Who's been to Nurburgring? Need info...

[klutch]

Just wondering who's been to the Nurburgring, specifically, who's been to the Nurburgring in a rental...

I'm flying to Frankfurt next week, probably going to rent a car at the airport, and tool around with some friends for a few days. After that, I'm going to ditch them, and head to the 'ring...the only thing sketching me out is insurance coverage and rental policies: if I bin it, I'm kind of screwed if the agency/insurer decides not to cover me. Does anyone have any experience with this, or know where I could find some info as to driving a rental on the ring?

[Alok]

I happen to know for fact that most rentals specifically and expressly exclude the ring from all accident claims......but I havent been there, I only have classmates who have.

[andyhui01]

^There was a webpage that had seriously everything you need about it, the owner of that site goes to the nurburgring really often with his Mk1 Golf GTI trackcar I think, I'll try to dig up the site. But there are a handful of companies that don't let your car go on the nurburgring, I remember Hertz does not but I'll try to get a complete list.

EDIT: looks like car hire companies don't rent out cars anymore according to the website

http://nurburgring.org.uk/carhire.html

[klutch]

Dang....

Yeah, I just emailed Sixti car rental, they expressly forbid it. However, Sixti is kind of the super-budget line of Sixt car rental...maybe the standard ones might allow it.

[mautzel]

I can imagine that every car rental company will forbid yu to go on the ring with their cars if you ask them. As far as I can remember, there's been a huge discussion about whether the ring is considered to be a race circuit which means that you aren't allowed to take a rental car there or just a public toll road. Most naturally, insurance and car rental companies mostly claim that the Ring falls into the first category whereas the people who rent the car tend to see it as a public toll road, so technically, it's not different from driving over a bridge, through a tunnel or on French motorways.

Another thing is that some rental car companies explicitely name the Ring as forbidden territory whereas the formulation of other companies are in a legal grey zone.

I don't know what you'll be going for once you should find yourself on the Ring, I've only heared that rental and insurance companies sometimes have people at the Ring looking out for their cars which might get you into trouble as well when you don't drive them according to their policies.

[Benson]

As Mautzel said...

It's in a legal grey zone, if you can tranform that german saying into english...

There has been a very long discussion in a german car forum about that topic...

Basically it's like that: In their terms of business, the rental companys prohibit driving on a race track. The term usually goes something like the following (It's only roughly translated since I don't know business english... :

There is no insurance coverage,

a) if the vehicle gets used in any different way than it was declared in the contract;

b) if an unauthorized person drives the car;

c) if the driver doesn't have a valid drivers license;

d) if the vehicle is used for not permitted driving events which have achieving maximum speeds as a goal or for practice drives to do so;

e) if the driver has been drinking alcohol or taking other drugs.

But technically, the Nordschleife is only a normal one way, toll country road.

As far as I know, the rental company has to declare in their terms of business that there is no insurance coverage when driving on the Nürdburgring Nordschleife. Otherwise you have insurance coverage.

But if you're unsure, I'd advice you to not drive the rental on the track. Because if something happens, and that's the case really easily and you don't have any insurance coverage you're fucked, really... You have to pay for the damage of the car, the track (guard rails (really expensive!) etc) and, if somebody else is involved, probably the damage on their car and, in the worst case, bodys (which gets properly damn expensive)...
And if you've not been there before and don't know about it at all and maybe haven't even been driving in Germany at all it's probably better to drive there at all... Because it's no Kindergarden...
I've thought "yeah, let's take a drive on the Nordschleife" when we first arrived there, but it's not that simple, really... Those ups and downs and bumps and all the other much more faster cars wanting to overtake you (NEVER EVER go left or right in a hectic way when someone's approaching from the back!! just use the right indicator, drive on the right side of the track and let them pass on the left side since there is the "Rechtsfahrgebot" ("command for driving on the right side" ?) and it's prohibited to overtake on the right side in Germany) make you so nervous and burst up the adrenaline...
So for the first couple of laps it's probably better to drive around it on the passenger seat...Just talk to people there...They are usually nice people and you might be able to get a ride on someones passenger seat...But don't go for the really fast cars like GT3's in the beginning...
Go for normal cars and drivers to first get a feeling for the track...

I'm desperately trying to find the forum and thread, because there was also someone who was working for a rental company, but I can't find it.

All I can tell you: Read the terms of business really exact and look for terms which prohibit driving on a racetrack and/or the Nordschleife...

[Viper007Bond]

Just don't crash.

[fotograff.de]

Originally Posted by Benson

As Mautzel said...

It's in a legal grey zone, if you can tranform that german saying into english...

There has been a very long discussion in a german car forum about that topic...

Basically it's like that: In their terms of business, the rental companys prohibit driving on a race track. The term usually goes something like the following (It's only roughly translated since I don't know business english... :



But technically, the Nordschleife is only a normal one way, toll country road.

As far as I know, the rental company has to declare in their terms of business that there is no insurance coverage when driving on the Nürdburgring Nordschleife. Otherwise you have insurance coverage.

I'm desperately trying to find the forum and thread, because there was also someone who was working for a rental company, but I can't find it.

All I can tell you: Read the terms of business really exact and look for terms which prohibit driving on a racetrack and/or the Nordschleife...

100% Benson! The forum you are talking about is the german touristenfahrerforum.de.

[mautzel]

I think that's where I recalled my informations from as well. I was searching for something on the web back then and accidently got into that thread - interesting discussion.

[Benson]

Originally Posted by fotograff.de

100% Benson! The forum you are talking about is the german touristenfahrerforum.de.

Tha...I recognize that Nickname...

But yeah, it was at Touristenfahrer...
Now I'm remembering that I always got a headache from those terrible colors that forum has...

[WheatKing]

heh..

just don't crash..

and if you do.. drag it outside the gates onto a public road.. and then inform insurance..

you wouldn't believe how many cars break down outside of racetracks/dragstrips.. LOL

it's like tornados and trailerparks.. accident magnets.. LOL

[D-Fence]

Rental cars are forbidden on the Nordschleife, there is a big plate when you enter "NO RENTAL CARS".....at least there WAS one last summer

[Benson]

Really?
Didn't see that one...

But yeah...I wouldn't do it anyway...
It's not that simple if you say "Well, don't crash then" because there are way too many novice guys thinking they're racing drivers just because they can ramm the gears in and so on...
Not that I'm not a novice driver... But I do at least know that I'm not a racing driver and that I don't have any talent...

[klutch]

I've been reading various car rental's website, and even emailed one....they "expressly forbid use" on the Nurburgring. I think its a better bet to go with a non-German company, since they'll be less likely to include the clause. Enterprise, for example, states that the cars can't be used for "racing purposes" but, if I'm on a public road, and driving sensibly, they can't deem it "racing". I'll have my German roommate call them today and ask about it...