Changing Cars

[Nige]

Those Toll Tags are essential

There will be some first time anxiety when you roll up to the barrier, there after you'll be pushing to see how fast you can approach it, playing chicken with the barrier lifting. The lower the car the better as you can slip under the barrier before its fully lifted.

Have fun.

[Bootsy]

Great update - loved this line 'A dealer once told me the Porsche equivalent is just as good. Bollocks.'

[911hillclimber]

GREAT!
Keep it coming.
We invested in the Fast Lane toll device following advice from an old friend, also on DDK and it is truly travel changing.
This was 4 years ago in the Boxster and the approach speed had to be quite slow, but he now tells me you can come in hot and get through! (and he was towing a caravan....)
Be ready well before hand to be in the right approach for the correct lane.

We are planning a Euro trip, just the best.

Get the miles in, get the experiences, priceless.

[jeremyg]

I forgot to say that the other prep done for a ‘geriatric’ GT3 duo was to have the Recaro buckets changed for Recaro comfort seats - too bloody embarrassing to try and struggle out of the buckets at the front end of a customs queue.




And you might notice that to help Trish see over the steering wheel and see the front wings we’d also added a couple of cushions. Not very GT3 I know, but seeing where you’re actually steering is quite a strong safety factor.



And I know most people know this - but booking as though you’ve got a roof box on top (£11 extra each way) got you into the ‘large’ vehicle section on the Channel Tunnel trains, thus saving the front splitter from assured destruction by being inadvertently sent up a ramp. Works a treat and gives additional width along the carriage floors as well.



We arrived in France and had a great drive down and -as Nige says - we faced our own heart in mouth moment as we entered the first toll booth on the autoroute, but the tag pinged and up went the barrier. Result.

We made our way towards Holnon and the Pot d’Etain hotel, which was actually laid out like a motel with separate rooms each leading on to a parking space.






The bit of French on the road experience I always love is the big gamble - would the restaurant provide good food and laughs to set the seal on a successful first days travel?

The goldfish/rabbit tableau in the lobby wasn’t exactly encouraging.



However, it was actually rather good, and the wine and coffee ensured a good nights sleep. Not exactly cheap any more though - add in the fuel, tolls, and board and lodging and touring is now really pricey.







Before bed, my wife had one last surprise for me. Snigger. The bedroom curtains wouldn’t meet and black out the morning light - and we didn’t want to wake too early.



She told me she’d seen a hack for that on Facebook and walked off to the wardrobe.





Always try and marry a resourceful woman.




Next morning, refreshed, we loaded up and got on the road. It was Friday and Euro holiday season, and we should have known what was coming..

[jeremyg]

Basically we shared driving stints on the second day, seeing a few other Porsches on the way, including a few exotic things being trailered.








Our Gen 1 GT3 seems to be a perfect autoroute car. () The ride is very good on the more modern French roads, and the grunt is entertaining. As usual it’s a (Zanzibar Red) magnet for the big Audi, BMW and Mercedes SUV’s who sit right on your tail until you either do something about it or give way. Noticeably though - whenever a big Porsche SUV or Panamera came up behind they were totally respectful, and earned our respect in turn. The others, quite simply, have one big, dangerous, problem.

By halfway through the second day, and not exactly hanging about, the trip computer said we were getting over 30 miles to the gallon - on 97 octane E5.

In the mid afternoon Wayz warned us of autoroute traffic queues around Lyons. It got us around it a couple of times but in the end it too was beaten and we hit the 2 hour nightmare motorway stop start process, with the added hilarity of frightening exhibitions of lane changing, weaving and and frustration being shown by some of Europe’s finest. Everyone it seemed converged on these motorway networks at the same time.

[anglophone1]

It is Bastille day tomorrow JG - toute la France en vacances!!

[911hillclimber]

By coincidence, we are booked for a one-nighter at the same hotel after the crossing! Spooky.

Going in the Boxster, so few people bother us as they know we will be slow...

[jeremyg]

It is Bastille day tomorrow JG - toute la France en vacances!!

Oh my God. We’re on the road on Saturday on the Route Napoleon. V early start!

[jeremyg]

By coincidence, we are booked for a one-nighter at the same hotel after the crossing! Spooky.

Going in the Boxster, so few people bother us as they know we will be slow...

Spooky indeed Graham! Don’t forget the curtain hack. Safe journey.

[jeremyg]

By the time we crawled off the motorway the hotel that night had to be a good one - and it was.



Le Cèdre de Soyons, at Soyons south of Lyons is a lovely place. Not booked in there as well are you Graham?



You’d have thought we’d have made full use of the facilities, but all we could do is unpack in the room (really nicely renovated)…




…and get up to the dinner terrace asap and HAVE A DRINK!

More and more local people kept arriving, always a good sign, and the jovial manager and team took it all in their stride, dishing out good wholesome food.



As the sun went down we ate under the cedar tree and drowned out all memories of the autoroute chaos. The puzzling thing is the GT3 trip computer still told us we were doing over 30 to the gallon despite two hours autoroute queueing. How does that work?

The next morning we’d have to decide whether to carry on with the autoroute or take to the country roads.

[anglophone1]

Ignore autoroute [ jus turn it off in settings ] head across to route napoleon - south to about Sisteron?

[jeremyg]

Ignore autoroute [ jus turn it off in settings ] head across to route napoleon - south to about Sisteron?

Clive I’m telling this story in the past tense. No good giving me route directions as I’m not there anymore! Thanks for trying to be helpful though. I’m also trying to use Tapatalk to select some appropriate film and photos to use but the bloody app is driving me crazy. So annoying as it used to work so easily.

[911hillclimber]

No, not staying there!
We plan to go on to Badan Badan, through the Alsace south and across West to Le Man area / Hotel du France and to Brittany which was our first holiday into France in our Capri!
But that was 40 years ago now.

[210bhp]

Loving your story. Keep it coming!


Regards
Mike

[70sThrowback]

loving this, mainly because I want to do it myself, so soaking up all the info and tips. Thanks