Last weekend, Klassikwelt Bodensee was once again the trade fair of choice for all those who have little use for million-dollar inhabitants of fully air-conditioned garages.
The closest thing to the usual high-price bazaars was the special "Black & White" show in the Atrium of the West Entrance. Here you could actually find two Mercedes-Benz 300 SLs - painted to match the title -, a pair of Lamborghinis and a Porsche RSK. An Opel Rekord P2, an early Standard Beetle and a Ford Taunus P5 - the latter, however, as a rare German convertible - provided a down-to-earth balance.
There were also no official and large-scale appearances by car manufacturers. Instead, the eleven exhibition halls were dominated by clubs, parts dealers and private sellers as well as smaller dealers with cars in price ranges for which you don't have to mortgage your own home. The fact that the entire passage between the two rows of exhibition halls is practically a huge visitor parking lot for classic cars also played a significant role in the pleasantly down-to-earth character of the event, so that Klassikwelt Bodensee largely gave the impression of a large meeting rather than a trade fair.
On the coarse gravel of the courtyard, there were exotic cars such as Renault 14, Borgward Arabella or Nissan Figaro and a more unusual alternative to almost every more common model. In addition to the numerous VW T1s, there was also a Renault Estafette to discover. The eccentric antithesis to some Mercedes-Benz SLCs was a Fiat 130 Coupé, which was once at least on a par with them in terms of self-image.
The treasure hunt continued in Hall 1. Have you ever seen an Opel Kapitän P2 as a (self-built) coupé? Or a Simca Coupé de Ville from 1956? Cars like the Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham seemed almost ordinary. Of course, in Friedrichshafen, too, it was impossible to completely avoid typical trade fair side effects such as acrylic paintings with car motifs, a stand with new cars or even massage chairs. But the number of these was pleasingly limited.
Even in 2025, Klassikwelt Bodensee has remained true to itself, appealing to a broad and diverse audience - the organizer reports 40,300 visitors - and not just one with a fat wallet. "It's great to see that interest in classic mobility continues to grow," said Managing Director Klaus Wellmann and Project Manager Roland Bosch, who were delighted with the high increase in visitor numbers.
