The Werd – A Swimming Island Made of Scrap Cars

07/04/2026

Tognazzo—the name keeps cropping up whenever you’re dealing with old or even ancient cars in Switzerland. Just the other day, while doing some research, I came across the name again on a SMVC (Swiss Motor Veterans Club) plaque attached to a dashboard. But first things first—since the weather is supposed to stay warm, let’s start by thinking about a refreshing swim.

Zurich has a cozy swimming island in the middle of the Limmat: the Werdinsel, home to the Au river bath in Zurich-Höngg. A former spinning mill and an old mill, now beautifully restored, serve as reminders that the river’s water once served economic purposes rather than recreation. Back then, it would never have occurred to anyone to swim in the Limmat. Today, things are quite different; the area is a wonderful place for relaxation and recreation.

In 1928, auto mechanic and driving instructor Viktor Tognazzo bought the island and set up a car scrapyard in and around the buildings of the former spinning mill. It was one of the first facilities of its kind in Switzerland. Tognazzo didn’t stop at simply dismantling and selling the parts. By systematically organizing the parts on storage racks, sorted by make, the site soon became the go-to destination for anyone repairing a car that had long since outlived the typical lifespan of automobiles at the time. Back then, hardly anyone kept their car for ten years or more.

Owning a car was a sign of prosperity; owning an old car was a sign of stinginess and miserliness. For unlike today, when a classic car can be a testament to class, taste, and a decidedly anti-consumerist attitude—in addition to all the other good reasons to drive a classic—the public assumed that a car owner, given the running costs that arise regardless of the car’s age, was financially capable of affording a newer model.

For Tognazzo, however, these cars not only provided his livelihood but also represented a constant fascination with the technology he admired. Thanks to Tognazzo’s early start, many automobiles from Switzerland’s rich early automotive history have been preserved.

This is especially true of the work done by Viktor’s son, Arturo. Under his leadership in “autoverwertung”—a term that didn’t even exist back then—the first historic automobiles in Switzerland were restored, and awareness was raised that the heritage of road mobility needed to be protected. In 1957, Arturo Tognazzo was one of the co-founders of the Swiss Motor Veterans Club (SMVC), the first association of its kind for historic vehicles.

However, the Werdinsel became a thorn in the city’s side due to the growing stockpile of stripped-down cars. As early as the 1950s, criticism began to mount over the “unsightly” appearance of the scrap heap surrounding the building. For reasons unknown, Zurich managed to purchase the island from Arturo Tognazzo in 1958. This was accompanied by a contract guaranteeing operations until 1971. After that, Tognazzo was to step down and clear the site. However, it took another ten years before this was finally accomplished. Today, nothing remains to bear witness to this place, where an important milestone in the Swiss classic car movement was set—possibly even the very first.

Tognazzo’s influence, however, lives on. Some parts are now stocked by other suppliers, and even more are found in cars that are still in operation around the globe.

In 1971, *Automobil Revue* reported on the impending closure