We are travelling from Salzburg to Fussen and back by rented car this summer. Do you think a 4 cylinder car will be sufficient over the mountains? There is a huge price difference to the next level of car and I'm not sure how steep the road are.
Posted by
Phila, Pa USA
144 posts
Been there. Done that. No problem @ all.
Posted by
Richmond, Virginia, USA
345 posts
Four cylenders will be fine, especially if it is a standard transmission. In 2010 I drove from Schwaz, Austria over the mountains to Garmisch in a four banger. No problems - you just downshift when you need more power. The roads are steep but they do alot of switchbacks to minimize the grade. You aren't going to get up to any great speed anyway because of the curves.
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
33861 posts
I would estimate that well over 90% of all European cars, probably much closer to 99%, are 4 bangers, or fewer. I've never seen anyone on the side of the road around there which looked like engine size problems.
Posted by
Lawrenceville, Georgia
693 posts
James, if you have a car with an automatic transmission, it helps to use cruise control in the mountains if you can do so safely. I've done a lot of mountain driving with my 4-cylinder automatic and when not in cruise it labors up the mountains but in cruise it works really well. Of course, all 4-cylinders are not created equal, some do better than a six.
Posted by
NYC area
2981 posts
Hi James, 4 cylinder, no problem. We've driven the Grossglockner Hochalpenstrasse and most of the Dolomite passes with a 1.4 liter rental car.
Paul