than Americans, it is a myth that they don't camp in the left lane. I deal with it almost every day. Always somebody in a Fiat or Volvo sitting there clogging things up.

It is particularly true around the cities. Even if the speed limit lights go off, most people don't exceed 110-120 kph. Even out on the open autobahn, lots of Germans feel if they are going 130-140 kph then you can wait behind them in the left lane while they pass five or six cars. This is a pretty open section. Nothing like going around Cologne, Stuttgart or Nuremberg.

To me, the biggest difference is not about how Germans respect the left lane. It's that Germans don't take it personally when you flash your lights or try and get past them. They just move over and let you by. No passive-aggressive speeding up, or flipping you off, or any of that crap. They just move over. They also let you in when you put your signal on, and they are great at the zipper merge. But again, plenty of them sit in the left lane.