UK vs Europe for car enthusiasts
Discussion
From what I have read on various forums used cars in the UK seem much cheaper than most of Europe, as well as insurance and even Road Tax.
And modifications don't seem to be as rigidly policed as in some countries.
OK our UK roads are full of potholes and permanently crowded in the South East but there are some great driving roads in the more sparsely populated areas, but I don't live too near any of them.
Overall I think the UK is a pretty good place to be, but a few properly derestricted Motorways would make it even better which may explain the popularity of Germany. Still there's always the Isle of Man!
And modifications don't seem to be as rigidly policed as in some countries.
OK our UK roads are full of potholes and permanently crowded in the South East but there are some great driving roads in the more sparsely populated areas, but I don't live too near any of them.
Overall I think the UK is a pretty good place to be, but a few properly derestricted Motorways would make it even better which may explain the popularity of Germany. Still there's always the Isle of Man!
Mr Tidy said:
From what I have read on various forums used cars in the UK seem much cheaper than most of Europe, as well as insurance and even Road Tax.
And modifications don't seem to be as rigidly policed as in some countries.
OK our UK roads are full of potholes and permanently crowded in the South East but there are some great driving roads in the more sparsely populated areas, but I don't live too near any of them.
Overall I think the UK is a pretty good place to be, but a few properly derestricted Motorways would make it even better which may explain the popularity of Germany. Still there's always the Isle of Man!
German Autobahns aren’t much to shout about. I recently had to drive from Cambridgeshire to Copenhagen and back, so driving in 6 countries. No traffic jams and no roadworks in 5 of those 6 countries. Guess which one was different? I think the worst stretch was 33km of roadworks near Bremen. Yes it was intermittently fun to go as fast as I wanted but poor road quality, other traffic, jams and roadworks meant my average speed was probably lower through Germany.And modifications don't seem to be as rigidly policed as in some countries.
OK our UK roads are full of potholes and permanently crowded in the South East but there are some great driving roads in the more sparsely populated areas, but I don't live too near any of them.
Overall I think the UK is a pretty good place to be, but a few properly derestricted Motorways would make it even better which may explain the popularity of Germany. Still there's always the Isle of Man!
Skeptisk said:
German Autobahns aren’t much to shout about. I recently had to drive from Cambridgeshire to Copenhagen and back, so driving in 6 countries. No traffic jams and no roadworks in 5 of those 6 countries. Guess which one was different? I think the worst stretch was 33km of roadworks near Bremen. Yes it was intermittently fun to go as fast as I wanted but poor road quality, other traffic, jams and roadworks meant my average speed was probably lower through Germany.
I have the opposite opinion. The German drivers are the best in Europe,the Brits the worst. The Belgians are pretty poor too, but not IMHO as
stunningly bone-headed and unobservant as the Brits.
Road quality generally excellent, not much traffic away from known busy times.
I haven't been near Bremen.
I've just come back from a drive from London to Cologne. Token effort 110 mph
on the way there and 120 mph on the way back. Lovely. Can't wait to go back.
Yes, it did cost me a bit in MPG, which went from 45-48 to 43-45, so not really
worth bothering about, versus the cost of the time saved.
Interestingly, some twit had crashed their Audi on the autobahn and it had been
dealt with and cones being removed by the time we got there.
dcb said:
I have the opposite opinion. The German drivers are the best in Europe,
the Brits the worst. The Belgians are pretty poor too, but not IMHO as
stunningly bone-headed and unobservant as the Brits.
German joke: In Belgium, if you fail your driving test three times, you have to use red and white number plates.the Brits the worst. The Belgians are pretty poor too, but not IMHO as
stunningly bone-headed and unobservant as the Brits.
pissonheads said:
Cars in the UK are pretty good value relative to other European countries.
This! Purchase tax on big engined cars in the Netherlads can pretty much double the price of the car. The VED equivalent on a 2 litre Euro 4 diesel is something like €2k/year, although diesel is cheaper than petrol so diesel still makes sense for high mileages.On the other hand there are actually decent alternatives to driving, we dropped to 1 car between the 2 of us and don't actually use it that much.
Ken_Code said:
I suppose you’re right, the A-7 is a rubbish drive compared to the roads we have in the Higlands, Wales or even the borders in the UK.
Come come, this is PH; you're supposed to compare a miserable SE England commute to the newest unused motorways or the primo mountain passes of "nation, other" - and draw your conclusion from that comparison. Apples, smapples.AmyRichardson said:
Come come, this is PH; you're supposed to compare a miserable SE England commute to the newest unused motorways or the primo mountain passes of "nation, other" - and draw your conclusion from that comparison. Apples, smapples.
I forgot.I do think though that the commute into Malaga on a Monday morning truly embodies the thrill of motoring in a way that a blast chasing a summer sunset through Glen Coe never could.
Ken_Code said:
crusty said:
Depends if you enjoy driving
I have moved to southern Spain and there is no comparison to the roads here compared to the uk
I suppose you’re right, the A-7 is a rubbish drive compared to the roads we have in the Higlands, Wales or even the borders in the UK.I have moved to southern Spain and there is no comparison to the roads here compared to the uk
Zilla said:
Northern Spain across the Pyrenees without doubt has the best driving roads I've ever been on. The mountain roads are pretty much deserted, so you can have a lot of fun in relative safety. The Spanish people are super friendly and interested in the cars, even the police are friendly (but firm!). Haven't found anywhere better in Europe.
I’m not sure how that backs up the point being made about Southern Spain.turboLP said:
I realize this may sound a little alarmist, but we've all seen news articles about the things that city councils are doing that are making driving a car a little more problematic. Things charging for parking based on CO2 (as if the charge for DRIVING the car isn't already based on CO2), eliminating parking spaces, "banning" big cars that are "too long" from parking (cars that have been on the market for a decade!), closing some roads off from private transport. Then ULEZ expanded in London with a short notice (something like 10-11 months which I consider too short for affected residents of the area). Now ULEZ counterparts are popping up all over the UK.
Are things like this happening across Europe or is the UK seriously in the lead on this front?
The UK is one of the best countries in Europe to a car enthusiast. Are things like this happening across Europe or is the UK seriously in the lead on this front?
Try washing your car in Germany or buying an unrestricted bike in France, or go a few mph over the speed limit in Switzerland.
You can just about get away with anything in the UK if you're not a complete moron about it.
Doofus said:
dcb said:
I have the opposite opinion. The German drivers are the best in Europe,
the Brits the worst. The Belgians are pretty poor too, but not IMHO as
stunningly bone-headed and unobservant as the Brits.
German joke: In Belgium, if you fail your driving test three times, you have to use red and white number plates.the Brits the worst. The Belgians are pretty poor too, but not IMHO as
stunningly bone-headed and unobservant as the Brits.
Belgians are far, far worse and definitely the worst in Western Europe but also most Italians drive like pricks and let's not talk about any and all.Eastern European countries.
Germany, France, Switzerland, Spain (marginally) and Portugal + the Scandi countries are generally better.
Haven't experienced Ireland but most of the rest are worse.
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