Classic Cars

Concours of Cool 2026: Character trumps chrome

Imagine a McLaren F1, a Porsche 911 GT1, a Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR and a Lamborghini Diablo GT1 all gathering as show cars at a car event. And in the competition? A 150-horsepower Chevrolet El Camino, which does the weekly run to the bakery, takes the prize. Welcome to the Concours of Cool. Last Saturday, Paul Stalmann and Max Paulus hosted the event for the second time at the Drivers & Business Club Germany site in north Munich, confidently living up to their slogan ‘Coolness over Class’.

A classic concours is all about value, originality and immaculate condition. At the Concours of Cool, character counts. "Coolness means, among other things, authenticity, relaxation and a reduction to the essentials," says Stalmann. "But it also has a rebellious component." This is exactly what a jury was looking for - and had plenty to do.

The GT1 icons of the late 1990s formed, so to speak, the exclusive supporting programme organised by the event organisers. The main field was then dominated by classic cars, whose appeal cannot be measured in horsepower or auction prices. Three of them, which could hardly be more different, finished right at the top of the competition.

Chevrolet El Camino
First place and therefore "King of Cool": an El Camino, built in 1985, in Nardo grey. The story behind it is almost as good as the car itself. Stalmann happened to see the car parked on the side of the road in Munich, immediately pulled over and stuck his business card under the windscreen wiper. The owner actually got in touch and accepted the invitation to the Concours of Cool. Best of all, he drives the car every day.
Nissan Fairlady 240Z
Second place: a Nissan Fairlady 240Z from 1973, completely restored by Stalmann himself. A beauty that is "driven instead of locked away", as he emphasises. Only the dashboard is still in "coming soon" status, as much honesty he allowed to prevail.
Porsche 944
Third place: a Porsche 944, built by its owners into a track tool. The vehicle can be experienced on road trips to Monaco or the Villa d'Este, as well as on the racetrack - and on the way there on its own wheels.

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