jfm
regular
Reged: 16/05/2001
Posts: 7165
Loc: London/Antibes
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We picked up my new RIB in chichester last night, loaded it on my brother's 6m RIB trailer and wrapped it in packaging film. He's towing it down to Antibes now, with my father as co-driver, having got the ferry this morning.
They're towing it behind my old M5, which is now my brother's wife's car, and which as you can imagine flies along. The trailer is fab, no snaking, and it all cruises fine at 90mph.
Anyway, he wants to know, are you allowed in the 3rd lane with a trailer in France, on the toll motorways? Or is it like the UK where trailers may only use lanes 1 and 2? If you know for sure, let me know so I can text them
Pic below
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Mike_S
regular
Reged: 10/05/2007
Posts: 326
Loc: Penarth, Cardiff
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As far as I recall (from doing it) you're not allowed in lane 3 on the toll roads with a trailer. Having said that, I've towed a racecar trailer down through France before and not had an issue, both with the lane 3 and *ahem* speeds.
As an aside, I didn't know there was a towbar available for the M5 ?? I didn't buy one after my BMW salesman told me it couldn't be done, because of the rear exhaust silencer being across the back of the car. 
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S28
regular
Reged: 19/09/2002
Posts: 3976
Loc: South Coast
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Check here.
"Do not exceed 100 km/h"
"On motorway stretches with more than two lanes, only use the two right-most lanes, even for overtaking"
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benjenbav
regular
Reged: 12/08/2004
Posts: 2321
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jfm, we have been up and down the autorute to SoF in the last few weeks and there have been a vast number of cameras installed and flashing since we were last down a few months ago. I was flashed 3 times and I drive with the cruise control on 140 km/h so I hadn't been expecting that at all.
The cameras were particularly fierce on the A8 just east of Antibes where there are a couple of sections which are resticted to 110 by Cannes.
The peages are now decorated by solidly built gendarmes who appear to be receiving details of the numberplates of the more blatant offenders.
Edited by benjenbav (16/05/2008 11:48)
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jfm
regular
Reged: 16/05/2001
Posts: 7165
Loc: London/Antibes
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Thanks mike. He's just past Paris, and no probs so far with lane 3 and speed!
Officially there is no BMW towbar for the e39 M5 and BMW don't "allow" it. The one fitted to the car in the pic is an official BMW 540i towbar with a swan neck and cross bar behind the bumper so no clashing with the big silencer, and some simple cut-weld mods to make it fit round the exhaust brackets. Easily done, and the engineering firm who made it said the mods took 1.5 hours or so and charged £100 for the mods. It's actually a brilliant towcar, not least becuase of the 400hp and fanatastic brakes. So you should have got one! There are a few e39M5s on www.m5board.com who have fitted towbars too
There is an official BMW towbar availalbe for the e60 M5. That's my current car, and my brother will be fitting a towbar when he buys it off me in a year or so (he always buys my cars!)
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jfm
regular
Reged: 16/05/2001
Posts: 7165
Loc: London/Antibes
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Thnaks BJB, have relayed all that to him. He's actually ahead of schedule, 30km south of Paris now (at 12.45pm local time), and i dont get there to meet him till 9.20pm (plane lands time) tonight, so he's 75mph on cruise control hence should attract too much gendarme interest.
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jfm
regular
Reged: 16/05/2001
Posts: 7165
Loc: London/Antibes
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Thanks s28. you're better at googling than me, I didn't find that. Thanks
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benjenbav
regular
Reged: 12/08/2004
Posts: 2321
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Ahem, when I said east of Antibes I obviously meant west 
Also, having re-read my earlier comments, I think it would have been more accurate to suggest that the peages were decorated with gendarmes rather than by gendarmes as they did not appear to be there to bring out their inner Laurence Llewelyn-Bowens 
Edited by benjenbav (16/05/2008 11:52)
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Mike_S
regular
Reged: 10/05/2007
Posts: 326
Loc: Penarth, Cardiff
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Thanks for that. Friend of mine keeps looking at the older M5's but the lack of a towbar has put him off as it did me. I'll make mention of your solution, thanks. As a towcar it'll be fantastic.
The new M5 is a little out of my price range now, albeit the one I drove was stunning, so I'll have to wait a couple of years before looking again. It's a tad different to the Range Rover I ended up buying anyway 
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Questor
regular
Reged: 27/08/2003
Posts: 750
Loc: Hertfordshire
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Quote:
As a towcar it'll be fantastic.
Just a fabulous car. End of story. Full stop.
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