Discussion
A bit of car history for me. First car was a Mk II Escort with a snorty 2L, then some motorbikes. Had some friends have some pretty scary accidents so moved to the next best thing - Westfield with a Toyota 4GAE that you couldn't fall off:
Then we moved to the UK where cheap European cars are abundant, so of course I bought a Mitsubishi EVO VIII MR FQ-320. Obligatory decat and tune up to ~380hp included. This did 5 years service including a few track days (fastest thing on track in pssing rain at Castle Combe and slowest thing on track with a bunch of GT cars on the full Silverstone) and a road trip through Germany including the Nordschleife. Parts cost buttons and it was as reliable as the moon. Only issue was I neglected it and it kept killing the tiny little batteries and it wasn't exactly suited to the Autobahns. And it looked stupid. And it was loud.
Next up we moved to Canada for a 3 month career break, so I bought an F150 whilst I was there. I did another Readers' Cars for that:
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
When we got back to the UK I got my European car. I was looking at the cheaper end of E92 M3s but they were all a bit scabby at my price range. Started looking at 335is and one came up with low miles and the Birds suspension and LSD. This has been an amazing car for the last 5 years - pretty damn fast after a tune up to ~380hp, handles crappy UK roads with aplomb on the 18inch wheels and fancy suspension, comfortable on the motorway and a nice place to sit. And it does good skids. Although it did have an expensive habit of eating ABS pumps and when it went the second time it was time to go. Not a great picture but you know what an E92 looks like.
So on to the main event. I've been following R8 prices for a few years and they've been pretty static and then I saw an article somewhere about cars that are at the bottom of their depreciation curve and they were mentioned up the top. I did the normal thing of looking around and thinking "I can afford a car at £30k", looking at the cars for that money and then getting scope creep. I knew I wanted a car without MagRide as that's a £5k bill if you have to replace all 4 corners and some people report it only lasting 20k miles. Insurance is basically the same as the BMW to keep on the street in London!
I found this one with 27k miles on it. Upside is no MagRide and carbon sideblades, only thing it was missing for me was heated seats for my dicky back. I was NOT a fan of the fake carbon wrap on the wheels, the fake carbon grill and black badges. The wrap on the wheels still actually looks in good condition to be fair but the grill and badges are scabby.
I loved the "sand" interior with the black exterior and most importantly, it's got the correct gear shift!
Went for a 5 minute test drive (it was basically out of fuel!) and it was amazing. It needed a few stone chips taken care of so I asked the dealer to swap the badges for silver and a deal was done. More to come!
Then we moved to the UK where cheap European cars are abundant, so of course I bought a Mitsubishi EVO VIII MR FQ-320. Obligatory decat and tune up to ~380hp included. This did 5 years service including a few track days (fastest thing on track in pssing rain at Castle Combe and slowest thing on track with a bunch of GT cars on the full Silverstone) and a road trip through Germany including the Nordschleife. Parts cost buttons and it was as reliable as the moon. Only issue was I neglected it and it kept killing the tiny little batteries and it wasn't exactly suited to the Autobahns. And it looked stupid. And it was loud.
Next up we moved to Canada for a 3 month career break, so I bought an F150 whilst I was there. I did another Readers' Cars for that:
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
When we got back to the UK I got my European car. I was looking at the cheaper end of E92 M3s but they were all a bit scabby at my price range. Started looking at 335is and one came up with low miles and the Birds suspension and LSD. This has been an amazing car for the last 5 years - pretty damn fast after a tune up to ~380hp, handles crappy UK roads with aplomb on the 18inch wheels and fancy suspension, comfortable on the motorway and a nice place to sit. And it does good skids. Although it did have an expensive habit of eating ABS pumps and when it went the second time it was time to go. Not a great picture but you know what an E92 looks like.
So on to the main event. I've been following R8 prices for a few years and they've been pretty static and then I saw an article somewhere about cars that are at the bottom of their depreciation curve and they were mentioned up the top. I did the normal thing of looking around and thinking "I can afford a car at £30k", looking at the cars for that money and then getting scope creep. I knew I wanted a car without MagRide as that's a £5k bill if you have to replace all 4 corners and some people report it only lasting 20k miles. Insurance is basically the same as the BMW to keep on the street in London!
I found this one with 27k miles on it. Upside is no MagRide and carbon sideblades, only thing it was missing for me was heated seats for my dicky back. I was NOT a fan of the fake carbon wrap on the wheels, the fake carbon grill and black badges. The wrap on the wheels still actually looks in good condition to be fair but the grill and badges are scabby.
I loved the "sand" interior with the black exterior and most importantly, it's got the correct gear shift!
Went for a 5 minute test drive (it was basically out of fuel!) and it was amazing. It needed a few stone chips taken care of so I asked the dealer to swap the badges for silver and a deal was done. More to come!
carinaman said:
Very nice except for the carbon wrap stuff.
I'm thinking it'll protect the wheels a bit whilst the missus learns how big it is when reverse parking! 
shalmaneser said:
I still remember the day I saw the first one of these on the road. Looked like nothing else, so much presence. gen2 just not the same. would like to get in one of these one day.
Thoughts about the chassis cracking issue? I guess you've bought from a dealer so if anything does crop up it should be OK.
I remember reading the Evo magazine articles about them when they came out and loved them. I went and got copies again to relive it before this arrived actually! Thoughts about the chassis cracking issue? I guess you've bought from a dealer so if anything does crop up it should be OK.
We also went to the Frankfurt motor show and gawped at the spyder when they released that.
As far as the frame cracking, I think like lots of stuff it's been overblown by cranky forums
. Consensus seems to be now that it only happens in the event of an accident or very hard hit on a pothole, probably after the MagRide has given out. If that happens, you take it to a repairer and insurance either wrights it off or fixes it. If it were a common event they'd be expensive to insure but it was comparatively cheap. Hopefully I'm not wrong! 
So we caught the train out last night to go pick it up. Had some fun and games with insurance - did you know that quoting for insurance on the day the insurance starts is a lot more expensive compared to a week before? I certainly didn't but £200 says I'm not going to forget a second time!
The respray on the bonnet looked great and he'd changed the 4 rings badges to silver like we agreed. He hadn't changed the R8 badge at the back but a genuine one is £36 so no sweat, that's been ordered. It also had a small scratch on the front that didn't get repaired so he's going to pay for a mobile repairer to come out. He was so nice to me, I must have overpaid.
We drove out of his showroom and spent 10 minutes setting the satnav that seemed to come straight from a bad computer game in the 1980s. It took a while to find us as well but we'll deal with it.
Set off down the road and the first thing to notice is that the engine is a peach. It feels like it has a super light flywheel so picks up and revs really quickly. When you turn off the key, the engine just stops dead too which is really cool. And I only stalled it once on the way home!
That engine could be louder when you're pootling along but is appropriately noisy when making progress. Lots of the noise seems to be fan noise, kinda like a 911 if that makes sense which I didn't expect. Lightning throttle response, especially coming from fast turbo cars.
The steering is light and delicate but it's really easy to place exactly where you want on the road. Really nice. It cruises on the motorway with an even more relaxed feel than the BMW - doesn't feel like you're moving fast at all so I think cruise control is going to be important.
The open gate shifter is really easy to use after the first dozen shifts too. I was constantly just dropping it back a cog or two to play a tune with the engine. Coming back in on the M40 we went through the Hanger Lane tunnel in 2nd and deep into 3rd. The missus was supposed to record but she just shut her eyes and videoed her kneecaps, so I guess that means it's quick enough! I am a very happy boy.
Tucked up on a slightly fancier street round the corner from ours:
Next up, we should do something about that crappy stereo / SatNav and maybe look to do a road trip...
The respray on the bonnet looked great and he'd changed the 4 rings badges to silver like we agreed. He hadn't changed the R8 badge at the back but a genuine one is £36 so no sweat, that's been ordered. It also had a small scratch on the front that didn't get repaired so he's going to pay for a mobile repairer to come out. He was so nice to me, I must have overpaid.
We drove out of his showroom and spent 10 minutes setting the satnav that seemed to come straight from a bad computer game in the 1980s. It took a while to find us as well but we'll deal with it.
Set off down the road and the first thing to notice is that the engine is a peach. It feels like it has a super light flywheel so picks up and revs really quickly. When you turn off the key, the engine just stops dead too which is really cool. And I only stalled it once on the way home!
That engine could be louder when you're pootling along but is appropriately noisy when making progress. Lots of the noise seems to be fan noise, kinda like a 911 if that makes sense which I didn't expect. Lightning throttle response, especially coming from fast turbo cars.
The steering is light and delicate but it's really easy to place exactly where you want on the road. Really nice. It cruises on the motorway with an even more relaxed feel than the BMW - doesn't feel like you're moving fast at all so I think cruise control is going to be important.
The open gate shifter is really easy to use after the first dozen shifts too. I was constantly just dropping it back a cog or two to play a tune with the engine. Coming back in on the M40 we went through the Hanger Lane tunnel in 2nd and deep into 3rd. The missus was supposed to record but she just shut her eyes and videoed her kneecaps, so I guess that means it's quick enough! I am a very happy boy.
Tucked up on a slightly fancier street round the corner from ours:
Next up, we should do something about that crappy stereo / SatNav and maybe look to do a road trip...
Edited by seefarr on Tuesday 6th October 15:02
MacR8A5 said:
Congrats looks like a great car.
I remember when I got my first R8, a 4.2 R-Tronic which i paid above list for a second hand car, as I loved it after a short test drive. Great cars.
Do join the forum, https://www.r8talk.com/
Lots of useful info and friendly people!
Peter
Thanks, I've already read everything I can find on there - seems like a knowledgeable bunch with less of your typical brand-specific-forum people... You know what I'm saying! I remember when I got my first R8, a 4.2 R-Tronic which i paid above list for a second hand car, as I loved it after a short test drive. Great cars.
Do join the forum, https://www.r8talk.com/
Lots of useful info and friendly people!
Peter
hondafanatic said:
Off topic but the white Honda FD2 on the front cover was my car.
On topic - looks ace! Love the interior colour...look forward to the updates.
Claim to fame that one! They gave it rave reviews.On topic - looks ace! Love the interior colour...look forward to the updates.
shalmaneser said:
Please do keep this updated - looks great!
Sat Nav is to be expected I suppose, are there nice OEM-looking replacement options? Maybe fitting an OEM non-satnav HU and using a bluetooth widget would be a good option?
There is a SatNav and stereo plan in the works - should have more this week!Sat Nav is to be expected I suppose, are there nice OEM-looking replacement options? Maybe fitting an OEM non-satnav HU and using a bluetooth widget would be a good option?
200Plus Club said:
Get a decent exhaust on if you are keeping the car. Mine had an eisenmann system that was remote switchable. Oh my days that noise!
:-)
I'm going to try to plug the exhaust airlines (to keep the valve open below 3500rpm or whenever) and see if that gives me a bit more and then we'll have to see. I did that on my BMW and really liked it - a little bit rorty but still OK on a cruise.:-)
Not much done today on the actual car. I bought some magnetic GB "stickers" as we're hoping to get to Europe soon. But. They don't stick at all to aluminium (duh) so that's not going to work! Plan B required.
Also test fitted some bags in - managed to get a cabin bag in the nose frunk thing and a taller Eastpak roller and squishy cabin bag to fit quite nicely behind the seats with no reduction in rear vision. With some extra space in the frunk left for shoes and jackets that'll sort us for at least a week.
In non-R8 news I had the BMW polished today ready for sale. Removing 5 years of London's scrapes and very occasional washing must not have been fun but he did a great job - the bloke was really nice too. No relationship etc. but I'll be booking him in to do the R8 soon: https://www.ivaletuk.com/
Thanks for the kind words! I'm still over the moon with it!
I'm not going for a warranty. As someone said the really expensive things that go wrong are the MagRide (which I don't have) and the air-con compressor. This is not an expensive part but it's an engine out operation to replace it - I guess a mid-engined car is always going to have packaging compromises!
As much as the carbon wrapped wheels are not my thing, they've been done to a really high standard.
All direct injection engines suffer coking to a greater or lesser extent - the N54 in my BMW was known for it as well. A walnut blast every ~40k miles is the ticket and like you said, it's just considered maintenance.
I took it round to get a new stereo fitted this morning. I got stuck in a strange skinny road one-way system and discovered it doesn't handle speed bumps that well and the front tyres scrub at full lock quite excitingly but apparently they all do that.
I got the fitting kit from a company called RTA which includes all the wiring, the fascia and the rails. The fascia is super high quality and I reckon it looks pretty factory (I believe it is a copy of the Japanese factory fascia which fitted a double DIN?). Excuse the smudgy fingerprints....
So that's done just in time because within the week of buying it, we're off for a road trip to Germany! Sunday Chunnel, night in Saarbrucken and then down to the alps. Slight snafu (besides the whole Pandemic thing but that probably rates as more than a snafu) is that it's bloody cold in Germany in the next two weeks. This may put a dampener on my Alpine pass ideas but we'll have to see. They'll still have beer and schnitzels so not all will be lost!
I'm not going for a warranty. As someone said the really expensive things that go wrong are the MagRide (which I don't have) and the air-con compressor. This is not an expensive part but it's an engine out operation to replace it - I guess a mid-engined car is always going to have packaging compromises!
As much as the carbon wrapped wheels are not my thing, they've been done to a really high standard.
All direct injection engines suffer coking to a greater or lesser extent - the N54 in my BMW was known for it as well. A walnut blast every ~40k miles is the ticket and like you said, it's just considered maintenance.
I took it round to get a new stereo fitted this morning. I got stuck in a strange skinny road one-way system and discovered it doesn't handle speed bumps that well and the front tyres scrub at full lock quite excitingly but apparently they all do that.
I got the fitting kit from a company called RTA which includes all the wiring, the fascia and the rails. The fascia is super high quality and I reckon it looks pretty factory (I believe it is a copy of the Japanese factory fascia which fitted a double DIN?). Excuse the smudgy fingerprints....
So that's done just in time because within the week of buying it, we're off for a road trip to Germany! Sunday Chunnel, night in Saarbrucken and then down to the alps. Slight snafu (besides the whole Pandemic thing but that probably rates as more than a snafu) is that it's bloody cold in Germany in the next two weeks. This may put a dampener on my Alpine pass ideas but we'll have to see. They'll still have beer and schnitzels so not all will be lost!
Edited by seefarr on Friday 9th October 18:23
We made it to Deutschland! If you're reading this in the future, this is exciting because we are in the midst of a global pandemic and this week:
A) Germany was willing to take visitors from the South of England and
B) UK was willing to let us back in from Germany without a two week quarantine.
Saturday we drove down and stayed in a town called Elham 15 mins from Folkestone. We had the choice of forging a path through London or all the way round the M25 but the 5 minute saving didn't seem worth it so motorway it was. All was going well until we hit the concrete sections with the strange expansion joints on the south side of the M25 and and R8 just hated it. Slapping as we went over the expansions and a strange resonounce if we were going at anything over 70 meant we were sticking to the speed limit in that bit!
The missus had her first drive as we came of the motorway on the way to Elham. It's not that easy a car with the light flywheel and gated shift but she bossed it. She even managed to squeak it into the small car park at the pub that had me puckering!
A) Germany was willing to take visitors from the South of England and
B) UK was willing to let us back in from Germany without a two week quarantine.
Saturday we drove down and stayed in a town called Elham 15 mins from Folkestone. We had the choice of forging a path through London or all the way round the M25 but the 5 minute saving didn't seem worth it so motorway it was. All was going well until we hit the concrete sections with the strange expansion joints on the south side of the M25 and and R8 just hated it. Slapping as we went over the expansions and a strange resonounce if we were going at anything over 70 meant we were sticking to the speed limit in that bit!
The missus had her first drive as we came of the motorway on the way to Elham. It's not that easy a car with the light flywheel and gated shift but she bossed it. She even managed to squeak it into the small car park at the pub that had me puckering!
Sunday we were up at the crack of 8:30 for breakfast after a refreshingly English cold shower and on the road by 9am. Half way to the Euro Tunnel we got the "Oil Low - Add 1 Litre message".
The V8 is kind of famous for using oil - Audi say up to 1L per 1000 miles is normal. And it's not the normal fill-ya-tractor buy at the services type oil. Oh no. Its fancy expensive oil.
But I'd planned for this so I'd bought a litre and had it nestled securely in the frunk before heading off. So we got to the parking after checking in to the train and smashed in the litre bottle i'd brought. The guy in the lovely Lotus near us may have snorted a little but he was kind.
On checking in they decided our car was low or wide so we got on with the vans. Pulled in behind a trailer containing a pile of rust that was vaguely in the shape of a Lancia.
The V8 is kind of famous for using oil - Audi say up to 1L per 1000 miles is normal. And it's not the normal fill-ya-tractor buy at the services type oil. Oh no. Its fancy expensive oil.
But I'd planned for this so I'd bought a litre and had it nestled securely in the frunk before heading off.
So we got to the parking after checking in to the train and smashed in the litre bottle i'd brought. The guy in the lovely Lotus near us may have snorted a little but he was kind. On checking in they decided our car was low or wide so we got on with the vans. Pulled in behind a trailer containing a pile of rust that was vaguely in the shape of a Lancia.
Sunday was just smashing our way through France. We stayed on the Autoroute toll roads all the way to Saarbrucken. 130kph speed limits is nice but they are heavily enforced with hidden speed cameras so we stuck on the tunes, grabbed the cruise control and arrived in Germany 5 hours later.
Only exciting thing that happened was coming out of a toll booth on wet concrete. I floor it in 1st as you do and it spins up. OK. 4wd is a broad church, let's see about 2nd. Nope, that's kinda slithery now. Missus unhappy, asking why men have to speed away from toll booths. Dunno, it's just what we do.
Saarbrucken was quite pleasant even if the temperature had dropped a lot. Most restaurants were shut because Sunday so we booked into a fancy place and ate well.
Only exciting thing that happened was coming out of a toll booth on wet concrete. I floor it in 1st as you do and it spins up. OK. 4wd is a broad church, let's see about 2nd. Nope, that's kinda slithery now. Missus unhappy, asking why men have to speed away from toll booths. Dunno, it's just what we do.
Saarbrucken was quite pleasant even if the temperature had dropped a lot. Most restaurants were shut because Sunday so we booked into a fancy place and ate well.
Edited by seefarr on Tuesday 13th October 21:16
OK, more about the car I promise.
I'm feeling a bit stressed by the oil usage so we find a German auto parts store and buy two litres of oil. At €22 a litre. Like I said, it's fancy feckin oil.
We are into Germany now and ready to stretch our legs on the way down to the alps. As soon as we pull onto the motorway we see the lovely unrestricted sign. Only time I've ever been on Autobahn before was in the Evo and that didn't exactly enjoy high speed cruises or a rental diesel E class which was dull. But the R8 is perhaps unsurprisingly loving it.
This may be a pertinent time to mention fuel efficiency. It doesn't have it. At a steady 130kph (80mph) on cruise control it will average 22mpg. We have used many dinosaur squeezings in this trip, but we ride public transport the rest of the year so its probably OK.
Now that that's out the way I'm cruising at 100mph with bursts North of 120mph with not even a squeak from the passenger seat so it must seem as planted on her side as it does mine. Not being able to see the speedo from the passenger seat is also probably helping here. There's a fair amount of traffic as always so that seems quick enough anyway. She hits over 100mph a few times too and we get passed by a BMW 2 series Active Tourer wound up to north of 120mph with a frazzled looking women at the wheel. Germany.
We get a few tunnels to play V8 songs into and all is happiness. Coming down into a speed limited section everyone else plants on their brakes and I just coast down.
.
.
.
FLASH
.
Damn.
OK, let's not do that again. We lunch in Ulm which was Einstein's birthplace and has some pretty old houses, then a quick drive into Lindau in the Bodensee.
I'm feeling a bit stressed by the oil usage so we find a German auto parts store and buy two litres of oil. At €22 a litre. Like I said, it's fancy feckin oil.
We are into Germany now and ready to stretch our legs on the way down to the alps. As soon as we pull onto the motorway we see the lovely unrestricted sign. Only time I've ever been on Autobahn before was in the Evo and that didn't exactly enjoy high speed cruises or a rental diesel E class which was dull. But the R8 is perhaps unsurprisingly loving it.
This may be a pertinent time to mention fuel efficiency. It doesn't have it. At a steady 130kph (80mph) on cruise control it will average 22mpg. We have used many dinosaur squeezings in this trip, but we ride public transport the rest of the year so its probably OK.
Now that that's out the way I'm cruising at 100mph with bursts North of 120mph with not even a squeak from the passenger seat so it must seem as planted on her side as it does mine. Not being able to see the speedo from the passenger seat is also probably helping here. There's a fair amount of traffic as always so that seems quick enough anyway. She hits over 100mph a few times too and we get passed by a BMW 2 series Active Tourer wound up to north of 120mph with a frazzled looking women at the wheel. Germany.
We get a few tunnels to play V8 songs into and all is happiness. Coming down into a speed limited section everyone else plants on their brakes and I just coast down.
.
.
.
FLASH
.
Damn.
OK, let's not do that again. We lunch in Ulm which was Einstein's birthplace and has some pretty old houses, then a quick drive into Lindau in the Bodensee.
Edited by seefarr on Tuesday 13th October 21:03
PaulJC84 said:
Its interesting hearing about the V8 MPG.
I have a V10 manual and its usually around 21-22mpg day to day. I did a 180 mile each way trip last weekend. One way I was 70-100mph all the way and a lot of overtakes and steady sitting at 90mph and I got 25mpg. On the way home was 70mph pretty much all the way and I got 26mpg.
Kind of dissapointed to here this! I discounted a V10 as I'd read the fuel efficiency was mental. Maybe a walnut blast will improve mine. I have a V10 manual and its usually around 21-22mpg day to day. I did a 180 mile each way trip last weekend. One way I was 70-100mph all the way and a lot of overtakes and steady sitting at 90mph and I got 25mpg. On the way home was 70mph pretty much all the way and I got 26mpg.
Anyway, fuel is for burning so next day we did. Here's the route if anyone cares - I think it was fabulous but I put it together so...
https://goo.gl/maps/ZUC4TwDm3344gb83A
We turned right out of Lindau and straight into Austria. Austria is currently on the naughty list for GB so we didn't stop other than in deserted road side parking. The drive would have been great (well sighted fast speepers) except I had a police van swing in behind me so we studiously adhered to the speed limits. At the German border town of Baldershwang, he turned around and we found ourself with a very special bit of road all to ourselves. Fast, slow, hairpins it had it all. I was like a pig in the proverbial in the Audi and it was loving it. Only downside was that the temperature was hovering just above 0c so I was very cautious about ice in the shade.
We went down to Oberstdorf which is tucked up right into Austria but still in Germany for lunch. Pretty alpine village and we managed to stumble upon a burger and chips that came with truffle mayo that may as well have been crack.
Back into Austria for another pass after lunch and it was just as good as the first one after we'd stopped and let the traffic go past. I was getting used to giving it the herbs in 2nd out of the tight hairpins, feeling the rear start to give way. The missus was starting to feel like 2nd was too ambitious!
Utterly stunning scenery all the way along, with snowy mountains, autumnal leaves and lakes.
We finished up in Füssen in Germany overnight. More cute medieval village, beer and pork = happiness.
Second alpine road trip day was amazing. We had great weather the whole day (apart from a bit of cloud on some passes). If I was doing this again in two days, I'd take three days but in two days I would have pushed on to Gamisch on the first day rather than Füssen as the second days drive was pretty long.
Actually, speaking of Füssen the hotel we stayed in had parking at the hotel (€10 a night like every hotel in Germany). We got kind of stressed getting in though. First level down was OK - I made it in one pass but no parks there. The next ramp down was steeper and tighter and I had to back up a couple of times to get down. I was frazzled by the time we got it in the parking spot and not looking forward to getting it out. The front diff locks up a lot when it's cold so your turning circle is worse and it makes hideous noises.
The room was super heated like all of Europe and I ended up having nightmares about driving it out of the car park all night! As I got to the car a friendly German bloke wanted to chat about it and I just wanted to leave - sorry bloke. I had the missus walking up I front to make sure there was no contact but I did it in one go with no reversing in the end. The locking diff was happy on the slippery concrete so good turning circle and no horrible sounds. Success!
Second days trip and again, fabulous:
https://goo.gl/maps/Z3SLTNMX3bvvZWgcA
So we made it past Garmisch-Partenkirchen (via Austria) all good and started the trip I'd outlined. We turned off the main road and onto a tiny little sub-B road that was 1.5 Audis wide. The missus was driving at this stage and was not happy about this. We got to the start of a random toll road that was on the way that consisted of a man in a shed taking €5 in a bucket from the occasional car that went past. We checked out googles and this was certainly the quickest way to get anywhere. I magnanimously offered to drive in the tight bits, paid the man and we were off. The road promptly widened up to 1.9 Audis and we hadn't seen any oncoming traffic or lane marking.
Hang on, is this a one way toll road like that famous one around Nuremburg I hear so much about? Speed is building gradually but we're making progress when the boss in the passenger seat notices that the road signs point in both directions. Back off and come face to face with a camper van round the next corner.
Cool.
The road was a beaut though, even if we weren't setting a new lap record. A beautiful river running beside it as we ducked in and out of the forest.
Actually, speaking of Füssen the hotel we stayed in had parking at the hotel (€10 a night like every hotel in Germany). We got kind of stressed getting in though. First level down was OK - I made it in one pass but no parks there. The next ramp down was steeper and tighter and I had to back up a couple of times to get down. I was frazzled by the time we got it in the parking spot and not looking forward to getting it out. The front diff locks up a lot when it's cold so your turning circle is worse and it makes hideous noises.
The room was super heated like all of Europe and I ended up having nightmares about driving it out of the car park all night!
As I got to the car a friendly German bloke wanted to chat about it and I just wanted to leave - sorry bloke. I had the missus walking up I front to make sure there was no contact but I did it in one go with no reversing in the end. The locking diff was happy on the slippery concrete so good turning circle and no horrible sounds. Success!Second days trip and again, fabulous:
https://goo.gl/maps/Z3SLTNMX3bvvZWgcA
So we made it past Garmisch-Partenkirchen (via Austria) all good and started the trip I'd outlined. We turned off the main road and onto a tiny little sub-B road that was 1.5 Audis wide. The missus was driving at this stage and was not happy about this. We got to the start of a random toll road that was on the way that consisted of a man in a shed taking €5 in a bucket from the occasional car that went past. We checked out googles and this was certainly the quickest way to get anywhere. I magnanimously offered to drive in the tight bits, paid the man and we were off. The road promptly widened up to 1.9 Audis and we hadn't seen any oncoming traffic or lane marking.
Hang on, is this a one way toll road like that famous one around Nuremburg I hear so much about
? Speed is building gradually but we're making progress when the boss in the passenger seat notices that the road signs point in both directions. Back off and come face to face with a camper van round the next corner.Cool.
The road was a beaut though, even if we weren't setting a new lap record. A beautiful river running beside it as we ducked in and out of the forest.
Edited by seefarr on Thursday 15th October 22:25
From the toll road we were spat out on a lively little road past some lakes. No traffic and some fast perfect roads with the occasional spot of lake scenery was perfect.
Round the lakes Turgensee and up to Schiersee for lunch then onto the thext pass. Another perfect road and I'm trusting the brakes to lean hard now. We stop off at a nice river and the Tazerwurm waterfall.
I finally get my turn I the passenger seat and the missus gets a chance to start playing with the Audi on yet more empty roads.
We pull into our Berchtesgaden hotel via some crazy narrow roads and a minor disagreement but all is well and we eat another kilo of pork each. Just like lunch.
Round the lakes Turgensee and up to Schiersee for lunch then onto the thext pass. Another perfect road and I'm trusting the brakes to lean hard now. We stop off at a nice river and the Tazerwurm waterfall.
I finally get my turn I the passenger seat and the missus gets a chance to start playing with the Audi on yet more empty roads.
We pull into our Berchtesgaden hotel via some crazy narrow roads and a minor disagreement but all is well and we eat another kilo of pork each. Just like lunch.
DamnKraut said:
That toll road, I remember it well from my Austria trips. It’s right next to the Isar river flowing into Sylvenstein reservoir which you cross via a nice bridge.
Shame you weren’t there in summer. Going from west to east along that road, just before its end via a right turn over a small bridge, there are parking spots for stopping and dipping your feet into crystal clear alpine river water where the Isar is still young and a few meters wide only. Remember doing that when it was 32 degrees outside and the water was like 12 degrees or so. Good times
That's the one! But it was ~5c outside so not too keen dipping feet in the water! Shame you weren’t there in summer. Going from west to east along that road, just before its end via a right turn over a small bridge, there are parking spots for stopping and dipping your feet into crystal clear alpine river water where the Isar is still young and a few meters wide only. Remember doing that when it was 32 degrees outside and the water was like 12 degrees or so. Good times
ninepoint2 said:
Is the required oil not VW 504 - 507? it's what both my (non R8) V8 and V10 use. Cheap as chips from TPS, Quantum longlife which is Genuine VAG oil and what they come from the factory with, 20 Litre box (similar to a large wine box) with a tap fitted is around £60 odd. If its too big just fill a couple of smaller bottles for long trips.
See that requires prior planning and not buying it from an Auto parts store in bumfeck nowhere Germany. I didn't actually think I'd use a litre!!! TimmyWimmyWoo said:
Lovely car and trip - I’m planning to leave on an almost identical trip tomorrow, albeit in a similarly thirsty petrol Touareg! Glad to see it’s still possible to get there without too much hassle. Not looking forward to doing three hours across France without stopping with a 20 month old in the car...
The bad parts of the French Autoroute are that they're expensive and heavily speed patrolled. The good parts are that they have heaps of parking and toilets with no one else around and you can pay for fuel by card at the pump. That counts as transit under the current rules for both UK and Germany. How do you do a trip for two weeks in an Audi R8? On first glance at the front trunk (frunk) you'd think you were in trouble but it's actually not bad. We did a layer of extra boots and oil (as has been discussed).
Then a carry on wheely bag with our big coats next to that. You can't put anything precious here as it gets hot next to all of the radiators.
Then we've got a bigger soft wheely and a cabin backpack on the shelf. This gives us 8 days worth of winter clothes with room to spare.
Then a carry on wheely bag with our big coats next to that. You can't put anything precious here as it gets hot next to all of the radiators.
Then we've got a bigger soft wheely and a cabin backpack on the shelf. This gives us 8 days worth of winter clothes with room to spare.
Hit the road out of Berchtesgaden and we're heading for the Rossfeldstrasse. The drive up from town is lovely and a great way to warm up the engine and tyres. We carry on past a former house of a National Socialist leader that hasn't been destroyed for some reason. A youth gives us a hand signal that I initially take for "w
r" but turns out to be the movement you make for revving a bike engine. I oblige. Another quick blat and we get to the toll gates.
Yeah, it's another toll road. €8.50 buys you access to a delightful alpine road. For some reason there's no one else around either. We take off from the gates and the 70kph theoretical speed limit is incredibly theoretical. It's cold but not icy and really well sighted.
As we climb it starts to rain, then splurty rain, then it's snowing. And we're on P-Zeros.
The road goes all the way up to 1700m and it gives some good photos but probably not a great idea to drive on summer tyres.
So very carefully we tip toe back down. After exiting the toll road it dries out and warms up. What a car! What a thing! All of the brake dust is obscuring the stupid carbon wheel wraps too which is even more excuse to get on it!
r" but turns out to be the movement you make for revving a bike engine. I oblige. Another quick blat and we get to the toll gates. Yeah, it's another toll road. €8.50 buys you access to a delightful alpine road. For some reason there's no one else around either. We take off from the gates and the 70kph theoretical speed limit is incredibly theoretical. It's cold but not icy and really well sighted.
As we climb it starts to rain, then splurty rain, then it's snowing. And we're on P-Zeros.
The road goes all the way up to 1700m and it gives some good photos but probably not a great idea to drive on summer tyres.
So very carefully we tip toe back down. After exiting the toll road it dries out and warms up. What a car! What a thing! All of the brake dust is obscuring the stupid carbon wheel wraps too which is even more excuse to get on it!
We had two nights in Passau which was quite a cute town. We drove out to the Bavarian National Forest or something like that. They had a tree top walk (for money) and an open air zoo thing you could walk around for free.
The drive up was typical German A road - nice road but 100% trucks. When we started on these roads we tried overtaking but you just end up at another truck and a whole more stressed. Better to sit back, crank some tunes and have a sing along.
We went via the town of Mauth for no other reason than the Michelin guide told us to and it was a lovely drive. No cars, fast roads and a V8.
We had constant mild drizzle the whole day and I was in my London wool coat which seemed to freak out the head to toe Gore Tex wearing locals. But I was warm and dry!
The bear isn't dead, just too lazy to stand up. 20'000 steps completed, I'm reliabley informed and we're on our way back.
On the way home I stamped it in first out of a wet T intersection. 1st started to spin and then traction control heavily intervened to cut fun times. 2nd was a bit better but still had the grumpy yellow light flashing and cutting power. Wo ist der quattro, Audi?! The passenger was not impressed.
The drive up was typical German A road - nice road but 100% trucks. When we started on these roads we tried overtaking but you just end up at another truck and a whole more stressed. Better to sit back, crank some tunes and have a sing along.
We went via the town of Mauth for no other reason than the Michelin guide told us to and it was a lovely drive. No cars, fast roads and a V8.
We had constant mild drizzle the whole day and I was in my London wool coat which seemed to freak out the head to toe Gore Tex wearing locals. But I was warm and dry!
The bear isn't dead, just too lazy to stand up. 20'000 steps completed, I'm reliabley informed and we're on our way back.
On the way home I stamped it in first out of a wet T intersection. 1st started to spin and then traction control heavily intervened to cut fun times. 2nd was a bit better but still had the grumpy yellow light flashing and cutting power. Wo ist der quattro, Audi?! The passenger was not impressed.
We had a transit day from Passau up to Regensburg at a gentle 100mph on the cruise control. We had a police stop where they asked us where we'd come from and been (fair enough!). Police gentleman asking questions had a sub-machine gun, so you didn't skimp on details.
We also had a 5-series police car pull onto the Autobahn two places in front of us in a 100kph zone. He slowed down in the hard shoulder to come behind us, sat there for a bit and then went past.
I didn't wave. He put on blues and took off and we passed him again later in an unlimited section.
Regensburg is a gorgeous medieval town with a load of breweries - win!
The next day we headed up for another drive recommended by the Michelin green guide - this one up in the mountains near the Czech border. It's almost like they want to sell tyres by recommending good roads? Seriously, if you're doing a driving holiday, get yourself one. Even if you're not, they have LOADS more information on the churches, townhalls, random fox-killing-a-goose fountain than you'd ever realise you wanted to know.
https://goo.gl/maps/X7jP8sW7cKPw7zdn9
Again, great roads with little traffic and amazingly beautiful views. There were loads of people parked in the "sights" car parks but I'm not sure when or how they got there because we were essentially traffic free the whole route.
We also had a 5-series police car pull onto the Autobahn two places in front of us in a 100kph zone. He slowed down in the hard shoulder to come behind us, sat there for a bit and then went past.
I didn't wave. He put on blues and took off and we passed him again later in an unlimited section. Regensburg is a gorgeous medieval town with a load of breweries - win!
The next day we headed up for another drive recommended by the Michelin green guide - this one up in the mountains near the Czech border. It's almost like they want to sell tyres by recommending good roads?
Seriously, if you're doing a driving holiday, get yourself one. Even if you're not, they have LOADS more information on the churches, townhalls, random fox-killing-a-goose fountain than you'd ever realise you wanted to know. https://goo.gl/maps/X7jP8sW7cKPw7zdn9
Again, great roads with little traffic and amazingly beautiful views. There were loads of people parked in the "sights" car parks but I'm not sure when or how they got there because we were essentially traffic free the whole route.
Hilarious things you learn about a supersports car. I've had this happen a couple of times of times and thought there was something wrong, but no.
EU came up with a drive by noise regulation in the late 2000s. Audi had a.... car that was close to production. The test was that you drove at 50kph in 3rd gear and then flattened the accelerator. Audi got round this by having the car just ignore throttle input if you went flat at 50kph in 3rd. This has drivability issues in a very specific set of circumstances but apparently the official line is "why weren't you in 2nd?". Which with an engine that revs to 8000rpm is a good question!
EU came up with a drive by noise regulation in the late 2000s. Audi had a.... car that was close to production. The test was that you drove at 50kph in 3rd gear and then flattened the accelerator. Audi got round this by having the car just ignore throttle input if you went flat at 50kph in 3rd. This has drivability issues in a very specific set of circumstances but apparently the official line is "why weren't you in 2nd?". Which with an engine that revs to 8000rpm is a good question!
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