Adam, I'm a different Mike. I picked up my 525i in Munich on 17 June of this year and drove 1700 miles around Germany & France. Had a wonderful time. Just picked it up at the dealership on 2 August, and my wife loves her new car. I'm going back to Germany in 3 years to get mine.

Hiya, Harzer!!<BR><BR>"How do you respond to the contention that train travel severely limits your choice of accommodation and can therefore interfere with your overall enjoyment of the trip?"<BR><BR>I think I've also responded to that question before. <BR><BR>Although many travelers just taxi to wherever they have booked, I make it my policy not to do so, and train travel indeed confines my accommodations to an area within walking distance of the station (or compels me to use other public transport.) But I don't see this limitation as "severe", nor do I believe it compromises my enjoyment. I usually prefer to stay in or near the center of whatever town I’m in, where I don’t have to transport myself just to get a bite to eat or to do something interesting for an afternoon. Although in the US, centrally-located digs can often cost you dearly, in Europe, I have always found it easy to get reasonably priced accommodations that are also central. In larger cities, where<BR>fewer such places exist centrally, I always book in advance and check out the location carefully. Occasionally, I’ve stayed in suburbs and trammed into town as needed. And who wants a car in Berlin or Paris anyway? In small towns, it’s usually a non-issue. I subscribe to the Rick Steves packing philosophy, so everything I (and my other family<BR>members) take is in one carry-on sized pack that I can tote around at will. Now, if you’re married to someone like Zsa Zsa Gabor, you clearly can’t travel this way. But as a 50-year-old in good health, getting my luggage to the platform and walking to my<BR>centrally-located B&B is about as troublesome as brushing my teeth.<BR><BR>What really mucks up my trip is driving - getting stuck in Autobahn Stau, taking the wrong turn somewhere, worrying about whether my parked car will be towed if I stay someplace too long, that sort of thing. For some, driving is playtime. For me, driving is work, and I don’t go on vacation to work. <BR><BR>That said, I do think there are occasions when a car makes good sense. It’s great to have one for a day if there is some sight you want to see somewhere that isn’t served by train<BR>and is awkward to get to by bus. It’s great to have one if you’re visiting a region underserved by train, like Normandy, Germany’s Eifel, or the Belgian Ardennes. I in fact rented this spring for a few days so that I could get to the American Cemetry (Henri<BR>Chapelle) in eastern Belgium and to Monschau in Germany. It's great to have one if you want to do a farmstay. But Germany alone has 6,000 train stations, and it’s fairly unusual that one can’t get to a given destination conveniently<BR>by train. Planning an entire trip using an auto, a trip that includes common places that are well-served by train, is for me a bad use of my time. I’d much rather just relax and watch the scenery pass than jockey for position on the Autobahn. I enjoy getting a cup of coffee (and using the rest room without stopping!) and knowing that I’ll arrive at my destination on time and worry-free. <BR><BR>It’s generally my contention that travelers who prefer the car over the train in a country as heavily train-tracked as Germany have never really done both for very long (or they can’t lose the feeling that they’d be stuck on something like Amtrak!) A good question would be, “Why do so many Germans travel by train instead of car?”

Off and on I have spent about a year in Germany and I rented a car almost every weekend. The autobahn is wonderful. The only time I had a problem was when I passed a policeman doing 180KPH and, being an American, slammed on the brakes. The one thing you must learn to do if you are going to drive in Germany in the fast lanes, it to keep one eye on the rear view mirror. If a car behind you blinks its lights they mean for you to move to a slower lane and they mean NOW! It is my understanding that if you fail to pull over, they can take your tag number and give it to the police. Twice I have seen wrecks in the other direction on the autobahn and the backup was well over 10 miles. All in all, I love driving in Germany and seeing the beautiful countryside. <BR><BR>

Travel and Leisure magazine did an article about picking up a car in Europe a couple of months ago. I believe the focus of the article was Saab or Volvo, but the last page did have a bit of info about getting cars by other makers as well. Sorry I can't remember the month of the issue - possibly May or June - but you might check it out at your library if you get a chance.