Jon and Eddie's European Road Trip

[Ash.]

What time are you guys leaveing I might be heading done south at the same kind of time. Mini road trip lol??

 

[JoeyD]

10pm IIRC

 

[welshname]

I'm so jealous

You guys will have an ace trip. Think next year I'll get my arse in gear and get a euro trip done. Think I'll camp instead though, because cheap b*****d.

 

[Jon.G]

I'm so jealous

You guys will have an ace trip. Think next year I'll get my arse in gear and get a euro trip done. Think I'll camp instead though, because cheap b*****d.

We considered it, but we most hotels are actually pretty cheap. We're doing ~2k miles in a small hatchback we don't really want to be sleeping in a tent for the duration.

Oh yeah Rhys, I might buy you another memory card while we're out there. I've got a feeling I'm going to fill 2GB, and nobody has any spare CF cards. So if I get one you can just have it when I get back.

We also borrowed a sat-nav off someone, which turns out to be utter dog s**t. So we're going to buy one later on.

 

[welshname]

LOL! I'll give you the money if you get another card. I needed one anyways.

Who is driving the first stint?

 

[Rob]

I've been trying to plan one of these for a while, but then a load of my friends become jobless, and the ones with jobs got rid of their cars due to working up town

Jealous chaps, have a cracking time.

 

[welshname]

Will have to organise an invite only CS one next year.

 

[Christopher]

Will have to organise an invite only CS one next year.

Already on the cards.

Have a good trip guys! No homo.

 

[welshname]

On the cards and I didn't know about it...that means I'm not invited

 

[Christopher]

Your car wouldn't make Birmingham, let alone Belgium!

 

[welshname]

My car is a mileage muncher I'll have you know! I'm hoping by this time next year I'll have something different anyway.

 

[Jon.G]

LOL! I'll give you the money if you get another card. I needed one anyways.

Who is driving the first stint?

We'll sort it out mate.

Ed's driving most of it. I'll drive the just after we hit London.

Just got a New sat-nav for £60 with Euro maps on. Fingers cross it'll be fine! As soon as we're back, its going on eBay.

 

[Eddie.]

Last post before we set off now, I pick Jon up in 38 mins, not that I'm counting

Next time you hear from us, we'll probably be taking in the morning sea air on the ferry.

Laters

 

[Philip.]

Have a good time! Sounds like it'll be full of win!

 

[welshname]

You b******s. Next year we ALL need to do this 100%

 

[Jon.G]

Don't worry, I've promised to Ed I'm going to fill this thread up with crap photos from my phone until we get back.

 

[Joe#]

Not long to go. Both of you must be so excited!

 

[H.Maxim]

Have a good one. I'm going next month with a few mates. Can't wait!!

 

[Eddie.]

Mini update.

Took a total of 18 hours, Manchester - Nurburgring. We stopped for sleep midway through Belgium. We saw Spa Francorchamps (sp) from a viaduct on the way past, was pretty good!

Our laps of the ring were quite nerveracking, M3's literally sit an inch off your rear bumper through apex's.

We also saw a Megane 250 totally misjudge a corner and went for a trip in the dirt!

Now in the town of Adenau, which is full of supercars very much like the town of Nurburg was! The DTM is certainly having a profound effect on the area (we saw a Diablo and a CLK Black edition last night!)

Anyway, looking forward to uploading a shed load of photos and giving you all a decent write up.

 

[Jon.G]

We're both back now. Around 1800miles in total, and hundereds of photos to sort though. I'll update this later with a bit more of a write up and some photos. I' sure Ed is already cracking with it.

All in all, fantastic experience. So so so many highlights I don't know where to start. Anybody who is thinking of doing a euro trip, just do it!

 

[andywa]

Looking forward to the pics and write up mate.

 

[Hixle]

Excellent stuff Gents

 

[welshname]

Can't wait to see the write up

Sounds like you had a blast!

 

[Jon.G]

Just found about 17 photos taken of us on the nurburgring.

Here's one of me

 

[H.Maxim]

Looking forward to the write up.

 

[Revels]

Looks like a good trip.

Include rough costs etc in your write up, Ed. There's a good boy.

 

[Eddie.]

Write up time. This won't be short, so grab a brew, I have highlighted our rough costs and included some links, for anyone interested in doing a roadtrip similar to ours.

Our trip started in Manchester, and after a few hours of boring motorways and a slight diversion past Coventry, we made it to Dover.

Our ferry was booked with DFDS Ferries, they were excellent value at £80 return for the both of us: http://www.dfdsseaways.co.uk/

We left Dover at 5am, which left us with a stunning sunrise over the English Channel:

Jon On Ferry by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Ferry Sunrise by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Once in France, we immediately headed (right, as you look at the map) for Belgium (thus avoiding any toll roads). Somewhere in mid Belgium, the toll from the overnight driving was too much, and we stopped for a sleep in a rest stop. It was 38 degrees, so we slept on some concrete benches in the shade! Also got the camera out, naturally:

Car In Belgium by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Our first proper destination, was the Nurburgring Nordshleife.

The DTM was on while we were there, so hotel prices were astronomical/had no vacancies for the Saturday night, so we stayed in a guesthouse called Sliders, that offered a great service, not far from the track, and run by a Brit called Brendan.

http://www.slidersguesthouse.com/

First point to note, is Brendan is an awesome guy, he knows why people stay there, and he caters to it very well. After venturing down to the track for a few hours, we sat with him and some other guests with a beer, watching Frankie Boyle, what more could you ask for!

He is also extremely knowledgeable on the 'ring, and offered us plenty of advice, and a stark warning when he told us that in the 9 years he has run his business, he has lost a total of 6 guests to the Nordschleife.

One room for both of us, was about £80.

Few snaps from our first night down at the town of Nurburg:

Corvette Nurburg by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Nurburg Monument by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Nurburg Map by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

While we were down there on the first night, we went into the Ring Boulevard, which is basically an exhibition hall next to the F1 track. Few photos from in there:

Nurburgring Visitor Centre by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Audi Stand by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Audi A1 & RS4 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Audi RS4 Detail by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Audi RS4 Rear by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Audi RS4 Front by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Mercedes Stand by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

And the standard shot that everyone gets

Clio At The Nurburgring by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Day two say us take on the Nurburgring itself and both do a lap. First thing I will say about the 'ring, is it's utterly terrifying, second thing I will say is, everyone should do it. I loved every corner, every straight, and everytime a 911 Turbo overtook me on full boost, sounding like a rocket!

One lap of the Nurburgring is £20

We grabbed some photos from the entrance to the track, which is basically a who's who of all the best track cars out there!

F10 M5 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche GT3 & M3 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Ferrari F430 Scuderia Macro by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Ferrari F430 Scuderia Rear by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Ferrari F430 Scuderia Front by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Corvette Nurburgring by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche 911 Nurburgring by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche 911 Nurburgring Front by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Save The Ring Clio by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

BMW M3 Wheels by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

A couple from Jons lap, that I took from the passenger seat:

Jons Lap by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Jons Lap 2 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

And my car earned its right to wear this:

'Ring Sticker by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Fwiends:

RS Clios Together by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

For our second night we stayed at the Blau Ecke in Adenau:

http://www.blaueecke.de/start/?PHPSESSID=600d5b074eb8dd137f13a5ae7c2ee231

This was much cheaper for the second night, due to the DTM being over with, so the room came to about £90 for the both of us.

Decent view over the main road too

View From Blau Ecke by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

After our laps, we went back to the town of Nurburg, and had a wander around by day:

BMW 3 Series Touring by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Nurburg by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Ferrari F430 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Ferrari 599 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

We also stumbled across a DTM support race, when we found a door that was left open!

Nurburgring GP Race by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

I M Fan by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Nurburgring GP Race 2 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

We also had a walk down to the Casino:

Nurburgring Casino Entrance by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Mercedes CLK Black by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

And then on our walk back through Nurburg, a few more cars worth remembering

Chevrolet Pickup by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Nurburg 2 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Honda FD2 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

BMW M550D OTR by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

One of Adenau, just before we left:

Adenau by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

BMW 3 Series by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

The roads out of the area are pretty awesome as well as the 'Ring itself!

Hairpin by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

As we were leaving we saw that the track was open for a pre-booked trackday, so we stopped and had a quick look around. Few more from the entrance to the track:

Porsche 911 Nurburgring 2 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Evo Nurburgring by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Lamborghini Gallardo by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Lamborghini Gallardo Interior by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche 911 GT3 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Callaway by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

BMW M3 GTS by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

After the Nurburgring, we left for Stuttgart, we decided to go through a town called Cochem, which had been reccomended to us by one of the guys at Sliders, well worth the trip:

Cochem by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Cochem 2 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Cochem 3 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Would have been nice to have stayed longer, but we needed to get moving to be in Stuttgart in time.

Got switchbacks?

Got Switchbacks by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

On the Autobahn, we saw signs for Hockenheim, and we couldn't resist, so off we went:

Hockenheimring by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Things didn't quite go to plan, and we got lost and ended up on a very dusty forest road that encircled the track, but we did find this memorial to Jim Clark, it was in the middle of nowhere, with nothing but a forest track leading past it!

Jim Clark Memorial by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Dusty Clio by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

On the way into Stuttgart we stopped in Sinsheim, at the Autotechnik centre: http://www.technik-museum.de/

Cost for the museum was £10, but we got it a little cheaper because we were only there for the last hour and a half, and it apparently takes 6 hours to go round everything.

Autotechnik Museum by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Autotechnik Museum 2 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Concorde by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Concorde 2 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Concorde 3 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Formula One by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

McLaren Mercedes SLR 722 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Speedster by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Ferrari 2 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Ferrari F40 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Ferrari 3 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Lamborghini 4X4 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

F40 & Countach by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Countach by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Once in Stuttgart, we stayed at a hotel called the Golden Leaf, laughably cheap at £30 for both of us, and it's about half a mile to the Porsche factory!

http://www.golden-leaf-hotel.de/en/stuttgart/hotel-hsz/uebersicht.html

The next day we went to the Porsche museum, entry is about £5:

Porsche Museum by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 2 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 3 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 4 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 5 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 6 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 7 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 8 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 9 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 10 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 11 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 12 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 13 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 14 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 15 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 16 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 17 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 18 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 19 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 20 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 21 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 22 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 23 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 24 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum 25 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Next door to the museum, there is a Porsche showroom, which we had a wander around. Glad we did, as we saw a (probably) priceless Porsche tractor being driven through the showroom by one of the staff!

Porsche Showroom by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Showroom 2 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum Exterior by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Porsche Museum Exterior 2 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

We also went to the Mercedes museum, but due to time constraints, we decided to just have a look around the showroom, and as it turned out, the carpark too!

Mercedes Carpark by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Mercedes C63 AMG Estate by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Mercedes Showroom by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Transformers 3 E500 AMG by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Transformers 3 E500 AMG 2 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Our final destination, and the end of our south headed driving, was Zurich. We stayed in the Swissotel, in Oerlikin, about a 5 min train ride (£5 for a 24 hour pass) from central Zurich.

http://www.swissotel.com/

Our rooom was on the 18th floor and had amazing views. The hotel was also a very very nice place to be, 14th best in Zurich certainly can't be bad

Cost of the room was around £180, for both of us, for 2 nights.

First night, we had a walk around the city centre for a bit.

Zurich River Night by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

The next day we spent some time soaking in the heat, and the atmosphere of Zurich, which is a truly lovely city.

Zurich River Day by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Zurich City Centre by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Zurich City Centre 2 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Zurich City Centre 3 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Lamborghini Aventador by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Lamborghini Aventador 2 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Lamborghini Aventador 3 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

We then stumbled across a classic car rally, this was one of the highlights of the holiday for me, some of the rarest cars on the road, all arrived just before we got there. We had a very good look around!

Classic Car Show by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Classic Car Show 2 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Fisker by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Classic Car Show 3 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Classic Car Show 4 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Classic Car Show 5 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Classic Car Show 6 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Classic Car Show 7 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Classic Car Show 8 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Classic Car Show9 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Classic Car Show 10 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Classic Car Show11 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

We then headed out of the main centre and down the banks of the lake, where the real money of Zurich started to show itself!

Zurich Lake by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Aston Martin DBS by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Zurich Mansion by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Zurich Lake 2 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Ferrari California by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Ferrari In Zurich by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

View from our room:

View From Swissotel Room by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Ferrari California 2 by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Bikes At The Train Station by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

Zurich Lake Sunset by Eddie the Kid, on Flickr

All in all, a fantastic trip, and I wouldn't think twice about doing it again. The Clio was perfect and didn't miss a single beat. 1900 miles, and it did 39.8mpg the whole way

Other costs:

Fuel was about £160 each

Spending money about £450 ish (for me, no idea what Jon spent)

Anybody thinking of doing something like this, just do it. I can't reccomend it enough, and if anyone wants to know anything, please feel free to drop me a PM or something.

Cheers for reading

 

[welshname]

Epic write up, Ed. I really need to pull my finger out and get one done.

 

[markerboy2002]

Fuel was only £160 for the whole trip? Thats just epic! I'd love to do this sort of thing. Great write up

 

[Hixle]

Awesome! Great write up fella, very jealous.

Some lovely shots too.

 

[jam.]

Brilliant, looks like you had a great time.

The Porsche Museum looks amazing, I don't think I'd be able to leave.

 

[welshname]

Fuel was only £160 for the whole trip? Thats just epic! I'd love to do this sort of thing. Great write up

Each. They went in 1 car so it's £320

 

[markerboy2002]

Ahhhh got you now, still not too bad though

 

[Jon.G]

Day 1
We set off from Manchester at around 10pm to catch our 5AM ferry from Dover, alone this was probably the longest drive either of us had done. Ed started off, then just past London we swapped over, so I could get a feel for his car whilst still in the UK.

We arrived at Dover with 30mins to go before check-in, so I had a play with Rhys’ camera. Due to the time of our ferry we set sail just as the sun was rising.

IMG_1081 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1123 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

After going slightly the wrong way, we got back on track out of Calais, cracked the Red Bulls open and headed for our first stop, Nurburgring, Germany. On our way we passed through Belgium where we stopped for a few hours. The weather had spiked and hit 37degrees whilst we were sleeping in the shade at the side of the road. This is something you would never have been able to do in the UK.

IMG_1137 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1157 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1158 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1178 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1181 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

Sleeping in the shade and waking up to see this:

IMG_1185 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1189 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

After we had arrived at Sliders Guesthouse, we sorted ourselves out then went to see the Nurburgring at night. Brendan Slider actually holds the fastest ‘ring lap time for a motorbike, he also has a mx-5 which has a few mods . We went to Nurburg, which is just inside the circuit for some food and to see the BMW M Test Centre.

IMG_1291 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1293 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1201 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1206 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1222 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1223 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

My first meal of the trip was a lovely steak, couldn’t off asked for more.

IMG_1226 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

We then went for a wander around the Ring Werk. Due to the DTM being on that weekend there were stands everywhere and lots of people around. Saw the ‘ring roller coaster, casino and ‘ring go-karts.

IMG_1254 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1278 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

Day 2

The following day, we then headed back down to the ‘ring, Fantastic roads just to get there. Much better than anywhere you would find in the UK, glass smooth, twisting, flowing and just a pleasure to drive on.

IMG_1300 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1317 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1324 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

We headed straight over to buy our tickets for 1 lap each of the track. We saw some brilliant cars around the ‘ring and had a great time. Ed went first on the ‘ring then I went on after. As Ed has said it’s a bit nerve racking when you’re on it, but you start enjoying it and having fun in no time. You really have to watch out for others constantly. Pretty much every car passed me, but I really couldn’t care less, it was a great experience. If I was in my own car, didn’t have a passenger and a load of luggage I would have been tempted to stay longer. Me and Ed both know what happens when you have ‘1 last run’.

IMG_1363 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1373 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1393 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1396 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1400 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1408 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1436 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1451 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

We then went back down to the GP Circuit, as we were heading towards, everyone was leaving as the DTM was finished. It just so happened I needed the toilet, and we stumbled into the main grandstand where a support race was being held. Now I’ve been to the F1 (all be it years ago) but these things were mega loud, made my hairs stand on end.

IMG_1464 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1495 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1500 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1515 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

We then had another look around the shops as they were closed the night before

IMG_1551 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1553 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1554 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1555 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1556 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1565 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

We then headed to our next hotel in Adenau, The Blaue Ecke, fantastic place! After sorting ourselves out we headed up near the Adenau Bridge. At this point my memory card ran out of space (over 400 photos taken already!)

IMG_1569 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1577 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

After watching the end of the days Touristfaharten we grabbed some food. I knew of two places in Adenau to go to for food, one was our hotel (which is a steakhouse) then next was Pinocchio’s. We both fancied Pizza as I knew you got a good sized portion. £16 for 2 pizza’s and 2 beers, brilliant value.

IMG_1606 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1608 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

We headed back to the hotel for another drink, whilst heading back we were both looking at this 5 series saying how much we liked them. We then noticed it was a M550d, Ultimate winner.

IMG_1610 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

Day 3

It was time to leave the ring and head for Stuttgart where we would be visiting the Porsche Museum. I bought a memory card in the morning and then on the way we passed the ‘ring as there was a private track day on and grabbed a few last memories.

IMG_1620 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1642 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1683 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1714 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

991 had a moment on track and ruined a wheel, god knows what other damage he would have done back there as well.

IMG_1726 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

On our way to Stuttgart we visited a small town called Cochem, the roads there were brilliant and was a lovely place to be. We dropped from above the castle to below it in a matter of minutes. Lovely sweeping roads.

IMG_1742 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1767 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1770 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1781 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

Jord (F0xy) Recommended we stop at the Sinsheim Museum on our way to Stuttgart, We weren’t going to as we were pressed for time, but we thought we could just have a quick look. After having a look we gained entry for a discounted price as we only had an hour and a half to look around. Some great pieces of mechanical engineering in there, I’m not very good with heights but decided to head onto the Air France Concord as I had never been on one. I was on and off there sharpish!

IMG_1789 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1791 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1801 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

Ed for some scale

IMG_1812 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

Yep, that’s 42 Cylinders

IMG_1814 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1820 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1826 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1842 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1849 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1874 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

Carbon Weave on the F40

IMG_1877 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

Our hotel in Stuttgart was just somewhere cheap and simple, we were outside the main city so got a train in to get some food. We found a square where the University was and watched everyone whilst eating our food. Looking back at how I lived my life at University, this was completely different.

Day 4

We headed to the Porsche factory and Mercedes factory and then headed over to our last stop, Zurich, Switzerland.

IMG_1943 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

These 4 are the only ones in the world!

IMG_1960 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

Panamericana tyre:

IMG_1961 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_1964 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

Iconic 1st carrera

IMG_1993 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_2000 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_2033 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_2050 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_2054 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_2066 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_2113 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_2144 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_2197 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_2209 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_2211 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

We reach Switzerland and ticked over 1000miles for our journey

IMG_2263 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

We reached our hotel, Swissotel Zurich, which was fantastic, room had great views, we had slippers, pillow menu, keyless door entry, spa on the 32nd floor, 4 star hotel! We went out for food by getting the train into the centre which was 5 minutes away on a double Decker train. Cheap, quick and on-time as well. Zurich is an awesome place to see by day and by night.

Day 4

IMG_2299 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_2304 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_2309 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

Expensive?

IMG_2310 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_2317 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_2319 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_2325 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

We saw this ‘roller and a rough E type parked up, we didn’t think much of it until around the corner we stumbled into a 12 day classic car rally. Some very rare and priceless cars were here.

IMG_2333 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_2343 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_2360 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_2370 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

A mint ’72 2002

IMG_2377 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_2383 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

IMG_2398 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

Renault Alpine

IMG_2401 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

Day 5
We head home today, I picked up some breakfast from the train station to get rid of some francs, whilst looking at the view from our hotel for one last time.

IMG_2447 by Jon Garrett, on Flickr

We then headed home via Luxembourg for some dinner, then crossed back into Belgium and back to France to catch the 1am Ferry from Calais to Dover. Slept pretty much all of the ferry journey back, had some food then off we set home. Many stops were made on the way back as we were both tired.

Day 6

We arrived home a 9am, 1900 miles done, lots of memories and a brilliant experience. I know we’ll be doing it again in the future.

I’ve no idea what I spent but it’s probably very similar to what Ed did. There’s some more photos in my flickr set here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jgarrett_media/sets/72157631235207480/

I’ve not really put many photos of the cars we saw in this thread because it would of just been too long, if you want to have a look there in another set here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jgarrett_media/sets/72157631235784528/

 

[Jon.G]

Ahhhh got you now, still not too bad though

Aye, That price was each. 2 people + all our gear and air con on all the time.

 

[JoeyD]

Looked amazing! Sounds like you got very lucky too with your timing - having the DTM on, and that classic rally.

Not as expensive as I thought it was going to be either... definitely want to do something similar.

 

[Jon.G]

Looked amazing! Sounds like you got very lucky too with your timing - having the DTM on, and that classic rally.

Not as expensive as I thought it was going to be either... definitely want to do something similar.

When we were booking the hotels at the 'ring we didn't realise why everywhere was expensive/booked up until someone told us the DTM was on. When we had finally booked some places we were glad the DTM was on, as we knew it would be busy and the atmosphere would be better!

Really want to go again next year. However, not in a 182.

 

[JoeyD]

LOL! The 182 not quite the ideal cruising tool?

Reckon it was a bit more busy on track due to the DTM, or wasn't it that bad? I like the idea of going, but I imagine it's just having a lap of getting totally dicked on by every man and his M3/911 etc

 

[Jon.G]

Ed's car was perfect tbh. However I'm fed up of a particular 182 and fancy something more BMW orientated.

You'll get dicked in what ever you go in. There will always be someone better/faster etc. Couldn't say if the 'ring was busier or quieter due to DTM, Ed went on straight after it had been closed, so wasn't getting over taken by people who had been out longer etc.

I'm sure Ed will be along and tell you about how I was pushed around a corner by a UK plated E46 M3.

 

[Scott H.]

That looks awesome you two! Brilliant write up and I'm now slightly jealous!