The experts were amazed! Vintage cars in Tübingen of all places, the "greenest" city in Germany, the cyclists' paradise par excellence. And not somewhere outside in an industrial area, but in the middle of the historic old town. How did this come about? The trade and commerce association was looking for a way to open for business on Sundays, but a special occasion was needed for permission, such as a local festival, trade fair or similar event. If the right people talk to each other, a way can be found quickly.
Rainer Klink from the "Boxenstop" car and toy mobile museum, the trade and business association as well as the local ADAC group, the Allgemeine Schnauferl-Club Württemberg-Hohenzollern regional group and the Neckar-Alb-Schönbuch classic car enthusiasts quickly agreed that the event had to continue after a long coronavirus break. The Tübingen Classic 2023 was born. With so much commitment, even the Mayor of Tübingen, Boris Palmer, could only approve of the event, which took place at the same time as the opening of the new bus station.
Lots of pre-war
The meeting point for the participants was the large parking lot in front of the Boxenstop Museum, where cars with H license plates and two-wheelers built up to 1969 gathered. Around a hundred participants had registered, so some interesting pieces were expected.
The first surprise was right in the front row: a Bugatti Type 37 built in 1927. The owner of this gem had to endure many questions. Starting the car was a crowd-pleaser: turn on the main power switch, flood the carburetor a little, pull the choke and then turn the crank and hope that the engine would start, which it did on the second attempt. The audience here also consisted of walkers enjoying a nice Sunday in the old town of Tübingen, not just a specialist audience. As a result, some of the questions asked were quite different to those we are used to at large trade fairs. For example, whether it was possible to push the car when it was on strike? But that wasn't necessary in this case.
A Chrysler Royal built in 1933 shows just how quickly a pre-war vehicle can change hands. The current owner spent three years in South Africa on business a long time ago, where he discovered the car in a museum. It was then offered for sale there and it was done. The right-hand drive long-chassis version was used by the embassy until 1954 and has since been restored to top condition.
At 11:30 a.m., the classic cars were transferred from the car and toy museum to their assigned parking spaces in the city center - a real task in the narrow old town of Tübingen, which was preceded by thorough preparations. On the Friday before the event, all helpers were "allowed" to walk the entire site again to ensure that there were no misunderstandings. On Saturday, the parking markings were glued to the pavement in the rain so that the vehicles could be parked in an orderly fashion.
One example of unusual purchases is the 1935 Alvis, which gets its 100 hp from a 2.7-liter inline six-cylinder engine. The car was offered for sale packed in countless boxes by its owner at the time, who had probably not only run out of enthusiasm for restoration work. The current owner heard about it "under the table" and found an expert friend who completed the restoration project in two years. He has not regretted it to this day. The MGA he previously owned had too little trunk space, so "the swap" was a real gain. Thanks to the courageous intervention of the author of these lines, however, there was no need to test whether a Mercedes-Benz 220 Cabrio is more stable than the bumper of the English car. Otherwise, the parking efforts of the drivers who had traveled to the event went "smoothly".
The "French Mercedes" Peugeot 402 didn't have far to travel from Stuttgart to Tübingen. This car here already had a metal floor. The first versions were still delivered with wooden floors. Younger visitors enjoyed the closely spaced headlights in the nickel-plated radiator grille, which gave the car a highly individual appearance. After buying a Peugeot 203, the current owner came to the conclusion that genuine classic cars are pre-war vehicles. So at the turn of the millennium, the decision was made to buy this car near Bordeaux. It was ready to drive - but not really much more. In the meantime, the car has been restored to its former glory in a two-tone paintwork inspired by Parisian cabs.
In the meantime, all the vehicles have reached their allocated parking space. One or two minor starting problems were quickly resolved and are simply part of the experience. Younger vehicles were also on display, such as a VW-Porsche 914 imported from the U.S. Due to its unusual shape, the mid-engine speedster was met with keen interest by the younger visitors, even if they did not immediately recognize the connection with Porsche. The vehicle color (gold metallic 8110) is really unusual. According to the owner, however, the car was originally delivered from the factory in this color.
Other air-cooled vehicles - mainly from Wolfsburg - could be seen on the marketplace, causing many visitors to reminisce wistfully.
Repeat desired
"We wanted pre-war motorcycles from the 1920s that could be driven, and that's where we ended up with the Royal Enfields. There are currently three of them registered in Germany," said the proud owners in response to a question from an enthusiastic fourth-grader, whose amazed eyes couldn't look enough. The towels underneath are due to the loss of lubrication - you don't want to provoke an environmentalist. The requested sound check was not long in coming. Otherwise a no-go in the middle of the old town, but on this Sunday the noise was welcome.
As you can see from the text and the pictures, real rarities were on display. The audience appreciated this and behaved accordingly considerately. Even after the end of the event, there was no sign of any damage to the pieces of jewelry, but all the more reason to enjoy the conversations with their owners.
With the opening of the new bus station with underground parking for bicycles and cars taking place at the same time as the Tübingen-Classic 2023, the traffic of yesterday, today and tomorrow came together in Tübingen on the last Sunday in July 2023. The public's interest was so great that it didn't take long for the Lord Mayor to ask whether the event could be repeated next year. Let's look forward to it.
