Dear V12 friends! Here are some «in action» pictures from my last long trip from south of France up to Stockholm in Sweden, and actually finally the last trip over to Oslo Norway from Stockholm. I flew down to Nice in France which takes three houres from Stockholm and stayed in France for two weeks. Went to the Cannes Yachting Festival and boat show as I love boats and it is also my work. Then headed back home in my 550 Maranello. Went into little Monaco and into Italy. Up to Torino, and further to Brescia to visit the dealership Rosso Corsa Srl. who sold my car new in March 1999 and actually got the invoice of the car! With the luggage set it cost 191.000 euro back then! Sold in Italian lire, but the price on the printed invoice was now in Euros. Then continued to Lake Garda, and up on the more and more scenic Autostrada towards the Brennero alp pass. Fantastic cruising through the valley and at a very sleek grade up towards the alps. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Then took off the Autostrada before the Brennero pass and towards Trento and a charming «Muran pass». After a long day of quite normal driving I found a small old wooden alp hotel with a most welcoming staff. Got a dinner and went to bed. Here are some more pics... Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Early up next morning and i to the car which was packed with stuff... Finally got to use the leather bags for the shelf and they are really perfect for travelling. «Looks good» when checking into hotels! The hotel was actually in St Anton almost at the top of Arlberg which is a mountain in the Austrian alps. I had no idea that this mountain was this close and first thing I did this morning was to climb a quite steep hill in 2nd gear (with a very cold engine!!)... Had to stop a few times to take some pictures and then down towards Bregenz which is a beautiful little town at the Bodensee lake. The views from the top is quite magnificent to say the least, the air crisp and fresh like pure oxygene and the tourists like myself were just staring at the pure scenic views where ever you turn your head. Lots of motor cycles climbing the mountain going southbound... Can’t get a better start of the day than this! Then continued into Germany and just over the border lives Daniel (DZ96 here) and I visitid him and we took a spin in both out cars to compare them. Needless to say, I am a bit envious on his fantastic sound with the 6-1 exhust system combined with Fuchs mid and rear sport mufflers. The car really sound FANTASTIC! He is also a very good guy with around ten cars, and we share the same taste for old Maseratis and Ferrari V12s! Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Then continued up Germany to Hamburg and further through Denmark. A lot of road works along the A7 and not a lot of fast driving, but I had 310 kph. a few times without pushing it too hard. It is quite funny when you get used to 200 and you can find yourself cruising at 240 kph. as it was a normal everyday cruise like 80 mph. in America or Norway for that matter.... The car just flies with comfort at a modest throttle at 240..... Had a superb breakfast next morning with a Danish buddy at the Hotel L’Angliterre where a Norwegian 488 Spyder was parked outside. Then into Sweden over some insane long bridges to meet with some boat customers of mine who has some serious powerboats. One Nor-Tech 4000 Roadster with Mercury Racing 1075s tuned to 1.400 hp. each running E85 fuel and one Nor-Tech 5000 Supercat with Lycoming T-53 turbines rated at 1.850 hp. per side. Both catamarans running in excess of 160 mph.!! Continued to Stockholm and finally reached my destination. Stockholm is fantastic with so many small ferrys and great restaurants. Stayed there to meet some clients and then last 580 kms. to Oslo to get home. The car ran absolutely perfect all the time and didn’t even burn any oil to speak of even after 3000 kms. of quite active driving. The consumption is no less impressive to put it like that, but I have not dared to look at the milage. But what the hell, these moments of freedom and legally pass 300 kph. is quite priceless! That’s all for now Fresh minds run fast cars and boats! Erik Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Here some more pics of the bigger toys... Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Fantastic thread, thanks for sharing! I got interrupted several times before finishing, did you tell us how many total miles and/or Km’s your car has?
Hi Eric, the car did pass the 160.000 km. mark actually on this trip which is actually around 2700 kms. when going through Denmark. It takes time, but it happens quite easily. Good memories. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Wow that’s fantastic! we have covered this on a thread somewhere….European Maranellos are WAY more frequently seen with higher miles (over 60k miles which over here seems rare).
That bridge from Denmark to Sweden makes it so much easier to get to Norway now. It was always a ferry when I was in Europe.
Thanks Bas. I tend to mix in some extra pics and info, because I know a lot of you guys here have read absolutely everything about these cars, so nothing is new anymore... What I do is to explain my personal experience during the moments of travel. It might not be relevant to all of you, but it is life here and now on the go. There is some sort of excitement when you do a trip like this a little ad-hoc without too much preparations in advance. Like the overnight stays. Alot of people make hotel reservations before they go. That is not wrong and it is good to drice to a specific destination. Instead, now I like the excitement of having no limitations during the day. It is a kind of a littlebit frightning feeling when you don’t know where you are actually going to sleep for the night, and when I find these small hotels in the alps, it is quite a relief to find yourself out of the «frightning» situation of having no booked hotel. It is a happiness in that moment when you discover the hotel for the first time and say hello to the staff. Also a bit interesting to see if your car is there outside next morning. That said, I am feel very safe in the alps. What you can’t see during dark upon entering the hotel is a relevation next morning at daylight after a good night of sleep after yesterday’s long drive... It is also a kind of transformation for the car. From one environment to another. To keep the car out of the country for longer periods of time to back in its home garage is a very different experience. Now this time, if felt good to have it back home where it will join my good friends with their cars instead of being left on its own.
I think the extra pics and story around it makes it so much better. And it says a lot about the car as well, just how capable it is. I mean, 25 year old car now some are and still they do effortless grand tours across continents. The no booking of hotels really is quite the interesting part on your trips. I think it ads a good dimension to your trips, kinda into the unknown, almost. It gives you that extra freedom.
When I was in business school in France in 1999 I traveled every weekend and I recall the ferry to Malmo and many years later how amazing that bridge was in photos. Great town, very nice people. Enjoyed that trip.
Lovely trip, reminds me of my trips in my previous blue over tan 550. I think I did 7,000kms in 3 weeks of owning it. . My current one I have not had the chance to do any trips in yet, but I can't wait! Europe really is the best for this kind of trip. Lovely to see a well used 550 as well, mine had 98k when I sold it and my current has 87k on the dial. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for your epic feature. It's a lot of extra effort to take the pictures in each location, stop the car (when you're having fun), get out, take the pic, try again, and so on..and then the time to write and post. It really takes us there with you (or in your footsteps). I also love the fact that it's a blend of business and fun travel, in these locations. Exactly what the car was made for. These are not frivolous cars for revving around luxury hotels in city centres. Presume your assistant took the 300 km/h Speedo shot!
I knew I'd be jealous when I clicked on this thread. My expectations were met. Well done! I very much enjoy your trip reports--it really shows the best of what Europe can offer as far as automobile travel is concerned.
That trip is fantastic Erik, jealous beyond belief! It's great to see you're really enjoying every different bit of the experience. I think so many times we get caught up in making sure every situation is perfectly planned, especially when taking the Ferrari, that it stresses you out to where the enjoyable parts are few and far between. Beautiful scenery, look forward to more posts, thanks for sharing!
Erik, great trip, great report: thanks for sharing! May I ask: how came you had to pick up your car down in Monaco?
Hi Tobias. I have lived down there more or less the last three years. Have done about six trips up/down during this time, and of course by plane many more times. A lot better weather than Norway during the October-April months. When people scrape the ice off their windscreens in Oslo to go to work, I run to Saint-Tropez for work at 160 kph. on cruise control. It is quite fun. But this winter I decided to stay at home. Ideally, the car could stay down there for sporadic use, but I have bought an old Maserati 228 with good rear seats to keep in south more permanently. Less money to be stuck down there. So this winter the Maranello will get a big service and some more upgrades. It is a long time since I had it here in Norway, so it is quite nice to run it during these autumn months with all the colors in the nature when the weather is good. Not much better than firing up the V12 in the morning and feel the heat come from the engine.... In an environmental «crisis» where people take their bicycle in the rain to save the planet, it feels extra good to be an outsider Image Unavailable, Please Login
I love your posts! true story on my end….must have been 2012?….here in the Bay Area (San Jose at the time) I commuted by bicycle to the train and then also rode on the other end in San Francisco. One morning it is really coming down and it’s just after 5am streets empty but there is a cop in front of me and the stop light turns red and he stops. I pull up and look at him, look both ways — not a person or car anywhere and I proceed thru the red light….friggen guy actually lights me up and pulls me over! Didn’t give me a ticket (just a warning) but I thought that was ridiculous! I joke often with my wife that I loved that job but I wouldn’t take that commute again for anything! (Best case it was 1hr36min each way — 55 minutes or so of it on the baby bullet train at least).
