LUFTGEKÜHLT 6

Dean Powers December 30, 2022 All Feature Vehicles

The Universal Studios back lot displays air-cool center stage

Luftgekühlt is a celebration of the air-cooled Porsche. The event showcases the entire history of air-cooled Porsches, beginning with the pre-A 356, up to the 993 model of 1998.

Each year a unique location in Southern California is chosen to host this event. This year it was the Universal Studios back lot who played host. The event was created by LeMans race winner Patrick Long and creative director Howie Idelson. In just 6 brief years since it’s inception, the Luftgekühlt brand has really taken off. They have even taken the brand overseas, with shows in England and Germany earlier in the year. They manage to take a carefully-curated collection of historically significant or interesting cars, both street and race, and stage them in very different locations. Previous events have included a lumberyard, a brewery, and a furniture manufacturer. The events have a very laid-back atmosphere which is probably induced by the locations that are chosen.

I was very excited when the location for Luftgekühlt 6 was announced as Universal Studios back lot. I think everyone wants to know what it is like to be on a real movie set and I wasn’t disappointed once I got in. It did take over an hour of waiting before we were able to get on to the shuttle bus, but it was well worth the wait once we got to the back lot.

There were 375 or so vintage Porsches spread out across the back lot that were displayed beautifully. The western street featured some fine race machinery including a 962, 908 and Carrera 6. Further up the road was Mexican Plaza area where most of the off-road cars were staged, a few were dusty and dirty, and one with tracks on the rear – in lieu of wheels. Some of the more refined cars were staged on New York street in what looked like a traffic jam. There was an indoor display of some vintage race cars featuring a 917/30, 917/10 and a 917 P/A Can-Am car along with a very original 550 Spyder with a beautiful patina. Other notable race machinery displayed around the event was a beautiful Gulf liveried 917K staged in front of the Western Theatre, just down the street from that was the LeMans winning 936 in Jules livery. The gathering also featured several 935’s, a recently restored 934 Turbo RSR and a few 959s. One of my personal favorites was the 1952 Glockler-Porsche with its funky gull wing side windows and Swiss cheese wheels.

There were 375 or so vintage Porsches spread out across the back lot…

You never knew what you were going to see around the next corner. Just when you thought you had seen it all you would find, another little street with cars meticulously staged, like a diorama somebody had spent hours on perfecting. There was such a great variety of cars from the old dust-covered 356 barn-find, to the museum-quality 936. With the diversity of backdrops the cars were staged in, there was something here for everybody. Whether you like street cars or race cars, restored or un-restored, it was all here, in an incredible setting.

I don’t know how the organizers can possibly top this location for next year, but I plan on being there to see what sort of Porsche magic they create.