The well-established "Albisgütli Classic Cars & Bikes" event is now in its third year. The season opener took place on April 30, 2023 and, as the name suggests, cars and motorcycles met at the gates of Zurich in Albisgütli. Once again, the turnout was great, even though the weather did not look as promising as hoped. However, despite the dark clouds, it remained dry with tolerable temperatures. Nevertheless, there were fewer open-top convertibles than ever before.
From near and far
The classic cars arrived from many Swiss cantons, but you could also see cars with German license plates.
For some participants, the journey itself must have taken a considerable amount of time, because 80 km in a pre-war classic car is quite something.
Cars from all over the world
The diversity on site was once again considerable. Almost all car-producing nations were represented, in particular Germany, France, Italy, Great Britain, the USA and Japan, but also Sweden and Spain.
The fact that British roadsters and saloons and everyday fare from Germany, France and Italy were nevertheless more strongly represented overall probably corresponds to the registration statistics of the time.
Focus on everyday cars
Typical of the meeting in Albisgütli was once again the strong presence of former bread-and-butter cars, led of course by the VW Beetle, which is known to have once almost dominated our roads.
But there were also many other everyday cars from the past to admire, such as the Renault 4 CV, the Ford Taunus, the Opel Ascona or the Alfa Romeo Giulia in various guises.
Some of these once everyday cars have now become real rarities, such as the Riley Elf or the Peugeot 203.
Pre-war cars were also present, represented for example by a beautiful Rolls-Royce 20/25 HP, a Ford Model A or a Wolseley Hornet, but the majority of the cars were from the 1960s to 1990s.
Cars with stories
Almost every car on site had a story to tell, which the owners were happy to recall. The Alfa Romeo Alfasud TI 1500 from 1982, for example, which was strikingly decorated with sponsor stickers, was not simply the work of a motorsport enthusiast, but actually drove rallies in Italy in this livery for many years.
Despite its strenuous youth, it is still largely in its original condition and has even recently successfully passed the veteran's test. So you will see (and hear!) him more often.
Mention should also be made of the special show with over a dozen examples of the Citroën SM (the elegant Granturismo coupé from the Citroën-Maserati cooperation) in the somewhat dark and somewhat remote ballroom, which probably not every visitor found.
Informal coming and going
Due to the nature of the meeting, it is not easy to count the number of cars. While the first cars left at 11:00 (or even before), new cars kept arriving and using the parking spaces that had become free again. There were probably around 250 to 400 cars, possibly even more, which found their way to the Albisgütli despite the somewhat uncertain weather conditions.
The walk through the tiered parking area felt like a tour of a car museum. Many cars brought back memories for the strolling visitors and you could often hear: "I once owned a car like that, I can still remember how ."
One of four opportunities
Anyone who missed the meeting on April 30, 2023 will have three more chances in 2023, as there will be another Albisgütli Classic Cars & Bikes on June 18, August 20 and October 1, 2023; in June there will be a special exhibition on microcars, in August one on Maserati and on October 1 the FAM members will bring historic motorcycles. The meeting is still free of charge for participants.
