact). This can cut both ways! Mid July to mid August is the worst time to travel in the South of France for example. And when we were in Ischgl 2 weeks ago, the town was literally shutdown. Maybe one Hotel/Restaurant that was open (the same in some other ski resorts that have no big local population)...
On Monday, we took the taxi to the Werksabholung in Zuffenhausen.
While we were waiting to be called to the delivery, we got to admire several cars that either were for sale by Porsche or were customer delivery cars that waited to be shipped out. Just imagine: you do a factory/euro delivery just to not drive the car 😢.
A customer Dakar waiting to be shipped.
When it was our time, Melanie called us into the delivery room, where the car was waiting under a shroud. After a short introduction, she proceeded to reveal the car:
Melanie was a great host and did an awesome job at introducing the car. After going through all the quirks and features of the car and signing the paperwork, I got to start the car for the first time and exit through their Dreams tunnel.
One awesome surprise was, that Andreas Preuninger was able to sign my car
From there it was a short ride to the Porsche Museum parking lot, where we parked the car and met our host for the factory tour: Martin Radi. Martin is THE factory tour and museum guide. He used to build engines and now is the teacher for all tour and museums guides. His wealth of knowledge, his enthusiasm, and his jokes made the factory tour a highlight of the day, even though he refused all my attempts to extract Porsche's future secrets from him 😂. We were fortunate to end up being the only guests for the English tour, so we got a private tour in German 😁.
During the factory tour, we saw several PTS 911s and 911 STs on the assembly line. And after seeing how the interior is being stitched together, I now understand why using a CXX option color change in stitching can cost over US$50k. Basically the car will be put together with one stitching and then Sonderwunsch will disassemble all stitched parts and restitch them with the new thread. It would be easier if they could just insert a different colored thread when putting the interior together the first time...
After the tour, we had a delicious lunch in the VIP Restaurant, and then we took the opportunity to take some pictures of the car in front of the Museum.
Martin and I are discussing a detail on the car.
Then we headed back to the Hotel to pack up the car and drive towards Tuebingen. I was so excited about the new car, that I missed a 30kph zone and received a letter in the mail with a 9kph over the speed limit/30 Euro citation. However, since I didn't see it until I returned home weeks later, when I tried to pay the fine, I was told it was already taken care off. Not sure what that means, but if they don't want me to pay, I don't mind.
As you can see in the following pictures, we had no problem fitting our two rollaboards, two backpacks and some bought souvenirs into the trunk and frunk.
The drive to the country hotel was partially highway and partially country roads and we played with the car's rev but stayed below 5000rpms for now. First driving impressions were great, the car reacts instantaneously and precise to steering input, the S-PDK provides fast, dramatic shifts, and the in-car intake sounds make you believe that there is a dragon sitting right behind you breathing down your neck.
There is a pronounced drone between about 2300 to 2900 RPM in any gear with the sports exhaust turned on, which goes away as soon as you turn PSE off.
Our first country hotel Delicious dinner at the hotel
One tip regarding lodging: It often is better to find a highly rated 3 or 4 star country hotel/Gasthof instead of a chain hotel: the decor, food and hospitality is often a highlight and prices are often very reasonable.
We would like to thank the Porsche Werksabholung team for making the Euro Delivery a fantastic experience. Their passion and knowledge are important aspects of the factory pickup experience.
Next morning, we started with a tour of Tuebingen: walking through the old city center, the public market, visiting the dome, and hike up to the castle (the museum was unfortunately closed). While visiting the crypt of the dome, we met the Kuester (sexton) of the dome who told us about all the history of the dukes and duchesses of the time and how they competed with founding universities (Heidelberg, Tuebingen etc). Quite interesting. Tuebingen City Center Tuebingen Market The crypt Tuebingen Castle
After having a delicious curry wurst and delicious Italian style gelato, we continued our drive to the Schloss Lichtenstein (not to be confused with the country or the castle near Vienna of the same name).
The castle is still privately owned and offers a tour of the neo-gothic castle tower built on a rock outcropping.
Schloss Lichtenstein Schloss Lichtenstein Schloss Lichtenstein
The weather was getting cold as we head to our stop for the night in Balingen.
The next day, we visited the Schloss Hohenzollern, which is still owned by the Hohenzollern family. It is an interesting castle, since it was originally built in the early 1000s but fell into disrepair in the 1700 before it was resurrected in its current form. The self-guided tour is interesting, and you can enjoy a delicious lunch at the castle restaurant.
Schloss Hohenzollern Venison and Spaetzle for lunch Weather is darkening
While we visited the castle, the weather turned cold and rainy, almost snowing. Thus, after lunch we started our drive towards Baden-Baden, where we stayed at another great country Hotel just outside the city in Geroldsau. On the drive there, we noticed that maybe heading into the Black Forest was not the best idea. While most cities are at lower elevation (Baden-Baden is at 181m/600ft), the Black Forest roads mostly are between 600m (2000ft) and 1200m (4000ft) elevation. And as it turns out, the weather in late April of 2024 dumped a load of snow into these higher elevations.... as we were driving through.
In Baden-Baden, we enjoyed the Spa in the evening to relax (while a thunderstorm passed over the city), and then enjoyed another great dinner and night.
The next day, we started the day with a hearty breakfast before we started driving the famous Schwarzwald-Hochstrasse (B500) towards the Schluchsee and then into Switzerland. That was at least the plan for the day.
German breakfast buffet
We already knew that there was still snow predicted in the higher altitudes and a piece of the B500 starting at Sand was closed for construction (Germans like to close the street completely instead of making 1-way traffic it seems, since that was not the only time we encountered this). The good news is, that the detour route(s) are as much fun (but narrower) than the B500.
As we gained elevation, we quickly entered a winter wonderland.
Little traffic made it a blast to drive! We even encountered a lonely 981 Boxster S that was parked, so we took a picture:
Before Freudenstadt, we left B500 for a bit to enjoy some other twisty side roads and cut down towards Schramberg. The Black Forest is known to have a lot of microclimates, depending on how the ridges route the weather and keep the sun from hitting the ground. Thus, we were not surprised, but still concerned when we encountered one stretch of road on L405 where the snow started to stick and accumulate . A quick break test confirmed, that the fitted Dunlop RaceMaxx tires (that were feeling better than the ones we had on the 2016 GT4 from factory) had no grip in these kinds of conditions. So for the next 20 to 30 minutes, I drove in first and second gear below 20kph/12mph down the hill until we got low enough in elevation that the snow turned to rain. Fortunately, we didn't have to break hard and the tires still kept me on the road.
Since the Black Forest is home to many German midsized automotive suppliers, we couldn't pass the opportunity to take a picture at the BBS headquarter in Schiltach:
Afterwards, we arrived in Schramberg, where the Junghaus watch company has its headquarter. And many interesting museums! For the next 3+ hours we visited the clock and watch and the German history in motion museum, their awesome model railroad museum and the Steim car museum. Definitely worth a visit if you enjoy learning about how Cuckoo-Clocks developed, like automotive history or model railroads.
Funky German cars from the 1950s: Fuldamobil Of course a Porsche cannot miss 997.1 GT3RS A gaggle of Porsches Lamborghini Diablo VT
Since we spent several hours in the museums, and the weather was still not getting better, we decided to not press on to Zurich, but find another country hotel in the Black Forest. We continued our trip via St. Georgen and Triberg (the village is very touristy, focused on the Cuckoo-clock), enjoying the twisty road up to Schönwald im Schwarzwald, where we stayed for the night in another Hotel Ochsen and enjoyed a delicious dinner. The village was still under a thick snowblanket.
Next morning, after another hearty breakfast, we continued towards Zurich along the B500. First stop during the rainy day was in Schluchsee, where we got some cake for lunch:
Three great desserts: Hot chocolate, Black Forest Cake (with Kirsch), and Apfelstrudel
In Schluchsee we left the B500 and took many of the side roads (e.g., L170, L157, L159 and smaller roads towards Eglisau where we entered Switzerland and then drove on to my family's place in Zurich where we planned to stay for the next few days, visit family and explore some of the local roads nearby.
First gas stop in Switzerland where I got the Swiss Vignette. The gas prices in Switzerland used be lower than in Germany, but now there is not much difference anymore.
Any concern for parking the car while in the hotel or doing attractions? I am doing a similar trip at the end of June and I'm not familiar with the area or things to watch out for.
Thanks,
Huck
Any concern for parking the car while in the hotel or doing attractions? I am doing a similar trip at the end of June and I'm not familiar with the area or things to watch out for.
Thanks,
Huck
Depends on where you are planning on parking the car. I would not have any problem parking it in a small village in the Black Forest or in Switzerland or Austria or even in some places in Italy or France that are off the beaten path. Make sure that if you have luggage in the car, that it does not attract unwanted attention (the GT4RS does not have the visual blind in the back that other Caymans have, so we used my black jacket or one of our quick dry towels to cover the luggage space).
OTOH, if you plan to park in a major city like Milano or in places like the South of France where car thefts can be a problem, I recommend making sure that you park it in at least an underground car park. Most hotels have underground car park options, and if you have the front-axle lift, most hotel ramps will work (I encountered only one where I couldn't get in without scraping).
06-06-2024 | 02:56 AM
6 week Euro Delivery or how to stay below 6000km in my GT4RS
. A quick break test confirmed, that the fitted Dunlop RaceMaxx tires (that were feeling better than the ones we had on the 2016 GT4 from factory) had no grip in these kinds of conditions. So for the next 20 to 30 minutes, I drove in first and second gear below 20kph/12mph down the hill until we got low enough in elevation that the snow turned to rain. Fortunately, we didn't have to break hard and the tires still kept me on the road.
