NapoliWeb

YOUR VEHICLE

One of the most important decisions you make before coming to Italy will be what type of vehicle you ship.  You may have heard about the driving in Naples and some it is probably true.  Just like in any large city, the driving here can be hectic and dangerous.  The type of vehicle you drive will determine how easily you can navigate the streets and how aggressively you may drive.  I'm not condoning dangerous and foolish driving, but there may be times when you must become a little more aggressive in order to get where you're going. 

I recommend that you bring a mid-sized vehicle.  When I asked people here what size vehicle to bring, they just said, "Some people bring large vehicles and some bring small vehicles."  That was very helpful advice, don't you think?  I brought a large extended-cab truck (1995 Dodge Dakota SLT) here and haven't had too many problems with it.  There have been a few times though when I've gotten stuck downtown and had to drive for miles before I could turn around.  The city streets can be narrow which makes turning around in the middle of the street difficult (yeah, it's OK to do it if your car is small enough).

My neighbors sometimes park in front of my gate, which makes it impossible for me to get in.  Getting out is a little easier.  Since I have a large truck, I can simply push their little cars out of the way.  I like having a large truck because I feel safer in it.  Drivers with smaller cars tend to stay away and not pull out in front of me or try to cut me off.  It does happen, but not that often. 

You can bring a smaller vehicle, but just keep in mind that your chances of getting into an accident here are probably greater than in the US (at least in the smaller cities).  Many people here, including non-Italians, disobey traffic rules and are very dangerous on the road.  A smaller car may not withstand a hit as well as a larger one would.  Expect that you will get at least a "ding" or two on your car.  If you aren't willing to accept that fact, then don't bring your car.  Just buy a "Naples Beater" when you get here.  You can get used cars for about $500-1000.  They're not that attractive, but they get you around.  If you're lucky, you may be able to find someone who will give you their car (really).  Some people just scrap their cars when they leave rather than trying to sell them. 

I would equate the driving in Naples to Washington, DC, only a little faster.  Without the enforcement of traffic rules, some people just let loose and drive as they please.  As a result, auto insurance is very high in Naples, so I'd recommend that you consider it when deciding what type of vehicle to bring.  Safer (which sometimes means larger) vehicles obviously have lower insurance rates.  If you post a message on NapoliForum (http://www.delphi.com/napoliforum2), you may be able to find someone with a similar vehicle and get their opinions on it.

Finding parts for your vehicle may be difficult, so you may want to bring some with you.  If you adopt an aggressive driving style here, then you'll wear out some parts on your vehicles more quickly (e.g., brake pads).  My truck had only about 50,000 miles on it when I brought it here.  It now leaks oil and transmission fluid.  It's probably my fault for running it harder than I did in the states. 

Items like brake pads, spark plugs, bulbs and headlights, belts, air filters, oil filters, and wiper blades are useful to have on-hand since they're easy to replace on your own and will save you a lot of searching or ordering on-line.  I unfortunately didn't follow my own advice and brought nothing with me.  It's now time to change the spark plugs in my truck, which means I have to go downtown and have them ordered.  There are probably service stations that have them.  I just haven't found them yet.  There are no Jiffy Lubes or Pep Boys here. 

Your radio that works in the US may not work well here in Italy.  In the US, radio stations operate on odd-numbered frequencies (e.g., 101.5, 107.3, 100.7).  Here in Italy, they are set to even-numbered frequencies (100.0, 105.2, 101.8).  Some US radios may be able to tune to both, but most are pre-set to tune to just the odd frequencies.  If you really would like to listen to Italian stations, you can probably get a radio in the US that tunes to both even and odd frequencies.  The more-expensive stereo systems are probably capable of both.