Planning a 300Km/h run on the German autobahn

All pressures that recommended are cold pressures .. having a car in the sun or driving would add 3 to 6 lbs

So I would say measure with a good gauge in the morning

That being said ..... Not sure if I would attempt that speed ..

 

To answer your question about tpms ..I wouldn't rely on it ..I would use a good gauge .. I have seen the tpms off a few lbs and do not react as fast .

In terms of the pressure recommended I could not speak to that ..not an expert in tire pressures ..sorry ...if the manual recommends that .. I would stick to it ..I hope others with experience in pressures especially in this car / tire combo can chime in


Sent from my moto g(7) using Tapatalk

 

Like using the car on a track day, the tire will get hotter because of high speed and pressure will come up. Your tmps is helpful but you may want a simple manual / electric pump to adjust pressues before / after.

Have a good look around the vehicule, tires, fluids etc. Stating the obvious.

But be very mindful of the traffic condition. There are a few unrestricted motorways in Germany but they aren’t 4 lanes, perfect asphalt, low traffic kind. I would really pick my stretch and also pick my time in the day. I recall Evo mag back in the early 2000’s had an article about maxing out speed with I think Andy Wallace (yes of current bugatti fame).

once you’re done with straight line, drive down to the alps and enjoy corners. Life is more fun around corners !

 

Please watch out for (usually dutch) tourists who (without looking in the mirror ofcourse) switch lanes to overtake another car with 101 km/hour.

Best time to try is early or late in the day. And on a sunday because there will be no trucks then.

 

Do it in the morning and don’t overthink it. Just check your tires aren’t bald or have nails and you are good to go. I’ve lived it germany almost all my life before moving to the states and hit 300kmh about 3 times a week with the 911 Turbo as I had to commute. Just remember that at those speeds your reaction time takes a longer distance so account for other people’s lack of common sense

 

Agree, Sundays a good day on the Autobahn. I drive my cars to Germany very often and barring the occasional random car pulling out or the more frequent Audi station wagon driver accelerating instead of moving over - most German drivers can see a very fast approaching car and are used to it.

 

I only checked tire pressure when the dash told me I need air. Never had any issues. Just go with the stock data if you are worried

 

You could add a few psi for high speed run but heat will take care of that. Just check them before you set off and you’ll be fine

 

I’d factor in weather in the day you’re planning to make your run and adjust pressures accordingly.

Over here in southern Europe, air temperature is always between 30 - 35°C between 10 am and 8 pm, and humidity always at 40% or below, so expect asphalt temperature to be at least 50 to 55°C plus.

I’d take recommended cold pressures and deflate slightly (within reason of course: 0.2 bar for instance). Better grip and the heat plus high speeds in excess of 300 kph will make pressure rise anyway.

Better to start your run with slightly less pressure than recommended, than over inflating to begin with imvho.

Kind regards and have fun!

Nuno.

 

Where in Germany did you try the run?

 

I don’t have Pirellis on, I’m on Michelin Pilot Super Sport and I run them between 2.0 and 2.2 when cold.

Manufacturers usually don’t recommend lower pressures, because lower pressures make tires hotter, but on the plus side, they also grip better.

They usually recommed higher than ideal temperatures, to reduce the risk of overheating and also improve fuel consumption.

I’m only concerned that a high speed run on a summer’s day with tires at 2.6 when cold, they’ll quickly surpass the 3.0 mark and make the car too jumpy and nervous for my taste.

I’d expect an increase of 0.5 or better in relation to cold tires when tires are fully warmed up, so if you start off with less pressure than recommended, you’ll be on the sweetspot when tires are warm. If you begin with a tire already with a higher pressure, by the time they’re fully warmed up, they’ll probably be outside the ideal operating range.

Just my two cents anyway. Always willing and able to learn.

Hope you have tons of fun!

Kind regards,

Nuno.

 

That's a pity indeed - that kind of speed you could achieve on a track...
I had a plan to try the very section you used when visiting Spa, but I was not very confident because it's not famous for allowing high speeds - so I'm glad the state of my tyres after the Spa track prevented me to go.
Regarding tyres pressures, my understanding is that the tyres will not warm up as much if they are overinflated at the start - for pure high speeds, that may be preferred whereas on the track one wants the tyres to be relatively hot because they'll have better grip in the corners.

 

AB is badly surfaced, full of traffic, long corners, narrow lanes with bad visibility for safe fast driving.

Go to Italy, there are many long straight stretches with little traffic. The road surface is usually among the best. Stay off the throttle past the roadside cafes and pumps in case Polizia Stradale are there and hear you coming, and otherwise enjoy yourselves. You can easily hit the claimed top speed of any supercar on the northern Italian autostrada.

 

The nice thing about attempting a run in Germany is the autobahn stretches without a speed limit. Last time I was in Italy, I collected two speed tickets through AutoVelox in as many days

Kind regards,

Nuno.

 

Assuming foreign registration, my Italian friends have told me to just never collect the letter when it arrives. We received two tickets 12 months ago, but have not heard anything more.

My friends said in the worst case there is a border control (which there isn’t) or a nosy traffic stop, where they try to make you pay roadside. Argue a little bit, and you might not end up paying it in full. Not chanting for avoiding law enforcement here, but in my eyes it is safer to drive fast on a well-paved surface with good visibility and next to no traffic. Rather than trying to make your way through cats and dogs on the AB, with the “top speed” mindset. There are too many crazy videos with people going 300 km/h + around a long corner with hedges on the guardrail, no visibility beyond a few hundred meters at most - leaving a bad presedent for the unexperienced. That type of driving leaves about 1-5 seconds before you are beyond your line of sight.

 

Thank you for your reply and explanation, MisterMaranello, I appreciate it.

Kind regards,

Nuno.

 

Autobahn 81.

Between Heilbronn and Wurzburg.


That is the ONLY PLACE I'd try that stunt.


The WWIII Airstrip in that stretch is gun-barrel straight and very smooth.

 

I had the same idea a few months ago and headed to Düsseldorf with my California T. I wanted to feel the excitment of driving at 300km/h!

First deception, the highway had only 2 lanes. But I decided to go for it. I put the car in sport mode and manual gear and... let s go... 150...180...200...240..250...271 and I gave up ! I was really tense as I was overthinking all issues that could happen. I was thinking that if one car switches lanes in front of me at 130 it is going to be pretty bad. The speed was really impressive with other cars far away showing up next to you in a few seconds.
I was frustrated but happy.
Next time I will go for it on a 3 lanes highway to be more cautious.

 

The Munich to Deggendorf stretch past the Erdinger moos is pretty straight and flat and on a weekend morning empty.

Also the 81 from Stuttgart towards Bodensee and then hang onto the 98 when you get there. I was on those roads a couple of days ago, not in a Ferrari sadly but in a Panamera Turbo S EH and while I didn't hit 300 it wasn't too far off.

Agree about the nerve factor though. Above 250 it's very tricky on a public road.

Enjoy!