[praveencr85]

@ above all

Thanks guys for all the kind replies & info, sorry for the delay in my reply .
I did enquire in a driving school for the license, i need to take classes & it will cost me 1500€ (minimum amount depends on the instructor feedback about the number of classes) .As of now i have to put on hold in getting the license.


@mods
kindly close the thread.

[LP640]

Fellow BHPians, Hi to all!

We all are in Germany, the birthplace of a car! no better place on earth for auto enthusiasts. On one side there is huge models of cars to pick from car rentals and on the other side it the unlimited autobhan!

Just wanted a platform for all Indian petrolheads in Germany to come along! Introduce yourself, subscribe the thread and stay connected!

I am a working professional living in Karlsruhe. I am in Germany until 30 June 2012!

I am intrested in

1. Renting the M3 from BMW Welt, Munich, starts 40 Euro/hr!!
2. Drift course at BMW driver experience in Munich on an M3 approx 390 Euro
3. Merc Museum Stuttgart offers a a course where you can dissassemble and then reassemble a Mers V6/V8 engine.

Lets rev together!!

[Zed]

Guten Tag!

Ich möchte gerne, auch...!

A fellow BHPian - alphakilo - & I were discussing the possibility of a thread for T-BHPians in the Vater land. Thanks for initiating...

Option 3 sounds like fun. One thing I can add is that Ive heard of track day options with sports cars\open wheel racers in the €500-per-day bracket. Id vote for that option over a drift course (If it is indeed just drifting) any day.


Im a Sales professional that relocated to Germany, with my better-half, just over a year ago. We've really enjoyed our time here this far. The motoring experience is certainly part of the attraction for me having clocked a decent number of miles since I landed.

Ive been to BMW welt @ Munich and the Daimler museum @ Stuttgart, must-see's for any petrolhead. Another place I can recommend, specially if you are into automotive history and love your vintage \ classics, is the Automotive museum at Mulhouse (France) which is a pretty close to the German Blackforest town of Freiburg.

Cité de l'Automobile - Collection Schlumpf - Site officiel - gérée par Culturespaces, Mulhouse

The bugatti Veyron factory is just about 100 kms north of Mulhouse.

[LP640]

Originally Posted by Zed

Cité de l'Automobile - Collection Schlumpf - Site officiel - gérée par Culturespaces, Mulhouse

The bugatti Veyron factory is just about 100 kms north of Mulhouse.

Hey Zed! I Have seen the Porsche museum and Merc in stuttgart. Mulhouse is only 150 Km from my town! But i guess Bugatti does not have a factory tour/museum. May be i cam try keep waiting on roads near the factory to spot a veyron!

Any ways will try to find the possibility of this Merc engine workshop in stuttgart. Its 80 euro for half day Lab rental. the Lab has capacity for 10 people. So basically it is 80 euro TOTAL irrespective of number of persons (max 10)

[AlphaKilo]

Wunderbar! I was searching, for one such thread! Anyways, Zed sir, so now we are three already! Unfortunately Autonorm is back in India, I hope he comes back soon. Lets plan something. I will be busy untill 15april or so. we can plan after that.

[senindra]

Originally Posted by praveencr85

hello BWN sir ,

I still got 1month to complete my full 1 year , are you sure this is possible ?? I would be grateful if you can confirm me i will right away visit the fahrschule .

Kindly provide some more information on this .Thanks in advance .

Originally Posted by praveencr85

@ above all

Thanks guys for all the kind replies & info, sorry for the delay in my reply .
I did enquire in a driving school for the license, i need to take classes & it will cost me 1500€ (minimum amount depends on the instructor feedback about the number of classes) .As of now i have to put on hold in getting the license.


@mods
kindly close the thread.

Hi Praveen,

Would suggest you go directly to the strassenverkehrsamt and ask around.

I have had to *only* give my theory and practical exams. You would have to register at a fahrschule as only they can take you for the practical exams, they would probably just drive around with you for an hour to be sure that you can drive and you can give the practical exam as well.

All the best.

[AlphaKilo]

Originally Posted by LP640

Hey Zed! I Have seen the Porsche museum and Merc in stuttgart. Mulhouse is only 150 Km from my town! But i guess Bugatti does not have a factory tour/museum. May be i cam try keep waiting on roads near the factory to spot a veyron!

Any ways will try to find the possibility of this Merc engine workshop in stuttgart. Its 80 euro for half day Lab rental. the Lab has capacity for 10 people. So basically it is 80 euro TOTAL irrespective of number of persons (max 10)

Originally Posted by Zed

Guten Tag!

Ich möchte gerne, auch...!

A fellow BHPian - alphakilo - & I were discussing the possibility of a thread for T-BHPians in the Vater land. Thanks for initiating...

Option 3 sounds like fun. One thing I can add is that Ive heard of track day options with sports cars\open wheel racers in the €500-per-day bracket. Id vote for that option over a drift course (If it is indeed just drifting) any day.


Im a Sales professional that relocated to Germany, with my better-half, just over a year ago. We've really enjoyed our time here this far. The motoring experience is certainly part of the attraction for me having clocked a decent number of miles since I landed.

Ive been to BMW welt @ Munich and the Daimler museum @ Stuttgart, must-see's for any petrolhead. Another place I can recommend, specially if you are into automotive history and love your vintage \ classics, is the Automotive museum at Mulhouse (France) which is a pretty close to the German Blackforest town of Freiburg.

Cité de l'Automobile - Collection Schlumpf - Site officiel - gérée par Culturespaces, Mulhouse

The bugatti Veyron factory is just about 100 kms north of Mulhouse.

Hey guys! What happened to the Easter trip? did any one do something interesting? LP640 sent me a PM asking about a trip to Merc Museum and engine assembly. Zed are you in? Probably schedule will be first weekend of May(05.04 -06.04). Zed, I believe you have a German DL, and LP640 is still within his 6month running period, though I have driven in Germany, my 6month period is over and unfortunately I wont be able to drive! but then, I am in for any plans!

[Zed]

Hi AK - good to hear from you. We had a visitor for Easter, so did a couple of day trips that would qualify as 'sight seeing' to Zürich (downtown, lakefront) & Breganz(mount Pfänder + lakefront). Another first for the wife & I was the observation deck at Zürich airport. Really cool concept. Would have been even better if the deck overlooked the main runway, rather than the parking terminals. But an interesting experience nonetheless.

I have a friend coming down during the weekend you mentioned ... let me check with him if he is interested in visiting the Daimler museum. Where abouts are you based thesedays ?

[LP640]

Guys, the link to Merc engine assembly wabpage:
Mercedes-Benz Classic Home - Weitere Informationen - Motorschrauben für Gruppen
It is in German and the English website does not mention anything of such sorts! I had talked to them about a month ago, over phone and the course is active.

Zed,
Me and AK are now planning to go to Merc Stuttgart on 30th April, Monday.
I will try to book the course for 30th Monday. Hope you are also able to join on 30th. (Zed, I believe you live not too far from Sttutgart) AK will relocate to Munich by 29th Sunday.

The BMW welt, Munich is open on 1st May, Museum is NOT. I plan to hire some car(s) on Tuesday. As i only want to drive, Welt should be sufficient. AK, I assume you will join for Welt also. Zed, let us know your availablity/plans.
Now the Only thing is how do i "utilise" 28 and 29th holidays

[AlphaKilo]

Originally Posted by LP640

Any ways will try to find the possibility of this Merc engine workshop in stuttgart. Its 80 euro for half day Lab rental. the Lab has capacity for 10 people. So basically it is 80 euro TOTAL irrespective of number of persons (max 10)

Originally Posted by Zed

Guten Tag!

Ich möchte gerne, auch...!

Guys,

Plan on the making - Monday - tuesday 30.04.2012 - 01.05.2012 -
Plan so far with approximate cost:

30.04.2012 -Mon-Merc AMG workshop, Merc Museum, Porsche(if possible) ~ 50euros per person

01.05.2012 - BMW welt, BMW Museum, BMW factory ~20 euros

LP640 and myself have already discussed over phone.

@Zed willing to join us? Would it be possible for you? I guess rest can be discussed through PM's.

Anyother tbhpians in Germany, wish to join, you are most welcome. Kindly PM me or LP640.

[AlphaKilo]

So here it goes as promised! A small insight into the Mercedes-Benz Mueseum. We had a day worth spent! I shall reveal about the highlight of the day at the end, but can someone guess what could have possibly happened? I didnt take many pictures, rather, I and LP640 were busy discussing about the cars and our experiences overall. We managed to finish all the 7 floors by 2 PM and went into the showroom. The importance of showroom visit is that one can sit in all the cars and get a feel of the features and the luxury. Unfortunately, all G classes,all AMG's and S class were locked. But still, we enjoyed ourselves a lot in B(new), C, E, CLS, CLK, SLK, GL, ML.
Overall review, in one line - its a Mercedes and they are back to their quality standards.
So, guesses for the highlight of the day?
Pictures will come up soon, its still WIP, please excuse me for the delay, quite busy with work.

[animdas]

Is there anybody with family? I want some info on schooling/ schools.

Thanks...

[Mister_M]

Wow, a TeamBHP league in Germany!!!

Alas, guys - I am staying in Stuttgart for close to 2 years now and leaving back to India for good by August end. I have Loved & Lived cars to a great extent here and all experiences are by rentals - Sixt being my only renting company.

I do hold a German DL (Taken in Dec 2010) and here is a step-by-step guide for a German DL:

1. Translate your Indian DL through ADAC (The Approved German Car - Club) - Must be around 40€
2. Take a First Aid (Erstehilfe) training + Eye test - Both are normally offered as a package for 30€ to 40€
3. A NOC (dont remember the German term for this) from your registered Rathaus - around 12€
4. With 1, 2 and 3 in place, register your application in your regional Landratsamt (similar to the Indian RTO office) along with 3 / 4 Biometric photographs as required.
5. Join a driving school (Fahrschule).
a. When you are "converting" your Indian DL into a German DL, the "Mandatory" theory classes are waived off for you.
b. Buy the "Model Question" booklet - which is available in English. Thoroughly prepare this, it covers most topics required for the written test.
c. The Driving School will parallelly contact the Landratsamt directly and link your papers submitted to them and inform that you have registered with them for the theory & practicals.
6. Once you are 100% confident in taking the written exam in English (All objective type questions & pass mark required is 90%), book a date for the exam at your Driving School.
7. The actual Written test will happen at the nearest TÜV center. Follow instructions given by your driving school. Take the test (online). You will get your result immediately when you finish your test. Center Suüpervisor will print the certificate for you, donot forget to collect it before you leave.
8. In my opinion, now is the right time to start with practical classes with the Driving school.
9. It is always your teacher who decides when you "Can" take the Practical test. Until he is impressed with your driving, you ought to continue with practical classes with him / her.
10. After the Teacher feels you are "Good", both of you could agree on a date for the practical exam.
11. On the Practical test date, your teacher will accompany you in the front and the TÜV Examining Engineer will sit at the back diagonally opposite to you. Your teacher is allowed to translate the examiner's instructions to you in English (no other comments / remarks to be passed).
12. Strictly follow the examiner's instructions. They normally cover your driving skill areas like: city driving, car handling, following road-rules, how do you drive in the Autobahn, how well you handle "Emergency Braking", your "Parking" skills (forward, reverse & in between 2 cars), etc. In some cases, they might even question you about basic car mechanisms (not at a deep-drill level).
13. The Practical exam may range from 45 mins to 1.5 hours. Most importantly, park well when you finish the test, the examiner is still noticing you. Park well - includes your following of signals when you halt the car, hand-brake application, switching off the electricals & finally removal of the keys.
14. If you have passed, the examiner straight away wishes you good-luck and hands over an "Approval" sheet for the DL. Please note that this is not the actual "DL" and you cannot drive with it.
15. Carry this TÜV Approval sheet to the Landratsamt (RTO). The moment you present the Approval, you will get your DL from them. This is when you would realise that your DL is already printed and kept ready shortly after your application.

The total process may take somewhere around 1100€ to 1200€ if you clear Written & Practical tests in your first attempt. More the number of attempts, higher the cost. A max of 3 continuous attempts are allowed for failed candidates (at intervals of 2 weeks between each attempt).

Hope you guys got most of the information you may need for getting a DL at Germany. You can ask me if you need any further clarifications, I would be happy to help you out! Good Luck guys, happy driving at the German Autobahns. Good Luck!!!

[SPIKE ARRESTOR]

Originally Posted by Mister_M

I do hold a German DL (Taken in Dec 2010) and here is a step-by-step guide for a German DL:

------

This is the most comprehensive detail I have come across regarding getting a DL in Germany.

Mostly, I will be in Germany for my studies starting this winter. Is there any difference in procedures if I start with my DL procedure immediately after reaching there or may be after 1,2 years ?

PS- Such a useful post and still I do not know how to thank you, anyways -

Vielen Dank ! (Many thanks)

[Mister_M]

Hello SPIKE ARRESTOR,

I don't think there would be any difference if you apply intermediately or start after 1 or 2 years.

Case 1: First 6 months from the date of arrival - you will be allowed to drive with your Indian DL + a valid IDP.

Case 2: If you can prove that your total stay at Germany will be between 6 months to 1 year (through a HR letter / University certificates / etc...), you can get a special translation for this purpose.

Case 3: If your stay is going to be more than 1 year, you must apply for a German DL.

Good Luck for your stay & motoring at Germany!!