WöRTHERSEE GTI TREFFEN IS DEAD - BUT VOLKSWAGEN HAS A PLAN CALLED GTI COMING HOME
Way, waaaaay back in 1981 a group of Volkswagen fanatics had themselves a small meet-up in the Austrian town of Reifnitz, which is situated on the banks of the amazingly picturesque Wörthersee lake. The following year a few more people joined them, and the year after that a few more - rinse and repeat. By the time Volkswagen launched the Mk7 GTi, the event had grown to amass crowds of in excess of 100 000 people turning the usually sedate town into a mad frenzy of the coolest modified Volkswagen and Audi cars from all over Europe. There are of course loads of other cars that make the trek too, but since 1997 Volkswagen used the event to showcase the latest and greatest cars and tech under the Wörthersee GTI Treffen banner and that’s why there are more VAG cars than the others. During the week-long event, attendees have the opportunity to test-drive new models and get up close and personal with new and old Volkswagen products. The event is comprised of many different facets including a concert, a massive show and shine competition and an amazing parade through the town that sees the narrow streets packed with stunning cars. But the event is no more. With a Covid break, the town has decided that the event doesn’t align with its environmental policies and basically, they don’t want masses of modified cars spewing their exhaust fumes throughout the town for a week. 2022 was the last time Wörthersee GTI Treffen would ever take place.
The Wörthersee GTI Treffen was ridiculously popular and a brilliant marketing tool for Volkswagen, which is why the German automaker has come to the rescue. From 2024 the event will resume at the home of Volkswagen in Wolfsburg near the massive Volkswagen plant. The new event is called GTI Coming Home and will welcome enthusiasts and fans of Volkswagen from around the world. That’s right, Volkswagen has decided to continue this tradition in Wolfsburg from next year and in addition to vehicle presentations, stage shows and club meets, there will be many other interesting events and surprises for GTI enthusiasts. The areas and infrastructure in Wolfsburg offer ideal conditions to welcome large numbers of visitors and their cars. Volkswagen is aiming to make Wolfsburg the new home of the GTI fan community. “Our GTI fans are of great importance to Volkswagen and that's why the exchange with them is very dear to us," says Imelda Labbé, Member of the Board of Management for Sales, Marketing and After Sales at Volkswagen Passenger Cars. "For this reason, after the GTI Meeting at Lake Wörthersee was unfortunately cancelled, we decided pretty quickly to offer the GTI fan community in Wolfsburg a new home for the event. When planning the event, we also want to take into account the ideas of the fans, because it should above all be a meeting for them. Accordingly, we will certainly be able to offer some highlights and surprises in the coming year." There’s usually a bunch of South African visitors to the show, and we reckon there will be record numbers headed over to Germany next year. As the longest-running judge of the biggest Volkswagen gathering in the southern hemisphere, the Wörthersee GTI Treffen was a bucket list event, and that’s now transferred to the GTI Coming Home event. Maybe Volkswagen SA will help make some dreams come true.
Take a look at the YouTube video that shows off just about all of the action and amazing cars at the last Wörthersee GTI Treffen to ever take place at the picturesque lakeside town, be prepared to strap in though because this video is a mere FIVE hours long: Wörthersee 2022 Aftermovie | SC&DC Sports cars and diecast Channel
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