Re: Audi factory visit info

[adams@churchill.columbiasc.ncr.com]

> 
> Hello,
> 
> I am going over to Germany on a business trip and I am going to attempt to 
> visit the Audi factory in Ingolstadt (spelling?). Does anyone in the group 
> have any information on factory tours for Audi and the other German 
> manufacturers (Porsche, BMW, MERCEDES etc)? Any recommendations on Car 
> museums I should see while I'm over there?
> 

I tried to find some of the previous posts to r.a or any of the lists
I members of, but I must have archived them away.

I have never read of anyone taking a tour of the Ingolstadt facility,
so I hope someone speaks up!  But, I have been to the others.

Porsche, has a small museum on the manufacturing premisis.  They show movies
in the back at the visitors request.  I think you have to come early or 
give notice the day prior to get a plant tour.  At one time they would
only give plant tours to Porsche owners/purchasers.  It is worth walking
around the facility since you can see the manufactoring line from the
street that goes between the Porsche buildings.  The Porsche manufactoring
plant and museum are in Zuffenhausen-Stuttgart.  Porsche also has a 
research facility in Weissach, but I don't know if they accept visitors.

Mercedes, has a nice large museum that goes through the history of Mercedes.
The museum gives examples of almost every Mercedes built.  The museum
is located in what used to be the Mercedes HQ in Unterturkheim-Stuttgart
(the HQ moved to Unternehmen-Stuttgart, I think).  You board a bus outside
of the plant and they bring you onto the facility to the museum.  Once in
the museum they give you a hand held receiver that picks up, in your
respective language, the discription of the automobiles in front of you. 
I haven't been on a plant tour of any of the Stuttgart plants.  But I do
know that the Stuttgart plants build primarily the S-Class cars.  The
C-class and previous 190 class are built in northern Germany.  Also, if
you are interested in Automotive History, the original workshop of Gottlieb
Diamler is restored and can be toured (it is small) in a park in Bad
Canstatt-Stuttgart (which is only a few miles from the museum). 

BMW, has a nice large museum that goes through BMWs history similiar to the
Mercedes museum.  In the top floor, they have a 3-er dismantled and a 7-er
cut in half.  They really like to show off their technology, unlike MB
who is more humble in their presentation.  The museum is a mushroom 
shaped building with a roundel on top.  It is on the HQ and manufactoring
plant facilities.  And is located by the Olympic village (1972) in Munich.
I beleive that you need 1 week notice to get a plant tour of the BMW
plant.

There is a nice "transportation" museum off of E50 or 6 between Kaiserlautern
and Heilbronn.  And there is the Hockenheim ring/race track.  I was on
a business trip in Waldorf (just south of Heidelberg) and we would 
go in the afternoon to watch cars (street & race) practice on the track.
If you are near there it's worth a hour or so.

BTW, I was born in Bad Canstatt-Stuttgart, so I am much more familiar
with locations and so forth in the Stuttgart region.  I can dig up numbers
and times, but the latest Germany tour book would be more acurate.
Have fun!!!!

regards,

Daniel Adams