According to the ADFC Cycling Climate Test 2024, Tübingen is the most bicycle-friendly city with over 50,000 inhabitants. Despite one of the "greenest election results" in Germany, the classic car event "Tübingen Classic" took place here for the third time, which is certainly also thanks to the smooth running of the event.
The cooperation between the public order office, the local ADAC group, the Neckar-Alb classic car enthusiasts and the team led by Rainer Klink, operator of the Boxenstop automobile museum, is now running perfectly, which was already evident during the routine preparations.
Setting up 105 vehicles in the narrow city center of a historic university town with the correct firefighting equipment and ensuring the smooth entry and exit of the classic cars is no mean feat, especially when access to the stores and restaurants has to be guaranteed from 1 p.m. for the open Sunday.
Borgward Isabella Coupé
A droning noise that occurred on the journey is quickly found and eliminated. Anyone who has known their car for over 30 years will not be fazed by such trifles. Not a trained master mechanic anyway. He successfully passed his driving school test in 1956 in a Borgward. On his first attempt, of course. A memory that is not easily forgotten. Years later, the rare coupé with steel sliding roof was consequently purchased in Braunschweig after intensive magazine study. Supplied with spare parts by the Borgward Club in Bremen, the car will certainly be on the road for a long time to come. We hope you enjoy it.
Porsche 912
A visitor from Böblingen arrives with his wife and son, having found the free parking lot at the old bus station with the help of a navigation system.
Having driven the car in its original paint finish for 30 years, the four-cylinder engine is enough for the family - after all, it is lighter than the six-cylinder engine in the 911. When he "went shopping with his wife in the last century", he lost his patience at some point, spontaneously entered a magazine store and found what he was looking for in the advertising section of a car magazine. A perfect shopping experience for both of them, which he has never regretted. Customer services, the odd panel, especially the one above the exhaust, and minor instrument problems have not dampened the whole family's enthusiasm for the car to this day.
The "Heidi" pit stop vintage bus offered free tours. It drove between the main train station, not far from the free parking lot for visitors whose vehicles have an H license plate, and the city moat with access to the event.
Fiat 500 Abarth?
There is a black Fiat 500 Abarth on the way to the collegiate church. At least that's what the first external impression suggests. The car with the retrofitted Abarth stickers comes from the immediate family circle. Nothing will be changed about this look, it will stay that way. Despite his height of 1.85 m, Harald Muske-Haug uses the "limousine with sliding roof" for trips with up to 5 people, but only with the side windows open so that there is room for his arms.
The family is obviously infected by the classic car bacillus. His son stands at the city museum next to his own 500 Fiat and the motorcycle that his father also brought along. The mother takes it in her stride, there are worse things.
Citroën DS
Savoir-vivre is demonstrated and lived by the owner of a white Citroën Déesse, who took a good hour to travel from Göppingen. He has wanted a car like this since he was 12, and before it gets too late at the age of 60, he says, he grabbed one - or to be more precise: swapped it.
The "goddess" was not perfect enough for a dealer's customers, and the 2CV clientele was less demanding. In short, he swapped two ducks and the current motorhome was already in his own garage for trips to the seaside. It takes a little more time to change the oil than with other vehicles, but you don't want to get bored. The fender painted by the predecessor is said to have been in the matching color at the time. The fact that this is no longer the case doesn't bother anyone here.
Meanwhile, the "Nervenband" provided the best atmosphere with music at the right volume at the collegiate church. Band spokesman Michael Petersen, already known to attentive Zwischengas readers as a motorsport journalist, expressed his thanks for the enthusiastic applause. "Thank you very much. It's nice to see how well old music and old cars go together."
In the meantime, the first visitors have worked up an appetite. A problem that can be solved in the many open restaurants or at the ADAC sausage stand. At the second ADAC stand, children queue up for the Formula 1 simulator. The idea of setting this up on the market square was a hit.
Citroën Dyane
Wait a minute, I've already seen this gentleman today, haven't I? That's right, it's Harald Mikschy, the DS enthusiast from the marketplace. His second car has slightly less power on the road, but he also praises its comfort. He loves the patina of the bodywork, which he hasn't changed in 20 years. The only thing that had to be changed was the switch to an electronic ignition, which makes the breaker contact, which is tricky to adjust, last much longer. As with the 2CV, the ignition coil always emits two sparks at the same time, one cylinder needs this for the ignition process, the other - as he ginsingly says - for afterburning, for the sake of the environment. It's all a question of reasoning.
The handbrake here acts on the internal disc brakes, an unusual design not dissimilar to the Jaguar.
VW Samba Bulli
This was not the first time that the VW Bulli, originally used commercially as a coach for 6 years, was on display in Tübingen. After 6 years of service in Nagold and Herrenberg, it was sold. Just in time for the family, who had outgrown their own Beetle. The dashboard, which is so rarely seen in this configuration, is remarkable.
The paintwork in chestnut brown (not black) and sealing wax red suits the oldie well. The family will still have the car, but now it's the buyer's grandchildren who will be driving it to their wedding. Perfect, it couldn't be better.
Fire department oldies
Anyone who went shopping at the Zinser fashion store was greeted by the Riverside Band playing jazz. Directly in front of it were 15 fire department oldies. Among them was the Magirus KL 20 motorized turntable ladder, which requires courageous use.
Used by the Saarstahl AG plant fire department until 1988, it came into the possession of the Nehren fire department as part of a bankruptcy.
Although the Mercedes Benz LF8 light fire engine changed hands several times, it always remained loyal to Tübingen. Initially purchased by the Tübingen volunteer fire department in 1943, it was used by the Lustnau fire department from 1954 to 1968.
It was then used by the factory fire department of the Egeria terry towel factory until 1995. After its insolvency, the unrestored vehicle became the property of the Lustnau fire department again, where it has now found a worthy home in a new hall.
Meanwhile, former district fire chief Karl Hermann explains the technology of the vehicles. The annihilator was supposed to help extinguish the fire. He had to show the younger visitors the turn signals, which no longer exist.
Chevrolet Task Force
This pickup came to Germany from the States in 2015. It was one of the first vehicles produced in 1955 with the wider hood, and the next facelift came in 1957. After being imported, the car only covered 300 km in the following two years. The buyer was not happy with the car, nor with its technology. The oil pump drive was "tinkered with" and the ignition distributor was incorrectly fitted, which quickly led to further damage. So the 3.9-liter six-cylinder engine was overhauled and now delivers a stable 120 hp on the road. In this context, a new wiring harness and new relays for the converted headlights were also fitted. The failed windshield wiper water tank made many visitors smile.
As a three-seater, the Ami is only suitable for the family to a limited extent, especially as the owner's wife can hardly reach the pedals. After the alternator recently gave up the ghost, the car is now for sale again.
Conclusion
The Mayor of Tübingen, Boris Palmer, once a member of the Green Party, said with a grin: "Cars that stand still do no harm to the environment", which is why he is by no means against classic cars, which are not used on a daily basis. Their pollutant emissions are therefore simply irrelevant in terms of overall pollution.
He praised the genuine craftsmanship that went into the early vehicles and the beautiful shapes that no longer exist today. Incidentally, it was an event that justified the open Sunday, to which the trade and commerce association had also invited.
Since all the visitors, not just the people of Tübingen, were enthusiastic and the city center is rarely as full on Sundays as it was on this Sunday, nothing stands in the way of a new edition in 2026. We are already looking forward to it.
