• Each car had its time under the spotlight. All photos courtesy Volkswagen
    Each car had its time under the spotlight. All photos courtesy Volkswagen
  • Members of the GCC clubs show off their cars.
    Members of the GCC clubs show off their cars.
  • The cars from the Middle East on their own stand.
    The cars from the Middle East on their own stand.
  • Those would be go-faster stripes, then.
    Those would be go-faster stripes, then.
  • That one might have been left outside slightly longer than intended.
    That one might have been left outside slightly longer than intended.
  • Even the old-timers got a look in.
    Even the old-timers got a look in.
  • Petrol takes a back seat in VW's ID R Pikes Peak racecar.
    Petrol takes a back seat in VW's ID R Pikes Peak racecar.
  • GTIs line the town's streets at the event.
    GTIs line the town's streets at the event.
  • An entrant shows the speed of his vehicle.
    An entrant shows the speed of his vehicle.
  • Visitors survey one of the GCC entries, a car with a design based on Polynesian tattoos.
    Visitors survey one of the GCC entries, a car with a design based on Polynesian tattoos.

Motoring

Wörthersee Treffen 2019: Gulf Volkswagen fanatics join the Euro horde

GCC car club members linked up with like-minded individuals from across the globe in a celebration of automotive mayhem

Simon Wilgress-Pipe
Simon Wilgress-Pipe

June 21, 2019

  • English
  • Arabic

Volkswagen fanatics from the Middle East made their annual pilgrimage to an Alpine town to show off their cars and give the local wildlife an earful of souped-up engine noise.

They joined similarly motor-minded individuals at the Wörthersee Treffen event in Austria in a celebration of all things connected with GTIs.

Members of clubs from Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Oman presented an eight-car line-up to devotees from Europe, Australia, China, Malaysia, Canada, South Africa and the US.

The event dates back in 1982, when a small group of enthusiasts first met in Wörthersee to show off their motors, but since then the gathering has become an essential date in the calendar for aficionados of the VW brand.

Volkswagen board member Jürgen Stackmann commended the Gulf attendees on their commitment to the GTI cause, calling Dub Drive GCC, the Middle East’s largest Volkswagen caucus, a benchmark event.

“Having so many clubs from the Middle East at this gathering has been outstanding,” he said.

Anyone similarly VW-obsessed will be happy to find out Dub Drive GCC 2020 will be taking place in Abu Dhabi on February 8-9 next year.

Volkswagen