Hats off, and—goodbye!

10/11/2026

Peter Winet of Pratteln (on the left in the photo) passed away a few days ago at the age of 80. Some will remember him especially within the Swiss classic car scene: Together with his twin brother Paul, he attended numerous concours d'elegance in a 1931 Mercedes-Benz Nürburg 500 Pullmann. The two of them received multiple awards for the car, which they had restored themselves over the course of 16 years.

Peter (li.) und Paul Winet aus Pratteln

With the passing of Peter Winet, the classic car community has lost a great, true enthusiast—one who restored his dream car himself, researched its history, And he took it out on the road to delight spectators. That is more than worthy of any honor and deserves the highest recognition. In doing so, Peter and Paul saved a car from oblivion—one of which fewer than 1,000 were ever built. And of which only a fraction remain today.

Mercedes-Benz Nürburg 500 von Peter und Paul Winet

Peter and Paul belong to the generation that discovered the classic car hobby about 30 years ago—and lived it to the fullest. At a time when the internet wasn't yet available to help with finding parts, and the number of experts for such specialized vintage cars had already hit rock bottom. This makes the achievement of saving a W08 all the more remarkable—a car that, as a converted fire truck, had long since seen its best days by 1995.

Die Winet-Brüder haben den Mercedes perfekt restauriert – 16 Jahre lang!

The scene needs enthusiasts like these—perhaps today more than ever, even though many technical aspects have become much easier. Because enthusiasm seems to have waned somewhat. Not the passion itself, but the almost selfless dedication to preserving, restoring, and saving such cars regardless of time and cost. Thank you, Peter! And we wish Paul many more kilometers in that classic car, in which Peter's spirit will continue to drive on forever.

When you get hungry...

Martin Sigrist

10/10/2026

Crazy Harry Seven mit Speck und Spiegelei

Well, tackling the topic of “blogging” on an empty stomach probably wasn't a good idea. Certainly not before lunch. Because that's when that feeling from my stomach keeps creeping into the thoughts I should otherwise be having. Like: “What's currently exciting me in the classic car scene, and what could I write about for our readers?”
Well, somehow it just didn't really work out today. It's a bummer.

That's why I dug out a photo from my archives—one I took in June 2018 at Garage Kumschick, ahead of the St. Moritz meeting of the LSOS (Lotus Seven Owners Switzerland). The Englishman “Crazy Harry”—I think that's what he was called—brought his very own Caterham to Switzerland, a wild conversion featuring a Rover V8 and two turbochargers. The whole setup was—let's call it “artisanal”—and as the pinnacle of eccentricity, he'd built a small griddle between the cylinder banks. Fancy a fried egg, ham, and bacon? No problem—freshly prepared and seasoned with exquisite extra-virgin engine oil—delicious!

Along the way …

Dani Reinhard

10/09/2026

… there he stands, all alone, the little goblin (the German translation of “Imp”), in his rusty Sunbeam-shaped body. Weighing just over 700 kg, this small car was the Rootes Group’s response in 1963 to the Mini and, above all, to the fuel shortage resulting from the Suez Crisis.

Sunbeam Imp am Strassenrand

Well, when long traffic jams between Salzburg and Munich suddenly force you to leave the main highways and find new routes through the countryside, you’ll often come across fascinating objects by the roadside that are worth a photo stop.

Rost in freier Natur

The Sunbeam—originally a Hillman—has likely been gracing the roadside as a flowerpot for longer than many would care for. But even such “sculptures” have their place, as they skillfully blend nature and technology. To make room for the plants to grow, the roof was rolled up like the lid of a can.

Rund zu rund – Verkaufsstand à la Käfer

The car also makes a great sales stand. In the canton of Aargau, for example, there’s a VW Käfer packed to the brim with fresh pumpkins. Since the photo shoot just a few hours earlier had featured Japanese cars, the sign aptly read: “Hokkaido/Knirps for vegetable soup”!

Names and ID entries are a matter of luck, or: From the CJ to the XJ

Martin Sigrist

10/08/2026

Endlich ein XJ!

I even think I once spotted my Jaguar in a vehicle registration statistic. After all, it is—or rather, was—one of a kind! Purchased in Toronto in 1985 by a Swiss citizen as a Canadian-spec model, the car cleared customs in Basel in 2001 and was issued the corresponding customs form at that time. In Switzerland, this is simply known as “1320.” If someone asks about a “thirteen-twenty” when looking at a car that's for sale but has clearly already been used abroad, they mean nothing other than: “Has the car already cleared customs in Switzerland?”
Well, I received a copy of the document in question along with the car's paperwork. What has always puzzled me, however, is the designation on it: Jaguar CJ2—a Jeep, so to speak. Research has not confirmed that there was ever an internal designation for the XJ in Canada. Conclusion: It was always called the XJ12.

CJ2

The icing on the cake, however, was that the conscientious official at the Department of Motor Vehicles naturally entered this “title” into the vehicle registration certificate as well. So ever since it was registered in Switzerland, a single Jaguar here has been called CJ2 (Civilian Jeep)—just like the first civilian Jeep after World War II. And that somehow—with all due respect to the Jeep!—bothered me.

As fate would have it—a big word—after the supposed loss of my vehicle documents, I wanted to have a duplicate made. That wouldn't be much trouble; all the data is on file at the office, and they issue a new vehicle registration certificate marked “Duplicate.” If the original turns up again, you return the copy to be destroyed.

Serviceheft

On this occasion, I flipped through the car's owner's manual and service booklet, and lo and behold: someone who could have become a doctor had written “85 x J 1 2” in the service booklet—or is that 85 x CJ2? The customs officer apparently used this as “inspiration” for what to call that “Silver-Sand”-painted thing out there in the duty-free warehouse.

I asked the officer to correct the duplicate and expected a big fuss. He briefly stepped away to consult a colleague; I used the time to rummage through my documents— —and found the original along with the emissions test — and was delighted when the man returned to his seat behind the counter. He proceeded to tear up the application form and—my newly recovered vehicle registration certificate! He dryly remarked on what the customs officer must have been thinking and, shortly thereafter, handed me a corrected, standard vehicle registration certificate—not a duplicate—for a Jaguar XJ 12!
The cost, according to the exact words from behind the counter: “Civil servant errors shouldn't cost anything!”
Kudos to the Zurich Motor Vehicle Department—which, by the way, is just a few steps away from where the photo below was taken at the last Albisgütli Classic Cars and Bikes event.

What has been your experience? Are there incorrect entries elsewhere as well—and were they corrected quickly and easily?

XJ 12 als XJ 12

Driving through Brussels in a Testarossa …

Wolfram Hamann

10/07/2026

Ferrari Testarossa as a Taxi (© Autoworld Brussels)

Bruno von Rotz, editor-in-chief of *Zwischengas*, recently shared his impressions of Paris , a city where life moves at a slower pace. Brussels, too, is a low-emission zone with a standard speed limit of 30 km/h, and bicycles are the preferred mode of transportation. An unusual initiative by Autoworld Brussels therefore fits perfectly into this context.

The museum is celebrating its 40th anniversary these weeks and is taking the public along for the ride—quite literally. It's a truly cool idea to temporarily set three cars from the museum's collection free and put them to use as taxis.

So a few days ago, a Cadillac limousine that once belonged to the Belgian royal family, a Ford Mustang, and a Ferrari Testarossa rolled out of the magnificent museum hall and picked up unsuspecting passengers who had ordered a “regular” taxi.

Just imagine for a moment that you had the chance to be driven to the Atomium in Sonny Crockett's (Miami Vice) official car… This short video shows the taxi passengers' delighted surprise at these very special taxis, and we didn't want to keep it from our readers…

Start early … with responsibility

Ulli Safferling

10/06/2026

Successful motorsports careers often begin in karting. That’s why the report from the Disciplinary Commission (DK) of Auto Sport Schweiz in the chapter on karting reads so dramatically: “Emily Hunkeler has violated … applicable ASS regulations. … The Puffo training license … is revoked effective immediately. … The license revocation or suspension (until December 31, 2027) … will be filed with the FIA.”

Kartsport ab 5 Jahren?

What happened? Emily had participated in a karting competition at the “T4 Tillotson Euro Cup, Bambino Category” event in May 2026 using a Puffo training license that was not permitted for that event. In addition, a kart was used that was significantly more powerful than permitted under the training license. The person responsible for this—her legal guardian, Markus B.—is noted in the decision: The Disciplinary Committee expressly states that “Emily Hunkeler, at the age of five, is not capable of reading and understanding the current regulations.”

Quite apart from the question of whether a five-year-old is mature enough—not only physically but also mentally—for a racing kart—at historic karting events, the minimum age is 15 for safety reasons— who can explain to her that she didn’t do anything wrong, but is no longer allowed to race officially for a whole year? And why is a parent or guardian allowed to send their child onto the track at their own discretion, without anyone checking the license or the kart? The 2,000-franc fine that has now been imposed will likely not stop him from letting the child practice on training tracks until 2028.

Leidenschaft braucht Sicherheit

When karting was invented in California 70 years ago, only adults drove. It wasn’t until after Michael Schumacher’s career that micro (Puffo) karts were introduced in the 1990s for children, who are allowed to participate in races starting at age eight. Rules are not meant to be a nuisance, but rather lifesavers, as the DK emphasizes in its decision: “The license was revoked to protect the minor. ... Deviating from the technical specifications of the Puffo category posed a high risk to the child.”

It seems someone here didn’t understand that—or chose to ignore it out of misguided ambition. It’s a risk that isn’t borne by him, but by the young driver, who hasn’t yet grasped just how dangerous passion can be. Someone needs to explain this to her as soon as possible—preferably not her legal guardian.

Convertible driving remains popular (Question of the month)

Bruno von Rotz

10/05/2026

Frage des Monats 284: Fahren Sie noch gerne Cabriolet

The sweltering summer made it difficult for many convertible owners to enjoy their open-top cars. So the top stayed down in many cases, while the air conditioning—where available—ran full blast. Or the convertible just stayed at home altogether. Among new cars, the convertible is already a dying breed, much as it was back in the 1970s.

But is the impression that drivers have grown tired of convertibles accurate—and does it hold true especially for classic car owners? We wanted to find out more and asked “Zwischengas” readers the “Question of the month”: Do you still enjoy driving a convertible?

And the responses from the approximately 380 survey participants were clear: 83.4% still enjoy driving convertibles.

Only 7.1% have lost or reduced their enthusiasm for driving a convertible.
Another 6.1% stated that they’ve never actually enjoyed driving a convertible.

And 3.4% didn’t know how to answer—perhaps because they simply adapt to the weather or enjoy driving in a closed convertible?

But the clear majority still enjoys convertibles.

Here’s how the responses look in a graph:

Auflösung der Frage des Monats 284: Fahren Sie noch gerne Cabriolet?

And we’ve already put out the next “Question of the week.” It is: How much artificial intelligence is acceptable?

Of course, you can also read the results of all nearly 300 “Questions of the week and of the month” to date in the topic channel .

Long live the difference!

Martin Sigrist

10/04/2026

C'est l'apéro!

End of the season? Not a chance! After a few intense weeks filled with photo shoots, travel, and lots of adventures, I don’t feel like summer is over and things are about to calm down. The rather spontaneous idea of driving a car I’d bought at an auction from England to Switzerland under my own power led to my fourth trip to England this year. You’ll be able to read about how it all turned out here soon.

Auto und mehr Apero Greyfriars Sext aus England

Then I was back once again with the Amis de la Romandie at the British Classic Car Meeting in the picturesque little town of Saint-Prex—not quite England, but almost, and the report is coming soon! The most important insight: “Les Romands” are simply cut from a different cloth than we German-speaking Swiss. And here at Zwischengas, we report far too little on what feels like the other 50 percent of the Swiss classic car scene—mind you, even though French-speaking Switzerland makes up only about a quarter of the country. The scene on the other side of the famous “Röstigraben”—the language divide between German and French—is extremely active and diverse. And while bratwurst and beer are the culinary highlights where we’re from, “chez les Romands” it’s all about the apéro.

In Saint-Prex, hosted by the British Automobile Society, that meant plenty of white wine, cheese, meat pâté, and Vin Mousseux. Or Gugelhupf with bacon and even more Champagne at a friend’s house. All this was accompanied by friendly conversation in a mix of French from our side and German from our French-speaking classic car friends. In moments like these, it becomes clear once again that our small country is a cultural melting pot that brings together the French-speaking and German-speaking worlds—and, importantly, fuses them together.

Fizzy Wien und Specki Kuchen

Anyone wondering why Swiss automotive topics feel different from German or Austrian ones will find the answer not only in the fact that we Swiss haven’t managed to establish a significant automotive industry. It is primarily the French influence. And that’s easy to explain: The automobile clearly made its way into Switzerland from west to east via our minority, the Romands. In the early days of the automobile, when the “Concordat of the Cantons” first regulated automobile traffic, half of all cars in Switzerland were found in a single city: Geneva, the country’s westernmost city. Later, the annual new car models also poured into the country via Geneva, at the Geneva Motor Show. In addition, most of the major brands had their Swiss headquarters in Geneva.

Lätschgesicht-Besteck-Trümidüü

Anyone who wants to understand the Swiss character—which is also evident in the way the country treats historic automobiles—should be aware of this. Talking and writing about automobiles in this country has always been a matter of proficiency in French—and a willingness to accept the two cultural influences that the country unites within itself.

Today, the Motor Show is a thing of the past, and apart from Mazda and Honda (at least), no major importer is based in Geneva anymore. The Swiss automotive world has become more German. This makes it all the more wonderful that our Romands are throwing themselves into classic cars with even greater enthusiasm—not as a minority, but as a wonderful alternative. True to the motto: “Vive la différence!”—long live the difference!

Sunlight, water, and a car to boot

Martin Sigrist

10/03/2026

Alvis in Saint Prex

We don't know why Swiss coachbuilder Hermann Graber exhibited a four-door car at the Alvis booth—rather than at his own booth—at the 1963 Geneva Motor Show. What we do know is that this car was the perfect fit for our new annual Zwischengas magazine, which is dedicated to four-door models. Better yet, we also had Graber's two-door model available for comparison—fittingly, the chassis that followed directly after the sedan, bearing the corresponding number from the British small-series manufacturer.

Vergleich Vier- und Zweitürer

We chose the small town of Saint-Prex on Lake Geneva as the location for the photos—a place where you can still reach the lake directly without much hassle and where you can expect a bit of Western Swiss nonchalance when it comes to photographing a car on a walking path for pedestrians and cyclists. (The photos here were taken with the author's cell phone camera...) It's no coincidence that Saint-Prex, of all places, has a somewhat higher tolerance for historic British cars; after all , on the day this blog is published —October 3, 2026—the British Classic Car Meeting is taking place right there.

It is the largest gathering of its kind on the continent and, after being forced out of Morges, was welcomed with great joy and gratitude by the neighboring town of Saint-Prex.

Presumably, an Alvis will make it to the gathering once again, though not this one, whichis part of Christoph Grohe's inventory for sale in Féchy —another town in the region, which, by the way, is known for its wonderful wines. However, the four-door model will make a grand appearance in the upcoming 2027 issue of Zwischengas magazine (sorry, german-only!), where we'll feature it—professionally photographed by our good colleague Daniel Reinhard—after we've staged it in Saint-Prex amid the very best fall weather. By the way: Our professional photographer also knows how to handle backlighting—unlike me, the amateur photographer!

The Authenticity of Photographs

Bruno von Rotz

10/02/2026

Owen Sedanca (AI generated)

A little known, one-of-a-kind car drives through the evening streets of Paris, with the Eiffel Tower clearly visible in the background. But the photo isn't authentic. That's because the Owen Sedanca shown in the auction catalog wasn't actually driving in the pictures—it was photographed stationary in a warehouse.

Of course, the dynamic shot in the evening light is much more appealing, but it's simply less authentic.

Peugeot 203 (AI generated)

Another seemingly authentic image shows a Peugeot 203 in evening traffic in rainy Paris in the fifties. This image, too, is a fake, generated by “artificial intelligence.”

The original image looked much more static and, frankly, less attractive; it was taken for an auction. A little AI, a little “prompting,” and suddenly the Peugeot is transported back in time. The fact that the steering wheel is now black instead of white probably doesn't bother anyone.

In both cases, at least, very little manipulation was done to the car itself. But “artificial intelligence” can do much more than that. For example, it can turn a one-of-a-kind car into a radical restomod.

Owen Sedanca "Restomod" (generated by AI)

And AI can do even more. It can also bring cars to life that never actually existed. Or it can place cars in settings where they've never been. The technology is already quite good at handling reflections. And the speed at which the technology is improving is breathtaking. Not long ago, we laughed at AI-generated photos where the steering wheel was “mounted” in front of the back seats—that's ancient history now. Soon, it will be nearly impossible to distinguish seventy-year-old photographs from newly generated images—if that isn't already the case today. There will then be virtually no limits to the imagination, making it all the more difficult to distinguish what is historically accurate and verified from what is completely or partially invented.

How acceptable are such AI-generated photos, which are entertaining and aesthetically pleasing but not authentic? We've formulated a “Question of the month” on this topic, where Zwischengas readers can share their opinions…

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