[Fugly M3]

So...I decided I wasn't quite ready to ditch my 2009 Cayman (and then yesterday some @$$ backed into her in the parking garage at work...but that's another story) but wanted to do the alpine driving tour I had been planning on an off for years.

I kept looking at flights and hotels and routes. I already had Sept 1 through 10 off at work with nothing planned. Then, on thursday morning, round trip flights from LAX to MUC (Sept 2-9, Tues-Tues) dropped to....$707 per person!!!!

So I asked my brother first...he said he couldn't afford it...I said I'll pay for your flight...mine was that much until this moment and I have to rent a car and pay for hotels anyway....he still couldn't afford it. So I asked my father...said I'm taking you to Europe, I'm paying and we leave on the 2nd. He said

Here are the details. We land in Munich at roughly 8 am on Wednesday. Pick up a 2 series rental (mit sportsitze ind standard gretriebe, bitte) and head off. (Now they may give us a VW Scirocco...but I requested the 2 so I better get it).

First day is Dachau which will be sobering but I feel compelled to see it. Then we head down to Hohenschwangau to see the castles - Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau. We spend night one there.

Day 2: We tackle the Hahntennjoch pass and Stelvio Pass then through Bormio and maybe even up to Saint Moritz en route to Cernobbio, Italy (tiny town on Lake Como) for night 2.

Day 3: We drive south. We're going to stop in Monza for some practice runs of the Italian Grand Prix. Then south to Genoa where we turn west and follow the riviera to Monaco for night 3. For $300 for the night, it's a hell of a steal to say we stayed in Monaco.

Day 4: We drive north and will hit up Route De Gentelly and Col de la Bonnette en route to the Savoy region of France. We spend the night in Chambery. This will be a long drive day.

Day 5: We head into Switzerland and on to Liechtenstein. We plan to drive the Furka Pass and Klausen Pass on the way to Vaduz, where we spend the night.

Day 6: We have a short 2ish hour drive to Munich and then basically all day in Munich. It's very short notice, but I've contacted the Welt for a Plant Tour that day if they have one. Hopefully that will be mid-day and then we can head into the center of Munich (we're staying right in town) to see the Marienplatz and have a beer and dinner at the Hofbrauhaus.

The next morning it's to the airport to fly home. It's a hugely ambitious tour..but we're big roadtrippies, so we'll manage. It will also be the most thorough BMW 2er test drive one can get (assuming we get the 2er).

The route is posted below. I will update with photos and a review and hopefully go pro video.

https://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&sou...m&z=6&dirflg=d

[mossyoaks]

No German based rental company will allow BMW, MB, or Porsche vehicles in their fleet to travel in Italy.

I just returned from a 4000km round-trip from Lanstuhl to Napoli to Amsterdam and back.

Looks like you can reserve a BMW when booking online with all the major rental car companies. I was looking forward to driving a new 3 series. However, once you arrive and admit that you are planning to drive into Bella Italia, the agent will break the news to you.

Unfortunately, Italy (and several other countries; Turkey, Czech Repub, Poland) have a bad reputation for theft and accidents.

So we ended up with a 2014 Volvo V70 diesel wagon. Very comfortable roomy ride for the three of us, but certainly not a BMW.

The silver lining was that the Hertz rental office outside the Ramstein Air Base was right across the street from Pentagon Car Sales (BMW/Mini dealership for US Military and Embassy personnel stationed in Europe). So my active duty son ordered his EB M235i for stateside delivery!

I'd suggest a re-route to avoid Italy and rent the BMW!

Cheers!

[Fugly M3]

Originally Posted by mossyoaks

No German based rental company will allow BMW, MB, or Porsche vehicles in their fleet to travel in Italy.

I just returned from a 4000km round-trip from Lanstuhl to Napoli to Amsterdam and back.

Looks like you can reserve a BMW when booking online with all the major rental car companies. I was looking forward to driving a new 3 series. However, once you arrive and admit that you are planning to drive into Bella Italia, the agent will break the news to you.

Unfortunately, Italy (and several other countries; Turkey, Czech Repub, Poland) have a bad reputation for theft and accidents.

So we ended up with a 2014 Volvo V70 diesel wagon. Very comfortable roomy ride for the three of us, but certainly not a BMW.

The silver lining was that the Hertz rental office outside the Ramstein Air Base was right across the street from Pentagon Car Sales (BMW/Mini dealership for US Military and Embassy personnel stationed in Europe). So my active duty son ordered his EB M235i for stateside delivery!

I'd suggest a re-route to avoid Italy and rent the BMW!

Cheers!

Interesting...the website says this:


Cross Border Rentals & Territorial Restrictions
Cross Border Rentals are allowed to the following countries - inclusive islands:
Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Gibraltar, Great Britain, Ireland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, San Marino, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Vatikan City.

The other car in the 2 series class is a Scirocco. They're nice...but I'm not paying the same $830 (including $0 deductible everything) to rent a VW...if that's the case I'll have to downgrade.

[ewohar]

Originally Posted by mossyoaks

No German based rental company will allow BMW, MB, or Porsche vehicles in their fleet to travel in Italy.

I just returned from a 4000km round-trip from Lanstuhl to Napoli to Amsterdam and back.

Looks like you can reserve a BMW when booking online with all the major rental car companies. I was looking forward to driving a new 3 series. However, once you arrive and admit that you are planning to drive into Bella Italia, the agent will break the news to you.

Unfortunately, Italy (and several other countries; Turkey, Czech Repub, Poland) have a bad reputation for theft and accidents.

So we ended up with a 2014 Volvo V70 diesel wagon. Very comfortable roomy ride for the three of us, but certainly not a BMW.

The silver lining was that the Hertz rental office outside the Ramstein Air Base was right across the street from Pentagon Car Sales (BMW/Mini dealership for US Military and Embassy personnel stationed in Europe). So my active duty son ordered his EB M235i for stateside delivery!

I'd suggest a re-route to avoid Italy and rent the BMW!

Cheers!

It's kind of like saying don't drive in New Jersey. It's an incredibly beautiful place to cruise around and see sights. Driving and parking in major cities can be a pain, but no more so than driving in Manhattan. Just remember, right before left and don't make eye contact with other drivers or they will see the fear in your eyes.

[mossyoaks]

Originally Posted by ewohar

It's kind of like saying don't drive in New Jersey.

Italy is my favorite Euro country. The people are warm and wonderful. The food is fabulous and never-ending. And the driving experience is fantastic!

Once you are at the German rental company picking up your car, you will not be able to get those premium German makes that I listed if you admit that you plan to travel into Italy.

You can be untruthful- but will be held liable if anything happens to the rental while in Italy. You will be signing a contract.

[Fugly M3]

Originally Posted by mossyoaks

Italy is my favorite Euro country. The people are warm and wonderful. The food is fabulous and never-ending. And the driving experience is fantastic!

Once you are at the German rental company picking up your car, you will not be able to get those premium German makes that I listed if you admit that you plan to travel into Italy.

You can be untruthful- but will be held liable if anything happens to the rental while in Italy. You will be signing a contract.

Interesting...according to Sixt's website...they themselves recommend a 3 series for a rental in Italy. http://www.sixtblog.com/travel-advic...ay-18-tuscany/ ..."Therefore, we at Sixt recommend the BMW 3-Series for supreme comfort and unrivalled speed. Check out our deals and discount Sixt has on offer in any one of the 11 branches in Tuscany."

I guess we'll see what happens. If they say no, then I'll downgrade to the GTI level I guess.

[mossyoaks]

I think you are in luck if you rent from Sixt in Italy! $100/day for a 3-series. But looks like you'll need to pick it up at one of their Tuscan offices. I thought you are planning on entering and departing from a German destination?

The Volvo wagon we rented was $400 total for 12 days! Unlimited mileage. I felt comfortable enough driving and knowing that we would be parking overnight on US military bases (secure) that I waived the insurance. That would have been about $50/day.

I was really bummed to not be able to drive that 3500km vacation in a new 3 series. I wish you the best of luck in getting behind the wheel of one! I'm sure it will be a great driving experience!

Hope you'll report back after you return. This is some very helpful info for anyone venturing into Europe who will be driving.

Buon viaggio!

[Fugly M3]

Originally Posted by mossyoaks

I think you are in luck if you rent from Sixt in Italy! $100/day for a 3-series. But looks like you'll need to pick it up at one of their Tuscan offices. I thought you are planning on entering and departing from a German destination?

The Volvo wagon we rented was $400 total for 12 days! Unlimited mileage. I felt comfortable enough driving and knowing that we would be parking overnight on US military bases (secure) that I waived the insurance. That would have been about $50/day.

I was really bummed to not be able to drive that 3500km vacation in a new 3 series. I wish you the best of luck in getting behind the wheel of one! I'm sure it will be a great driving experience!

Hope you'll report back after you return. This is some very helpful info for anyone venturing into Europe who will be driving.

Buon viaggio!

We are renting out of Munich. So the website says, and I hope it's right, we can go to Italy. We are renting a 2 series and it's approximately $800 including all coverages at $0 deductible, navigation, two drivers and 350km per day at .29 EUR per km over. We may just go over per planned trip. I wanted to spend the extra money for the 2 series because it guarantees a decent engine. The 1 or 3 have some real small things in them. That said, if they try to give us the other car in the category, the Scirocco, depending on the engine I may request a 1 or 3, mostly because I am familiar with iDrive and being familiar with a navigation system is more than half the battle when you don't have a clue where you are.