asu

Whats a VAT if I remember correctly its a tax that US Military members are not required to pay .

asu

ein, beer bitter ! Danka or this is a must have phrase first point and than say " yaah das ist gutte !

Its good to be a American in Germany the crap we get away with and the girls just give it away .

TonyBurns

iTrader: (3)

Yes its value added tax, for the next 12 months its been reduced to 15% of the purchase price, goes on most things so a bit hidden (fuel, cigs, food, most items) but in a years time it may go up to 18% to compensate it going down in the first place.
Your PX wont have it added to anything, im not sure if you can claim it back or not with a receipt?

Tony

asu

Dude if they had that tax in the US all the politicians would be hanging by trees .

TonyBurns

iTrader: (3)

It pays for our national health service there are benefits to it, pensions etc, but who does like paying taxes!

Tony

noobyscooby

I added to my origimal post but copied it to here in case asu didn't go backwards!

And yes, RAF Croughton - the one with all the masts and domes beside the main road but just don't try to go up the drive!!!

Anyway I think "glochester" is Gloucester - county city of Gloucestershire which is west of Oxfordshire.

You'll have to get yourself a GPS police radar locator [radar detectors are illegal now I think]. They range from £40 to several hundred pounds if you want a high psec SATNAV with the info on.

The police have radar vans with cameras that are used 7 days a week on local roads in Oxfordshire [and other counties too I might add] but the sites are well known [partly because many are built as small lay-bys with the words "Reserved for Police Vehicles" written on the tarmac!] and the info is on many of the databases.

By the time you see the camera van it is too late - they've got you. The leeway is 10% so 23+ mph, [yes, we have 20 mph limits and Oxford will soon be the first city to have the biggest area of 20's just as the county has the biggest number of 30 mph limits out in the country] 34+ mph, 45+ mph, 56+ mph, 67+ mph and 78+ mph should see a fixed penalty ticket coming your way - 4 lots and you lose your licence!

We also have fixed speed cameras, red light cameras, bus lane cameras and some councils have started using CCTV to hand out parking, bus lane, cycle lane and other violations too. I've seen someone on a motorway near Birmingham trip 3 fixed cameras [they flash twice when there is film in them and one when the film has run out] in the space of 8 miles in a 50 mph limit during roadworks!!

We also have average speed cameras - they read your number plate as you enter and leave the control zone [no flash so no warning] and are digital to can do hundreds of tickets an hour if need be. They are usually in road works.

Sadly, the days of when it used to be possible to blast around the countryside at speeds of up to 160 mph [even the bends on motorways are tight at that speed!] provided you knew what the local unmarked police cars looked like [yes we have those too!] and were sensible in the 30 and 40 mph limits have long since gone.

The last time I had a three figure blast in a new BMW up and down a dual carriageway near Oxford, I attracted the attention of the police helicopter which had just refuelled at the small airport beside the road there! Luckily I got just a finger waving from the observer as I stopped at some traffic lights and the pilot dropped the chopper to about 20 feet above the road and facing me!! Did I sh*t myself or what!!??

Anyway, here's some links for you to depress yourself!!

Speed Cameras UK - Speed Camera Database, Speed Camera Detector Reviews, Satellite Navigation Reviews

Speed Cameras from UK Speed Cameras .co.uk

And one to cheer you up too:

Speed Cameras

You can check out the various types of cameras.

I've had two near misses at high speed with Americans who've forgotten they should be on the left and when one of them swerved, she swerved to her right and not to the left!! Luckily I'd swerved to MY right too so she went by on "my" grass verge and I went by on her side of the road before turning around to stop her. She turned out to be very drunk sadly.

The other shunt I saw was a USAF female who forgot the right side of the road to travel on and drove herself right underneath a coach as she came out of some bends. The local doctor who happened by could only identify whether it was a male or a female corpse he was dealing with by putting his hand down her trousers so please take care for all our sakes!

And despite everything I've said above, whilst the public road motoring is not so much fun anymore, you can, as others have suggested, do track days - or just enjoy England - and Scotland - and Wales in lots of other ways.

asu

Wow, I dont know what to say, and the speed limits are so damm slow ! Here its 20 MPH in a school zone . Has your high court ruled on the use of cameras . In most states they are outlawed .

TonyBurns

iTrader: (3)

20 zones are normally school zones here too, camera's are supported as a method of speed enforcement, the sly ones that can pick you up from 1+ mile away when the police are on the bridge are the most annoying
You notice the most common types, Gato's which are (suppose to be) painted yellow and they have markings on the road, the latest ones are Specs which are an average speed camera, more annoying but are mainly used in roadworks.
Unmarked cars are quite common, high performance like the Subaru Impreza or Evo, even Ford Focus ST's, BMW 335i's and the more powerful vauxhalls (General Motors), though the poilce are suppose to wear their nice yellow jackets when in these vehicles.

Tony

G.Mac

iTrader: (2)

its a shame your not coming to Scotland cos we have the best driving country in the world

YouTube - STi vs. EVO

(the bumpy twisty road in the clip is right next to Faslane naval base were a few of your mates like to visit (Unabomber form NASIOC included)

Graeme

cornflakes5210

iTrader: (1)

i dont know where in oxford you will be based as i was in abingdon for four bloody painful years you could be with didcot RLC bomb disposal regiment but cant see that happening as everything is kept close and personel but then you could go to brize norton air base which is near to gloucester and is where most of american planes land on uk soil (military) there is also bicester which is RLC Pioneers common base mainly things stored around that area but other than all the crap ive just said welcome to the UK hope its as fun as some people say and as painful as i think!!!!!!!!

GC8

Are you sure? No ESVA for LHD cars and a car registered in Germany will only need an MOT to register here.

MrLouKnee

i was posted to berlin for 2 years and learned the important words like how to order a beer and a mushroom pizza and tell someone to put their hands up.

In any other situation i used the universal language of using my hands to talk

asu - you'll need some sort of speed camera detector and an umbrella and water proofs. dont forget, in england, if its not rainin its not trainin, and if its not snowin, then your not goin

Luke

you got that wrong !! there are only a few sections of "unlimited" Autobahns in Germany. the rest have speed limits.
And note: I said "sections" so it does not mean the whole road. you can be doing 160mph and then find yourself having to suddenly slow to 80mph.

andy 2000awd

iTrader: (3)

why would all yank planes land at brize???? i think you'll find that they use RAF/USAF fairford in gloucestershire.....farting distance from brize!!!

noobyscooby

Brize Norton is closer to Oxford [16 miles], or even Swindon [22 miles] than Gloucester [34 miles]!

Someone needs SATNAV!!

andy 2000awd

iTrader: (3)

who me???

noobyscooby

No. Its Cornflakes with " brize norton air base which is near to gloucester"!!

tanyatriangles

iTrader: (2)

Could it have anything to do with the AWE at Aldermaston having just been sold by our government to the Americans?

Prasius

iTrader: (1)

asu - you do have something similar to VAT in the states, and that's state sales tax. You won't pay VAT when you buy stuff on (US-borrowed) bases [same situation as sales tax in the US], but you will have to pay it everywhere else, and you can't claim it back.

You'll probably buy your fuel on base (if you're somewhere like Fairford) which will mean you'll pay US prices for it. If you're stuck out on a limb away from a main US-borrowed base, then I'm pretty sure that there is some system in place that means you still only pay US prices for your fuel. I'd hope your G1/S1 chain will make sure you're fully aware of all this stuff before you come here!!

(All from someone who's spent way too much time working with bloody yanks in the UK! )

asu

Im not saying that you wont get a ticket, we just dont care if we get a ticket, your chain of command is responsible for you to pay all fines and give you driving points but they never do and the germans cant do anything about it . I had over 8 unpaid tickets in Germany and my chain of command would just tell me to slow down and throw the tickets in the trash .

noobyscooby

Aldermaston is in Berkshire but don't worry about our nuclear development capability having been sold to the Yanks - the chairman is Sir Wear my Underpants outside my Trousers himself, John Major!!!

asu

Im not a Yank, Im a American by birth and a Southener by the grace of God ! Hoorayyy for Dixie !

asu

I think we have a pretty good Nuclear development capability, so I dont think we need Aldermaston .

trevsjwood

iTrader: (2)

er Tony national speed limit is 60mph on single carrigway A or B buddy

richie001

iTrader: (3)

I must warn you its rains here in Britain ALOT

asu

Thats okay Im currently stationed in FT Lewis in Washington, talk about rain !

samcowrx

I live in Brize Norton, there is a RAF base here, and there are a few of us with scoobs here, we have our own section of the SIDC with the RO living here.

samcowrx

in other words, we are the oxon scooby crew!

RICH S202

WTF is "the Royal Army" that you refered to before. I take it you mean the British Army, the most professional army in the world???

Be careful coming over here and acting like you own the place bro, some won't like it and you might come unstuck. Don't get me wrong, i love the States, but you all seem to live in a bubble.

Respect,
Rich

asu

The british army is very professional I must say, but there standards are very laxed compared to the US Army and they dont get the money for training that we do .

Who said I am going to act like im going to own the place ? I am going to live my life, visit the UK and spend tons of money and spend a lot of time with the local Subaru community . I think there is a lot of preconceived notions about Americans that are very untrue, and quickly obliterated once meeting us . Every nation has its dirt bags and thier stand up guys as well, dont take everything to serious and live life to the fullest because you may not be here tommorow . Thats the problem IMO most europeans take what Americans say at face value, a lot of it is tounge and cheek . And what bubble are you talking about ?