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Comment by ehnto | Hacker News Reader

> we hadn’t jeopardized the safety of anyone, including ourselves

I love the Cannonball, I respect the history, but that is bullshit. You can do what you want but at least be self-aware.

Speed may not often cause an accident, but it will be the difference between a bad accident and a fatal one. That is what speed limits are about. Reducing the impact of an accident probably caused by something else. Also realise that amongst the cohort of "people driving" that something else is inevitable, not chance. It is always happening to someone, just perhaps not you that day. If we all drove 160mph road tolls would skyrocket.

You can bring up the autobahn if you like, or the red centre in Australia, but neither of those remotely resemble an American intetstate or the driving culture of the states. The red centre also has a speed limit now.

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> f we all drove 160mph road tolls would skyrocket. You can bring up the autobahn if you like

Okay, I will. 99% of autobahn traffic I have seen drives 200kmph or less. 160 mph is 257.5 kmph - a quarter more than 99% of autobahn traffic.

200 kmph is fast if it's busy, and most cars can't go significantly beyond that. Aiming for 260 is dangerous for folks driving 200, let alone those driving 100 (yes, that is not an uncommon speed - also not in the unrestricted areas).

In other words: bonkers by autobahn standards.

I'd love to see the stats on median speed on the autobahn, time of day.

Most people are just trying to get from A to B without any drama, the drama increases significantly as you approach 200. I suspect the median is closer to 160...

And then there is the construction that always put a crimp in things.

I was born in Germany and have lived there off and on for several years.

I've also lived all over the US. It's my general impression that the "typical" speed on unrestricted stretches of the autobahn and long, flat, rural, stretches of the US interstate system are roughly the same.

It's cool to see M5s and Fiat Alhambras (lol) zooming past at the rev limiter but most people get up to 85mph/136kph and chill out.

Germans love their campers so half the vehicles on the roads are towing caravans and going slowly anyways.

psa: if you are an enthusiast i would highly recommend going to germany to drive on the autobahn at least once before you die or it gets a speed limit. you don't even have to drive fast, half the fun is seeing how incredibly fast other people are going in minivans and tiny hatchbacks or whatever. and of course the super expensive cars.

Most people just do 120-140kph and call it a day. Of course, there are some fast cars overtaking everybody. You will have to pay more attention to surroundings even when driving 160+ since a Bugatti passing with 250kph will be near you just after you see it in your rearview mirror.

> You will have to pay more attention to surroundings

Largely you don’t. You just have to avoid driving like a North American by staying in the right-most lanes unless passing.

Germany isn’t different in that you’re responsible for not hitting what’s in front of you. If you’re on a 2-lane highway and go into the passing lane at 150 to pass the car going 120, for the Bugatti popping up going 250 approaching that manoeuvre, tough, it’s gotta slow down for the 150 vehicle (which will go back in front of the 120 vehicle once the pass is completed because Europe).

Meanwhile in USA/Canada, I’ve seen vehicles going under the speed-limit immediately head for the “fast-lane” right from the on-ramp with absolutely nothing ahead of them to warrant that.

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