Last Sunday, Bangkok’s Impact Speed Park welcomed over 500 Porsches from throughout the brand’s vibrant 75-year history for Das Treffen 8. Not only was this year’s edition of East Asia’s premier Porsche celebration extra special thanks to Porsche’s 75th anniversary, 60 years of the 911, and 30 years of Porsche Thailand, but it also saw the event’s largest ever number of attendees congregate to share their love of all things Porsche.
With so many significant anniversaries relating to the Porsche brand this year, it’s no surprise that the chosen theme for Das Treffen 8 was ‘Feiertag’ or ‘Celebration Day’. And what would a Porsche celebration be without the unveiling of a selection of breath-taking special editions? One of the festival’s biggest reveals was seven 911 Carrera GTS ‘30 Years Porsche Thailand Edition’ cars, each inspired by the different colours of the week in Thai culture. Signal Yellow, Rubystar, Signal Green, Pastel Orange, Riviera Blue, Ultraviolet, and Fire Red editions of the 911 Carrera GTS each correlate to days of the week from Monday to Sunday respectively, allowing any die-hard Thai Porsche fans to perfectly match their ride to their calendar.
Das Treffen 8’s other big reveal came in the form of 718 Spyder ‘000’ or ‘Triple Zero’, an exquisitely curated tribute to the Carrera GT masterminded by Pete Stout and Alex Palevsky, the duo behind 000 Magazine. The Spyder ‘000’ consists of a package of specific exterior and interior design elements, including irrisistible Ascott Brown leather for the interior and amazing exterior shades such as GT Silver, Gentian Blue Metallic, AI Black, or UO Arctic Grey. Porsche Thailand also brought their own selection of automotive heroes, including a 992-generation 911 GT3 upgraded with Manthey Racing performance parts, and the AAS Motorsport 911 GT3 R, which has been racing in the Thailand Super Series this year.
Another highlight that was near and dear to us at Classic Driver was the Curvistan ‘Trailer Living Room’ created by photographer and editor extraordinaire Stefan Bogner. The Curves ‘Living Room’ was the perfect place to browse the latest editions of Curves Magazine, while admiring the Jet Black Carrera GT and Kelly Green Curves-sponsored classic 911 parked just outside.
Of course, we haven’t even mentioned the hundreds of star cars driven to the event by the record turnout of attendees, among which we spotted everything from first-generation Cayennes to the increasingly attractive 987-generation Cayman S. However, one of our personal favourites was a 996-generation RUF RGT, a serious rocket ship that combines raw pace and rarity in equal measure.
However, none of this would have been possible without the dedication and hard work of Sihabutr Xoomsai, better known as ‘Tenn’, and his team. What started as a small and intimate gathering of like-minded Porsche fans has now evolved into one of the most vibrant Porsche celebrations on the planet, and one that still manages to incorporate the amazing culture of East Asia for a truly unmissable experience.
Reflecting on another smash-hit edition of Das Treffen, Peter Rohwer, Managing Director of Porsche Thailand, commented: "Throughout this marvellous 30th anniversary year, we are proud to have shown that Porsche has found its way into the hearts of the Thai people, and likewise, Thailand has found its way into the heart of Porsche. The celebrations wrap up at the largest-ever Das Treffen – a perfect reflection of the growing community of Porsche fans here in Thailand.”
Despite having attended so many incredible events ourselves this year, we can’t help but experience serious FOMO after missing out on such an incredible display of Porsche passion, so we’re already planning how we can attend next year’s edition of Das Treffen. Until then, though, we’ll just have to savour these fabulous images from Stefan Bogner and Kai Hartmann as the year draws to an end.
Photos by Stefan Bogner and Kai Hartmann
