德国目前并未面临立即断油，但它是唯一一个主要经济体的高速公路没有一般性速度上限。2024年，Autobahn 上有超过280人死亡事故，过量超速参与了其中超过40%。其他道路类型仍更危险，但研究显示若降速死亡人数仍会下降。由于空气动力学因素，车辆在约每小时55英里以上燃油消耗会明显上升。Greenpeace 估计，将 Autobahn 限为62英里、其他主要道路限为50英里，可使普通家庭年度汽车燃油支出降低近10%，同时减少污染并降低对烃类进口能源的依赖。
实际行为数据已与“每小时100英里”式的刻板印象不符。约30%的 Autobahn 路段已有速度限制，在剩余无限速路段中约四分之三的平均速度在81英里（含81英里）或以下，只有1%路段平均高于87英里。最快10%的司机超过94英里，主要出现在跨农村地区的长距离连接路段。北莱茵-威斯特法伦的平均速度从2021年的72.4英里降到70.5英里，部分受拥堵和施工影响，许多车辆设定81英里巡航。虽然电动车起步加速可很快，但高速会降低续航，宝马 BMW iX3 等免手动操控系统仅在约81英里/小时内获准使用，这也促使司机自发减速。
West Germany imposed a 62 mph (100 km/h) Autobahn speed limit for four months during the 1970s oil crisis. With the Strait of Hormuz constrained by the Iran war and fuel prices high, environmental groups and left politicians, supported by the International Energy Agency, again argue for a limit. Bloomberg frames it as a safety and climate measure, while opponents cast it as an attack on car culture. Most ADAC members support a permanent limit, and 51% of Germans support a temporary one until prices ease. Yet Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s conservative–Social Democratic coalition opted instead for a two-month petrol and diesel tax cut, and Economy Minister Katherina Reiche said a temporary limit is not on the agenda.
Germany is not facing immediate fuel shortages, but it is the only major economy with no general highway speed cap. In 2024, over 280 people died in Autobahn crashes; excessive speed contributed to more than 40%. Other road types remain deadlier, but studies show fatalities would still fall if speeds drop. Fuel consumption rises sharply above roughly 55 mph due to aerodynamics. Greenpeace estimates that a 62 mph Autobahn cap plus 50 mph on other major roads could reduce an average household’s annual vehicle-fuel bill by almost 10%, also cutting pollution and reducing reliance on imported hydrocarbons.
Behavior data already departs from the 100 mph stereotype. About 30% of Autobahn segments already have limits, and on the remaining unrestricted segments about three-quarters have an average speed at or below 81 mph, with only 1% of segments averaging above 87 mph. The fastest 10% of drivers exceed 94 mph, mainly on long-distance rural links. In North Rhine-Westphalia, average speed fell from 72.4 mph in 2021 to 70.5 mph, partly due to congestion and roadworks, and many vehicles are set to cruise at 81 mph. EVs can accelerate quickly, but sustained high speed cuts range, and systems like BMW iX3’s hands-free functions are approved only up to about 81 mph, which also encourages self-imposed slowing.