Luftgekühlt Gathers An Unprecedented Lineup of Porsche Classics
Luftgekühlt is German for “air-cooled,” but it’s also the name of one of the coolest Porsche gatherings in the U.S.
What do you do when you can’t quite find a car meet that suits your needs? While the obvious solution may be to keep looking, another option is to simply make your own. Incidentally, that’s how Luftgekühlt began. It’s a series of events over the span of a handful of days in California and features a curated list of the most historically significant air-cooled Porsche models. From basic 911s all the way to the Nurburgring record braking 914/6 GT Lufthansa, there’s more than enough to blow your mind on these hallowed grounds.
Patrick Long is currently the only Porsche factory racing driver hailing from the United States. Incidentally, he is also the creator of Luftgekühlt. According to his website, Long’s desire for an air-cooled Porsche gathering to this scale and pedigree was left unfulfilled. So, he set out to make it himself. Now, having just concluded its eighth event at the beginning of October 2022, Luftgekühlt is one of the most noteworthy Porsche events in the world.
You Won’t See Another Gathering of These Porsches
Perhaps the most enticing part of Luftgekühlt is the sheer density of rare Porsche vehicles. Aside from the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart, you’d struggle to find another assembly of these iconic and rare Porsche vehicles. From extremely early models to some of the earliest variants of the legendary RS series of road-going racecars, this remarkable event has no stone left unturned. Virtually every page of a theoretical “iconic Porsches” coffee table book could be filled with a single day of photos taken at a Luft event.
The event began on Wednesday, October 5th, with an early morning meetup known as “Rise and Shine.” Following that event, Friday saw the pre-party event for Luft 8. Then, throughout the weekend, an ensemble of venues took host to Luft 8 Porsche gatherings. Luft 8 started events as early as 6 AM and ended them as late as 9 PM. Certainly, there was no shortage of time available for checking out these fantastic cars.
Overall, if you’re a Porsche enthusiast, you should absolutely put Luftgekühlt on your calendar for next year. This especially rings true for those particularly interested in air-cooled cars. However, if you have a passion for Porsche, you’ll likely take to the idea that it doesn’t really matter whether you’re an air-cooled or water-cooled kind of fan. Luftgekühlt offers a must-not-miss opportunity to get up close and personal with some pure-bred icons.
What we’re saying is; you don’t want to miss it.
Photos for Rennlist by Moneeb Nain