Driving overseas

[zdcol71]

Some while back I hired a moped in Mexico, I was on an island off the main radar and was pillioning another backpacker to go snorkelling on the other side of the island. I had driven overseas before but not on the right hand side, so as I was pretty horrified to find ,as I came around a fairly blind bend in the road, that I was travelling, ala Oz,on the wrong side of the road with some big Caddilac hurtling towards me from the other way. The only thing that saved our skin was the fact that the mad Mexican was doing 100mph on the wrong side of the road as well.
Anyone with overseas driving experiences??

[ebxr8240]

Yep drove across U.S a few months back after going to SEMA and APPEX car show in Vegas.. Then into Mexico .. Was that you ?? Lol...
Then across through Colorado rockies to Chicago/ Naperville...
PAYS to have good nights sleep, watch where your going at intersections. Doesn't pay to be the first if turning as this IS when you turn into wrong side of the street..
On open road I'm fine... I find GPS is worth the extra.. Though I did go down a gravel road up in the Keyenta, Arizona [native Indian reservation] area...
The G6 [FWD V6 Commodore like] didn't do too well going through dry river beds etc...

But we got through..Some slow cars on the way...
Road hogs... Sheesh !!!

[FGX335]

Loved driving in the US, got this as the hire car. Had only been out a week, everyone was checkin the wheels out. I had people coming up to me telling me what I nice car I had. They were all in awe! Had a ball!

[zdcol71]

Worked in Malaysia on a gas plant a few years back, there were between 4-5000 people on the job at any given time, and 9/10 ths rode either scooters or 125-250 Daelim 2 stroke racers.Driving home was like being enveloped in a swarming mass of bees, absolutley scary, but somewhat amusing at the same time. Saw my first actual road death there, and unfortunately another 4 whilst there.Worst thing to see was mum, dad, and 3 kids crowded onto a tiny scooter and only dad with a helmet on.

[sgt_doofey]

Unfortunately, the vintage just gone saw a double fatality head on accident occur here in the Barossa between Lyndoch and Gawler between a French person driving a winery car on the wrong side of the road and an innocent girl driving the other way. Having driven past where the accident occurred, neither had a chance to swerve as it was on a bend.

Me personally, have driven in the US and Europe. I guess the most intriguing thing to me is how speed limits in Italy are just a suggestion. You do the speed limit, you get passed. You do 10, 20 or 30 km/h over the limit and you still get passed. I could never figure out at what speed I should do!

We had a Ford Tarus in the US when we worked there. Not a bad car. Had some electrical gremlins with the environmental controls, but was a good car for us otherwise.


Europe saw us driving a Peugeot 206 1.4L Turbo Diesel. That thing easily did 170km/h on the German Autobahn and felt like it was doing 60km/h. Nice and stable on the road. That's what led us to buy the 307 when we returned home.

Anybody driven around the Champs Elysee?

[MexicanBatman]

I was driving a smart car around Barcelona 2 weeks ago and ************ if I had any clue as the what I was doing or what the road markings were for.

But when your passing people move from the fast lane no matter what you or they are driving. Not like the retaded people here who do 80 in the right lane of the freeway. Motorcyclists and scooterists were ************** nuts though. I got passed by a busa on a tight corner on the wrong side of double lines knee down doing about 140 in a 60 area. And as crazy as he was that's nothing compared the the nuts on scooters in Andorra LOL

[sgt_doofey]

Originally Posted by andrewg6e

But when your passing people move from the fast lane no matter what you or they are driving. Not like the retaded people here who do 80 in the right lane of the freeway.

Forgot about that. Everyone is really courteous over there as in they get out of each others way to allow the easy flow of traffic. So keep an eye on your rear vision mirror, and if a car is coming up behind you, move over to the right hand lane to let them through.

And I meant Arc de Triomphe above, not the Champs Elysee.

[Keepleft]

Quote from an AUS OP MP a day or so ago;-

Driving from Berlin to Kiel, it is strange to be flashed to be overtaken when you are doing 210 kph!

I responded:- I love that place. Flash-to-pass is optionally used to alert potentially dozy drivers ahead that your closing in on them, please move over.....

Flash-to-Pass you experience is also held in Australian Road Rule 218 (2), and has been for a number of decades now in old State legislation, we derived it from "The 49' UN Convention On Road Traffic", the allowance still lives in the current editions!

Flash-to-pass was more commonplace on NSW roads prior to July 1979, when WRAN killed of speed deresgtriction (//).


MP made the comment in response to one post re his original above;

What a great idea, btw little or no road rage here!

A few hours ago;

Driving from Kiel to Brussels via Hamburg, Hannover and Dortmon, about 700 Klm

Little or no road rage, what a surprise!

Former LIB Roads Minister Loyd realised the same when he was in Germany, wanted the same behaviour here.

[ebxr8240]

Aha some may take flash to pass as mooning... Lol...

Often flash a truck passing to let him know he can pull over into my lane..

[Spanrz]

Had a funny experience with my wife a few months ago.

We were in upstate NY, Wife was driving and I was navigating (logical, *smirk*), we had to pull over to do a U turn. She decided to pull over to the left hand side of the road (as you would in AUS), only for me to panic, and mention something about the words of "No, your other right". She realised after a car was coming the other way, heading towards me, that the left wasn't the correct option.
The irony is, she is a native of the area. Sheesh!

[ebxr8240]

Aha yea same with pedestrians .. They look the wrong way before waking across road...

[max]

Originally Posted by zdcol71

Some while back I hired a moped in Mexico, I was on an island off the main radar and was pillioning another backpacker to go snorkelling on the other side of the island. I had driven overseas before but not on the right hand side, so as I was pretty horrified to find ,as I came around a fairly blind bend in the road, that I was travelling, ala Oz,on the wrong side of the road with some big Caddilac hurtling towards me from the other way. The only thing that saved our skin was the fact that the mad Mexican was doing 100mph on the wrong side of the road as well.
Anyone with overseas driving experiences??

Driving in India the distinction between which sides of the road to drive becomes irrelevant as most are not wide enough for two anyway. In any case you share the road with animals, village folk drying off grain harvests etc. The name of the game is avoiding being hit by anything regardless of which side of the road it should be!

[RG]

Originally Posted by ebxr8240

Aha yea same with pedestrians .. They look the wrong way before waking across road...

I was caught out many a time that way.

Lucky the mrs had her thinking cap on lol.

[sgt_doofey]

My next overseas driving challenge is in two weeks time... New Zealand!
What are experiences like over there? Are they courteous drivers like the Europeans or selfish like us Aussies? Any weird or wonderful road rules or signage I should keep an eye out for?

[MYVYSS]

Originally Posted by sgt_doofey

My next overseas driving challenge is in two weeks time... New Zealand!
What are experiences like over there? Are they courteous drivers like the Europeans or selfish like us Aussies? Any weird or wonderful road rules or signage I should keep an eye out for?

One lane bridges with parking spots on the side, two way traffic and TRAINS share the same bridge makes for interesting driving..

Dont know about now I was there a few years ago, on the open roads between towns, I was hiking it in a rental and cars just seemed to move over for you to overtake, I mean both oncoming and those you are gaining on, I even passed down the middle of one in front and one oncoming.

Awesome but distracting that all water in rivers/streams lake is so so crystal clear you can take your eyes off the road..

Be prepared for a shock in the price of petrol.....2.20 plus a litre last time I was there.

Keep a look out for some weird and wonderful cars...its a dumping ground for Japanese exports as NZ dont have a manufacturer..

[sgt_doofey]

Originally Posted by MYVYSS

Be prepared for a shock in the price of petrol.....2.20 plus a litre last time I was there.

Company car will be supplied, so hopefully won't have to fork out too much for fuel, just those weekend trips and a bit of traveling at the end. Thanks for the heads up though. Works out to bugger all in Aussie dollars, doesn't it?

Keep a look out for some weird and wonderful cars...its a dumping ground for Japanese exports as NZ dont have a manufacturer..

Will do! If I see them instead of looking at the lakes/rivers/streams...

[FGX335]

Petrol price now hovers between $1.75 and $1.83, was there last month.

Yep, the drivers are very courteous, flash their headlights to let you know you can enter their lane. I must say I was very surprised, they are very polite!

Yeah, just keep an eye on the signposts and warning signs and you be sweet as, cuz!

[ebxr8240]

There is ALWAYS a hill and a corner .. Driving is not like interstate here..
The roads have much better curve on corners...
The one way bridges etc are on low traffic roads..
Down south Island they have cattle grates to stop cattle ..
Roads are generally in good nick..
Frightens the daylights out of you at first...
Don't expect armco barriers on mountain roads..
Fall off the road there ??.. Expect a long down hill crash !!!
Beware of black ice in shadow areas where it's cold...
Dessert road and south Island especially...
Diesel is cheaper .. Although they have mileage tax on diesel vehicles..

[MYVYSS]

Keep a look out for Judder bars...there are a few around... *giggles*

Wonders how many days/hours of driving before you start waving back...*giggles*

Where abouts are you going I may be able to point you in the direction of some cool things.

[paulie0735]

I drive the US a fair bit. Best advise I ever received (its saved me more than a few times) is when turning at an intersection remember this.

TIGHT to the right.
LOSE to the left.


Fortunately you don't see a lot of round-a-bouts in the US, because going around them the 'wrong' way is very spooky!

Some States let you turn right against a red light and some don't, pays to do some research on that before you go.

The busy freeways are pretty relaxed about speeding, you get passed by trucks doing 80mph! But don't speed in the burbs or on exit and approach ramps.

They have no idea what a ‘car park’ is in the US. They call them parking lots.
If your going out in the major cities than get used to valet parking ……. just get used to it and cough up the cash with a smile….. lol, remember you in their country.

The other area I STILL come unstuck in is parking lots, (car parks) I just can’t seem to get used to reversing out of a space and driving off on the right hand side, gets me e v e r y time……..

[sgt_doofey]

Originally Posted by paulie0735

The busy freeways are pretty relaxed about speeding, you get passed by trucks doing 80mph! But don't speed in the burbs or on exit and approach ramps.

Try being passed by the Police whilst doing 70mph! Made me slow back down to 65 pretty quickly.

Originally Posted by MYVYSS

Where abouts are you going I may be able to point you in the direction of some cool things.

Thanks Craig. Will be on the South Island up the top end of it. Might take this to PM as it's off topic

[MYVYSS]

If you are going to Oregon Portland remember its ILLEGAL for you to put petrol in your OWN car....LOL its also the case in one other state in the USA.

[sgt_doofey]

Is it a rule to give way to cars turning right in front of you over here in NZ, or just a courtesy?

[GT0132]

Originally Posted by sgt_doofey

Is it a rule to give way to cars turning right in front of you over here in NZ, or just a courtesy?

Yes, in NZ you must give way to cars turning right in front of you if you are turning left - similar to Victoria.

[Spanrz]

Originally Posted by paulie0735

Some States let you turn right against a red light and some don't, pays to do some research on that before you go.

Ummm, when we were in Florida, had a funny event. Very much like other states (turn right on red).
We were at the lights turning right, but was faced with a red arrow - so I stopped and didn't dare move, but noticed 2 cars turned right anyway, so decided what's good for the goose...................... I turned right
Tricky one.

Originally Posted by sgt_doofey

Try being passed by the Police whilst doing 70mph! Made me slow back down to 65 pretty quickly.

Ahh the cops are pretty good. Just don't do 10mph over the limit at the end of the month. If you do, you'll get nabbed.
I was doing 5mph above the limit (think it was a 65 limit) from Niagara Falls to Albany NY, in the snow (-15c), passed cops like you wouldn't believe and they had no problem. I had one pass me doin 75ish, he was after a guy that was doing 75-80 (as that guy passed us).
Just do the speed limit you'll be fine. I just wish Melbourne drivers were like that (did the speed limit).
They usually pick on people at the end of the month when their quota is a bit low.

[V8 Man]

I got back from the states about a month ago (first time). I only drove around Southern California, but found it all pretty easy, although the turning right against a red light did just feel wrong.
Funny story whilst I was there, got talking to an American guy at a car museum about each others cars. Told him I had a Mustang and a couple of "Aussie" cars, to which he replied (very surprised) "Really? you guys make cars in Australia?" I pointed to the Pontiac GTO (Monaro) in the car park and said "That's one right there" (don't know if he believed me or not). Americans, no idea.

[g220ba]

Originally Posted by GT0132

Yes, in NZ you must give way to cars turning right in front of you if you are turning left - similar to Victoria.

You might want to review that statement about victoria, The law in Victoria actually states any vehicle turning right MUST give way to any oncoming vehicle including vehicles turning left.

[351capri]

hired a ford c-max turbo diesel in venice italy when in europe aug-sept 2007 drove to slovenia then from slovenia to misano italy for moto gp then to pisa and on to rome. overall a great experience, but definately scary to start with, however ,as with most things, the more you do it, the better it gets. my only advice, is to be very vigilant ie use your mirrors a lot. ( nothing like a beemer or merc screaming up behind you when you're already doing 140 k's) .best of luck and take care...

[ebxr8240]

Originally Posted by MYVYSS

Keep a look out for Judder bars...there are a few around... *giggles*

Wonders how many days/hours of driving before you start waving back...*giggles*

Where abouts are you going I may be able to point you in the direction of some cool things.

Yep the locals [cow cockies] call them Cattle stops..

[ltd]

I drive in the states all the time. It's very easy to get used to, your natural instincts will make you want to be on the centreline of the road you're on. So far I've driven through 48 of the states (all except Rhode Island and Alaska); all in a lincoln town car.
Weirdest thing I've seen is a roundabout in Ghettysburg Pennsylvania - most drivers were perplexed, I sailed through it having had experience here.
You can turn right on a red except when there's a sign saying to the effect of "No turn on stop signal" or "no turn on red signal".

On the whole it's a great country to drive through, the roads are so much better than here and the system seems to work well.

You can speed, regularly I've passed cops lying in the median whilst I was doing 85-90 on a 75mph interstate. Thing is though, should you tail gate or undertake a vehicle, they'll pull you over no matter what speed you're doing.
Like I said it's a great country to drive through, however watch out when it snows. Snow turns to slush and then to ice real quick if it's not dusted down quickly by plows etc. Try driving through Wyoming and Montana in December like I did last year. All I'll say about it is I'm glad it wasn't my car.