Road trip to Austria!

[MrMaloo]

Well its come round pretty quickly....me and some pals are off to the F1 grand prix in austria tbis weekend. Driving in the x5! By far the longest road trip i've done having never driven in europe before. Looking forward to using such a large and comfortable car to do the trip. Dont think we're going near The Ring but should be lots of 'leg stretching' opportunities nonetheless.

Have got new tyres all round and brakes have recently been serviced as has gearbox. New windowscreen as old one had nasty crack. And with the sliding load floor retrofit - can actually get a full size spare wheel in the boot rather than the nasty spacesaver. Got bulbs, high vis vest and breathalyser....anything else you think i'll need?

Thanks

Jon

[Raj]

Fuel and lots of it lol

Sorted ya insurance and road side assistance out?

Seriously though Jon, you'll love it. They are great for these long haul road trips and the F1 should be superb.

Drive safe buddy.

[MrMaloo]

Thanks Raj! Quite glad there are other people coming along to share the fuel bills! I've been kidding myself that as its mostly motorway driving, the v8 will be kind to me fuelwise and maybe it would be better than hammering it along in a diesel x5 with 4 large passengers. Still - guessing all our wallets will be significantly lighter no matter what we drive in!

Insurance company have been notified and extra miles added to the policy too. Friend has kindly sorted euro breakdown cover.

I have adaptive xenons on a 54 reg x5 - is there a switch on the headlights themselves to change the beam for euro driving?

Thanks

[Raj]

Cool on the sharing lol. Kind of what's happening she we go Spa in Sept even though it's LPG lol.

There is a switch apparently for switching the xenons but I've never used or seen it and tbh never changed mine in all the times I have driven over in mainland Europe.

Xenons are slightly better with the cutoff so not quite as bad.

[Benstan]

[quote="Raj"]
Cool on the sharing lol. Kind of what's happening she we go Spa in Sept even though it's LPG lol.

There is a switch apparently for switching the xenons but I've never used or seen it and tbh never changed mine in all the times I have driven over in mainland Europe.

Xenons are slightly better with the cutoff so not quite as bad.
[/quote]

I've done thousands of miles in Europe and never once changed the beam.  I do carry deflector stickers in the glovebox just in case an officer wants to make a point.  High vis needs to be accessible so don't have it buried at the bottom.  Other than that I think you've got it covered.

Puts me in mind of The Blues Brothers:

"It's 106 miles to Chicago. We've got a full tank of gas, half a packet of cigarettes, it's dark, and we're wearing sunglasses... Hit it."

[Spartanx5]

I drive to Andorra for my snowboarding trip every year, I can't count the times I get people on the other side of the road flashing their lights at me because I never use the deflectors, it's my way of getting the Europeans back for the way they drive though my village. Now I have the x I can just flick the switch but wether I do or not is another matter, I hope you have a good drive, you won't need the breakdown cover these things are bullet proof ha  :noexpression:

[MrMaloo]

Trip down to austria went well! X5 is a GREAT cruiser and thoroughley enjoyed stretching its legs on the autobahn....much less traffic than the uk! Did 135mph with ease and felt like it could have gone faster but with lots of autobahn being two lanes you need to see and anticipate far ahead so didnt want to push it any further. Racing starts soon and sun is booming! Great trip so far!!!

[Raj]

Excellent buddy. Cruising is what they were made for for sure.

Lewis' qualifying didn't go well but the race looks like it's going to be a good un.