Gentlemen,
here's some impressions of my very own 3MA2014 - no, not the
Maximum
Mirafiori
Mobilization
Attempt but the
Maximum
Mercedes
Mountaineering
Attempt
Since we were taking Vasco along (which ruled out the Ineptitude as a means of transport) and didn't want to go in the VascoExpress (a classic car it had to be!), the first idea was to take the Alfa GTV. But we ended up in the V8 Mercedes, which was not a bad choice at all. So we left Munich for the Alps, and this is what lay ahead:
- 3 driving days
- 4 countries
- 1200 km
- 17 passes
- 35000 meters altitude difference
But see for yourself:
There's no better way planning an itinerary than real old school material. Here's the Grosser Alpenstrassenf?hrer, first edition 1957 (!) und a map of Austria-Switzerland-Italy from 1964...
Leaving Munich, the first pass to cross in Austria is the dinky little Fernpass:
On to Italy via the Reschenpass, still no challenge:
A short stop on the shores of Lake Reschen:
And there she is, the Queen of Alpine Passes, the Stelvio!
After descending the 47odd hairpin bends at considerable speed
the 4 disc brakes raised the white flag. But by the time we climbed up the next pass, they were back to normal. So, on we went up the Gavia Pass, which turned out to be my favorite - narrow, windy, low traffic:
Few classic cars on the road, but when chased they gave way to the V8 quickly:
After crossing the Tonale pass and the Mendola pass we reached Bolzano, where we stayed for the night:
The next day saw us racing up the Stelvio once again:
And on to Switzerland via the Umbrail pass; they even gave us a short stretch of gravel road!
Down in the valley, brakes were gone for the 2nd time. The next stop was the Fuorn (the Furnace pass):
Crossing the Bernina pass, we left Switzerland for Italy:
And we reached Bolzano again via the passes Aprica, Tonale and Mendola:
And in the evening, we even wer presented with the famous alpenglow!
The next day we headed back for Munich. On our way to Penser Joch, we met a true vintage car:
Two more 2000 meter passes to go, here's the first one, the Jaufen pass:
Vasco in the back seat, overlooking his realm:
Room with a view:
The last high pass, the Timmelsjoch:
And the last one to go, the mostly unknown Buchener Sattel at 1252 meters:
The proof for spirited driving:
(Front pads down to 2 mm)
My general impression: lots of bunglers on the roads. If you are into spirited driving, there's few competitors even for the heavy S Class (only two four wheelers overtook us on the pass roads, they being a pair of Ariel Atoms); in contrary, we had to urge e.g. super sport cars (att: IRONY!!) like Audi TT or Mercedes R230 to give way. Even the motorbike riders were taking it too easy; I couldn't imagine to overtake them uphill, but stopped counting at 20.
If anybody is seriously interested in doing a drive like this in a 131 or a gang of 131s, let me know. I have some ideas
However, since the high passes only open at the end of June and close in September, July 2015 should be the target date.
Best regards, hope you enjoyed the pictures although no 131 is present,
Robert
Author
