Thanks! Good question. It doesn't seem to come on automatically all that much, I still had engine running so had to manually turn it on. It does however come off automatically when in drive as you say and you start to move off BUT only if seat belt on. I've got into a bad habit of moving off and then (very quickly) putting seat belt on but this car is slowly erasing that ☺

When we were young we used to stay in a hotel in Castellan, during our holiday trips on our motorcycles with a bunch of friends.. Beautiful little town! Changed the bike for a ‘cabriolet’. Now a Porsche 2.9 (987.2). Enjoy life, it’s to short to worry! Greetings from Marc, Belgium.

No way, didn't see those but I didn't go up a Swiss pass (sadly!)

It is indeed David! I don't think a modern 911 GT3 or 718 GT4 is a patch on this pre-OPF system, it's incredible. Luckily it's pretty hushed with valves closed and less than 40% throttle so you can cruise but tunnels with roof down and valves open and mind blowing 🤪

Thanks Jon, means a lot as I'm guessing the view count on this will be low but I enjoyed making it and I am happy with the end result so positive feedback is very much appreciated 👍

Thanks so much Bradley, same to you too, enjoy it!

It's a good one for sure! I swear it's louder than 992 GT3

Thanks Mark 👍 Col de Turini is a great road and usually pretty quiet. I've done it a couple of times in 996 C4S though first time was with a leaking water pump (the climb up was a bit too much for it though we got back to UK OK in the end). Nice restaurant at top though appetite evaporated on discovering pool of water under car. It was March and there were still tyre marks at every hairpin from the WRC cars a couple of months earlier. Saw a couple of 997 GTS on this trip, look good and sound great 👌

Thank you, glad you enjoyed it!

Just the downhill bit 🤣

@@volkswizard nooooo even more scary haha! I'm still traumatised from doing that trip a few times as a kid with my Dad driving....

Up gti?

@@paulwilson7234 that would be great as it's got a manual handbrake ! perfect !

Glad you enjoyed it Kevin. Got home safely thanks, hood up, no sport mode and it's a surprisingly comfortable and refined cruiser, the really high 7th gear (PDK auto) helping keep noise and fuel consumption down. Obviously I need to do it all again soon as this one didn't exactly go to plan :)

LOL! The minute you cross the channel everyone is a lot more polite 😉

Ha ha, agreed! I don't really get espresso as I prefer a longer drink but it did the trick on this occassion. Thanks for your kind words, this was the first day back to my normal self after 9 days so it was great to be back on the road 👍

Hey Wyn, yes indeed it was expensive but it was to prove a point so was worth it. Apparently according to Google maps it was 16 miles in each direction but rest assured these will be the most mentally consuming 16 miles you've ever done! The out of car shots were done by my wife on her first day out of self-isolation, both the up and down were done on the French part a bit later in the day hence the soft light. Any cab would be good as to see mountains above the header rail is what makes it so special in an open car. There are many other good passes and Swiss ones are as scenic if not more and proper 2 lane roads by and large, also usefully nearer. Only downside is that even with our cost of living crisis, Switzerland still feels much more expensive and they aren't in the Euro so more currency issues. Whatever, hope you get to enjoy a pass in your Bug soon 😎

Ha ha! Well there are loads of similar videos on KZfaq, bit like going the long and scenic way to get milk, only a bit more extreme 😁

Thanks Sean. It's probably never as good as it looks in the video (but it was still quite good I guess 😎)

A very slick production then.Bravo👏😎

Easy answer is that she was self isolating (you have to in France still) and was 3 days behind me. I was out on the Saturday, this was Monday, she was out the next day. Thanks for asking though!

@@volkswizard Great to hear and everyone is on the mend.

Hey Michael, yes it was a great drive and all the better for having a purpose. I genuinely couldn't stomach the machine coffee in the room or at breakfast so was curious if it was me or the coffee. The drive by vids were taken by my wife, she was self-isolating on the day I did the video but was out the next day. If you see any drive bys like that in other videos, it's more than likely her doing. They really ad to the video don't they?

@@volkswizard Absolutely!

Thanks Keith, it's great to be back😎

Hey Jason, glad you enjoyed it, especially that Caddy van!

Thanks 👍 There are better passes for sure where you can relax as they are wider but they are usually busier and less satisfying to conquer. The road up from Nice to Isola 2000 is hard to beat though, probably one of the best driving roads I've ever driven.

Couldn't agree more Andrew! Any regrets?

My thoughts exactly. 991 which this car is very closely related to has got a bit too big and is still quite noisy inside from tyre roar. Even though this is an open car, because the wheels arches aren't within the passenger compartment, I'd say it's no noisier than an 911 Coupe. Also 911 cabrios always look a bit odd at the rear while Boxsters where designed to be open so hang together a bit better. I would like a 991 911 GT3 though but for half the price, 981 GTS is probably as much real world fun and not afraid to use it and put miles on it.

It's interesting that if you travel from Belgium to France along the coastal autoroute that goes to Calais, there is now a fixed border checkpoint in the first French layby that all the traffic has to filter through slowly. You avoid this if you travel from Reims or Lille as they join the road closer to Calais. I suspect they've got cross border ANPR and in use and are waiting for specific vehicles. Taste of things to come for borders maybe? Germany into Switzerland is very heavily policed too but don't think that's new.

Glad you enjoyed it George!

Thanks Malcolm👍 Carmine red gives the otherwise cool Teutonic Boxster a bit of Italian flair, it’s an epic car 😍

Thanks Keith. Yes indeed, was the right tool for the job and never below 30mpg!

It was a pleasure, glad you enjoyed it 👍

Hey Slakka, you just inspired me to drive my Cupra 🙌🏻

Thanks Tony, this drive was also a test of my ability to drive as I hadn't driven for over a week and needed to make sure I was up to the long journey home which thankfully I was. Sorry to hear your Mk8 didn't like the software update. You forget that this sort of thing can happen which is a lot more hassle than having to go for the software update, something that should have been right when the car left the factory. Hope it's sorted soon, still plenty of time to get a good trip in this year so best of luck 👍

Thanks for the reply. Your ability looked ok to me! Been 5 weeks waiting for the replacement part to appear. Agreed that this model should not have been released without a full rigorous test of the software first . Just seen the launch of the new Honda Civic Type R. Hurry up VW....

Sorry about that :) It was original launch videos of the 981 GTS that made me decide to buy one, you can really feel the excitement in film as opposed to a magazine

Correct, PSE as standard and yes the crackles can get a bit tiring but you can switch it off, you can even individually select or deselect it aside from Sport or Sport Plus mode. That footage was a lot of lifting off and not enough revving out, in normal driving it's not so annoying.

I did go via Nurburgring, Baden Baden, Stelvio, then onto Ingolstadt, Leipzig, Wolfsburg and home 😂

Sounds like a valid reason and a great trip Gary. Didn't you sell that Mk4 to me when you got your R36?

@@volkswizard yes, you bought it back and I collected my first R36 from Solihull VW

Thanks Andrew B! 😃

Thanks Tony 👍

Kenco really smooth with all hot milk no water

Lavazza Crema e Gusto is my current favorite, made in Turin not very far away from this coffee shop

That’s what Italians drink - my ex wife is Sicilian and they live on this daily but warning you may develop a tendency to shout and or behave erratically or maybe it wasn’t the coffee lol 😝

@@malcolmscott4150 🤭

I noticed some crackles on the intro bit, not sure why, could be wifi interference or the stabiliser which I wouldn't normally use on a table. Rest of it OK though? I am using Rode radio mics, top quality but any radio is vulnerable to interference.

Being completely honest the audio always seems not quite right and I only say constructively because I have noticed over a long time tone levels and clarity I watch a lot of you tube and always notice it on yours, not faulting the content I’m a absolute fan cheers

Not sure what to do. Mic is broadcast quality Rode, radio mic kit is Rode. When using the grey GoPro as per dash on this video, I’m using an official GoPro mic adapter so no weak link. Next video uses a dashtop Rode mic so no radio so let me know if that’s better👍

@@volkswizard I would guess there some sort of tone levelling in editing software almost sounds mono sometimes ? Don’t lose any sleep over it mate just something I pick up on

What is?