M6 @ 206 MPH on the AutoBahn

[Kerry Matthews]

Today I had to travel to Oakland... On the way there, a perfect example of 'idiot' drivers. A lady was in the left lane, with about 10 cars backed up behind her in moderate traffic. She was doing @ 70 mph, which was WAY too slow for the left lane. Twice I noticed her car drift onto the left shoulder. As I passed her from the far right lane, (which was the only way to get by her) I noticed that SHE WAS READING! OMFG! IN THE LEFT LANE WITH TRAFFIC BEHIND HER!!!!

I laid on the horn. She temporarily looked up, then back to her book! I moved into the left lane, and noticed her drift off onto the shoulder twice more before she dissappeared in my rear view mirror. Think she'd move over to the right? Not a chance...

Clueless!

 

[TomT]

I did this in a Gremlin X, with a warmed up 304 V8

Holy crap, someone else that had the same car I did! It was the first new car I ever purchased. Loved that V8. I could burn rubber all day in that thing. I travelled that same road in 74. I went to Las Vegas in the damn thing. I had no ac because I could not afford both ac and a V8. Bad move. Had it up to around 120 crossing the Arizona desert before it started heating up. Had to pull over and add water to the radiator.

 

[EddieS'04]

TomT...some folks didnot like the Gremlin. I really enjoy messing with people having the V8 engine. I never had a over heating problem.

 

[TomT]

I know what you mean. The V8 coupled with the Gremlins light weight made it one of the fastest street cars around. Only time I had the heating problem was crossing the 120 degree desert but back then most vehicles had the same problem.

Since the Gremlin was made by American Motors, it was of course a total POS but it was definitely fun.

 

[Richard L]

I have driven a Fiat Dino with a Farrari V12 engine over 140 MPH on the German Autobahn back in 1968 when the fastest Porsches and Fararri's were only about to hit about 165 MPH. The Fiat Dino was designed by Pinafarina and looked like a cross between a Ford Pantera and a Datsun 240Z, and was a fairly pricey car for that time, especially for a Fiat.



The Fiat Dino belonged to an Army Colonel and we were taking it to the port at Bremerhaven to ship it back to the States, and I was picking up my 1965 GTO to drive back to Heidelberg.



That's the fastes I have ever driven a car on a public highway, and that was legal too!

I only got my 1965 GTO up to about 130 MPH on the Autobahn, but it got there a bit faster.

 

[Gavin Allan]

Hah! I had a little Chevy Monza with a V-8 AND air conditioning! After I blew the "metric 200" transmission, I put in a Turbo 400 with a shift kit and enjoyed second gear scratches at nearly every speed!

 

[LaRue Medlin]

Hey Richard, I remember working weekends driving cars back and forth to the Bremerhaven port for shipping out and bringing in. Got to drive all sorts of things. man was that fun...............

 

[Richard L]

LaRue,

I did not do shuttle cars to Bremerhaven as a hobby or a business, but I know guys who did that. He would spend Friday night & Saturday driving to Bremerhaven and back shuttling cars for $50 each way.



I was taking the Colonel's car up with a friend so I could pick up my car, and he could pick up his car. That was alway better than riding the Duty Train from Frankfurt to Bremerhaven and then catching the shuttle-bus to the port.



We left out of Heidelberg about midnight and got to Bremerhaven about 5:00AM. We ate, dropped of the Fiat, picked up our cars, cot them inspected and registered and we were on our way back home by about 9:30-10:00AM



...Rich