German police put brakes on illegal supercar road race

GERMAN police seized more than 100 high-performance cars on suspicion that their owners were taking part in an illegal road race.

The cars, including Lamborghinis, Porsches and Audis, were held yesterday after being stopped on the A20 autobahn in northern Germany.

Police detained the drivers after concerned motorists reported them driving at speeds in excess of 155mph.

There is no speed limit on much of Germany’s autobahn network, but police suspect the drivers were involved in an illegal race across Europe.

They were taking part in Eurorally, a four-stage event from Oslo to Prague.

The Eurorally website describes it as “an event for car enthusiasts who like to travel by car to experience new destinations alongside other petrolheads”, and stresses that it is “not a competition”.

But German police suspect the drivers were taking part in a road race similar to those depicted in raucous films such as The Cannonball Run and The Gumball Rally.

Police said they were still investigating whether the event was an illegal race but released most of the cars yesterday afternoon.

They were allowed to leave in small groups of up to four an hour, to prevent any further racing. “A continuation of the event has definitely been stopped,” a spokesman told Bild newspaper.

Photographs shared on social media later showed cars with Eurorally stickers in Poland, the next stage of the event. According to the Eurorally website, participants paid €799 (£680) to take part in a series of stages across Norway, Sweden, Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic.

“We aim to give you a once-in-a-lifetime experience holiday consisting of great events taking place in multiple countries. There will be parties at each destination,” the website reads.