this post was submitted on 31 May 2025
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I moved to Germany 2 years ago, and was afraid of highways being like Mad Max, but I was positively surprised.
Most drivers are very attentive and skilled, keeping the rules, driving safe. I like it much better, than Eastern EU, where people are also going 150+, and are being assholes in the meantime. The upper limit of 130 just puts stress on me, because I obey the laws, but the giant SUV in my ass flashing their highbeams does not. In Germany this barely happens to me, most drivers are polite and safe, even in expensive sports cars.
I really came to enjoy the liberating feeling of driving at my own (and the traffic’s) pace on the autobahn. Yesterday I was travelling between Dusseldorf and Berlin, long open stretches of 3-lane roads, with only a few cars around. I was going around 200, yet I saw a car far behind me coming up fast, some polite flashes of lights from the distance, I pull to the right, and let a Porsche pass me quickly.
I might sound like a carbrain, but I’m not. Everybody should try German highways once, so they can form their own opinion, and not judge based on internet memes. I feel 10x safer on the autobahn, than on some shitty Eastern EU highway with a bunch of apes around me, who don’t care about the rules.
There are no "polite flashes". If you have to bully other cars out of the left lane, you're driving faster than traffic allows.
Polite or not, in German driving school you are taught to use either the horn or flash your high beams to signal intent to overtake. So flashing the high beams from a distance could be seen as polite since you will not ride their ass before they have time to move to the right to let faster traffic pass.
The fuck kinda driving school did you go to? Both flashing your high beams and using the horn is simply not allowed and counts as "Nötigung". If someone is in the left lane while not actively overtaking, should move to the right, no discussion there. But when I encounter aggressive assholes, the kind who uses high beams, it's always when there's too much traffic to race across Germany.
To signal intent to overtake flashing the light (outside of settlements) is legal and described in the StVo. It’s not illegal. Doing so while driving very close to the front car while they have no chance to make space can be „Nötigung“, yes. The situation described by OP falls under the legal use of high beams in my opinion.
OK, yes. The issue is only that I've never seen it used in an OK situation. Probably because I drive in the most suitable right lane, unless overtaking. I only ever see it being used while overtaking, which should be visible for the person speeding. And that is not a situation where it's fine to signal your intent for overtaking. When there's an Elefantenrennen that forces others into the left lane, you can signal all you want. There are simply too many cars to drive fast. I don't know how often I've been bullied out of the left lane, fearing for my safety, only to merge right back right behind the asshole who's now stuck behind the car that was right in front of me. I'll never understand that mindset.
Contrary to OP I hate driving on German highways because of the amount of aggressive assholes. I always found driving in the Netherlands much more relaxing.
Ah yes, NL = Nur Links ... I understand why you feel more at home there :D