I have an urge to rent a sports car and drive up a famous mountain road…

BoxheadTim said:

In reply to Keith Tanner :

All I need to do to find the nearest hairpins is to drive down into the valley from here .

Based on the sample of cars spotted today, the locals are likely to drive anything from a base model Fiat 500 to a Ferrari 458. My budget is probably more at the Fiat end . Small hatchback definitely works better around here, although trying to convince someone at a car rental counter that I can drive a manual despite having a US license has been fruitless so far.

Of course, Switzerland. I was living in Haute Savoie so it was all Renault 4s and the like. And I think it was 6 hairpins to get to the valley floor from our house, or about 5 to get up to the main road.

A driving vacation through those Swiss passes is on my bucket list, I'm jealous you get to drive them regularly OP!

I think that after the first 6-8 hairpin turns, it would get kind of old.

Left turn, right turn, left turn, right turn...

Being able to say you had done it and the view would be pretty cool though. 

Keith Tanner said:

If you rent something with massive capability, you'll never be able to play with it. Something like an M4 would just be frustrating. At that point, just get a convertible with a nice exhaust note so you can enjoy the sounds and the scenery as you cruise. That's why I recommended the same thing the locals drive - a little hatchback. Preferably French.

When I lived in the Alps in 1990, I would just look on maps for roads with lots of hairpins. No need for guides or tours.

This, a Miata or Fiat 500 would be great choices, maybe an old Peugeot hot hatch if you can get something odd from Turo etc. Even a Citroen 2CV will provide a "unique experience"

bigmack101 said:

A driving vacation through those Swiss passes is on my bucket list, I'm jealous you get to drive them regularly OP!

When we first started going to the Alps for summer vacays (hiking and driving), I found this list to be useful.  Note that there are more than 10 listed despite the title.  Did almost all of these plus as Keith said, lots more found just by looking for twisty roads on the map.

https://www.ultimatedrives.net/top-10-roads/

In reply to Andy Hollis :

Thanks for sharing the link.  I remember a guy on Miatanet years ago talking about one of those listed:  San Bernardino Pass.  He regarded it highly, along with Stelvio.

Someday, someday ....

Having flown to Italy in November, rented a "car" (Daihatsu Sirion), and tried to drive the Stelvio pass, I can tell you that it's closed in the winter.  But there are lots of great roads in the area that are open, and the lack of summer tourists can be helpful.