On October 28, 2018, the classic car scene in Eastern Switzerland gathered for the 14th time at the Olma exhibition halls in St. Gallen for the classic car fair. 150 exhibitors showed the 5500 visitors in four halls and on 11,500 square meters what they had to offer.
Many old acquaintances
Renate and Peter Hürlimann's well-organized and very personal trade fair feels like a meeting of old friends. And that's how it should be, because conviviality and good conversation are also important to the fair organizers.
At the end of the season, brand colleagues, garage owners, club acquaintances and parts suppliers meet again for an informative chat. And every year there are new things to discover.
New discoveries
The Buick saloon called the Invicta Flat Floor Four Door Hardtop from 1960 attracted many admiring glances. With its panoramic front and rear windows, the impressive curves on the flank and the artfully fitted chrome, the car represents American automotive engineering from the early sixties.
They still exist, the first generation Fiat Panda. Although both Pandas seen were not early but rather late examples, they have survived.
This also applies to the Audi Quattro, which made several appearances. The good news for the original Quattro drivers is the announcement that full-size tires are now available again.
Of course, almost every dealer had new cars on offer that wanted to be inspected, so Touring Garage showed a well-preserved Triumph Spitfire 1500 and a Porsche 911 Cabriolet, at Goodtimer there was a Lancia Fulvia to see and at Huber Classic Car, of course, lots of Porsches.
Liga presented several Mercedes-Benz and an old Jeep, Classic Car Connection an MG TC from 1947 and an extensively restored Austin-Healey Sprite Mk 1.
At Stalder & Moser, there was a pair of Giulietta cars to admire - one as a Spider and one as a Berlina TI.
Lots of wood at Marco's
The wooden chassis of a Marcos 1600 GT from 1968 consists of 386 parts. It is artfully built, but normally hardly ever seen. The Swiss Marcos Club, however, was able to show a half-finished Marcos GT with the woodwork almost completely exposed.
The car is currently being restored and is slowly approaching completion.
But there was even more to see at the Marcos Club stand, such as a 3-liter V6 Marcos, a Mini-Marcos and a Mantula. And anyone looking for advice on the rarely seen British brand was sure to find a sympathetic ear from the club representatives.
Diversity on the doorstep
Diversity was not only the order of the day in the halls, but also outside the gates. The areas between the halls were packed with classic cars of all kinds.
Viewing these was just as much a part of the visitor program as walking through the halls and eating an Olma bratwurst.
Although the weather did not quite cooperate with cool temperatures and a little rain, this did not deter some classic car owners from coming with their old cars and showing them to the public. That's a good thing!
